2018 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

whatstheprobability · Post by **whatstheprobability** » Tue Oct 03, 2017 10:06 am

Code: Select all

[b]Undergrad Institution:[/b] (School or type of school (such as Big state/Lib Arts/Ivy/Technical/Foreign (Country?))
[b]Major(s):[/b]
[b]Minor(s):[/b]
[b]GPA:[/b]
[b]Type of Student:[/b] (Domestic/International (Country?), Male/Female?, Minority?)

[b]GRE Revised General Test:[/b]
[b]Q:[/b] xxx (xx%)
[b]V:[/b] xxx (xx%)
[b]W:[/b] x.x (xx%)
[b]GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:[/b]
[b]M:[/b] xxx (xx%)

[b]TOEFL Score:[/b] (xx = Rxx/Lxx/Sxx/Wxx) (if applicable)

[b]Program Applying:[/b] (Pure Math/Applied Math/Statistics/Operation Research/Biostatistics)

[b]Research Experience:[/b] (At your school or elsewhere? What field? How much time? Any publications or conference talks etc...)
[b]Awards/Honors/Recognitions:[/b] (Within your school or outside?)
[b]Pertinent Activities or Jobs:[/b] (Such as tutor, TA, etc...)
[b]Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help:[/b] (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)
[b]Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:[/b]

[b]Applying to Where:[/b] (Color use here is welcome)
[u]School[/u] - Program / Admitted/Rejected/Waitlisted/Pending on (date) / Accepted/Declined
[u]School[/u] - Program / Admitted/Rejected/Waitlisted/Pending on (date) / Accepted/Declined
[u]School[/u] - Program / Admitted/Rejected/Waitlisted/Pending on (date) / Accepted/Declined

whatstheprobability · Post by **whatstheprobability** » Tue Oct 03, 2017 12:27 pm

Undergrad Institution: Small liberal arts university in the northeast
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.93 (Cumulative and Major)
Type of Student: DWF

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 164 (87%)
V: 143 (20%)
W: 4 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 540 (<25%) Only submitting where required

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Pure Math Ph.D (Algebra or Algebraic Topology)

Research Experience: Research project in simplicial homology with my advisor (submitted)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Nothing worth mentioning
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked at Mathnasium for 3.5 years, SI for calc I, SI for calc III
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Coming from a small school, I've established strong relationships with all of my recommenders

Applying to Where:
Syracuse - Admitted (2/12) - Declined (3/21)
UConn - Never heard back
Lehigh - Admitted (2/13) - Declined (4/4)
Temple - Waitlisted via email inquiry (3/12)
Drexel - Admitted (2/14) ATTENDING!
CUNY - Never heard back
University of Arkansas - Admitted with fellowship nomination (1/19) - Awarded the fellowship! (2/16) - Declined (4/9)
University of Iowa - Rejected via email inquiry (3/12)
Iowa State University - Admitted (2/2) - Declined (3/22)

Some reflection as of (3/12): First and foremost, I am beyond grateful for receiving five great offers, fully funded with TA-ships as well as the fellowship from Arkansas. It feels amazing to be given that confirmation that all the hard work in undergraduate paid off. I am not yet sure where I will be attending, as my fiancé is still awaiting his admission decisions to PhD programs (not math). I would say that this aspect has been among the most stressful throughout this process since different departments within colleges and universities make their decisions at different times.

As for the application process, my advice to future applicants would be to not stress too much over the subject GRE. I didn't submit my scores to any of the universities I was accepted to. I only sent them to Temple and CUNY. As for CUNY, I attended their open house and they said that they only have twelve or so spots with tuition fellowships only. This means, your tuition is paid but you will have to find a way to earn a living. Although there are apparently adjunct positions available within the CUNY system, it doesn't seem likely that it will be enough to live comfortably on.

Furthermore, I believe having strong connections with my professors was completely invaluable. It also goes to show you that it doesn't matter where you come from. I completed my undergraduate studies at a school you've probably never heard of.

Moral of the story - anything is possible! Good luck to all future applicants!

w4rm4ch1n3 · Post by **w4rm4ch1n3** » Wed Oct 04, 2017 10:26 am

Undergrad Institution: Big College in Texas
Major(s): Mathematics and Economics
Minor(s): None
GPA: Cumulative: 3.62, Math: 3.902, Economics: 3.8
Type of Student: Domestic Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168 (94%)
V: 156 (73%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: Not yet received

Program Applying: Statistics and Operations Research

Research Experience: None
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Scholarships in economics, economics ambassador for my department, problem of the month awardee, integration bee 3rd place finish
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Economics tutor for my university
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: A few grad classes in economics and statistics, I am hispanic (I don't know if that helps anything), I have very good relationships with my recommenders. One recommender has several patents, but I am not entirely sure how pertinent he is in the statistics research scene.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I took my very first calculus class only two years ago, but I am already solving several Putnam problems (5-10) per week for my Putnam problem solving seminar. I think this could show an aptitude for mathematical problem solving

Applying to Where:
Stanford
MIT
Carnegie Mellon
Harvard
Purdue
UPenn
Cornell
SMU
UT Austin

A Note: Since I started pursuing mathematics as a major very late, I have been unable to conduct any research. I am thus relying almost exclusively on my grades and testimonies from my professors to get me into one of these schools. However, many of them have seen my progression from no knowledge about math at all to being capable of solving some very challenging problems in Analysis, Probability, and Calculus. I don't expect to get into many of the schools listed above. Even being admitted to two schools would be fantastic.

rebrobin · Post by **rebrobin** » Wed Oct 04, 2017 11:42 am

Undergrad Institution: Branch campus of a big midwest public university
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Biology, Chemistry
GPA: 3.53, Math: 3.84
Type of Student: Domestic, White, Female

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 163 (84%)
V: 155 (69%)
W: 4.5 (82%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 550 (24%) September 2017
M: 560 (26%) October 2017 (bummed)

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Ph.D Pure Math, interests in discrete math (graph theory)

Research Experience: REU in Graph Theory, currently doing a thesis project with my advisor in algebraic graph theory, already completed my senior capstone research project (in Markov Chains). Did a YMC talk on my REU research. I've done two conference talks on my senior capstone project (one was a MAA section meeting, other was a conference at my university for student research). Submitted two talks for JMM in January. Poster presentation at a graph theory conference coming up.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Departmental award for excellence in mathematics, Award for Outstanding Undergrad Talk at the MAA Section Meeting, Had a full ride scholarship to my university. Dean's List for a couple semesters, other misc scholarships related to chemistry and to my university honors program (which I am a member of).
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Past president of math club, been working in the math lab for two years and have been a Supplemental Instructor for four different math classes. I've also worked as a Lab Assistant for the Chem dept but I'm not sure how relevant that is
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Female, fully confident my rec letters will be great. Two are from my professors who I'm close to, third is from my REU mentor.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I've also presented papers at university student conferences but they're English related (on Shakespeare and things). I've also competed in a bunch of math competitions (although no super-notable performances).

Applying to Where:

Reach:
UI - Urbana Champaign - rejected 2/19/18
Ohio State University ($5 app fee, whaddup) - rejected 3/7
Michigan State University - rejected 2/2/18

Less of a Reach:
Clemson University - poked with email 3/12 - accepted, no mention of funding (4/8) - declined (4/8)
University of Colorado - Denver (Applied Math) - accepted! (3/1) offered $19k (9 month) TA and a visit (3/11) ATTENDING!
Iowa State University - poked with email 3/12 - waitlisted, but encouraged to secure a position at another university, said space was limited in discrete math (3/13) - offered spot in Applied Math program (4/11) - declined (4/11)
George Mason University - poked with email 3/12 - admitted with $22k/year and insurance (3/26) - declined (4/3)

Match/Realistic:
Western Michigan University - accepted! (2/26), asked if still interested in an assistantship (3/20), offered $12.5k (9 months) in letter dated 3/20 - declined (4/3)
University of Memphis - admitted with graduate assistantship ($13.5k over 9 months) (3/20) - declined (4/3)

Additional:
EDGE Program - rejected

I stressed a lot about these applications. My mGRE score was exceptionally terrible, and I felt my application was entirely average. I was expecting only admission to my safety schools. On my visit to CU-Denver, I fell in love with the city and the campus. The discrete math research faculty were all incredibly kind and welcoming, and the grad students seemed comfortable and happy. I come from a small, close knit department, and upon seeing that the atmosphere at Denver was similar, my decision was made. I am very excited for this fall!

MATH2018 · Post by **MATH2018** » Wed Oct 04, 2017 1:06 pm

Undergrad Institution: Big State School
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Statistics and Economics
GPA: 3.74, Math: 3.75
Type of Student: Domestic White Female

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 164 (87%)
V: 155 (69%)
W: 4.5 (82%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: xxx (<30%)

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD

Research Experience: I attended one REU and I am currently researching for my senior honors thesis. Both of these projects are in Topology, and my REU paper is in the process of being published. I have presented 3 times at various math conferences.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Honors Program, Pi Mu Epsilon
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked as a tutor and a TA for the past 3 semesters
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: My letter writers know me fairly well, so I think that will be a strong aspect of my application.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: N/A

Applying to Where:
Indiana University Bloomington-Rejected 3/19/18 (after email inquiry)
UT Austin
UIUC- Waitlisted 2/27/18
Michigan State- Waitlisted 3/1/18
UW Madison - Rejected 2/9/18
University of Minnesota- Waitlisted 3/16/18 (after email inquiry)
Northwestern University -Rejected 2/3/18
University of Michigan -Rejected 2/21/18
University of Iowa -Accepted 2/20/18 ATTENDING
Kansas State University -Accepted 2/13/18

kayiilu · Post by **kayiilu** » Wed Oct 04, 2017 3:56 pm

Undergrad Institution: Well known big state university (well known for mathematics too)
Major(s): Mathematics, Statistics, Finance
Minor(s):
GPA: > 3.9 / 4.0
Type of Student: international asian female

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 169
V: 161
W: 3.5
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: didn't take

TOEFL Score: waived

Program Applying: All applied mathematics PhD, unless indicated otherwise; some programs does not make a distinction, but I indicated in my SOP that I am pursuing the applied mathematics route.

