graduate-applications

[hot wadi]

the topic itself radiates

see

[torpid echo]

Nobody wants to talk about that because it breeds nothing but toxicity. This channel is now basically only breeding toxicity

[hot wadi]

idk man i think its just the way people are not cool

[torpid echo]

For some reason I don’t understand people are obsessed with stressing themselves out getting as much information about what schools are doing X and who is going to Y and blah blah when it’s past the point when you can do anything

[hot wadi]

im sure if u were to have a disussion with one of your mates on the topic it would be different

or anyone

[hot wadi]

seems normal man its like when ur out of a test and ur trying to review ur answers

like its just normal to stress about just like stressing about ur grades

its just natural

[torpid echo]

When this channel was being used before applications were due it served a functional purpose to help people unfamiliar with the process but now it’s just people arguing about how little or how much any particular thing affects your graduate application

[shadow bobcat]

Realistically this channel should probably be locked until admissions are over

[crimson valve]

if ur reviewing your answers u can do something about it

[hexed ibex]

back in the good ole days one of the profs here did a masters in a random state school and got into columbia

[shadow bobcat]

Maybe till like till June or something

[hexed ibex]

undergrad wasn't related to math at all

[hot wadi]

yea john the logic is correct we all know that its bad to think about something u cant change but i am saaying its NATURAL

[torpid echo]

Except this makes you stressed for 1 hour, this process drags out for months

[hexed ibex]

now lol

[crimson valve]

yeah i dont disagree, maybe the existence of this channel is encouraging ppl to stress out more

[hot wadi]

we all do it

[crimson valve]

idk i dont really care about what the server decides. Ill keep answering stuff like when ppl ask about schools for operator algebras or w/e if this channel does survive

[hot wadi]

if people were just more chill it will survive

instead of trying to be online judges

of wether one deserves or not

the fuck lmao

[shadow bobcat]

Highly off topic what is operator algebras I saw it when I was looking at stuff at TAMU

[raven sun]

Remember chm how I repeatedly recommended we lock it by now lmao

[torpid echo]

No, lmfao

[crimson valve]

i can tell u in #advanced-analysis

[half meadow]

I'm sure the channel would be a lot nicer if not for the people who just show up to pile hate on it ...

[raven sun]

,,,sowwy

[mystic jungle]

On that issue, there's nothing in the rules about why mgre forums is toxic. It just is and we're supposed to accept the dogma.

[hot wadi]

idk man i got my text deleted for just saying its name

so the mods have a diff say

[torpid echo]

[hot wadi]

ig the chancing paragraph would probably contain it

[chilly turret]

i just enjoy reading this channel and seeing what people have to say

[torpid echo]

It’s almost like some people have seen firsthand over multiple years what happens when you gather a lot of people applying to grad school at the same time who are constantly checking such places

[hot wadi]

makes more sense

[mystic jungle]

We should have 2 channels then, 1 about how to apply and another about the nature of applications and decisions. The problem is many of us are past how to apply, that's simple stuff so all that remains is conversations like these.

[torpid echo]

Answer: it becomes insanely toxic and everyone is depressed and stressed

[chilly turret]

but by the way people talk i’d think they serve on the admissions committees

[hot wadi]

exactly

this is the main problem

everyone just thinks he or she knows everything

instead of just being uplifting they try to like evaluate lmfao

[torpid echo]

We don’t even want to have people talking about results for the most part. Do that on your own if you want, but it just spirals out of control incredibly fast

[chilly turret]

is it regular to receive emails from professors and a school without being accepted yet

[torpid echo]

I got quite a few, in my cases I think it meant I passed an initial round and they wanted to talk and mainly just ask me like what I want to study, with who, and how likely I’d be to accept an offer. Then they let me ask questions about the program

[chilly turret]

okay that was basically what went on, asked ab research interest and future plans ect

they didn’t ask who else i had applied to or if i was likely to accept an offer or not though

[torpid echo]

¯_(ツ)_/¯

[tepid forum]

fwiw I think you hit the nail on the head throughout 👍

[rapid dawn]

"toxic positivity" requires toxicity, that is to say a downside to the positivity

My initial comment was targeted to the specific circumstance of someone who had already sent out applications, and all that was left was not driving themselves crazy

"it's a bunch of somewhat correlated coin flips and you'll probably get in somewhere" is good advice in the specific circumstance of a qualified candidate awaiting responses.

And if someone applied to Harvard, Princeton, UCLA, etc then they're probably a qualified candidate

Could be they're just overconfident, but that is irrelevant at this point since applications are in

[hot wadi]

what do you guys think of putnam

ie is scoring a say a double digit score would be a good thing to shoot for to add to one's application?

[crimson valve]

No harm in adding it, I doubt it is too useful though

[hot wadi]

would it be if one is not even a math major

[tacit lark]

Having a good score can help. idk what the threshold is though. idk if having double digits is worth mentioning.

For the most part it would just show your 'smart' not that you necessarily know a lot of math.

[hot wadi]

turns out its only meant for american undergrads so rip anyways

ty all

[rapid dawn]

I think you want to be at least top 500 for it to matter

double digits isn't good enough

[hot wadi]

yea ig there are too many smart people but i just thought of it as a way to show any aptitude for problem solving really

as im not even a math majro and i have nothing to prove that i indeed know the basic math other than rec letters

[cinder raptor]

Who does it hurt by adding it?

[crimson valve]

theres some cases where i think it might be harmful

for example, I got a higher score my first time than later tries (bc i stopped caring about comp math right)

so i only mentioned my first score

i think mentioning my second score might have been more harmful

in any case these are like

very very small + or - afaik

[half meadow]

In general there's such a thing as damning by faint praise, and it is natural to worry whether you'd be doing to that yourself, if you don't have a strong sense of how impressive the achievement you're looking at is or isn't.

[weak mason]

For context, any score above 20 (two questions completely correct) typically gets one into the top 500, so that's a good baseline to aim for

[visual folio]

is it ok/normal having done a master in europe and looking to do part III ?

