re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Forum for the GRE subject test in mathematics.
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melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Wed Feb 16, 2022 2:38 pm

Long Story Short: a close family member of mine has some health concerns/issues that just arose recently, so it'd be ideal if I go to a school within 2-3 hours of driving distance.
I got a few Ph.D. offers already, but the closest one is 6 hour away. I'm debating whether to accept or to re-apply next year. I already graduated last December, and still have not yet found a fulltime job that fits my interest and academic backgroud, I'm not sure what to do during this gap year if I declined all the offers. I do want to get a Ph.D. degree, so the other concern is that if I re-apply, it's possible that I get eliminated from all the programs that I apply for.

Programs I'm aiming for: Johns Hopkins Applied Math and Statistics, UMD college park applied math and scientific computing (Edit: I did not apply to these 2 programs, I'm hoping to attend one of them next year because they are local to me).
Am I competitive for these 2 programs?

My stat:
Undergrad Institution: State, US T100
Major(s): Applied Math
Minor(s): None
GPA: 3.97
Type of Student: Asian, first gen immigrant

GRE Revised General Test:
Q: 170
V: 149
W: 3.5
Didn't sumbit to most schools.

GRE Subject Test in Mathematics:
None

Research Experience:One REU in deep learning, resulted in a paper.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: nothing except GPA related stuff
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Tutored in math learning center for 1 semester, TAed 2 semester
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: 2 letters from research mentors(probably very very strong), 2 letters from instructos(strong I guess)
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: None? 14 upper division math courses, 1 grad course in scientific computing, some programming certificates from Coursera
Last edited by melogao on Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.

clopensets
Posts: 21
Joined: Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:54 pm

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by clopensets » Wed Feb 16, 2022 3:31 pm

It's still February. A lot of places are still hiring folks expecting to graduate in May. Have you tried looking into whether UMD or Johns Hopkins or places in the DC area have open post bacc positions? There's probably not a whole lot if any for math, but allied fields like Biology and Physics for sure offer post bacc research. You might be able to get some grunt work in finance if that is more your cup of tea.

pi31415pi
Posts: 15
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2022 9:10 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by pi31415pi » Wed Feb 16, 2022 3:36 pm

I think you still have some time,say 2 months, to decide. And you might obtain the offer from Maryland and JHU.

I personally dont suggest you to reapply. My first reason is that you might not able to find a good job within such short time. And you would have to spend administrative time in finding jobs and you might have to worry about it. If your boss know that you are applying to PhD next year. They might not hire you And another reason is that it is very risky and time-consuming to reapply. And you cannot really focus too much on your job if you are applying while working.

And reapplying next year does not really solve the problems. You are just delaying it. And it is not a must that you can solve the problem after one year.
So I suggested you to seek ways to solve the problems. For example, if it is possible, you can ask your advisor to meet with you in zoom and not go to the schools physically. But I am not sure whether you fields would require the computation power from schools. And for the tutorial, I am not sure if you can kinda waive it by applying or taking less money.

I am sorry for your situation and I wish you the best that you can solve it!

User199
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2022 5:58 pm

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by User199 » Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:08 pm

Some schools may let you defer your acceptance, especially because you have a very legitimate extenuating circumstance. You should definitely reach out and explain your situation and ask if deferral is possible at schools you have been accepted to.

melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:37 pm

pi31415pi wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 3:36 pm
I think you still have some time,say 2 months, to decide. And you might obtain the offer from Maryland and JHU.

I personally dont suggest you to reapply. My first reason is that you might not able to find a good job within such short time. And you would have to spend administrative time in finding jobs and you might have to worry about it. If your boss know that you are applying to PhD next year. They might not hire you And another reason is that it is very risky and time-consuming to reapply. And you cannot really focus too much on your job if you are applying while working.

And reapplying next year does not really solve the problems. You are just delaying it. And it is not a must that you can solve the problem after one year.
So I suggested you to seek ways to solve the problems. For example, if it is possible, you can ask your advisor to meet with you in zoom and not go to the schools physically. But I am not sure whether you fields would require the computation power from schools. And for the tutorial, I am not sure if you can kinda waive it by applying or taking less money.

