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university of Rhode Island math Master

Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:33 pm
by lio
Got admitted there. How is the program?
Their math program is not highly ranked. (ranked 100+) My goal is to earn a math PhD after completing a master degree. Will I get any chance?

Re: university of Rhode Island math Master

Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:49 pm
by vzlamath
lio wrote:
Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:33 pm
Got admitted there. How is the program?
Their math program is not highly ranked. (ranked 100+) My goal is to earn a math PhD after completing a master degree. Will I get any chance?
Just speaking from personal experience... A master's will often times help in the process of obtaining a PhD, even if it is not so highly ranked. I myself am obtaining a master's from a university that is not highly ranked, but the fact that you get good grades in graduate courses, have some research experience, improve GRE scores if needed, and a lot of other things that can occur during that master's really improves your profile as a PhD applicant. It is true that a low-ranked program has less "name weight" than a highly-ranked one, but if you make the most out of it, it can certainly increase your chances for a PhD.

Re: university of Rhode Island math Master

Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2020 10:06 pm
by lio
vzlamath wrote:
Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:49 pm
lio wrote:
Wed Mar 04, 2020 9:33 pm
Got admitted there. How is the program?
Their math program is not highly ranked. (ranked 100+) My goal is to earn a math PhD after completing a master degree. Will I get any chance?
Just speaking from personal experience... A master's will often times help in the process of obtaining a PhD, even if it is not so highly ranked. I myself am obtaining a master's from a university that is not highly ranked, but the fact that you get good grades in graduate courses, have some research experience, improve GRE scores if needed, and a lot of other things that can occur during that master's really improves your profile as a PhD applicant. It is true that a low-ranked program has "name weight" than a highly-ranked one, but if you make the most out of it, it can certainly increase your chances for a PhD.
Thank you for replying!
One thing that worries me a bit is their graduate courses. Does it look like a typical graduate level math curriculum or will it be too slow in some way compared to other schools?
http://www.math.uri.edu/wp-content/uplo ... ements.pdf
Their electives and researches seem to focus a lot on the application side, too. Will that limit my choice of research area?

Re: university of Rhode Island math Master

Posted: Thu Mar 05, 2020 11:21 pm
by vzlamath
Looking further into URI website (https://web.uri.edu/catalog/mathematics-ms/) it seems that they have an applied math track and a pure math track. I personally am an applied mathematician and their courses seem interesting. But for a pure mathematician, there seems to be a good amount of options as well. Might also want to check the university schedule of courses to see how regularly they offer each of these courses. Remember a master's will just be a stepping stone for your PhD, so the most important thing is a solid foundation, don't over-emphasize/worry about class specifics. As long as you have good courses in Analysis, Algebra, and some other branch, that should be good.