[hot wadi]

if u do the exercises

then its more effective lmao

if u dont then its worthless

ig with the course u have the prof where like u can have discussions and so on

but even if it wouldnt really amtter much u can just ask here

almost all good students study ahead

most of the time yea but i meant questions as in "intuitional" questions

not actual problems

but yea

it's kinda pointless if ur going to take these courses anyway?

well yea

it is

or not pointless but

if its free time then its good cuz ur goign to be much more prepared when actually taking the course

• the main thing of anything is actually to have fun

so if its fun for you then its a win-win

then do that , 100% your grades and understanding will improve

cuz also if not for the contents

if u read hard books

ur increasing you "mathematical maturity"

if that makes sense

congrats

dont you have the final tho?

how much is your final worth if i m ya ask

may*

cool!

[tepid forum]

that shouldn't be a problem

[hot wadi]

yes

not in math

exams are worth 60% heheh

here

[visual folio]

do you know how many courses do students take per term and how many will be examined on if we do a thesis?

[gritty ruin]

Depends - if you want a distinction you should take between 17 and 19 "units" to exam, where an essay (not a thesis) counts as 3 units, and other courses are either 2 units (16 lectures) or 3 units (24 lectures)

When I was doing Part III, I took 6 courses to exam and did an essay, and also attended lectures for another 2-3 courses

If you're aiming for a distinction while you're there, I would say take 3-4 courses per term

[visual folio]

thanks for the reply, did you take courses in the last term too?

[gritty ruin]

There are no courses in the 3rd term

It's exam term

I think they might actually have some in the 3rd term from time to time, they might have actually had 1 when I was there?

But most of the 3rd term is revision + exam prep

[visual folio]

are you on your own reviewing for the exam or is there a review session for each course?

[gritty ruin]

There are review sessions

Although each course only has 1 review session

[cursive agate]

anyone applying/applied to the uchicago reu? do they not have topics and just cover what u say u want to do in your research statement?

[smoky jetty]

I applied

[cursive agate]

yeah i figured it out tho

[smoky jetty]

I talked about just general areas I am interested in and why I want to go to UChicago's REU specifically

I wish they talked about projects but I used the extra space to talk about the math and algos club that I run

[mystic jungle]

If you get accepted, keep in mind almost all projects just follow a textbook and don't end up with any original research. The disconnect between the apparent prestige and actual quality is striking, I was surprised when I found out myself.

[smoky jetty]

I mean

being honest I just want a rec letter out of it 💀

[tacit lark]

Ive heard they produce a lot of good survey/expository pieces

[glossy kindle]

sounds higher quality than pretty much any other reu.

[tacit lark]

Ive def read some of the papers from there.

More than any other REU prob

[glossy kindle]

me too.

and the participants surely learn more than those at other reus.

[smoky jetty]

I think I'd rather do a reading project that's run well where I learn something hard rather than a toy research project

[shell kindle]

Didn't the U Chicago REU get into trouble with the NSF?

[molten frigate]

aren't most REU just that?

[crimson valve]

I occasionally read some U chicago reu stuff bc they are good brief expositions on topics

honestly it will probs be a v good exp for anyone attending

[smoky jetty]

they wut

[shell kindle]

Didn't they not get NSF funding this past year

[tacit lark]

Ye i heard that

[mystic jungle]

Absolutely. Some people don't want to do surveys so it's a fair warning.

[mystic jungle]

No, many REUs have students prove something new even if it's a small problem. Professors find problems for which it's easier to get through the research prerequisites, plus the usual picking students with tons of prior knowledge.

One group in my REU found the c-covering number for K_m x K_n for all m, n, c as this was open. Quick to start, nice to present all the way up to the meat of the construction proof, and everyone walks away happy.

[tacit lark]

I did the baruch reu and they have produced many really good papers

[worthy apex]

Do undergrad seniors normally apply to REUs? I wasn't planning on it because I think my opportunity's passed (I won't be an undergraduate anymore in a while) but if it still makes sense to apply I'll give it a go

[shell kindle]

There are some REUs that exclude senior undergrads and some that allow senior undergrads so yeah if there are any that catch your eye and that you are eligible for then you should

Of course, there are other things that you may want to spend your summer doing, like studying for prelim exams or not doing math

[smoky jetty]

the VAST majority of REUs as far as I can tell do not take people who would be in the REU the summer after they graduate

so if you're a current senior your options are very limited

[glossy kindle]

holy smokes! this was a big open problem!

[sacred estuary]

What's a good place to read about c-covering numbers of graphs? Or maybe just what paper has the complete bipartite graph result?

[glossy kindle]

try the annals of mathematics.

[mystic jungle]

It's a Cartesian product of 2 complete graphs, and nothing fancy was used in the proof so there's no "place" to start.

[sacred estuary]

Ah, I misread the graph in question.

[shadow bobcat]

Yeah they only have needs based funding this year iirc

[glacial silo]

How competitive are the 'top' grad schools? Like if you get one or two bad grades, but have good letters, and good grades for the other classes you have, is that fine? And I assume they'd want like an REU/ or like a paper?

Also, is there any more 'prestige' to going to a top school than just any other good grad school

(specifically for combo/graph theory)

[tacit lark]

They are very competitive. It depends what you mean by bad grades, what courses you got bad grades in, and your overall coursework. Having good letters and research can definitely make up for it.

[tacit lark]

Im not sure what you mean by is there more prestige to going to a top school. Obviously top schools have more prestige associated with them. How much that prestige actually matters depends.

[glacial silo]

Like, are your opportunities out of grad school (i.e work in industry, getting a postdoc, etc) somehow easier having gone to a top school, than say a different school

And like is access to 'interesting' open questions, and good advisors/academics better at said schools

[tacit lark]

there are many benefits to going to a prestigious school. But it's not the only thing.

At a better school there may be more resources, more well known faculty, etc. This can help with getting good postdocs. The average grad student may be stronger and push you to be better. It depends on the specific school though.

[mint citrus]

Guys does anyone study at Czech Technical University ?