Research Experience: Some research projects in my university; two poster presentations at two conferences
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Excellent academic performance awards
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Math tutor/mentor job for > 3 years, and got promoted for good performance
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Broad interests; other activities, like volunteering and community outreach, and job affiliation to the makers' community; Some independent projects. Strong recommendation letters.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I transferred into Mathematics and Statistics from Finance in my last year of study.

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill - 3/13Withdraw application
North Carolina State University - 1/26Accepted! Fellowship 24K/academic year 3/15Declined
Princeton University - 2/15Rejected
Harvard SEAS - 1/12interview 2/7Accepted! ~3K/month ATTENDING
University of Wisconsin-Madison - 2/9Accepted! Estimated 20K-21K TAship/academic year + 4900 bonus after completing first year 3/27Declined
University of Texas, Austin - 3/12Rejected
University of Illinois at Chicago - 2/15Accepted! 18.8K TAship 3/4Declined
Duke University 3/13Rejected
Arizona State University - 2/20Accepted! No word on funding yet. 2/25Declined
Brown - 2/12Rejected
Cornell - 2/12Rejected
Notre Dame - 3/13Withdraw application
Johns Hopkins - Withdraw application
University of Washington - 2/1Accepted for unfunded Master 2/9Declined
University of Nebraska-Lincoln - 2/14Accepted! 16K TAship + 4K one-year fellowship 3/13Declined
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - Master - 2/23Accepted! 2/25Declined

Good luck everyone!

3/27: Finished making all my decisions! I am extremely grateful to have help/advice from my professors and peers during the application process, and I feel extremely lucky with all my acceptance results. Hope my statistics help for future applicants in applied mathematics. Best of luck!

Rise · Post by **Rise** » Thu Oct 05, 2017 3:27 pm

Undergrad Institution: University of California, Irvine
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.93
Type of Student: Domestic Asian Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97)
V: 162 (91)
W: 4.5 (82)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 820 (82%)

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Pure Math Ph.D

Research Experience: REU, Liberal Arts College, Algebra.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: At least four scholarships, with three being from my school.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Math Club President. Part-time Consulting.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 3 Letter of Recommendations. 2 very strong, 1 good. Several graduate series, one of which is past the Qualifying Exams level.

Applying to:

Dream:
Stanford - Rejected (2/28/18)
Caltech - Rejected (3/07/18)

Reach:
Duke - Rejected (3/13/18)
Northwestern - Rejected (2/21/18)
California, Berkeley - Rejected (2/22/18)
Michigan, Ann Arbor - Rejected (2/28/18)
California, Los Angeles - Rejected (2/28/18)

Match:
Wisconsin, Madison - Accepted (2/9/18)
Illinois, Urbana Champaign - Accepted (2/15/18),
Minnesota, Twin Cities - Accepted (4/25/18)
California, San Diego - Accepted (2/12/18)

Safety:
Washington, Seattle - Rejected (4/13/18)
Boston University - Rejected (3/16/18)
Rutgers - Rejected (4/25/18)

Good luck to everyone else!

Peregrine · Post by **Peregrine** » Thu Oct 05, 2017 7:13 pm

(Deleted the numbers, but I'll keep my final thoughts.)

The first thing I'll say to future applicants is: spread yourself much thinner than I did -- ten universities in total, most Tier I. Another note: this website dramatically overestimates the power of the mGRE. Do your best, of course, but I believe the most weight (at least in my case) was carried by getting good grades in my math courses and having strong letters of recommendation. (Two of my three letter writers said that they haven't written a stronger letter before, so I think the connection to my undergraduate faculty helped in the long run.) Congratulations to those from this year, and good luck to everyone in the future!

HotelPens · Post by **HotelPens** » Sat Oct 07, 2017 1:09 am

Undergrad Institution: Large state school, known for math and proximity to national labs
Major(s): Applied Math
Minor(s): Computer Science
GPA: 3.36, closer to 3.5 in upper-level courses and last 2 years
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 155 (

time ran out on me both parts)
V: 164
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: Not taking

Program Applying: Applied Math PhD

Research Experience: Summer independent study on parallelizing finite differences, national lab research job working on HPC CFD code
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: n/a
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Sysadmin job before current research job, for 3 1/2 years
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: One grad class in progress
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: 3.5 GPA last 2 years

Applying to Where:
Northwestern University - Rejected 1/28
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute - Admitted 2/5 (no mention of funding yet)
University of Utah - Rejected 2/1
Illinois Institute of Technology - Rejected 2/17
University of New Hampshire - Rejected 3/1
Southern Methodist University - Admitted 2/7 TAship with tuition waiver and stipend

EGA · Post by **EGA** » Sun Oct 08, 2017 11:20 am

Undergrad Institution: State University (relatively unkown)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.96 (4.00 in math)
Type of Student: Domestic White Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 167
V: 162
W: 4.5
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 750 (71%)

Program Applying: Pure Mathematics

Research Experience: One prestigious REU, and a year long project at my school. No publications.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Department awards
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA, did a little tutoring, nothing super special.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Several grad classes - Alg. Topology, Alg. Geometry (Schemes), Differential Geometry, Measure Theory, etc... I have also completed research or an independent study with all my letter writers. One of my letters writers is fairly well known.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

Reach Exceeds my Grasp:
Stanford (might as well apply...) Rejected (2/28)
University of Michigan Rejected (2/28)
Cornell Rejected (2/15)
Brown Rejected (2/7)

Reach
University of Illinois (Urb. Champaign) Admitted with funding! (2/15)
University of Washington
University of Minnesota Admitted with funding! (2/20)
Northwestern Admitted! (1/24) with funding! (1/26)
University of Maryland Admitted with funding! (2/23)
University of Wisconsin, Madison Admitted! (2/9) with funding! (2/13)

Match
Notre Dame Admitted with funding! (2/13)
University of Utah Waitlisted (2/9) Withdrew my application
UC Santa Barbara Admitted with funding! (2/1)
University of Oregon Admitted with funding! (1/30)

Fellowships
NSF GRFP

Well, it looks like this wraps up my application process. Despite a pretty low GRE score and coming from an unranked math department, I got into several awesome schools! Good letters work wonders!

roboticbass · Post by **roboticbass** » Fri Oct 13, 2017 3:38 pm

Undergrad Institution: Small Unknown State School in New England
Major(s): Pure Math
Minor(s): Computer Science
GPA: 3.92
Type of Student: DWF

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 167 (98%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: <40%

TOEFL Score: Not applicable

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD (geometric analysis)

Research Experience: Project Leader in the cyber security research center at my school for 2 years - presented my work at a cyber security summit this fall. Also did a research seminar in ring theory with one of my professors. No publications.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List all semesters, Phi Kappa Phi honors society, Convocation Scholar at my school
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Project Leader in cyber security research center
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Female, if that matters. Also my school barely shows up on a map - I doubt most people know it exists, which could help or hurt. Two very strong LoRs. Solid contact and discussion with a prof at WSU as well.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Had an atypical college experience - I graduated HS in 2010 and didn't come to college until 2015. No grad classes (my school doesn't offer them), but took a few interesting upper level courses including Non-Euclidean Geometry and Rings&Modules.

Applying to Where: All Pure Math PhD

University of Washington - Rejected 3/2
University of Oregon - Rejected 1/26
Dartmouth - Rejected 2/6
UC Davis - Pending
UC Boulder - Rejected 2/27
Oregon State - Accepted! 2/13 - still waiting on funding
Washington State - Accepted! - $16,762.50 TA + tuition waiver + health insurance ATTENDING
Portland State - Accepted! - still waiting on funding

lillianmojave · Post by **lillianmojave** » Sat Oct 14, 2017 11:22 am

Undergrad Institution: Big state school in CA- somewhat known for math?
Major(s):Statistics
Minor(s): N/A (Emphasis in Economics)
GPA: 3.72 Cumulative, 3.54 Major
Type of Student: Domestic, Asian, Female

GRE Revised General Test: To take in November
Q: xxx (xx%) Pending
V: xxx (xx%) Pending
W: x.x (xx%) Pending
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics: To take in October
M: xxx (xx%) Pending

TOEFL Score: (xx = Rxx/Lxx/Sxx/Wxx) N/A

Program Applying: Statistics

Research Experience: Independent research - one publication, one presentation, one conference attendance, second independent research project underway - with support from department
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list (all semesters), Academic Scholarship recipient for SAS software conference
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Economic Research Assistant (independent/ not through school), Operations/Data Management associate at wealth management firm
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 2 graduate economic courses (though they're economics they're heavy math courses), Female?, my letters of rec should be extremely strong.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

I'm pretty nervous about applications - I don't feel that my GPA is very strong, and I'm very bad at taking exams (even though I've been studying) I'm not counting on them to really put a gold star on my applications. I want to keep the programs I have somewhat attainable (we all want to get into top programs, so I'm applying anyway).

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)

Reach-Reach

School - UNC - Chapel Hill - Master's (I would like to apply to their PhD program, but I haven't taken Real Analysis, if I take it next semester I might apply to their PhD program )
School - Yale - PhD
School - Stanford - Master's
School - UC Berkeley - Master's

Reach?