I am sorry for your situation and I wish you the best that you can solve it!
Thank you so much! I actually did not apply to these 2 schools :(
the reason why I want to apply to these 2 schools is because there are in my home state, one of them is only 15 minutes away. I have to accompany my close family member to different doctors offices for regualr check up, gastroscopy, etc.., although appointment dates and times are flexible, it's still a little bit far to drive 6 hrs back.
I just wish I could get in next year. :(

melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:40 pm

User199 wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:08 pm
Some schools may let you defer your acceptance, especially because you have a very legitimate extenuating circumstance. You should definitely reach out and explain your situation and ask if deferral is possible at schools you have been accepted to.
Thank you for your advice! I'm afraid that this condition won't be resolved in a year, so I will be applying to JHU and UMD exclusively next year because they are local to me.

melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:48 pm

clopensets wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 3:31 pm
It's still February. A lot of places are still hiring folks expecting to graduate in May. Have you tried looking into whether UMD or Johns Hopkins or places in the DC area have open post bacc positions? There's probably not a whole lot if any for math, but allied fields like Biology and Physics for sure offer post bacc research. You might be able to get some grunt work in finance if that is more your cup of tea.
I have only looked at pos-bac programs for math, and couldn't find one. I will search if there are any in a related field.

clopensets
Posts: 21
Joined: Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:54 pm

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by clopensets » Wed Feb 16, 2022 5:57 pm

melogao wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 4:48 pm
clopensets wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 3:31 pm
It's still February. A lot of places are still hiring folks expecting to graduate in May. Have you tried looking into whether UMD or Johns Hopkins or places in the DC area have open post bacc positions? There's probably not a whole lot if any for math, but allied fields like Biology and Physics for sure offer post bacc research. You might be able to get some grunt work in finance if that is more your cup of tea.
I have only looked at pos-bac programs for math, and couldn't find one. I will search if there are any in a related field.
Yeah unfortunately math is a little behind the times on post bacc opportunities. Most science have them. I recall you were wanting to do applied math so relevant experience in an allied field I think would definitely reflect well in applied math app. So long as you can tie the work into math you want to do.

ijustwanttodomath
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2022 4:15 pm

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by ijustwanttodomath » Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:26 pm

Lots of labs need help with modeling, data analysis, and general coding related things. Def look into post bacc programs or even job opportunities in other areas of science, you'd be surprised at how much math you're actually using!

melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:57 pm

ijustwanttodomath wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:26 pm
Lots of labs need help with modeling, data analysis, and general coding related things. Def look into post bacc programs or even job opportunities in other areas of science, you'd be surprised at how much math you're actually using!
Thank you for letting me know this. May I ask where I can find such employment/post-bac oppotunities? I have been searching on LinkedIn, Indeed, etc.., but could not find many.

ijustwanttodomath
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2022 4:15 pm

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by ijustwanttodomath » Wed Feb 16, 2022 8:27 pm

melogao wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:57 pm
ijustwanttodomath wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:26 pm
Lots of labs need help with modeling, data analysis, and general coding related things. Def look into post bacc programs or even job opportunities in other areas of science, you'd be surprised at how much math you're actually using!
Thank you for letting me know this. May I ask where I can find such employment/post-bac oppotunities? I have been searching on LinkedIn, Indeed, etc.., but could not find many.
I wasn't able to find any, either, until conveniently AFTER I got a different job :roll: For some reason a lot of them are very poorly advertised. I would look up different universities or institutes doing things you're interested in and see what kind of job openings they have. Also, if you're already a citizen, check out the national labs or even reach out to faculty who have NSF or NIH grants and ask if they are looking to hire someone with your skillset. There's actually a huge demand for math nerds in various sectors. For example, at my undergrad one of the faculty in agriculture was actually needing someone who could construct math models for them and tried recruiting me, but they ended up having their grant delayed so it fell through.

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

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by coolguy222 » Thu Feb 17, 2022 5:44 pm

you should reapply. familys more important than a degree

melogao
Posts: 7
Joined: Sat Jan 15, 2022 10:40 am

Re: re-apply next year? Need suggestions

Post by melogao » Fri Feb 18, 2022 11:07 am

ijustwanttodomath wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 8:27 pm
melogao wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:57 pm
ijustwanttodomath wrote:
Wed Feb 16, 2022 7:26 pm
Lots of labs need help with modeling, data analysis, and general coding related things. Def look into post bacc programs or even job opportunities in other areas of science, you'd be surprised at how much math you're actually using!
Thank you for letting me know this. May I ask where I can find such employment/post-bac oppotunities? I have been searching on LinkedIn, Indeed, etc.., but could not find many.
I wasn't able to find any, either, until conveniently AFTER I got a different job :roll: For some reason a lot of them are very poorly advertised. I would look up different universities or institutes doing things you're interested in and see what kind of job openings they have. Also, if you're already a citizen, check out the national labs or even reach out to faculty who have NSF or NIH grants and ask if they are looking to hire someone with your skillset. There's actually a huge demand for math nerds in various sectors. For example, at my undergrad one of the faculty in agriculture was actually needing someone who could construct math models for them and tried recruiting me, but they ended up having their grant delayed so it fell through.
sadly I'm not a citizen yet. :cry:



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