[glacial silo]

what are some other things you should consider for your grad school

besides cost of living in the area

[crimson valve]

Research area is the main thing if you have a good idea what ur interested in

And there’s also more to living in an area than the cost, you wanna know their environment and if you can do the things u want to there

The environment of the department is also important, certain schools can have an elitist environment that maybe isn’t best suited for everyone to learn in for example

And maybe some school is known for being super supportive etc in its environment

[undone yacht]

https://www.math.uu.se/research/cim/announced-projects/ applications opens next week or so (you apply for one or more of the projects)

[shell kindle]

Ummm

I mean presumably you have questions about the program

That you are interviewing for

At least at my institution, the interview is really intended to be a two way interview, so the faculty is interviewing you to see if you are a fit for the program, and you are interviewing the faculty to see if the program is a fit for you

[coral vault]

most of the mentors are grad students, though there are a couple postdocs and profs as well

how your experience is may depend on what mentor you get as well, as well as if you are going to the apprentice vs full program

[smoky jetty]

prolly full

whichever one is for juniors and such

that's the full one right?

[coral vault]

apprentice is generally rising 2nd years, full is most people (anyone who has taken analysis+)

[worthy apex]

Oh god I just spent an hour trying to interface with all of my different applied schools' various crappy websites in order to find my application status only to find that all of mine are still under review. Honestly the only good thing about rejections is that's one fewer horribly designed website to try to use

[ocean kiln]

That being said, if Peter likes your paper, he will most likely agree to write a letter for you (incorporating comments from your mentor)

If you do go the REU, make sure to sign up for the talks at the end of the program

Also, remember that these talks aren't meant to show the audience how smart you are. On the contrary, your goal should be to make what you did over the course of the REU seem easy and effortless

At least that's how I approached them

[coral vault]

good point, though i would say that im not sure how a rec letter like that would compare to a rec letter from a prof who you actually knows you well

[signal phoenix]

can 7 pointers get Grad positions in US

[ocean kiln]

I would say it turned out well for me

Though I did get rejected from Chicago for grad school

Which, in hindsight, was probably a good thing

[coral vault]

perhaps i should have asked peter for a rec letter then lol

oh well

the chicago area is uh sketchy

[signal phoenix]

peter who,peter scholze?omggg.

[ocean kiln]

Sure but that's not why I think being rejected ended up being a good thing. I feel like since I really enjoyed the REU, I was viewing Chicago through rose-tinted glasses even though my research focus didn't align that much with anyone there

[coral vault]

i see

[ocean kiln]

No, the cooler Peter

[coral vault]

that's certainly important lol

[signal phoenix]

who who who

[olive crater]

Peter Sarnak?

[tacit lark]

very good point

[tacit lark]

No he isnt at uchicago

[ocean kiln]

Meter Pay

[raven sun]

This seems like an insane way to approach giving talks imo

I never try to make my work seem that way, even expository things

[raven sun]

Generally not a great way to approach REUs

[smoky jetty]

Eh maybe

You're right

[tacit lark]

i ddint read the second half of the sentence lol

[half meadow]

Hmm? I'd say it sounds like a good ideal to strive for. If your exposition is so good the audience ends up thinking, "cool! I could have come up with that proof too, if only I had the idea to look at it that way", it's much better than if they think "wow! They must really be a genius if they can keep all those concepts and bizarre definitions straight".

[tacit lark]

when giving a talk you def should try to think of some things for the audience to take a way and not just sound smart and make it seem complicated

especially in an REU talk most of the audience doesnt work on your problem. Think of concrete things for them to take away that they may actually remember.

[half meadow]

(Of course it's only an ideal if you don't achieve it by dumbing down your result to the level of facile analogies and handwaving).

[raven sun]

Oh I don’t think the point is to make it be like “oh I’m so smart either”

But making things seem easy/effortless is another way of making yourself seem smart

[half meadow]

I don't think so. It's about making the audience think they are smart.

[raven sun]

Perhaps

Rather what I think is true is that when someone tries to present in this way

What ends up happening is their exposition doesn’t match up to their goals

And so the audience is under the impression that this should be easy for them to see but they’re not smart enough / this person is a genius

I have heard ppl say multiple times that it feels infantilizing to pretend math is easier than it is by giving talks this way

[half meadow]

Trying is not the same as succeeding. But of you refrain from trying to be comprehensible simply because you may not succeed, then ... you've lost before you even begun.

[raven sun]

You can be comprehensible without making things seem easy / effortless

Also sometimes you do just have to do a hard difficult laborious calculation

[half meadow]

It seems insane to me that one would deliberately keep good ways to think about the problem/solution secret from the audience because we wouldn't want them to think it was too easy.

[raven sun]

That’s not what I’m saying?

[half meadow]

It sounds to me like you're advocating trying to make it sound more difficult than it really is.

[raven sun]

No

Let me outline how I give talks

[half meadow]

How not?

You're saying it's a problem if the audience ends up thinking they understand what you're saying, and they will feel infantilized if, by accident, you happen to communicate an insight to them.

[raven sun]

This is the most ungenerous reading of what I have said

[half meadow]

It fits that complete inanity of advocating for deliberately not trying to be clear.

[raven sun]

• identify the relevant definitions and context
• identify the questions being asked and the intuition for why these are good to questions to ask
• talk about possible approaches that don’t work and where standard techniques fail
• talk about a key insight or idea that makes the problem easier, and how my research team came to it
• reinterpret the problem through that lens
• guide the audience through how one could solve the problem@with that

[raven sun]

That is not what I said

[half meadow]

Your exact words were that it is "an insane way to approach giving talks".

[raven sun]

If you do not communicate that there is difficulty in doing mathematics and where the difficulties lie you are doing just as much of a disservice to the audience

Specifically I meant the second part of the paragraph and should have clarified

I thought the first part being fine was implicit

[half meadow]

That doesn't make it less insane to me.

The absolute apex of communicative success is if your explanation succeeds in enabling the audience to reproduce what you did.

