Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Forum for the GRE subject test in mathematics.
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coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 4:09 pm

Undergrad Institution: Public, State U, not famous, T100
Major(s): Mathematics
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.7ish (3.67 math gpa, all As or A-s on upper division courses, will take 1-2 graduate courses next sem)
Type of Student: Asian, M, first generation immigrant, also first generation college student.

GRE Revised General Test: About to take, have prepared a long time, expecting 90th+ percentile on Q, not good at V and W.
GRE Subject Test in Mathematics: no taken yet, expect 75th+ percentile.


TOEFL Score: Not required

Program Applying: Applied Math Ph.D if is seperated from Math, Math Ph.D otherwise.

Research Experience: Did research with a professor at home univ. nothing published. Will do some research next semester.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Basically none in the U.S.

First generation immigrant. Graduated from high school in my country. From a relatively very poor country, i'm even the first one in my family to graduate from middle school. Worked in a restaurant for 2 years when I first came here. Attended English camp for a year and then went to a community college for a year. Transfered to current school afterwards. No scholarship, no rewards, dean's list doesn't count I guess.

Looking for Group II public universities, hopefully to be in the East or Middle part of the U.S.
Very unfamiliar with U.S. universites. Any recommendations woule be appreciated.
BTW, I see a lot ppl admitted to Purdue University, which one they refer to? indiana university purdue university indianapolis or the Purdue we usually refer to?

mlpwas100
Posts: 13
Joined: Sat Feb 29, 2020 11:43 am

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by mlpwas100 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 5:53 pm

Group II schools are a good start. I would also include some Group I schools in your list.

As for potential schools, I would say that you should take the time to look at the professors and their areas of research. Finding a professor that matches your interests is more important than the prestige of the school for the most part.

As for the Purdue thing, it's most likely Purdue University in the normal sense.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 8:41 pm

mlpwas100 wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 5:53 pm
Group II schools are a good start. I would also include some Group I schools in your list.

As for potential schools, I would say that you should take the time to look at the professors and their areas of research. Finding a professor that matches your interests is more important than the prestige of the school for the most part.

As for the Purdue thing, it's most likely Purdue University in the normal sense.
i feel like group 2 is even a far reach for me now. no high GPA, no research experience, nothing outstanding.

analysister
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Nov 07, 2019 2:36 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by analysister » Thu Apr 09, 2020 8:59 pm

coolguy222 wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 8:41 pm
i feel like group 2 is even a far reach for me now. no high GPA, no research experience, nothing outstanding.
It is still worth choosing at least a couple group 1 schools to try to apply to. My advisor always says that (unless you're applying to the top programs) the second to worst outcome of an application season (with number one being all rejections) is getting in everywhere you apply.

While it is not always possible to apply to a ton of schools due to time and financial restrictions, having a few real reaches is important, because you might get in, and you'll never know if you do not try.

ThrowawayName
Posts: 15
Joined: Fri Feb 21, 2020 1:31 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by ThrowawayName » Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm

My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:41 pm

analysister wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 8:59 pm
coolguy222 wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 8:41 pm
i feel like group 2 is even a far reach for me now. no high GPA, no research experience, nothing outstanding.
It is still worth choosing at least a couple group 1 schools to try to apply to. My advisor always says that (unless you're applying to the top programs) the second to worst outcome of an application season (with number one being all rejections) is getting in everywhere you apply.

While it is not always possible to apply to a ton of schools due to time and financial restrictions, having a few real reaches is important, because you might get in, and you'll never know if you do not try.
will try one or two, my family struggles to make ends meet, can't afford to pay donation to too many schools

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:42 pm

ThrowawayName wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm
My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.
you must have strong letters of recommendation
I just hope i could got in some Group 2 with decent funding

Schauder
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 29, 2020 1:40 am

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by Schauder » Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:48 pm

coolguy222 wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:42 pm
ThrowawayName wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm
My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.
you must have strong letters of recommendation
I just hope i could got in some Group 2 with decent funding
Try asking your financial aid officer for a letter explaining your financial hardships to get fee waivers from schools.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Apr 09, 2020 11:17 pm

Schauder wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:48 pm
coolguy222 wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 10:42 pm
ThrowawayName wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm
My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.
you must have strong letters of recommendation
I just hope i could got in some Group 2 with decent funding
Try asking your financial aid officer for a letter explaining your financial hardships to get fee waivers from schools.
Will try that, thanks you for the advice