School - University of Colorado - PhD
School - George Washington University - PhD
School - University of Connecticut - PhD
School - University of Georgia - PhD
School - Rice University - PhD

Match/ Safety?
School - University of the Pacific - MS Analytics
School - York University - MA
School - CSU East Bay - Master's

Singularity · Post by **Singularity** » Sun Oct 15, 2017 3:24 pm

Don't wanna care.

Turing101 · Post by **Turing101** » Tue Oct 17, 2017 4:31 am

Deleted

embot95 · Post by **embot95** » Wed Oct 18, 2017 2:14 am

Undergrad Institution: State University (relatively unkown)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.92 (4.00 in math)
Type of Student: Domestic White Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 160 (86%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 620 (42%) (Boy.... I really messed this up)

Program Applying: Applied Mathematics

Research Experience: One REU at a top 30 math school, one small 3 week summer project in Electrical Engineering, a semester long project at my institution and just started two new projects this semester. 1 preprint, no publications. 2 Poster Sessions, 3 talks.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: A few (non math-related) scholarships, Dean's List.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Tutoring, Student Instruction, and Grading for the last 2.5 years.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help (or hurt): One grad course in topology, two courses in Abstract Algebra, two courses in Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, and Numerical Analysis.
Applying to Where:

Reach:
Cal Tech Rejected 3/7
UC San Diego Rejected 3/24

Match: (hopefully)
UC Davis - Admitted 1/19
UC Irvine
UC Santa Barbara Admitted 3/7
USC
University of Arizona Admitted 2/7
Washington University

Prime_Idealist · Post by **Prime_Idealist** » Tue Oct 24, 2017 8:58 pm

Undergrad Institution: Big State School. Top 30 math program. Well known for Discrete math and Theoretical CS.
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Psychology. (Have also taken some CS courses, but not enough for a minor)
GPA: 3.90
Type of Student: DWF

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 166 (91%)
V: 162 (91%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 640 (44%)

Program Applying: ACO/Computer Science (Specifically for Theoretical CS)

Research Experience: One REU in discrete mathematics and algorithms (1 AMS presentation, no publications). Ongoing research project with CS faculty member in combinatorics and combinatorial algorithms.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Phi Beta Kappa, Math Honors, Dean's List every semester.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Student Assistant for Calculus II and Intro to Proofs.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 3 graduate courses in combinatorics, algorithms, and cryptography. Attended several workshops with competitive selection processes for undergraduates fully funded, two of which were hosted by IAS. Co-founded and ran a women in math club at my school. Active member of the other math club. Also active in school publications and I do enjoy writing (so I guess that's maybe a small plus in academia?).
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I started majoring in math in my junior year, so that might help explain why my background isn't as strong as some other people's. Hopefully they take that into consideration.

Applying to Where:

Reach-Reach:
Princeton (CS) - Rejected
Cornell (CS) - Rejected
Georgia Tech (ACO)

Reach:
University of Chicago (CS) - Accepted!

UPenn (CS)
Brown (CS)
Harvard (CS) - Rejected
NYU (CS)
Yale(CS) - Wait-listed YOLO. Please turn down your offers if you don't plan on going here for CS guyssss.
Columbia (CS)
Johns Hopkins (CS)

Match(-ish?):
CUNY (CS) - Accepted! They have a very strange system for interviewing students.
Boston University (CS)

artskjid · Post by **artskjid** » Wed Oct 25, 2017 1:08 am

Undergrad Institution: Big State
Major(s): Math & Applied Math
Minor(s): N/A
GPA: 3.80
Type of Student: Domestic Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168 (94%)
V: 159 (83%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: xxx (xx%)

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Pure Math/Statistics/Operation Research

Research Experience: Two independent projects, one poster, one paper in progress
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List, departmental honors
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked as a tutor for a little bit
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Couple of grad classes, very well-known recommenders
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Unrelated volunteer work for many years, significant upward trend in grades over the course of undergrad

Applying to Where:
Carnegie Mellon - ACO
Columbia - IEOR
Cornell - ORIE
Georgia Tech - ACO
Minnesota - Math
MIT - ORC
NYU - Courant
UC Berkeley - Statistics
UCSD - Math
Washington - Math

regularitylemma · Post by **regularitylemma** » Sat Oct 28, 2017 3:39 pm

Undergrad Institution: Foreign (Reputed UK)
Major(s): Maths
GPA: ~3.6/4.0 (high upper-second)
Type of Student: International (Asian studying in UK), Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 169 (99%)
W: 4.5 (82%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 770 (74%) lol this was a disaster

Program Applying: Mix of Pure Maths PhDs, Combinatorics + Algorithms/Optimization PhDs, CS Theory PhDs (I'm interested in combinatorics, graph theory, set systems, etc + their interactions with geometry, additive number theory, CS foundations and theory)

Research Experience: Summer 2016a: coded for applied maths prof at home uni; Summer 2016b: worked with a few other summer students and a prof on more pure areas, coauthor on 1 publication; Summer 2017: worked on discrete geometry in mainland Europe with one more intern - not going to be published but we do have some vaguely interesting new results + supervisor will write a reference
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: I'm on a very selective scholarship at my home uni but that's about it
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Nah, undergrads (even Master's students) aren't allowed to tutor or TA here
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Not much. I'm currently writing my Master's dissertation on some additive combinatorics which I suppose is a small positive point?
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Being in the fourth year of a joint MMath degree the UK, all my courses this year are "grad courses", and in terms of mathematical involvement most of what I did last year would also be "grad courses" in America. [Scare quotes because Master's year students are still basically considered undergrads here.] My grades are not terrible but certainly not impressive, and only one of my referees will be able to comment on my combinatorial work.

Applying to Where:
Oxford - CS Theory DPhil - interviewed, stipend ~15k GBP/20k USD
UIUC - Pure Maths PhD - TA stipend ~20k USD ***ATTENDING***
ETH Zurich - Pure Maths PhD
UCLA - Pure Maths PhD
UCSD - Pure Maths PhD
UCSD - CS Theory PhD
Carnegie Mellon - Maths PhD - Algorithms, Combinatorics, and Optimization (ACO) Program
Georgia Tech - Maths PhD - Algorithms, Combinatorics, and Optimization (ACO) Program
IST Austria - Maths/CS PhD - interviewed
Rutgers - CS Theory PhD - no response
UBristol - Pure Maths PhD - no response
UGA - Pure Maths PhD - no response

In Conclusion:
I only observed what I had more or less expected: even for Tier 1 unis that aren't super elite, getting in is hard without particularly impressive mGRE or GPA (this would be particularly true for internationals). Also, specific connections to professors help, either knowing them and their work well or being very well-aligned with their research focus.

FreddieBiddleBooty · Post by **FreddieBiddleBooty** » Sat Oct 28, 2017 6:04 pm

Undergrad Institution: State School, ranked but low.
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Philosophy
GPA: 3.2
Type of Student: Domestic White Male

Graduate Institution: Same
Major(s): Mathematics
GPA: 4.0

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 163 (84%)
V: 149 (39%)
W: 4.5 (82%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 680 (55%)

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD (Number Theory)

Research Experience: Undergrad: REU in Graph Theory and Noncommutative Algebra (no publication). Did readings in Algebraic Geometry with a post-doc. Grad: Currently working on Master's project in Number Theory. Also doing reading in Arithmetic Geometry with another professor.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 4.0 every semester in Master's so I guess just the Dean's list stuff.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teach Calc classes every semester for my current TA-ship
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 2 rec letters will be very good, 1 will be good, and 1 more I'm not sure about but should be positive. Advisor has some connections with some schools I'm applying to. Had some seminar talks during grad program.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Although I've done only one original research project, my research interests are specific. This is reflected in my SOP, which also mentions faculty for most schools that I'd ideally like to work with (this could hurt or help, not sure).

Applying to Where:
U of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: Waitlisted 2/27 Withdrew
Duke: rejected 3/13
Ohio State: Waitlisted 3/8 rejected 4/23
CU Boulder: Waitlisted 3/8 after inquiring via email rejected 4/30
U of Oregon: rejected 1/31
Dartmouth: rejected 2/6
Emory: rejected 2/5
UC Santa Cruz: rejected 4/24
U of Tennessee Knoxville: Admitted 2/24 - 16k/yr TAship + 5k/yr in fellowships (5 yrs), tuition waiver, health ATTENDING!
Oregon State: Withdrew 3/14

djysyed · Post by **djysyed** » Sat Oct 28, 2017 10:53 pm

Deleted

A Note to Those Applying Next Year
If you keep slacking, I might just take your spot

. No pressure of course.

rfz · Post by **rfz** » Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:07 am

deleted

texasmath · Post by **texasmath** » Mon Oct 30, 2017 1:37 pm

Undergrad Institution: Big state school (Top 15 US math)
Major(s): Pure Mathematics
GPA: 3.9839/4.0 (Major GPA: 4.0/4.0)
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 169 (96%)
V: 161 (88%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 740 (68%)

Program Applying: Pure Math (algebraic topology, low dimensional topology, algebra)

Research Experience: Summer research in algebra/topology/combinatorics with a professor at Michigan. Two papers to be submitted this fall, on which I am one of three coauthors, and I included these in my applications. Participated in Directed Reading Program for two semesters, each of which terminated in a talk at my undergraduate university.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Nothing major, University honors (~ Dean's list) every semester, Distinguished College Scholar (Top 4% of class)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: High school/middle school tutor for a semester, math/science tutor at my university for a semester.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Will have taken 3-5 Graduate classes when I graduate. Two pretty strong letters. One sufficiently strong one.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Switched from Mechanical Engineering to Math during my sophomore year, so I'm a bit of a late-comer. Hopefully this doesn't adversely affect my admissions...