[raven sun]

No

The apex is going beyond

And one cannot do that without knowing where the hard parts are and why they are hard

It’s telling a fairy tale to make everything seem easy

[half meadow]

It's wasting the audience's time if all you say is "this is so hard that you'll never understand it, nyah nyah".

[raven sun]

That’s not what I’m saying

[raven sun]

.

[half meadow]

The only way to reach your goal of keeping the audience bewildered is if is you hide from them how you solved the hard problems.

[raven sun]

My goal is not to keep the audience bewildered

When did I say that

[half meadow]

talk about a key insight or idea that makes the problem easier, and how my research team came to it
By the way, why is that even part of your plan if your goal is to avoid the audience getting the idea that anything is easy?

[raven sun]

I never said that was my goal either…

I’m going to stop talking

If you would like to see how I give talks I can send you a recording of one

[half meadow]

You have explicitly said it is bad and "insane" if the presentation leaves the audience feeling the result is easy.

As far as I can see it the only reliable way to achieve that is to deliberately withhold the ideas that could make the result seem easy for the audience.

[raven sun]

Yes, because that is often a lie. And gives a false impression of what mathematical research is like. You identify the difficulties explicitly as well as identify the ideas that make it approachable and easy

[half meadow]

You're saying you don't think the audience is worthy of learning the insights that enabled you to solve the problem. You'd rather they stay in awe that you managed to do it.

[raven sun]

???

I literally explicitly included them learning those insights

In my Outline

Christ I’m gonna make lunch

[half meadow]

But you don't want that step in the outline to succeed to the point where the audience thinks they can follow you.

[raven sun]

No? I do want them to think that?

I think you are assuming a lot about me and this is getting toxic

(Has been)

[half meadow]

I'm reacting to your own words.

[crimson valve]

i mean this should be clear to anyone who has given a talk that you have to strike a balance between making ur talk understandable and doing the material you are presenting justice, and I think thats what Faye is saying

like clearly you can try to make it "too easy" and then the audience doesnt wanna listen to it

and you have a limited time so depending on how you present it you might skip over details that might make it "hard" or w/e, which maybe isnt ideal

this is a seriously uncharitable reading of what faye said

[half meadow]

You mean this?

[crimson valve]

you dont even need to go that far

there are different levels of dumbing down the result

without going to that extreme

[half meadow]

But clearly Bananas was not advocating for any amount of dumbing down the result when they stated an ambition of making the audience feel they understand what they're doing.

[crimson valve]

reading over the previous convo I think the confusion is this: the audience dont need to think a problem is easy for them to follow ur logic

I do think if you are trying to convince your audience "the problem was easy and effortless" it is dishonest, although i am sure its not what banana meant

[raven sun]

brb wiles presenting FLT as easy and effortless

(Wild exaggeration but is funny)

[crimson valve]

infact you would often outline your research and point to the parts which are hard and which are easier to give the audience a better idea

"this lemma is the main ingredient and it requires tools from this stuff and it gets verty hard, we wont go over it in this talk"

or smth

[half meadow]

If he had had a way to do that rather than write several hundred pages of paper, do you think he would have chosen the several hundred pages?

[crimson valve]

this is definitely more helpful then being like "oh yeah just use technique xyz for lemma and you get your result"

even if maybe this makes it seem "easy and effortless"

[half meadow]

"just use technique xyz for lemma and you get your result" sounds like the opposite of making it seems easy and effortless.

It doesn't give the audience any sense of what's actually going on (unless you can rely on the audience already being familiar enough with technique XYZ to repeat that step in the proof).

Not everything can be easy and effortless in the first place, but assuming you're in the fortunate situation of having a way to present your argument in a way that makes it easy and effortless to follow (without cheating, as I've said) -- then I don't see any reason not to follow that way instead of a more obscure presentation.

[crimson valve]

I dont think anyone was arguing that though??? The idea is that if you are presenting research most things you cannot show to be easy and effortless, and its better to let the audience know which part is difficult rather than trying to find a way that would make the problem seem easy artificially.

Again I am certain this is not what bananas meant, but I think its good that faye pointed this out for the inexperienced talkers, you dont want someone to try too hard to fit their talk into this box and either have a dishonest talk or a handwavy one.

[shell kindle]

That is a much more qualified statement than the original

[raven sun]

Sorry that happens when I’m texting in the middle of class lol

[crimson valve]

anyhow to whoever was asking about the REU talks or w/e

what i wrote above is probably a more complete version of what bananas wanted to say, that while you should make the appropriate part as digestable as u can, you should know that not every part of what you did was easy and its fine to point out to the audience when you are blackboxing parts how difficult it was and what u did etc

[half meadow]

Perhaps a reasonable synthesis would be that one should have a, hmm, "bimodal" detail level. What you can explain in a reasonably easy to follow way, within the time constraints, do so. But if there are parts you cannot explain easily, then don't attempt to make up for it by filling slides with obscure details nobody will be able to follow; instead explicitly say you won't be able to cover that part and just skip directly to when a conclusion that the audience will understand pops out of it.

[crimson valve]

yeah sure

[ocean kiln]

I was talking about the end-of-REU Chicago talks specifically. Basically, I wanted to say that since these talks are aimed at undergraduates and are expository, you shouldn't get too much into technical details. Here is what I would focus on

1. Why people should care
2. What the philosophy behind the approach is
3. A (very brief) overview of technical issues
4. A few easy examples of your topic in action

For example, if I was talking about motivic homotopy, I would focus on

1. Homotopy theory is a powerful tool in topology and we want a similar theory in algebraic geometry
2. It is better to work in a good category with bad objects than in a bad category with good objects
3. Instead of considering circle spectra as we do in normal homotopy theory, we now need to consider circle and Tate circle (G_m) bispectra
4. P^n/P^{n-1} (whatever that means) behaves as the n-sphere in motivic homotopy theory. A bit more difficult example would be realizing algebraic K-theory as a consequence of motivic homotopy theory (this would probably not be a good example for general undergraduates, but a lot of people at the REU were learning the basics of K-theory so it could have worked)

For general talks, I have heard that 25% of your talk should be understood by the entire audience, 50% by people working in adjacent fields, and 80% by experts in the field

[inner sand]

Whose the other 20% for?

