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Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Thu Nov 27, 2014 2:12 am
by fierydemon
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Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 6:52 am
by fierydemon
Could someone kindly recommend colleges that are likely to accept me? Like I said, I have no dreams of making it to any big names. Thank you.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 1:45 pm
by Mathwhiz25
People can't really tell you which universities you should apply to and which ones are likely to accept you. There are no uniform criteria that every university use. I have been using search engines to see what universities are offering. If I am interested, I would apply to their program and hope that I am accepted. Some people with very high qualifications are still not accepted by some universities.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 1:51 pm
by pyfgcr
Are you hoping to keep working in algebraic geometry? There are many good algebraic geometers and algebraic geometry groups at places that aren't among the usual elite schools, though I don't know the places ranked 150-200 very well. Off the top of my head, you can consider schools like Stony Brook, Notre Dame, Utah, Georgia, WUSTL, Illinois-Chicago, UCSD, Texas A&M, Rutgers, Colorado, Colorado State, Boston College, Northeastern, Idaho, Missouri (of course some of these are very competetive) There are also places strong in commutative algebra that are worth looking at, e.g. Kansas, Kansas State, and Nebraska -- these I don't know much about. These are just places from which I happen to know grad students, far from a comprehensive list! You really have to dig around on faculty lists, I think.

You should also see what places Paranjape suggests! He is somewhat known internationally, at least among algebraic geometers, and will be a familiar name on a recommendation letter. Maybe there is somewhere in the range you want where he has a contact.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 5:28 pm
by bobn
Aim TIFR. If you can get recos from Dipendra, Rajan (and Kapil ofcourse) Go to Harvard.

Else, what is your area of interest? Your GRE score is low. What about your GPA? If Kapil writes a decent letter for you, you can get into Caltech. Ask Kapil about which schools he thinks best for you. He is the right person. (If your GRE score is high 90's, with good letter from Kapil and Subramaniam you can get into 2-3 of Top 15). Try to retake test if you can.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 12:36 pm
by fierydemon
@Bobn- I don't think it works like that. Even if I do aim for TIFR, and should I also procure letters from Dipendra and Kapil, that does not guarantee me a seat in Harvard. A good reco from Kapil does not get me into Caltech either.

India has lots of stalwarts in various fields, all with lots of contacts and influence. Kapil has visited Caltech some times. There are professors who have been visiting faculty at Harvard. That in itself doesn't amount to much. IF you have an awesome profile and good publications, their recommendations may help you get in. That is about it.

I am a mechanical engineering student from BITS Pilani. My CGPA as of now is 6.39/10. I know Mechanical engineers from IIT Kharagpur with a mich better CGPA, original proofs of important theorems, 95 percentile subject GRE score, etc, who could not get into the shadiest of places in the US or Europe.

Getting a PhD position is a lot more difficult than you're making it out to be, I think.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:34 pm
by bobn
>>should I also procure letters from Dipendra and Kapil, that does not guarantee me a seat in Harvard.

That does. (don't exclude Rajan).

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:48 pm
by fierydemon
@Bobn- Could I please know your credentials? Are you a current PhD student? Are you at TIFR? I do not need any personal details. It is just that sweeping statements become more credible once the person making them can genuinely claim to know more than the readers.

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 1:56 pm
by bobn
edited...

Re: Math PhD college recommendations

Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 11:14 pm
by fierydemon
Haha. Well....not much to say after that. Which institute in India are you from? Don't feel obliged to reply if you're not comfortable about revealing any details.