Applying to Where:

Big Reach:
Stanford: Rejected 02/28
Chicago: Rejected 02/08
Northwestern: Rejected 02/21
Michigan: Accepted 02/13 ATTENDING ($20,400 TAship, three $5,000 summer research stipends)
Yale: Rejected 01/10
Columbia: Rejected 02/05
Cornell: Rejected 02/26
Brown: Rejected 02/07

Reach:
Wisconsin: Accepted 02/09 ($21,000 TAship, $2,500 award after completion of first year)
UT Austin: Accepted 02/13 (Informal acceptance to home institution, declined offer)
Duke: Rejected 03/07
UIUC: Waitlisted 02/27 (withdrawn)
Boston College Accepted 02/05 ($24,300 TAship)

Match:
UI Chicago: Accepted 02/15 ($18,800 TAship)
UC Santa Barbara: Accepted 02/01 ($20,000 TAship)

user1287 · Post by **user1287** » Wed Nov 01, 2017 7:53 pm

Undergrad Institution: Private (not prestigious nor well known for math)
Major(s): Mathematics and Physics
Minor(s): Computer Science
GPA: 3.63 (~3.75 in both majors)
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 162 (81%)
V: 153 (61%)
W: 4 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
Not taking

Program Applying: Applied math and mechanical engineering

Research Experience: Two REUs - one in pure math and other in applied. No publications but am continuing to work with my advisor on one of them and will present at JMM. Also independent research in computational physics and volunteer physics research.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Math honor society and special honor society for my class of school.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Physics TA and calc/diff equ tutor
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Attending BSM program
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)
University of Washington - Applied Math - Admitted to unfunded masters (2/1)
University of British Columbia - Math - Rejected (3/14)
Simon Frasier University - Applied Math - Interview (2/19) - Accepted! (2/22)
University of Colorado Boulder - Applied Math -Rejected (2/21)
University of California Santa Cruz - Applied Math - Rejected (2/23)
University of Arizona - Applied Math -
Arizona State University - Applied Math - Accepted! (2/20)
Rice University - Applied Math -
Northwestern University - Applied Math - Rejected (2/5)
University of Notre Dame - Applied Math -
North Carolina State University - Applied Math - Rejected (2/5)
Stony Brook University - Applied Math - Accepted! (2/21)
University of Connecticut - Math -

University of Pennsylvania - Mechanical Engineering -
Duke University - Mechanical Engineering - Rejected (4/11)
University of Santa Barbara - Mechanical Engineering - Rejected (3/7)
University of Southern California - Mechanical Engineering - Rejected

End Note: I am pretty happy with my outcome. I will be attending Simon Fraser. I originally had it as a back up and had Stony Brook pretty high in my preferred order, so I originally thought it'd be a no brainer to go with Stony Brook. But I have to say that I was *very* impressed with Simon Fraser's math department when I visited. They seem to have a very friendly and inviting atmosphere, one also can't beat the beautiful Burnaby/Vancouver area (location was a big factor for me). The graduate students I met with all seemed very bright, they reminded me of the students at my REU programs (which is a good thing). Although I didn't get into a big fraction of the schools that I applied to, I tried my best in choosing programs such that if I got into only one program, I'd be happy with it.

bruins613 · Post by **bruins613** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 5:45 pm

Undergrad Institution: UCLA
Major(s): Math
Minor(s): Specialization in Computing
GPA: 3.91
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 162(91%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 770 (74%)

Program Applying: Some pure combinatorics, mostly Interdisciplinary Math/CS PhD programs, ACO PhD programs, Theoretical CS PhD programs, etc.

Research Experience: High school independent research in combinatorial optimization, chosen as one of five to present work. Very little since then, a major weakness in my application. Currently reading on possible research topics on graph theory and flow problems with a known graph theorist.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: I live on the Dean's List, but that's about it.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I have two years teaching for the Los Angeles Math Circle, the second largest in the country. I've worked for tutoring companies, private schools (as a teacher), and even public schools through the CalTeach program. Through this I've gotten a lot of experience with curriculum development, and I'm planning to attach a sample to my application. I have a large private tutoring clientele from gifted elementary to college level, teaching math, physics and computer science. UCLA doesn't allow undergraduates to TA math classes, but I was a grader for the math department for a year. I also dedicated a lot of time to founding my fraternity, and served many leadership positions while raising membership by 500%, although I don't know how relevant this is.

Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help:

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Advice to applicants: The programs I got into were places where I had a genuine connection to the professor I listed on my application, reached out beforehand to let them know I was applying, and then they hand-picked my application from the pool. I'm sure it's possible to get accepted on a dry application if you have fantastic research experience, but short of that you need to contact them ahead of time. If you're a good fit for the program, the professor will be happy to accept you and offer you funding. In short: spend your time researching specific professors you want to work with and reach out to them ahead of time. Ask them directly if they feel you'd be a good fit for their program and if they would like to work with you. If they say yes, you should have no problem getting in. If they say no, you probably wouldn't have gotten in through listing them on your application anyway.

Applying to Where:
REACH
Stanford CS - Rejected on 2/8/18
Cornell CS - Rejected on 2/8/18
MIT Applied Math - Rejected on 2/12/18
UT Austin CS - Rejected on 1/30/18
UW CS - Rejected on 2/9/18
Brown CS - Rejected on 3/12/18
UC Berkeley CS - Rejected on 3/7/18
Georgia Tech ACO - Rejected on 3/14/18
UCLA CS - (ATTENDING!!!) Accepted with 22.8k per school-year stipend, first summer funding provided, on 3/12/18
Caltech CMS - Pending on (2/20/18)
UCSD Pure Math - Pending on (2/20/18)
Carnegie Mellon ACO - Pending on (2/20/18)
NYU CS - Pending on (2/20/18)

MATCH
UC Irvine CS - Accepted with 20.7k per school-year stipend and 10k one-time Dean's Award on 2/20/18
CU Boulder CS - Accepted with 23.2k per school-year stipend and 4k one-time Departmental Fellowship on 2/24/18
Duke CS - Invited to open house, withdrew application on (2/20/18)
USC CS - Pending on (2/20/18)

runner96 · Post by **runner96** » Sun Nov 12, 2017 6:38 pm

Undergrad Institution: small liberal arts college in the South
Major(s): Math
Minor(s): Environmental Studies
GPA: 3.79
Type of Student: DWF

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 73%
V: 94%
W: 60%
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:did not take

Program Applying: Mostly Applied math

Research Experience: I've done two REUs, both in applied mathematics. I have one publication about modeling in conservation biology. I have attended 4 math conferences presenting various research in applied math. I also did research with a biologist on population ecology which was presented by the biologists at a conference in GA.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: high school valedictorian, commended national merit, "Best Oral presentation in mathematics" at a conference
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: teaching assistant since sophomore year in Calculus, grader since sophomore year, volunteer ecology research assistant
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help:
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I'm going to retake the GRE in a couple weeks

Applying to Where:
University of Kentucky - Applied Accepted with TAship (3/21)
University of Alabama - Accepted (1/26) with funding $18,100/year +$1,800 first summer
University of Arkansas -Accepted (1/19) Fellowship Nomination. (2/16) I received the fellowship!!!ATTENDING!
University of South Carolina - Asked if I was still interested (4/3) I told them I was not
Florida State University - Accepted (2/23) 19k TAship

jhgmath · Post by **jhgmath** » Mon Nov 13, 2017 1:43 pm

Undergrad Institution: Not Great State School
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Economics
GPA: Total: 3.82, Subject: 3.66
Type of Student: DWF

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 164

V: 154
W: 4
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: <30% .... am only applying to schools that don't require it now

Program Applying: Applied and Biomath (Also applying to several economics programs)

does anyone read the part below? i don't really read this part on other people's application profiles...
Research Experience: REU in biomathematics, accepted to do funded research abroad next semester in Germany
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: departmental scholarships, math ambassador for department (nominated)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: tutor in math lab, TA for lower level classes, grader
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: first generation student, great LOR's, very quantitative econ classes, graduated a semester early?

Applying to Where:
University of Tennessee - Knoxville
Washington University - St Louis
St. Louis Univeristy
University of Missouri - St Louis - Admitted 01/07, no word on funding
University of Houston
UT - Arlington
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
University of Oklahoma
University of Texas - Dallas

burntpizza · Post by **burntpizza** » Tue Nov 14, 2017 2:05 am

Undergrad Institution: U.S. Public school not known for math
Major(s): Accelerated Mathematics B.S./M.S. (five years)
GPA: 3.87
Type of Student: Domestic white male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168 (94%)
V: 158 (80%)
W: 3.5 (42%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 860 (88%)

Program Applying: Pure math

Research Experience: 1 REU in applied math, plus my Senior and Master's projects in pure math.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 1st in class for math department, magna cum laude, graduated with distinction, scholarships, etc.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 1 year of teaching experience at my university
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I did ok on the Putnam exam last year. I won a few small code-breaking competitions for undergraduates.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: My upper-division GPA is 4.0, and I will have taken over 10 graduate classes by the time of enrollment.