[raven sun]

^

[ocean kiln]

Most professor's I've talked to have said that only the speaker (and maybe some close collaborators) understand all details of research level talks completely

At least initially

[half meadow]

It might work out that way in practice, but I don't think anyone should be planning a talk with the intent that 20% of it will be lost on everyone in the room.

[tacit lark]

I dont think they have to be lost but not everyone is going to completely understand every detail

[ocean kiln]

Sure. What I meant by that is even if no one understand 100% of what you said, that doesn't mean that the talk was bad

You should aim for it to be as clear as possible (with the time that you've been given)

[inner sand]

You should also just say less if you can’t be clear and say everything in the time.

[mystic jungle]

The rest is like this yo, 1% luck, 2% skill, 1.5% concentrated power of will, 0.5% pleasure, 5% pain, and 10% reason to remember the slides.

[torpid echo]

Lmfao

[chilly turret]

i think all of those are off by about a factor of 10

[mystic jungle]

No, they add up to 20

[chilly turret]

went right over my head

[coral terrace]

Guys how do I look at research interests for different schools

I am interested in optimization and statistics

[crimson valve]

most schools have a "faculty research area" page or something like that

https://www.math.tamu.edu/research/

for instance

and you can see who works in the area and what they specifically do

[shadow bobcat]

You also might want to look specifically at statistic departments as well and if you like OR then business departments too

[tacit lark]

If you like optimization look into cs and operations research too

Depending on the dept they can have a decent amount of optimization

[smoky jetty]

Also aerospace or ECE (specifically control theory)

my research rn is with an aerospace prof, lots of optimization work

[coral terrace]

https://tenor.com/view/depressed-desparate-smoking-sad-gif-19116342

do american unis give money to students from canda

[tacit lark]

Ya

Phd programs do

[timber tundra]

Hey all,

The graduate application season is over, and schools are returning results. As #graduate-applications has served its purpose, and as we wish to ensure the server's culture does not become too strained by the return of results, we will be closing this channel until next application season.

If you have any out-of-season questions on the graduate application process, consider asking elsewhere in the server, such as in #advanced-lounge . If you would like to be informed on what schools have posted results/what sort of applications get in/etc., this server is not the place for it — please go elsewhere.

[timber tundra]

(To clarify, this was always the plan for this channel and was not the result of any specific incident or conversation. As mentioned, we're planning on bringing it back for the next application cycle, probably around August or September.)

[timber tundra]

Hello.

This channel has been reopened for the 2024 application season.

I'd like to stress to try to prevent discourse becoming too pessimistic, bitter, or toxic. We would like this channel not to negatively impact server culture.

Feel free to ask questions relating to the application process. We'd rather avoid topics like "chance me" or "what's the minimum to get into X", however — the reality is that any such claims made on this server are unsubstantiated due to the obscurity and unpredictability of admissions panels, and may promote an overly competitive culture. If you'd like advice on where to apply, we'd recommend asking an advisor or experienced professor who's familiar with your experience!

[sonic surge]

whats a good way to ask a prof for a letter of rec over email specifically

i know how to do irl and thats how i usually do it

but email paralysis

[timber tundra]

keep it short

"Hello [professor],

I was a student in your [whatever] class and worked with you on [bleh].

I am applying to graduate schools for a [target degree name] in [field] this fall. Would you please be willing to kindly write me a letter of recommendation? I can provide a list of schools I'm applying to [on request/at a later date/etc.].

Regards,"

something like this

just explain how you know them so that they know what to write about, what your goal is, and ask nicely

if you know your deadlines it might be good to include those as well, but most profs know it's roughly mid-december

[sonic surge]

kool thank u

[shell kindle]

For people in the US, you really should start working on your NSF GRFP applications now

[candid reef]

sheesh already?

[shell kindle]

Yes

[molten frigate]

will taking a gap year, while e.g. teaching and maybe working in a small project or two, affect my eventual grad admissions at all? What are grad schools' impressions on this, is it a common sight etc.

(I'm kinda convinced the answer is "no" if I can write a strong application regardless, but I guess I'm looking for concrete, if a bit anecdotary evidence here)

oh for context I'm finishing a MSc and considering PhD anywhere in US or Europe (undecided). Considering a gap year due to burnout, mental health and economic issues

[shell kindle]

Taking a gap year is pretty common

There are two ways to go about it

The first is to just apply the next cycle

The second is to apply this cycle and defer your admission a year

Which one you choose to do is up to you

Working on small projects may make for a stronger application but your letter writers may also forget some things about you

[molten frigate]

yeah I've read about this but apparently some schools are a bit reluctant to defer admissions, applying later sounds like a safer bet considering I'm still undecided about things basically

[shell kindle]

Most schools I know deal with deferred admissions in a reasonable way in that they expect some people to

And they let them

[molten frigate]

I see

[shell kindle]

Well

At least in the US

[crimson valve]

I'd ask them in person first ig

if its possible

[sonic surge]

Not possible they are in minnesota

sobbissimo

Every reu student forgot to ask and now we all have to do that

[grand palm]

How common are defering offers? This seems to be my plan this year and I am a little bit worried my defer request gets rejected

[undone yacht]

As stated above, depends on where. Where I am it would not be possible more than a few months at most. A year would never happen.

(EU)

[grand palm]

I am assuming it is more common in the U.S. right ?

[shell kindle]

I wouldn’t say that it’s common, but at my institution one or two people defer every year

[cold tiger]

In EU, I know at least 2 PhD students who worked in some firms for a few years, before quitting to do PhD

It's not the most common, but there are cases

I'll recommend talking to your referers about your intention, so that they won't forget you. Of course the letters won't be as strong, as they can only testify your abilities while you're in school. But one year won't make a huge difference.

I'd also recommend reading papers in your area from time to time, just to be informed, so that you won't forget everything when you decide to do a PhD afterwards.

