PhD: a pipe dream for me?

[sincostancotseccsc]

Hello everyone,

I am planning to apply for a PhD program in pure math this year, I am not from the US, I have a bachlor’s degree in business administration(from a school that is considered as the most prestigious university in my country) and a master’s degree in mathematics(from a school that is considered a top national school). My GPAs are not that great(around 3.0/4.0 for bachlor’s and 3.36/4.0 for master’s). I have written a thesis for my master’s degree that is short and does not seem to be very significant. I have tried to apply for a PhD program since 2018, but without success.

I have not applied for PhD programs in the US before, but I am going to apply for PhD programs in the US this year, but I might only apply for 1 or 2 school in the US; besides, I am thinking of applying for PhD programs in the UK and continental Europe. I am planning to take the general GRE test, the GRE math subject test and TOEFL(I have taken it in 2018, with the speaking score being significantly lower than all other things) this year. What should I do now?

[tddd101]

Its not necessarily a pipe dream, it just depends on what programs in the US you're applying to. Which PhD programs (in the US) are you looking at?

[sincostancotseccsc]

Its not necessarily a pipe dream, it just depends on what programs in the US you're applying to. Which PhD programs (in the US) are you looking at?

I am looking at ones about pure mathematics, and considering my GPA, I don’t think it is realistic for me to apply for the top mathematical PhD programmes in the US.

By the way, I have just taken the GRE general test, and my unofficial score is slightly above 320, with Quant being slightly above 165 and Verbal being slightly above 155.

Also if you have any suggestions, what math PhD programmes do you suggest for me?

[tddd101]

None explicitly come to mind. Id recommend going through the past admissions results thread, finding profiles that match yours, and applying to those they got into.

You could also just go through the admissions result threads, find schools that are referred to as "Safeties" and primarily apply to those.

Given your profile, I woulnt expect you to get into any top 30/40 schools but never say never. Find schools that seem to be a match who have professors youd like to work with. Apply to a couple "reaches" if cost isn't a deterrent.

[sincostancotseccsc]

None explicitly come to mind. Id recommend going through the past admissions results thread, finding profiles that match yours, and applying to those they got into.

You could also just go through the admissions result threads, find schools that are referred to as "Safeties" and primarily apply to those.

Given your profile, I woulnt expect you to get into any top 30/40 schools but never say never. Find schools that seem to be a match who have professors youd like to work with. Apply to a couple "reaches" if cost isn't a deterrent.

Thanks for suggestions! I was thinking of applying for the University of Oregon, but I am not sure if I may have other choices.

Another question: I want to do number theory, but the courses I have taken during my Master’s are related to mathematical analysis, what should I do?

[mathematics123]

Hi, how did you get into a master in pure mathematics with your bachelor being on business administration? Could you give me some advice? I am trying to do the same. Thanks

PD: any colleges u recommend for a master?

[sincostancotseccsc]

Hi, how did you get into a master in pure mathematics with your bachelor being on business administration? Could you give me some advice? I am trying to do the same. Thanks

PD: any colleges u recommend for a master?

In my country the graduate programmes of many schools have entrance exams as a part of the admission process, which mainly tests your professional knowledge related to the graduate program.

I am not from the US and I have no recommendations for a master

[sincostancotseccsc]

Also I am thinking of applying for the PhD in mathematics of the University of Oregon, but I am afraid that I will end up wasting money there. Would it be a reach or match for me? Should I consider other schools?

[tddd101]

None explicitly come to mind. Id recommend going through the past admissions results thread, finding profiles that match yours, and applying to those they got into.

You could also just go through the admissions result threads, find schools that are referred to as "Safeties" and primarily apply to those.

Given your profile, I woulnt expect you to get into any top 30/40 schools but never say never. Find schools that seem to be a match who have professors youd like to work with. Apply to a couple "reaches" if cost isn't a deterrent.

Thanks for suggestions! I was thinking of applying for the University of Oregon, but I am not sure if I may have other choices.

Another question: I want to do number theory, but the courses I have taken during my Master’s are related to mathematical analysis, what should I do?

That's not particularly relevant. As long as you can show research experience in some area of math, admissions committees won't care very much.

[sincostancotseccsc]

None explicitly come to mind. Id recommend going through the past admissions results thread, finding profiles that match yours, and applying to those they got into.

You could also just go through the admissions result threads, find schools that are referred to as "Safeties" and primarily apply to those.

Given your profile, I woulnt expect you to get into any top 30/40 schools but never say never. Find schools that seem to be a match who have professors youd like to work with. Apply to a couple "reaches" if cost isn't a deterrent.

Thanks for suggestions! I was thinking of applying for the University of Oregon, but I am not sure if I may have other choices.

Another question: I want to do number theory, but the courses I have taken during my Master’s are related to mathematical analysis, what should I do?

That's not particularly relevant. As long as you can show research experience in some area of math, admissions committees won't care very much.

thanks for telling and help!

Besides of the University of Oregon, I have applied for at least two schools in UK, and I will apply for more schools. Would GRE scores be helpful for schools outside of the US?

[tddd101]

Thanks for suggestions! I was thinking of applying for the University of Oregon, but I am not sure if I may have other choices.

Another question: I want to do number theory, but the courses I have taken during my Master’s are related to mathematical analysis, what should I do?

That's not particularly relevant. As long as you can show research experience in some area of math, admissions committees won't care very much.

thanks for telling and help!

Besides of the University of Oregon, I have applied for at least two schools in UK, and I will apply for more schools. Would GRE scores be helpful for schools outside of the US?

If the programs states the GRE as a requirement, then definitely send it in. If not, then determine what a good score would be for that particular school and send it in if you meet that threshold.

A good GRE score rarely helps, but a bad GRE can hurt you a lot so be cautious of who you send your score to (if you have a bad score).

If you're able to apply to a couple more US schools I'd recommend it (I have none in mind). Don't be too picky. if I were you, the goal would be to get into some grad school and then try and shine when you're there.