Applying to Where:

Reach:
Northwestern University -rejected 2/3
University of Wisconsin - Madison -waitlisted 2/13 -rejected 3/22
UC San Diego -rejected 2/24

Reaching a bit:
University of Washington - admitted 3/8 $27K assistantship (declined)
Penn State - admitted 2/20 $25K TA-ship plus $2K signing bonus (ATTENDING!)
Ohio State - near top of waitlist 3/8 admitted off waitlist 3/28 $23K assistantship (declined)
Purdue - admitted 3/2 $16K assitantship (declined)

Match:
University of Colorado - Boulder - admitted 3/2 $20K assistantship but not guaranteed after 1st year (declined)

Safety:
University of Georgia-admitted 2/15 $25K first year and $19K for the next 4 years (declined)

Bigsrw · Post by **Bigsrw** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 11:41 am

Undergrad Institution: Smaller school I'm sure very few of you have heard of
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.1 (Major GPA ~3.5)
Type of Student: Domestic white female

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 162 (~82%)

(I somehow didn't know I'd have 3 math sections so the 3rd caught me completely off-guard)
V: 153 (~61%)
W: 4.0 (~61%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M:

Program Applying: Pure Math

Research Experience: Chemistry lab experience (originally was a chemistry major) and undergraduate thesis (I obtained original results in pure mathematics but the work is, of course, not ground-breaking or anything)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Certificate of excellence in mathematics- awarded by my math department.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I have a good amount of tutoring experience (Calculus III and below).
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I really liked my professors and had good relationships with them. I know 1 of my LOR is glowing (From my thesis advisor) and the other two are at least good if not really strong. My paper for my undergraduate thesis is under review at a journal right now (No co-authors) and, when my research was in it's early stages, I gave a presentation at a MAA conference on some of my more 'elementary' results.
Also, I have two C's in my math classes but the teacher I had for those classes is the my advisor who wrote the glowing LOR. So, I think the departments will see that I greatly improved.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I know they don't matter much for math, but I actually think my SOP is a really strong one. I also did a directed study of neural networks with my thesis advisor.

Applying to Where: The first two are my top two colleges- I really want to stay in Colorado, love the cities these colleges are located in, and think I could be very happy at either of them based off of what I've read and heard about them.
CU- Boulder:
CSU:
University of Denver:
University of Wyoming:

helloitme28 · Post by **helloitme28** » Fri Nov 24, 2017 5:08 am

Undergrad Institution: small, New England liberal arts school
Major(s): Mathematics, Music
Minor(s): we don't have minors
GPA: 3.7 overall, 3.8 math (A's, A-'s, with 2 B+'s)
Type of Student: domestic, woman, black (Caribbean), latinx (central American), first generation

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 166 (91%)
V: 160 (86%)
W: 6.0 (99%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 600 (37%)

Program Applying: Pure Math Ph.D. unless stated otherwise.

Research Experience: 1 REU before senior at Clemson University focused on coding theory. We submitted a paper for review recently. Our program was visited by other professors from Clemson and from Brown.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Teaching award for RA work (within school)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 5, will be 6, semesters of teaching assistant work, 2 semesters of math peer tutor (both jobs at my college)
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: No graduate classes, but will have taken Complex Analysis (this semester) as well as Measure Theory next semester. Small liberal arts school means I know 2/3 recommenders pretty well and 3rd recommender is from my REU. Member of the Math Alliance and attended Field of Dreams conference twice (hosted by WashU in St. Louis and sponsored by Purdue).
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: some computer science experience (2 coding classes, upper level course in computing theory)

Applying to Where:

University of Pennsylvania Bridge-to-PhD Master’s Program

Brown University
Howard University
Northwestern University
Purdue University - admitted (1/22), with $24k TA-ship

Stony Brook University
University of Iowa
Washington University in St. Louis - admitted (1/22), with $23,360 TA-ship

Worcester Polytechnic Institute - admitted (1/30), waiting on info about funding

Washington State University

Good luck, everyone!

okmokm · Post by **okmokm** » Fri Nov 24, 2017 11:17 pm

Undergrad Institution: Ivy League
Major: Math (pure)
GPA: 3.93 , Math: 3.975
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 165 (89%)
V: 170 (99%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 850 (87%)

Program Applying: Pure Math, Ph.D.

Research Experience: Home REU, all three summers, a different project each time. Two arXiv submissions, but no publications yet
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Will have taken several graduate or cross-listed courses. Did research with two of my recommenders.

Applying to Where:

Super Reach
Harvard Rejected 2/5
MIT Rejected 2/12
Columbia Rejected 2/5
Brown Rejected 2/7
Small Reach/Decent Chance
UPenn Invited to open house 1/21, accepted 2/16 Going!
UMichigan Accepted 1/31
UCLA Accepted 1/18
UT Austin Withdrew 2/15
Likely (I hope)
Boston College Accepted 2/23
Northeastern Withdrew 2/15

kieroda · Post by **kieroda** » Sun Nov 26, 2017 6:57 am

Undergrad Institution: Small state school
Major(s): Math, Computer Science
Minor(s):
GPA: 3.6 (3.5 math)
Type of Student: Domestic Male

Graduate Institution: Same as undergrad
Major(s): Computer Science
GPA: 3.7 (3.9 math)

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 163 (84%)
V: 164 (94%)
W: 3.5 (42%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 730 (66%)

Program Applying: Pure Math (Algebraic Geometry/Number Theory/Cryptography)

Research Experience: Masters thesis, undergrad fellowship, and summer RA.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: A bunch of random scholarships, a one year research fellowship, an undergrad research award.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for 3 semesters, RA for one summer.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Six graduate math classes (Algebra, Topology, Optimization, Graph Theory, Functional Analysis, Complex Analysis) albeit pace and and content varied between courses, and some wouldn't be considered grad level. My GPA was 3.9+ over the past two years.

Applying to Where:

Reach:
Brown University - PhD / Rejected (2/6)
University of Wisconsin Madison - PhD / Rejected (2/9)
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - PhD / Waitlisted (2/27) Withdrawn (3/16)
University of Minnesota Twin Cities - PhD / Waitlisted after inquiring (3/20) Rejected (4/16)
University of Maryland College Park - PhD / Presumably rejected (4/16)
University of Washington Seattle - PhD / Rejected (3/2)
University of Waterloo (Canada) - MSc / Rejected after inquiring (3/19)
University of Bonn (Germany) - MSc / Rejected (1/24)
University of Paris-Sud (France) - M1 (FMJH Scholarship) / Rejected (3/12)
Paris Diderot University (France) - M1 (PGSM Scholarship) / Rejected (2/20)

Match:
University of Colorado Boulder - PhD / High on waitlist (3/20) Accepted (4/13) Declined (4/16)
University of Georgia - PhD / Accepted (4/16) Declined (4/16)
Simon Fraser University (Canada) - MSc / Interview (1/25) Accepted $23k/year for two years and a $5k entrance scholarship (2/19) Visited (3/23) ATTENDING

Safety:
Clemson University - PhD / Unofficially accepted via phone (2/15) Official offer $17k/year plus $3k/summer (2/23) Declined (3/16)

(3/2) Sad I was rejected from Washington, I really wanted to go there

(3/27) Vancouver seems fantastic, and I had a great experience visiting SFU. Looking forward to the fall

(4/16) It seems that I was quite good at picking which schools were safety, match, and reach. I had a slight crisis this past week with regards to stipend amounts and being able to survive financially. In the end however, I am confident in my decision to go to SFU.

smiledaniel · Post by **smiledaniel** » Sun Nov 26, 2017 7:41 am

[deleted]

Good luck

SimplePepe · Post by **SimplePepe** » Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:12 am

Undergrad Institution: International
Major(s): Math
Minor(s):
GPA: 3.8
Type of Student: Male International

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 167 (92%)
V: 163 (93%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 840 (85%)

TOEFL Score: 113

Program Applying: Applied Math

Research Experience: Several projects, two publications, one poster presentation.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: None
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Undegrad research assistant
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help:
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: Math/Applied Math unless stated (Color use here is welcome)
Reach
UIUC Stats: Rejected 2/16/2018
Duke Rejected 2/12/2018
Davis Accepted 1/22/2018

Match
Purdue Pending
NCSU Biomath Pending

Safety
CSU Accepted 2/26/2018

FrozenWinters · Post by **FrozenWinters** » Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:59 am

Undergrad Institution: University of Waterloo
Master's Institution: University of Cambridge
Major(s): Pure mathematics
Undergrad GPA: 90.41% CAV; 93.27% major average
Type of Student: Canadian white male

GRE Results: (From last year; I did not retake the tests this year.)
GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 163 (92%)
W: 4.0 (59%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 840 (87%)

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD

Research Experience: Three summer reaserch projects and one publication.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for two calculus courses.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: No grades <90 in pure math. Eight graduate courses in undergrad. Strong background in physics and computer science. I participated in varsity Nordic skiing and currently row for my college.

Applying to Where:

Toronto - Deferred from last year. 19.25k direct PhD entry. Four years of funding. Declined. (13/4)
CGS-M funding - Informed that I was selected by the university. 17.5k awarded once. NSERC will formally announce the result at the end of this month. (8/3) Declined. (13/4)
OGS funding - Can't hold OGS and CGS-M concurrently.

Cambridge - Interview invitation (12/1). Interview (29/1). Rejection (5/2).
Gates funding - RIP
CCIMI funding - RIP

Copenhagen: Symmetry and Deformation - Interview invitation (10 students invited in total). (18/12) Interviewed. (23/1) Negative result for reasons specific to my application and potential supervisor.
Berlin Mathematical School - Interview invitation. (22/1) Interviewed in Berlin. (19/2) Offer; funding waitlist. (26/2) Scholarship offer! (8/4) Declined. (15/4)
Bonn - Rejection, no interview (2/2).
Oxford - Rejection (9/3).
Chicago - Rejection (8/2).
Cornell - Rejection (15/2).
Columbia - Rejection (5/2).
Berkeley - Rejection (22/2).
Stony Brook - Expression of interest. (1/3) Non-technical interview. (5/3) Offer. (13/3) Offer letter. (3.14... 159265) 22.5k teaching fellowship (for 9 months of the year, i.e. I'll do internships in the summer) + health insurance. Six years of funding. Accepted. (13/4) N.B. Unconditional.

And with this season wrapped up, I will share officially the most detailed interview summary document (with excess personal details) found on this website: http://csclub.uwaterloo.ca/~tkolomat/pd ... ations.pdf
(The only updates to that document are that I was offered BMS funding, and had a bunch or correspondence with many professors as to inform a decision.)