[smoky jetty]

ohwut

man

[shell kindle]

Due in <2 months

[tacit lark]

Its common to start apps in summer

[shell kindle]

Yes I should say that starting now is considered late

[midnight terrace]

Currently building my list of schools. My interest is in geometry and topology, so I've mostly been looking at schools ranked by US News and checking how many people are working in certain subfields of geometry and topology. Is there a better way to do this?

[midnight terrace]

For some reason this did not occur to me

🙏

[worthy apex]

Look up NSF grants for geometry and topology.

[midnight terrace]

Oooh good idea

[midnight terrace]

How should I approach the research statement if I haven't done research?

[shell kindle]

You write about research you plan on doing

Past experiences all go in the personal statement

The research statement is a plan for research

So you should explain a research question, some related work, and potential techniques you might use, as well as why the question is interesting

There is no requirement to do the research though

[midnight terrace]

Right, sorry, this is my main concern

Like, how should I pick a question or know what tools to use? That's all way above my level

Seems like I'd need a PhD already to answer those questions

[shell kindle]

Ask your letter writers

[steep belfry]

I've been doing mine from AMS idk if this is good though

[midnight terrace]

Wdym from AMS?

[steep belfry]

https://www.ams.org/find-graduate-programs

[midnight terrace]

Ah, right. I looked at this too. I searched for the Geometry/Topology speciality and then investigated schools I was vaguely familiar with.

[floral grove]

what consists of a good application for applying to good public Universities in Germany?

[shell kindle]

@dreamy vale

[dreamy vale]

not sure honestly
letters or recommendtaion are important obviously, apart from that in my experience the master thesis is highly valued because its a pretty good indicator for how someone does math

[floral grove]

I am sorry I missed out an important detail

I am an undergrad and I will be applying for a masters program

@dreamy vale

[dreamy vale]

oh well, i dont know the experience for internationals, but in general the goal is to accept everyone

there are some uhh technical requirements but those mostly consist of classes taken in [subject]

example:

Minimum requirements for admission to the Master programme Mathematics International are the following:

• courses totalling at least 70 ECTS credits in the following fields of mathematics: Analysis (differential and integral calculus in one or several variables) ordinary and partial differential equations, vector analysis, complex analysis, linear algebra, algebra, number theory, geometry, discrete mathematics, functional analysis, numerical mathematics, stochastics, financial mathematics, operations research, optimization, mathematical modelling and scientific computing,

  courses totalling at least 10 ECTS credits in the aforementioned or other fields of mathematics,
  courses totalling at least 30 ECTS credits in any field of mathematics or in subjects which apply mathematical methods (e.g., biology, chemistry, geography, computer science, aerospace computer science, physics, economics).

The number of ECTS credits corresponds to the estimated workload associated to the course (including time solving exercise problems and preparation for the exam): one ECTS credit corresponds to 25-30 hours.

[floral grove]

accept everyone

[dreamy vale]

a masters isnt like a phd; the uni spends no ressources on having more masters students (at least in mathematics...), in fact they get paid for having more students

at least thats the story for nationals at most unis (maybe not at Bonn...), i am not sure how its for internationals

[tropic shoal]

I need to get on this - want to apply to a master's program

dumb question - what is the average number of programs that people apply to per cycle?

[tacit lark]

In the US ik a lot of people that applied to 8+

For PhDs

[smoky jetty]

I'm applying to 15 💀

[shell kindle]

I applied to 15

[tacit lark]

Also normal

[candid reef]

fuark

[shadow bobcat]

Yeah a lot of people apply to double digits especially if they want to do multiple fields like TCS and Math or such

[cold tiger]

5

But it depends on where u wanna go and what your profile is

There is a threshold in EU, where no school, and I mean literally no school, would say no.

[undone yacht]

Lot's of people are rejected from the master's programs here.

[cold tiger]

Everyone in my circle has not been rejected from any uni

[undone yacht]

I think we have about 30% acceptance rate. I know of programs with less than 10%.

[cold tiger]

😄 even 10% is not that low. There exists a threshold of profile for that.

Maybe I happen to find myself with a lot of geniuses. But those figures have never been our concern.

[dreamy vale]

i dont think the bragging is necessary, the numbers speak for themselves

[plush verge]

I was told to ask here: How much on the putnam is enough to make a difference for graduate applications?

[undone yacht]

big fish in a small pond. those people never succeed and always blame everybody but themselves when they fail after a few years of postdoc...nobody wants to work with them

[shell kindle]

Some schools will care more than others

Like MIT will definitely care

[plush verge]

right so the quyestion is what is approximately the "threshold"

fellow, HM, t200?

[olive crater]

∀ ϵ>0 ∃ δ>0 such that...

What is the point you are trying to make?

[cold tiger]

All I'm saying is the number of applications should be case-dependent, and there's little point in asking the average of number of applications. It costs as hell to apply, so if you're absolutely confident you'll get in somewhere, there's no need to shotgun to double digits.

[steep belfry]

should I take the gre subject test? some programs strongly recommend it such as Rutgers, which I really want to get to, although I don't have a high gpa, average rec letters and no research exp. I wish I knew about them, I applied to one but it was too late. I think I will do ok on the gre but analysis is not my strong point, and i read that most of it is analysis, I like more algebra.

My goal is to apply to 15+ schools, regardless

[shadow bobcat]

Most is calculus but yes you should take it

If you do bad you can always exclude it or retake (time permitting)

[subtle knoll]

there are only a few schools that require math GRE now, a list of them can be find on google.

[shell kindle]

How much time would you spend preparing for it

Are you applying this year

Do you think you will get 75th+ percentile

Keeping in mind that it is mostly calculus and the most difficult thing is the time constraint and not the math

[rapid dawn]

Everyone will tell you there's no good answer but that seems like bullshit to me

yes it's case dependent, but there's gotta be a ballpark and also how do you know what case you are?

I think the answer to this is 10ish

I think I applied to 11 and that worked out for me

I am very far from an expert on this, but imo if you apply to at least 10 you're probably fine. Applying to fewer is fine too if you want something more specialized and there aren't as many programs that fit the bill.