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Sun Apr 12, 2020 4:22 pm

ThrowawayName wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm
My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.
did you have any research experience or grad courses when you applied? I now feel like no program would take me after looking at other people's profiles

ThrowawayName
Posts: 15
Joined: Fri Feb 21, 2020 1:31 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by ThrowawayName » Sun Apr 12, 2020 7:47 pm

coolguy222 wrote:
Sun Apr 12, 2020 4:22 pm
ThrowawayName wrote:
Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:26 pm
My profile is worse than yours and I got into UIC and Texas A&M. By US news ranking (whatever we say about it, there's some validity to it), you can realistically expect some of 26-50 to give you nice offers (maybe not first round, but you should be able to get off the waitlist for some of them). As for AMS groups, definitely look for some group 1 places that aren't top 20 US news.
did you have any research experience or grad courses when you applied? I now feel like no program would take me after looking at other people's profiles
I did have research experience, but none of it was published and so it only contributed to one letter being very good (and he's not even well known), which I assume did do a lot of good for the places that look at LORs. No grad courses because I'm from a Liberal Arts College :(

bark_muffalo
Posts: 58
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 6:56 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by bark_muffalo » Mon Apr 13, 2020 9:30 am

I think you're underestimating your chances of success as an applicant. If you aren't applying to top 10 schools (think MIT, Stanford, Harvard, etc.), I don't think research experience is a necessity. It's probably still pretty important for the top 11-20 schools (e.g. Wisconsin, Duke, Johns Hopkins), but again, it doesn't seem like these places are going to be your target schools.

For schools in the 25-50 range (where there are a lot of very strong programs, including many group I institutions), I think an applicant with your credentials (and an MGRE score above the 60% percentile) would have a good chance of being accepted. If you applied to, say, 5 of them, I would be surprised if you didn't get into any of them (assuming you have good LORs and a well-written SOP).

When looking for programs to apply to, think both about which ones would be a good personal fit and what schools want people with the skills you can offer. For example, if you can teach, try to find a couple of large public research universities schools (e.g., Big Ten institutions like Purdue, Michigan State, or Ohio State) to apply to. These places have huge departments and need lots of graduate students to handle teaching duties.

This is obvious, but in your application you should play to your strengths. If you don't fit the mold of a "traditional applicant" (e.g., you don't have any research experience), don't try to be one in your application! There are lots of factors schools consider, meaning there are lots of different types of students who can (and do) get into good programs. If you look at my profile, you'll see that I lack several things people often say are essential for an applicant to have. Nevertheless, I have a solid offer from a program I'm happy about (and, if I'm lucky, will get off the waitlist at a couple of other places).

Good luck with your applications next year. If you put in the time to write good applications, I think you'll have a lot of success as an applicant.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Mon Apr 13, 2020 4:37 pm

i do love teaching a lot, I help my fellow classmates out quite often. I won't have a strong LOR, at least i think i won't. I don't know professors, I just took those classes, never went to office hours, although I still received good grades from them. I'll try to find a research opportunity or supervised reading and try to take one or two graduate classes next semester. I'm from a country where less than 0.2 person of my peers(of the same age) can get in a PHD program. I don't know how things work here in the u.s. Is it realistic for me to apply to Purdue? I'm thinking about Louisiana state and university of Missouri right now, but it seems like they don't have a separate PHD in applied math program.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Mon Apr 13, 2020 4:50 pm

bark_muffalo wrote:
Mon Apr 13, 2020 9:30 am
I think you're underestimating your chances of success as an applicant. If you aren't applying to top 10 schools (think MIT, Stanford, Harvard, etc.), I don't think research experience is a necessity. It's probably still pretty important for the top 11-20 schools (e.g. Wisconsin, Duke, Johns Hopkins), but again, it doesn't seem like these places are going to be your target schools.

For schools in the 25-50 range (where there are a lot of very strong programs, including many group I institutions), I think an applicant with your credentials (and an MGRE score above the 60% percentile) would have a good chance of being accepted. If you applied to, say, 5 of them, I would be surprised if you didn't get into any of them (assuming you have good LORs and a well-written SOP).

When looking for programs to apply to, think both about which ones would be a good personal fit and what schools want people with the skills you can offer. For example, if you can teach, try to find a couple of large public research universities schools (e.g., Big Ten institutions like Purdue, Michigan State, or Ohio State) to apply to. These places have huge departments and need lots of graduate students to handle teaching duties.