Retrospective: Either way, doing Part III was a very good decision for me, personally. This should be noted with some disclaimers:
i) The course has no continuous assessment and there are few telling checks of progress. I haven't written exams yet, and can't predict what result I'll get.
ii) Essentially all of the math I learned this year I did alone. Course and their lectures served the purpose of setting a syllabus.
iii) If you have severe hitherto undiagnosed ADHD albeit a steady supply of amphetamines in North America, then note that what happens when one removes stimulants, deadlines, structure, and a expedient medical system, is not pretty, and also highly ridiculous, although if you're in this position then that's probably already a very good description of many things in your life. >_> (If this actually applies to you in the sense that you are in serious need of an ADHD assessment while in the UK or at Cambridge, then maybe track down my email (I probably won't be checking PMs on this site next year) as there is a correct way to navigate the system and this information could have saved two months of beautiful thoughts.)
Counterdiscalimer: Very cantab. Super srs mathmo. Much tripartite. Such career. *Rainbows encircle CMS.* It's a nice place to study math.
This was a formative experience as a person and mathematician. I am happier than I was last year, but mostly because I'm less unhappy. Previous unhappiness stemmed from very individual factors, the overcoming of which largely involved learning how to better manage my life. I think that I will fundamentally do math better in subsequent years for reasons that do not necessarily generalise to you.

My PhD application was much stronger this year. Goodbye application stress. About fourteen months ago, I was pulling 1-2 all nighters every week, subsided mostly on Soylent, and checked GradCafe at least 25 times a day. I checked GradCafe fewer than 10 times in this entire application cycle and have mostly fixed my diet and circadian rhythm.

Apply all over Europe; interviews are a valuable experience (there were US students at BMS days; they cover travel, also most continental European schools don't have an application fee)!

IvanG5 · Post by **IvanG5** » Sun Dec 03, 2017 11:22 pm

Undergrad Institution: Big school, but not known for mathematics
Major(s): Mathematics B.S.
Minor(s): Physics
GPA: 3.81
Type of Student: Domestic Male Minority (Hispanic)

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 160 (76%)

- I feel like I probably should've scored higher for a math student
V: 162 (91%)

- Don't know how -- I expected to get a much lower score
W: 4.5 (82%)

GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 800 (79%)

- Straight up thought I would get 60s or below; very pleasantly surprised

TOEFL Score: N/A

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD

Research Experience: REU over summer of 2016 in Algebraic Geometry

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Been on dean's role nearly every semester?

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

2016 - present: Math Tutor at Private Tutoring Center
2014 - 2016: Math Learning Assistant in courses from Calc 1 to Linear Algebra

Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I was accepted into the Math in Moscow program (I earned the AMS Scholarship for it, which funded the semester) where I took Algebraic Number Theory, Commutative Algebra, and Ordinary Differential Equations. I've also taken a lot of advanced classes starting really early in my undergrad track. For example, I took Functional Analysis and Topology in my first semester as a sophomore. Also, since my school's math department is pretty small, I'm pretty close to my recommenders and I'm confident that they'll write me strong letters.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Below I have a comprehensive list of the advanced courses I've taken, including at what stage as an undergrad I took the course, and whether the course was cross-listed (a mixed classroom of undergraduates and graduates - basically the material was graduate level, but the assignments might have been made easier for undergrads):

On Transcript:

Functional Analysis (Sophomore) - Cross Listed
Real Analysis (Sophomore)
Topology (Sophomore) - Cross Listed
Algebraic Topology (Sophomore) - Cross Listed
Set Theory (Junior) - Cross Listed
Number Theory (Junior)
Algebra I (Junior)
Commutative Algebra (Junior) - Math in Moscow
Algebraic Number Theory (Junior) - Math in Moscow

Not on Transcript:

Two Semester Independent Study in Commutative Algebra for Modern Algebraic Geometry
One Semester Independent Study in Grothendieck Topologies (basically Category Theory)

Applying to Where:

Reach:
University of Minnesota Applied - Awaiting Decision
University of Illinois Accepted through Email (2/26)

Match:
University of Missouri (Mizzou) Unofficiallly Accepted through Email (1/31); Official Letter (2/6)
Purdue University Admitted (1/22) Fellowship Nomination ($24k/yr)

Safety:
University of Florida Rejected (3/1) after inquiry through email

saarz · Post by **saarz** » Wed Dec 06, 2017 7:49 pm

Undergrad Institution: (Foreign school)
Mathematics & CS (concurrent degrees)
Math(s):93.7
GPA:90.7

Graduate Institution: (Same foreign school)
CS (thesis in complexity) (concurrent degrees)
Major(s):93.1
GPA:91.9 (not including my thesis score, as it was not yet graded)

Type of Student: International (white) male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 159 (83%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 910 (97%)

TOEFL Score: (111 = R25/L30/S29/W27)

Program Applying: Pure Math (Number Theory)

Research Experience: complexity theory: solved an open problem with a friend (problem was suggested in 2014), have a strong thesis research, graph theory: solved a problem in graph theory with another friend, one paper pending with that friend on another subject, all results are publishable. Working as a researcher in the quant industry until september.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Several scholarships, member of the CS excellence program, dean's/rector's list, graduated undergrad degrees cum laude. Nothing big.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for over 3 years, software engineer for 1 year, quant researcher currently.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: My recommenders are 2 CS professors and 1 previous employer + 1 short recommendation from a very big mathematician.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I have a huge downside to my application - I don't have research experience in my field of study, nor all formal background needed in order to begin research. I am working on that though. I am also substantially older than the average candidate.

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)

(Crazy) Reach:
Princeton - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
MIT - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Berkeley - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Stanford - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Harvard - Pure Math - PhD / Pending

Reach:
Cornell - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Chicago - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Columbia - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
UCLA - Pure Math - PhD / Pending

Match:
Michigan - Ann Arbor - Pure Math - PhD / Pending
Rutgers - Pure Math - PhD / Pending

Prepare to see me spam with "declined"

ChlorophyII · Post by **ChlorophyII** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 11:08 am

jxwatmg · Post by **jxwatmg** » Sun Dec 10, 2017 8:54 pm

deleted

Bayesian1701 · Post by **Bayesian1701** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 12:01 pm

Undergrad Institution: (Tier 1 Public, Not super highly ranked)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): Economics
GPA: 3.78 overall, 3.86 Upper-Level Math, For spring deadlines: 3.81 overall, 3.89 Upper-Level Math
Type of Student: Domestic White Female
GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 167 (92%)
V: 160 (86%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: N/A

TOEFL Score: (N/A)

Program Applying: (Statistics PhD)

Research Experience: Being conducting research almost all of undergrad, 2 University sponsored presentations, 1 presentation at Nebraska Conference for Undergraduate Women in Mathematics, presentation at graduate seminar, 1 Manuscript being submitted anywhere where a writing sample is allowed, and a semi-invited(?) talk a local community college (asked our undergraduate director to pick an undergraduate to talk about undergraduate research and he chose me)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Honorable Mention in National Undergraduate Paper Contest, 2x Departmental Award for Best Undergraduate Research
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Paid for research, no teaching experience besides online tutoring
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Female, graduating in three years with honors, As in Real Analysis I, Real Analysis II, Mathematical Statistics II, A+ in Econometrics, Mathematical Statistics I, Independent Study (Mathematical Statistics)
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I want to continue my undergraduate research on Applied Bayesian statistics for social science and I am very clear about that in all my SOPs. I am aware that by putting that down I am possibly more likely to get rejected because of fit. But I love my research and it is showing great potential. I don't want to wait 4-6+ years to know if it is going to work or not.

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome) All Statistics PhDs and in no particular order.
Reach:
UT Austin Submitted 11/20, Accepted 1/24 (20k stipend), funded visit 2/23
Duke Submitted 11/26, Video Call Interview Request 1/15, Interview 1/19, Waitlisted 2/14
Texas A&M Submitted 11/13, Accepted 1/24 with funding
Columbia Submitted 12/31
Match:
Baylor Submitted 12/10, Requested Visit 9/15, Visited 10/26 (Department paid for gas, hotel room, and food)
Virginia Tech Submitted 11/20, unofficially accepted with funding 2/7, officially accepted with $1826 stipend and offered paid visit 2/26
Safety:
Florida State Submitted 12/21
Kansas State Submitted 12/31, Accepted 1/30
Missouri- Columbia Submitted 12/21, - Admitted 2/7 (18.6k a year plus one time $2k fellowship), funded visit 3/5

Applied: NSF GRFP
12/11 -And let the waiting game begin.
1/24 - I am going to graduate school!
2/9 - I am so confused on what I am going to do.

unknown999 · Post by **unknown999** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 12:36 pm

Undergrad Institution: Foreign Institution (Europe)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 9.55/10 (top 2% in my department)
Type of Student: International (Europe) Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168 (94%)
V: 156 (73%)
W: 3.5 (42%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 810 (81%)

TOEFL Score: 107 = R30/L28/S23/W26

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD

Research Experience: None
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Only a bronze medal on the national mathematical olympiad while I was at high school (I never qualified for the IMO though)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: None
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help:
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Achievements in chess (wins at regional competitions as well as top 10 finishes in national championships in my age group when I was young).

Applying to Where:
Berkeley - Rejected (2/22)
Cornell - Rejected(2/8)
Purdue - Admitted (2/19)
Penn State -Rejected (3/6)
UPenn -

misterry · Post by **misterry** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 12:51 pm

Undergrad Institution: European, not obscure but not famous
Major(s): Mathematics
GPA: 3.90 (but perfect record in mathematics courses)
Type of Student: European white male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168 (94%)
V: 157 (~75%)
W: 3.5 (42%) - should not have taken a paper based test (as opposed to a computer based test)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 820 (82%)

TOEFL Score: 114 = R29/L29/S28/W28

Program Applying: Pure math, interested in topology and geometry

Research Experience: Have done a couple of research projects in my school. One expository publication.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Great scholarship which covers full tuition and stipend for 4-6 semesters, but only at Harvard, MIT, and Stanford (and certain other shools I have not applied to).
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for many courses.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Taken a ton of grad classes. Maybe 3 good recommendations.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Who knows?