[candid quarry]

Yeah apply to at least 10 unless you absolutely cannot

[drowsy dune]

you live in france...

[cold tiger]

What does that have to do with anything? 😄

[cold tiger]

A good way is to ask people who share similar profiles as yours: possibly alumni, similar experiences, GPA, research interest, etc. They know you much, much better, than we some strangers on internet do, and can give better advices

[rapid dawn]

Yeah this is good advice

Also to be clear I applied to programs last year, I was just low-key ranting about how difficult it was to get a straight answer for how many programs to apply to

[shell kindle]

If anyone wants to make a website, this is one option: https://github.com/academicpages/academicpages.github.io

[cold tiger]

actually, do y'all think it's good to have a website?

My peers and I, we applied without, but by no means it was a good sample

[main marlin]

Hi, I would like to ask two questions:

1. Is it a big burden for professors to write you a letter and send it to programs? I do not want to bother them, but I need letters... :S

2. If some personal tragedy has happened to me during my studies, which hindered my performance, should I mention something like "I have overcome X situation...", or is it better not to mention it?

[olive crater]

If you need letters, then you have to ask for letters.

[tepid forum]

they will just write one and attach it to each application which will take a few mins each

as long as you give them plenty of time and don't send them 30 reference requests an hour before the deadline you shouldn't worry

& it's sort of just part of their job xd

[main marlin]

Is e-mailing them 2 months before deadline good enough?

[steep belfry]

My prof agreed last year to write me a letter, but I haven't had any contact with him since he retired, he became an emeritus prof since then. I don't have a large faculty and the other 2 profs I didn't do so well with them, 1 is stats and the other topology. Stats(got A and C) I simply don't see the point, and topology (got C) b/c i didnt study, i was focused more on group theory (i love group theory) but he's a nice prof, we had many good talks during his office hrs, even invited me to see a presentation w his research peers, although i wasn't really interested about the topic (k theory of Z/pZ and 93 connected subsets of the cube) I didnt know what k theory was at the time, i know a little more now however still baby steps. Finally, I'm not sure if I should ask either him or the retired prof about a rec letter?

[steep belfry]

Note: I already have 2 profs where I did well (algebra & dynamical systems), the whole question above is regarding the 3rd rec letter.

[tacit lark]

it's not bad. I think its a good idea as a grad student.

[tacit lark]

ask the retired prof

[tacit lark]

yea that's good

[cold tiger]

Usually, 2 weeks to a month should be enough already. However, each prof is different, and you should ask for their preference. What I did was when I decided which profs I would ask for reclets, I talked to them months before the deadline - when they were in no rush, and not in the flood of requests from others - where I asked how long before the deadline I should ask.

[proud loom]

Looks like

3 weeks should be fine

2 weeks should do

[rapid dawn]

Writing rec letters is part of the job description for professors. As long as you ask respectfully and don't wait until the last minute you'll be fine.

[tacit lark]

ive heard you want to ask at least a month in advance

[molten frigate]

if you have actual work to show then sure -- it's definitely not a must for applicants or early grads but from what I've seen people tend to make one once they've published some things and have more or less clear interests

it's kind of like an extended CV + repo for preprints, notes, blogs or whatever you want to share

[steep belfry]

I was thinking of creating one, just to have my notes somewhere, b/c you never know these days even w/ a personal laptop or memory device.

[torpid echo]

If it serves anyone:

For full transparency I had a strong application getting admitted into Berkeley and Columbia, but I still planned to apply to 15 places and ultimately applied to 12.

Unless you’re omega-cracked in which case unless you have a stupid amount of impostor syndrome you’ll know you can go anywhere you want, from my understanding there’s a large part of applications that are a crapshoot. I was advised to cast a wide net, and so I did.

If it helps to see the spread of universities I applied to the list was:

Harvard
MIT
Columbia
Berkeley
Brown
Princeton
Stanford (didn’t apply in the end because I mixed up deadlines)
UMich
UCLA
Duke (didn’t end up applying)
UIC (didn’t end up applying)
UW-Madison
UW-Seattle
Stony Brook
UUtah

[tacit lark]

I agree. I think when you’re below cracked/prodigy but have a very strong application its a crapshoot. You could get into amazing schools or you can get super unlucky and get in nowhere.

I had two friends that had good apps and are very good. One got in nowhere (only applied to like 5) and one applied to 12 similar to your list and got into UW and got into an ivy off the waitlist in early April.

[smoky jetty]

how do I reach out to profs

like say there's a prof I'm interested in working with and I'd want to be their PhD student and really the only way I'd go there is if (among other things) they were my advsior

how does that work

[worthy apex]

Dear Professor Lastname,

I'm a prospective PhD student at SUNY Podunk, and I think your research is interesting. Can you please let me know whether you'll be taking students in the next few years?

Thanks,

@smoky jetty

[grand palm]

If they reply with “yes i am taking students” how do you reply? Do you try to establish any connection or you just say thanks and hint that u r applying for their dept ?

[low tundra]

This seems a little curt, but probably is okay for a first email (you don't want to waste time on first contact)

If the reply is "yes" I think the assumption is that you now have room for a longer email detailing research and further conversation. In most cases since specific professors won't be on admission committees or, even if they are, I'd think they are one voice, you'd still need to get admitted to their specific university

[tepid forum]

i didn't unless they said "please let me know when you apply" which a few did

(i think two such requests were at unis I got in to, [another two or so at unis I didn't] third one none of the profs I contacted replied to me but still got an offer)

[tepid forum]

Mine was I'm currently a maths student at [...] and I'm looking to study a PhD in Mathematics starting Fall 2023 in the area of [...], especially [...]. I wanted to ask if you were planning on taking on PhD students from the Fall 2023 class.

make sure the first [...] is something they actually do

oops should've applied to the person above xd

i'm not sure i would worry about talking about the specifics of their research unless you're at a level where you can understand it on any non-superficial levle (which I'd imagine most non-cracked people won't be)

[tacit lark]

This is a better email

[tepid forum]

i think the important thing to show is that you haven't just bulk emailed every prof in the department the same thing and are thinking how they would be a good fit for you

[smoky jetty]

Why next few

Why not next fall?