This is obvious, but in your application you should play to your strengths. If you don't fit the mold of a "traditional applicant" (e.g., you don't have any research experience), don't try to be one in your application! There are lots of factors schools consider, meaning there are lots of different types of students who can (and do) get into good programs. If you look at my profile, you'll see that I lack several things people often say are essential for an applicant to have. Nevertheless, I have a solid offer from a program I'm happy about (and, if I'm lucky, will get off the waitlist at a couple of other places).

Good luck with your applications next year. If you put in the time to write good applications, I think you'll have a lot of success as an applicant.
I couldn't find your profile. New to this forum. It might sound dumb, but how to find other people's profile.

bark_muffalo
Posts: 58
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 6:56 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by bark_muffalo » Mon Apr 13, 2020 5:22 pm

Nah, that's my fault for not being specific. Look for my post in the "2020 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results" thread

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Mon Apr 13, 2020 5:42 pm

bark_muffalo wrote:
Mon Apr 13, 2020 5:22 pm
Nah, that's my fault for not being specific. Look for my post in the "2020 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results" thread
I saw your post. Althoguh your profile wasn't perfect in terms of math, but you have a high GPA demonstrating your ability to learn, and you have teaching experience too.

bark_muffalo
Posts: 58
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 6:56 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by bark_muffalo » Mon Apr 13, 2020 6:37 pm

Sure, I had a couple of strengths, and I think those strengths are the reason why I've gotten a couple of offers. But a 3.7 GPA is solid, so you shouldn't worry about that.

More than anything, though, we should be talking about your personal story. Read what you wrote in your first post (I've put some of it in bold text for emphasis):

"First generation immigrant. Graduated from high school in my country. From a relatively very poor country, i'm even the first one in my family to graduate from middle school. Worked in a restaurant for 2 years when I first came here. Attended English camp for a year and then went to a community college for a year. Transfered to current school afterwards. No scholarship, no rewards, dean's list doesn't count I guess."

I am not bullshitting you when I say that your story is very, very impressive. It sounds like you have worked very hard to get where you are today. Getting good grades indicates a certain degree of maturity, I guess. But having the wherewithal to get to college when your parents didn't finish middle school? Busting your ass in a restaurant job for 2 years? Those experiences demonstrate real maturity.

In my opinion, if you take the time to write a good personal statement that tells your story, people are going give you serious consideration. What I hear from professors over and over and over again is this: "We want people who are going to get their PhD." Your story demonstrates that you have real perseverance. People on admissions committees are going to see that.

coolguy222
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2020 3:47 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by coolguy222 » Tue Apr 14, 2020 2:53 pm

bark_muffalo wrote:
Mon Apr 13, 2020 6:37 pm
Sure, I had a couple of strengths, and I think those strengths are the reason why I've gotten a couple of offers. But a 3.7 GPA is solid, so you shouldn't worry about that.

More than anything, though, we should be talking about your personal story. Read what you wrote in your first post (I've put some of it in bold text for emphasis):

"First generation immigrant. Graduated from high school in my country. From a relatively very poor country, i'm even the first one in my family to graduate from middle school. Worked in a restaurant for 2 years when I first came here. Attended English camp for a year and then went to a community college for a year. Transfered to current school afterwards. No scholarship, no rewards, dean's list doesn't count I guess."

I am not bullshitting you when I say that your story is very, very impressive. It sounds like you have worked very hard to get where you are today. Getting good grades indicates a certain degree of maturity, I guess. But having the wherewithal to get to college when your parents didn't finish middle school? Busting your ass in a restaurant job for 2 years? Those experiences demonstrate real maturity.

In my opinion, if you take the time to write a good personal statement that tells your story, people are going give you serious consideration. What I hear from professors over and over and over again is this: "We want people who are going to get their PhD." Your story demonstrates that you have real perseverance. People on admissions committees are going to see that.
My mom didn't even graduate elementary school, and that's very common in my country for people of my parents' age. Millions died because of starvation at that time period. I surely will put efforts to write a good personal statement. I've also been sending emails to professors to seek research oppotunies. If you don't mind, what universities you've been admitted to? I'm in the process of finding potential universites that fit my background/profile.

bark_muffalo
Posts: 58
Joined: Sat Apr 06, 2019 6:56 pm

Re: Current junior, senior next semester. Which schools I have a chance to get in?

Post by bark_muffalo » Tue Apr 14, 2020 10:14 pm

I have offers from Wesleyan University, Colorado University at Boulder, and University of Illinois at Chicago



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