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Where do I stand?

Posted: Tue May 15, 2012 2:35 pm
by gtg387y
Undergrad Institution: Top 5 Engineering School (US News)
Major(s): B.S. Science, Technology, and Culture (Yes, I got a degree in liberal arts from a top 5 engineering school :?)
GPA: 3.34
Type of Student: DWM

Grad Institution: (Arguably) Top 30 Statistics Grad School
Major(s): M.S. Statistics
GPA: 3.77

GRE Revised General Test: (These are approximate, as I don't remember my exact scores, but I'll retake it anyway)
Q: (86%)
V: (96%)
W: 4.0

Program Applying: Statistics

Research Experience: Paper based on Master's Thesis submitted but not yet published. Thesis subject matter is not aligned with the area I want to pursue (machine learning, data mining) however.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Outstanding Teacher's Assistant award
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Not really.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: No distinguishing features, unfortunately. I didn't take my schooling all that seriously until I was out of it.

Planning to apply:
Stanford
University of California, Berkeley
University of Washington
Carnegie Mellon
Duke
University of Pennsylvania
University of Wisconsin, Madison
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Iowa State
Pennsylvania State
Columbia
Cornell
Purdue
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill


I know I'm aiming very high here considering my qualifications, but hear me out. I've already got my M.S., so I think I really should aim high if I want my PhD to be a real value-add. Also, I plan to make contact with at least one professor in each of these departments, show them that I've done my research in their area of interest (again, machine learning and data mining), and inquire about the availability of a spot for a PhD advisee in that area. The response I get (or lack thereof) may whittle down this list, but hopefully not by too much.

I'm also pretty confident in my ability to demonstrate my aptitude and passion via my statement of purpose, and I think my presentation ability is a cut above the average statistics applicant. Of course, I also expect that a Math Subject score in the 80-90 percentile range is going to be necessary to wash over my less-than-stellar GPA, and I do need to retake the general GRE.

I'm looking for any advice on how to improve my likelihood of acceptance and your opinions on whether or not I have a chance in hell of making it into half of these programs. Feel free to offer any general career or life advice for an aspiring statistician while you're at it. Thanks much.

Re: Where do I stand?

Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 3:02 pm
by gtg387y
Haha, yeah. Upon further investigation, there's a pretty decent chance I would be rejected from all of those schools. Aiming lower, but still going to apply to at least a few of those I listed.

Re: Where do I stand?

Posted: Sat Jul 28, 2012 1:10 am
by KaviSiromani
AFAIK, Post Masters your undergrad GPA is the attribute with least weight (you know as in SOM the neuron farthest to the winning one !) (he hehe)

Anyways, we are all fighting here.... All the best and do keep us updated how it goes.