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Schools

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2010 5:07 am
by ded8381
Hi guys, I have a couple questions -- I appreciate your responses -- I don't have a real firm grasp on the difficulty of getting into certain programs.

#1 Am I wasting my money applying to any of these schools (Pure Math):
3.9 GPA, 55% on Math Subject Test, 20 on Putnam, Excellent Personal Letters of Recommendation, No Research Experience, From Small Unknown School, Teaching Experience, (Courses to Note: 2 Quarters of Abstract Algebra, 2 Quarters Advanced Calculus (Single Var), 1 Quarter of Complex Analysis, 1 Quarter Topology) - So no Real Analysis.

Oregon
North Carolina State
Dartmouth College
Cal Davis
Washington
Purdue
Indiana
Utah
Michigan State

Second Question: If I get a masters degree at somewhere like Arizona State, Oregon State, Kent State, or University of Idaho -- and I do well, how easy is it to transfer to a better school for a PhD program? (My Eventual goal is to teach, so I won't to go to the best school I can to be competitive in the pool of many applicants.)

Thanks

Re: Schools

Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2010 11:22 am
by alex
Your background seems fairly similar to mine (switch the putnam score with some light research experience and also I'm not sure what my gre score will be yet) and I'm applying to several of these same schools - Oregon, NC State, Dartmouth, Davis, Washington, Michigan State. I had several conversations with my old math professors (been out for a few years) before deciding where to apply, and while I'm pretty sure I won't get into all of these places, I'm comfortable with my list. Of course, I also have included some lower schools like Rochester and Tulane. I would add a couple of safe bets to the list, but from my perspective, no, I don't think that applying to those schools is a waste of money. I would like to know what others think though too.

Re: Schools

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2010 1:25 am
by Chapel
In regards to the masters... Some schools allow you to transfer a year worth of credits over from a masters and/or allow you to take some/most/all of the quals when you first get into school to test where you are. It really depends on where you are going, so ask at those schools.

Re: Schools

Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2010 11:18 pm
by dajohnson89
Small point: I'm not so sure if there's a major distinction between advanced calculus and Real Analysis....