Applying to Where:

Reaching for the stars...
Northwestern Admitted 1/24
Harvard Rejected 2/5
UChicago Rejected 2/8
MIT Rejected 2/12
Berkeley Rejected 2/22
UCLA Rejected 2/28
Stanford Rejected 2/28

Match?
UOregon Admitted 1/30

Thoughts and advice for future students (added 2/28):
With my test scores and background there is no denying that Harvard, MIT, and Stanford were unrealistic, but I hoped that having a good scholarship would help me. It appears that it did not help enough to get me admitted.

From reading this forum I got the impression that UCLA and Berkeley accept more students with weaker test scores than other schools of similar ranking, and considered my odds of being admitted to one of these schools not extremely bad. However, I've since learned that these schools, which are public and part of the University of California system, have a very limited number of available spots for international students. The reason has to do with the fact that it is more expensive for the department to pay for international than domestic students, due to how tuition is determined. Consequently, the bar for international students at these schools is pretty high.

In retrospect the outcome of my applications make sense. Of the "reach" schools I applied to there is no denying that Northwestern is by far the least prestigious. If I could go back in time and give myself advice, I'd tell myself to swap a couple of my high reach targets, e.g. Berkeley and UChicago, for schools of somewhat lower ranking, to increase my odds of being admitted to a good school. I now have two good offers, but consider myself lucky to do so! All in all I'm satisfied with the outcome, and very excited to go to graduate school!

pikitty · Post by **pikitty** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 4:31 pm

Undergrad Institution: Open University in Israel (unrated, huge, public university, which accepts everyone, with a very low graduation rate)
Major(s): Mathematics
GPA: 3.5 (not yet complete since I have another semester to finish)
Type of Student: American Citizen, living in Israel for over 10 years so I don't know what that qualifies as. Female, Asian and Jewish

GRE Revised General Test:
Didn't do the GRE, since I decided to apply in Europe
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
Didn't do the GRE Subject Test

TOEFL Score: IELTS 8.5 (equivalent to 116 on the TOEFL)

Program Applying: (Pure Math)

Research Experience: Summer reading course in Commutative Algebra, Attended a Summer Workshop in which I gave a talk in Analytical Number Theory, Undergraduate Seminar on Functional Analysis and Measure Theory
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Private Tutor
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I graduated from an online open university, in which the average graduation time is 7 years, in 2.5 years, only female of my graduating class (hate that this helps), fluent in 4 languages (particularly in German, but not native), high-tech experience
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Lots of teaching experience, Attended a Summer Workshop at a Top Research Institute, Older Student, 3 Nationalities (none of which EU), Most of my recommenders are from the summer workshop and not from my university, since my university has no tenured professors and has very few professors.

All are for pure math for different programs.

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)
Bonn - Number Theory
Wuerzburg - Analysis
Goettingen - Number Theory
Berlin Mathematical School - Algebra
Freie - Analysis
Hamburg - Algebra
TU Muenchen - Analysis
TU Kaiserslautern - Algebra

Note: I originally planned on applying to the United States or in England, but I ended up graduating in 2.5 years, meaning that I will get my degree in February 2018, and I preferred to apply somewhere where I can begin studying in March or April. Additionally, since my profile is very weak due to the university where I'm studying and a lack of significant research, I realized that it isn't realistic for me to get an acceptance letter from an American university. Therefore, I decided to apply to Germany, where I have a chance. In general, it's best to know where you can get it and aim there rather than try places in which you have no chance. Additionally I will say that I'm also applying to universities in my country, but I won't write them down here, since the acceptance here is automatic for any citizen with a GPA over 3.2.

comeback · Post by **comeback** » Wed Dec 13, 2017 2:40 pm

Undergrad Institution: midwest private
Major(s): Math
Minor(s): none
GPA: 3.5
Type of Student: international female

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170
V: 160
W: 4
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 720 (64%)

TOEFL Score: n/a

Program Applying: Math
Research Experience: One reading class
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Got a 2 on Putnam my sophomore year/ Honor's List
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Taught physics and tutored calculus in my home country over the summer
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: two grad classes, third ongoing
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Hurt: changed my major, fewer years of undergraduate education, no TOEFL, some C's

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)
Missouri - PhD / Scheduled for the March SPEAK test 01/16; passed the SPEAK test 03/19; Admitted 03/20, funded MA (can move to PhD after passing all the qualifying exams) - declined 04/12
Upenn - PhD+bridge / Unofficially rejected 03/08; Rejected 04/24
UNC Chapel Hill - PhD / They have not admitted any international student into the pure math program but expect to admit one or two. Official decision will NOT be made until 4/15 (E-mail on 3/30)
UCSB - PhD / Waitlisted 02/15; Rejected 04/14
UC Davis - PhD / Waitlisted 03/19; Rejected 04/29
UC Irvine - PhD /Waitlisted 02/21; Rejected 02/23
Cornell - PhD /Waitlisted 02/15; Rejected 02/26
CMU -ACO PhD / Rejected 04/05
home institution - PhD / Admitted 04/04; Attending! 04/12

In retrospect, I should have taken TOEFL and applied to more programs (and larger ones), but I'm pretty satisfied with staying where I am. I look forward to starting the next chapter of my life.

14lclark · Post by **14lclark** » Fri Dec 15, 2017 2:44 am

Undergrad Institution: Small mid-west liberal arts university (~2000 students)
Major(s): Mathematics
Cumulative GPA: 3.15
Math GPA: 3.93
Upper division Math GPA: 4.0
Type of Student: Domestic Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 161 (78%)
V: 163 (93%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 570 (29%) (only submitting where required, I'm not great at math standardized tests)

Program Applying: Pure Math PhD

Research Experience: One summer of research at my institution with my academic advisor.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Major award from my department for achievement in mathematics.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Math/physics/computer science tutor since sophomore year
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Putnam: 1 point sophomore year, 9 points junior year. From the solutions available on AOPS, probably ~20 points this year.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: During the spring semester of 2017 I was suffering from severe depression and ended up dropping two classes and doing poorly in the other two. Dropped my GPA from ~3.4 to 3.15. Luckily, none of the classes were math (poor semester course offerings for the department, I had taken all available courses). I've also been unable to take any graduate courses due to the lack of any at my university.

My letters of recommendation will be very strong. They're from my academic advisor (who I've had two courses with), a professor with whom I've taken courses ranging from Calc II to Real Analysis and upper division Linear Algebra, and professor who I've only had for one course, but who I am fairly close to. None of them are extremely well known in their fields, but they are well liked and have some strong connections with famous mathematicians.

Applying to Where:

I'd say this list is roughly in order of my chances of getting in from least to most, i.e. reach to safety.

University of Wisconsin, Madison - Rejected 2/9
University of Colorado, Boulder - Rejected 2/28
Ohio State University - Rejected 3/7
Emory University - Rejected 2/5
Boston University - Rejected 3/9
Colorado State University - Rejected 3/9
St. Louis University - Accepted 2/22, inquiring about assistantship. Later: $19,000 TA position, tuition waiver, health insurance. Attending!
Central Michigan University - Accepted 3/13. First 12 months RA position, $27,000 and benefits, TA position during the school year for the following years. Declined.
Western Michigan University - Accepted 2/26. Declined.
Ohio University (Master's) - Accepted 3/6 with $16,550 stipend, tuition waiver. Declined.

backsmile · Post by **backsmile** » Fri Dec 15, 2017 8:25 pm

Undergrad Institution: Chinese university (Arguably top 3)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.0/4.0

I know, it sucks
Type of Student: International Chinese Male

Graduate Institution: Midwest university competitive in math(for a weird master degree)
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.9/4.0

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 146 (31%)

W: 3.0 (18%)

GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 930 (99%)

TOEFL Score: 98 = R29/L23/S23/W23 (Took recently with no preparation, waived for most applications)

Program Applying: Applied Math PhD (Very interested in fluid dynamics)(some universities only have one dept)

Research Experience: One undergraduate dissertation about combinatorics with no significant results (

I think it is common for undergrad)
3 months pre-PhD research(probably continue for the next few months), including one presentation at a seminar (just a small seminar)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: First place in Undergrad math competition of Wisconsin (Not official, so I don't think this will help)
Provincial award in Chinese Math Olympics (Could not even make into the province team, so this may also be useless)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Grader for two courses (number theory and complex analysis) this semester(I take this job very seriously to be prepared for TA)
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I honestly improved a lot in the US, so I want to know if any university is interested in this trend. Before I was admitted by the 3+2 program, I was totally a loser.
I also planned to take a qualify exam, but this may only help the Wisconsin application. (And I didn't, lowered the chance of getting admitted by wisconsion)
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Do not have a lot of experience other than math :

nothing else

Applying to Where:

Impossible:
UCLA - Rejected 2/28 midnight
NYU Courant - Rejected 3/23

Far reach:
Brown - Rejected 2/12
Washington - Rejected 2/1
Northwestern - Rejected 1/24

Match? Reach?:
Wisconsin - pending, but had started sending waiting list
UCSD - waitlisted 3/1 Rejected 3/5 midnight

safety?:
UC Davis - Admitted on 2/24, first offer, waiting for funding information
Georgia Tech - Rejected 3/13

I should apply to more universities lol

blackmaverick176 · Post by **blackmaverick176** » Tue Dec 19, 2017 12:59 am

Undergrad Institution: Medium size state school in California. Decent reputation, but not particularly well known for math.
Major(s): Mathematics
GPA: 3.98
Type of Student: Domestic White Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 167 (92%)
V: 162 (91%)
W: 4.0 (60%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 860 (88%)

Program Applying: Pure Math, Algebra and/or Algebraic Geometry

Research Experience: Summer research program in operator theory at my school. This became my senior thesis and resulted in a poster presentation at my home institution. No publications.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Department awards for outstanding junior/senior and excellence in math, dean's list every quarter. Nothing special.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I led study sessions in calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, and a proofs course as an undergraduate. I graded for all of these classes as well as abstract algebra. I've also been working in an actuarial modeling role for the past four years.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I have my Associates from the Society of Actuaries, which means I passed several tricky math exams and a bunch of business case studies. I point to this in my statement as evidence that I have the ability to balance working and studying. I'm not sure how much admission committees will care about the actual math I learned; it was mostly statistics and probability. I have one grad course in field theory, which I had to pass the algebra qual to enroll in. Two of my letters should be good pretty good, and the remaining one should be decent at worst. One recommender has connections at Michigan, Urbana-Champaign, and Cornell, so I'm hoping that letter will carry extra weight.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I mentioned in my statement that I had a long term goal of getting a PhD, but had to work because of my financial situation. Hopefully this will reflect well on my maturity and tenacity.

Applying to Where:

Reach:
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Rejected 2/21
Cornell Admitted 2/5 w/ $26.4K / year TA, Attending!
University of Wisconsin, Madison Rejected 2/13
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Waitlisted 3/19 after inquiring via email, Withdrew
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign Admitted 2/15 w/ $20K / year TA, Declined

Match:
University of Washington Waitlisted 3/13, Admitted 4/12 w/ $25.2K / 11 month TA, Declined
Ohio State Rejected 3/7
University of Illinois at Chicago Admitted 2/15 w/ $18.8K / year TA, Declined
University of Utah Waitlisted 2/9, Withdrew
Notre Dame Waitlisted 3/20 after inquiring via email, Admitted 3/29 w/ $35K / year TA, 1st year fellowship w/ no service duties the first year, Declined

Safety:
Michigan State University Admitted 2/12 w/ $18.5K / year TA, reduced TA duties in the 1st year, and two 1st year Fellowships totaling $14K, Declined
University of Oregon Waitlisted 3/22 after inquiring via email , Admitted 4/11 w/ $18.4K / year TA + 4.5K of summer funding , Declined

mathisawesome · Post by **mathisawesome** » Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:53 am

Undergrad Institution: Foreign, well know liberal arts
Major(s): Math
Minor(s): Physics
GPA: 3.2

Type of Student: International
Master's Institution: State school in Michigan
Master's GPA: 3.6

GRE Revised General Test: 322

Hate this. Gave with no prep whatsoever.
Q: xxx (xx%) 166
V: xxx (xx%) 156
W: x.x (xx%) 5
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics: NA
M: xxx (xx%) NA

TOEFL Score: (119 = R30/L29/S30/W30)

Program Applying: Pure math. Interested in geometry/topology.

Research Experience: Master's thesis in symplectic geometry (and uses some several complex variables)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Govt scholarships (home country)/ TA at master's institute
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Tutoring for linear algebra, point set topology and metric space analysis
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: One recommender (also my thesis adviser) is well known in symplectic geometry.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Summer program during undergrad. Took several electives during master's like algebraic topology and differential geometry. Applying without MGRE.

Applying to Where: In no particular order.
George Mason One of my recommenders never sent their letter for me. Waste of money.
UC Riverside
Arizona State "Withdrawn". Extremely poor email turnaround time. They "withdrew" my application cos I have a 3 years bachelors. Perhaps overlooked that I'm into my 4th semester of master's from a US university.
SUNY Binghampton Rejected
Saint Louis Poked 03/30. Wait listed
University of Florida Poked 03/30. Unoffically rejected
Hawaii at Manoa Wait listed. Accepted (04/15) 17k TAship for 5 years.
Texas Christian Rejected. Worst rejection email ever, in the history of rejection emails.

UIUC Wait listed Surprised they didn't throw away my application right after seeing I didn't submit MGRE score. Rejected off wait list
Brandeis Unoffically rejected. Very warm and empathic email.

I did not expect these many rejections. I have no idea what I will do with my career if I don't get accepted to some place. I have no hope of hearing anything good from UIUC and Hawaii. I didn't think my profile was that horrible, considering I'm doing some hard and advanced research.

Edit: Very relieved I have an offer. Worried that 17k might not be enough for even a single student in Honolulu. Will make it work. Excited!

zzhang222 · Post by **zzhang222** » Fri Dec 22, 2017 8:16 am

Undergrad Institution: Foreign (HK)
Major(s): Computing Math
Minor(s): CS
GPA: 4.11/4.3 Major 4.2/4.3
Type of Student: International Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 163 (93%)
W: 3.5 (42%)

GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 960 (99%)

TOEFL Score: (105 = R30/L27/S25/W23)

Program Applying: (Applied Math Ph.D. with a few master programs)

Research Experience: 4 Research Experiences, 1 poster session, some presentations, some seminars. No publication.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for 2 sems
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Two famous recommenders, all strong recommendations
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Exchanged to UofT for a semester with straight A+ grade. Several graduate courses in applied math taken.

Applying to Where: if not specified, all Ph.D.
New York University Rejected on 4/13 (Accepted to unfunded master program)
UCLA Rejected on 2/6 (Unofficially rejected after contacting Prof. Michael Hitrik)
Columbia master Accepted on 3/19
Brown Waitlisted on 2/17 Accepted off waitlist on 4/14!

Will attend.
Upenn
Duke Rejected on 1/31 (Unofficially rejected after contacting Prof. Michael Durrett)
Rice Rejected on 3/29
Umich Waitlisted on 3/17 Rejected on 4/13
Toronto master (Asked me if still interested, declined)
UCSD Accepted on 2/9 (35k TA+fellowship for first year, at least 20k TA for later years)
Gatech Rejected on 3/14
OSU Accepted on 2/24 (23.5k TA+RA)
Purdue Accepted on 2/15 (15k TA)

mishania1996 · Post by **mishania1996** » Sun Dec 24, 2017 4:44 pm

Undergrad Institution: METU, Turkey
Major(s): Math
GPA: 3.96/4.00
Type of Student: International White Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 168
V: 152
W: 3.0
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 850

TOEFL Score: (100 = R27/L26/S20/W27)

Program Applying: Pure Math Ph.D. unless otherwise stated

Research Experience: nothing original
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: High honors each semester
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: nope
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 14 grad classes(Topology, Differential Manifolds, Measure Theory, Homological Algebra, Algebraic Topology 1,2, Algebraic Geometry 2, Complex Analysis, Vector Bundles and Characteristic Classes, Differential Geometry, Algebraic Surfaces, Low-dimensinal Topology, Symplectic Topology, Geometric Group Theory).
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Talks given in my department: "Existence of uncountably many smooth structures on R^4", "Distribution of ovals of algebraic curve in RP^2"(Arnold's article), "Proof of Hirzebruch-Riemann-Roch Theorem"(topological methods in algebraic geometry by Hirzebruch). Readings together with graduate students on Commutative Algebra and Morse Theory.

Applying to Where:
Princeton rejected(30jan)
MIT rejected(12feb)
Stanford rejected(1mar)
UBonn(Master's) accepted(30jan), waitlisted for scholarship(7feb), given the scholarship 800€/month (3apr), ATTENDING!!!!
UCBerkeley rejected(22feb)
UCLA rejected(28feb)
Columbia rejected(5feb)
Stony Brook rejected(14mar)
BMS(Phase I) to be interviewed on 19feb (22jan), accepted(26feb), waitlisted for scholarship(26feb), given the scholarship 800€/month (?) (6apr), withdraw
UMassAmherst accepted(15feb) with 29k$ for TA+Fellowship for 10 months, withdraw
Indiana Bloom waitlisted(7mar) , withdraw

aaaaaaaah · Post by **aaaaaaaah** » Mon Dec 25, 2017 11:07 pm

Undergrad Institution: Asia, top 3 in our country
Major(s): Math
Minor(s): -
GPA: Overall : 4.15/4.3, Major : 4.23/4.3
Type of Student: International, Male

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 169 (96%)
V: 152 (56%)
W: 3.0 (18%)
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
M: 920 (99%)

TOEFL Score: (95 = R29/L27/S20/W19) SO LOW

Program Applying: Pure Math (number theory?)

Research Experience: Once at undergraduate institution (NT, didn't do well, not original at all), Undergraduate thesis (NT, Original, submitted and waiting, will present in some workshop), Master's thesis (NT, still going on, some original results), Undergraduate research experience at Fields institute (geometry, paper accepted), Research about game theory with economist (will be published, and working on another project with him)
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: graduate with top credit in the department, some undergrad math competition awards, fellowship for undergrad & master's program (different source)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Undergraduate TA once and graduate TA twice + a lot of mentoring experience
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I'm now doing master's program in my home institution. 13 grad courses during undergraduate program + 4 courses during masters program. 4 letters and I hope all of letters are good.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: (Color use here is welcome)
Berkeley Admitted (2/1) ATTENDING!
Harvard Rejected (2/5)
Princeton Rejected (1/30)
Chicago Rejected (2/8)
Michigan Waitlisted (3/15) - withdraw
MIT Rejected (2/12)
Stanford Rejected (2/28)
Caltech Rejected (3/7)
Brown Rejected (2/7)
Wisconsin-Madison Waitlisted (2/13) Rejected (3/22)
Toronto Admitted (unofficially, 2/3) - declined
Mcgill Rejected (5/17)
Boston university Rejected (4/11)
Indiana Admitted (unofficially, 2/21) - declined
Minnesota Rejected (4/23)