[shell kindle]

Because you don't commit to an advisor, you commit to a program

Once you arrive and pass your quals and take classes then you start talking to your prospective advisor

So usually you finalize your advisor your second or third year

[smoky jetty]

Wait what if I wanna work with Prof X and when the time after quals comes around, Prof X is busy

[shell kindle]

?

[tepid forum]

thats why you should ideally apply to schools where more than one person could possibly advise you

(all but one of mine, which was a crapshoot anyway, had at the very least 2 if not 3 or 4 in my area)

[tepid forum]

like I took no as a no (and this actually made me avoid like 2 choices) and yes as a "not no" rather than any kind of commitment on their end

[candid reef]

taking no as a no is definitely a good idea

[tepid forum]

yeah the ones that said no were either retiring, (at least 3) moved out of the research area, or were over-committed and very unlikely to take on anyone

so it wouldn't even theoretically change

[smoky jetty]

yea I'm planning on this anyways

but like this one person's interests at USC (Greta Panova) basically perfectly cover all of my interests

but just them, rest of USC meh

everywhere else I'm seriously looking at so far as >= 3 people I think do cool things

[main marlin]

is it okay to ask a postdoc at my uni to evaluate my application and to ask which unis i should apply to? he has always been very nice to me

but i dont want to be overly demanding...

[low tundra]

Why not ask if you're asking too much when you ask for this?

Communication is a natural tool in social interaction

[main marlin]

thank you

i would like to avoid awkward moments... but i'm really lost rn and i dont know at which programs i have a chance

so i guess i will e-mail them

😖

[shell kindle]

It won't be awkward

[tall token]

If you are not very familiar with the particular person and be certain that they are a good fit, I personally think choosing a department with a sizable group on the topic you are interested is important.

[smoky jetty]

Yea probably

[tall token]

Discussions generate more ideas and even motivations to keep going.

[worthy apex]

Also if you get into a program and they're not accepting students literally next fall, you can bide your time for a year or two and then still get them as your advisor.

[grand palm]

If you're emailing a professors about phd, is it okay to mention that you know (took classes with, discussed with) a prof who is one of his main collaborators ?

[tepid forum]

i would speak to them first!

[crimson valve]

Tell your prof, if the prof sets you in contact with the person you are emailing, your success rate shoots up.

[tepid forum]

if you have a sufficiently close relationship with that prof you could try to link up with the other prof through them

[tepid forum]

yes this

[grand palm]

When u email profs asking them whether they are taking students and they answer with "yes" should u follow up with more info or just thats it ?

[tacit lark]

I wouldnt

[coral terrace]

You can always just say. If you need more information, please let me know. I plan to apply in (insert time frame) to (these schools). I will let you know once ive sent my application. Thank you

If they said yes, then if they need more info, theyll let you knkw

[main marlin]

Was wondering what I could do to strengthen my application to masters programs

I'm 4th year at ucla and im a math & econ major with a cs minor
I have a shit gpa 3.4 that was heavily influenced by covid/family deaths
My last 3 quarters ive gotten straight A's

I'm going to study hard for the GRE to try to get a near perfect score (esp for q)

And I'm doing a senior research project on fitting volatility curves with KNN

The list of places im going to apply to in order of preferences:

NYU Courant Financial Math
UChicago Financial Math
Stanford MCF
MIT MFin
CMU MSCF
Princeton MFin
Columbia MAFN
NYU MFE
Columbia MFE
Berkley MFE
Cornell CFEM
UCLA MFE
GaTech QCF
Yale Asset Management

I was wondering if anyone knows any other schools that have good applied/computational math or statistics masters programs (should I just apply to the same schools?)

I really am interested in learning more, but I don't think I have a good shot at ANY PhD programs that I'd want to apply to

And I probably eventually want to go into some sort of algorithmic trading job, so I don't think a PhD would be a fit

[twin forge]

courant #1 😎

[main marlin]

haha yea nyu and uchicago are kinda tied for first since recruiting for CBOE/NYSE related jobs goes hard

[twin forge]

Haha I go to nyu for ug, so proud school moment?

[shell kindle]

Why not

[shell kindle]

GRE doesn't matter that much

[shell kindle]

From what I am familiar with most of the NYC quant firms recruit phds

[tacit lark]

a lot seem to recruit smart undergrads too

[half meadow]

The stated assumption that you're a complete idiot, pretty much moots any talk of graduate applications...

There are places that offer "whatever you want your fancy diploma to say for complete idiots". But I'm pretty sure only for complete idiots who can pay.

(And they cannot be relied on to bother to teach anything before selling you said fancy diploma).

[tepid forum]

i don't think "if I'm a complete idiot" is very helpful, we're going to need a more realistic take on your ability and current qualifications

like self-deprecation is cool and all but it does prevent us from giving you any useful advice xd

the first three are all standard grad classes that you should find virtually everywhere (?), the fourth you will need to hunt a bit more for since it's not the most fashionable thing

what kind of parameters are you looking for schools based off

yeah the SJSU classes look well below the level you're looking for

what undergrad do you have

do you have like standard math classes

[crimson valve]

Do you have letters of recommendations that would back you up?

Oh ok those are good

The college prof plus thesis advisor that is, have a talk with them about your application

They will need to write letters to make up for lack of classes on transcript

All the more reason to have a meeting with them

You def want to make sure they remember you!

So remind them

Idk really about northern cali except the big schools

I’d say with your limited application you have to be willing to move around quite a bit

Like you might be able to get a school appropriate for u in a different state

Even in cali you might have to move quite a bit

Places like uc riverside, Irvine etc are p good

And aren’t bad to get into

Well I have never heard of it’s math dept

So that’s not a good sign

But you should look into them

Look into what research they do, talk to profs there to get some stats etc

[crimson valve]

Idk much about it but supposedly it has some math, again you should research these on your own

[smoky jetty]

wtf is a CV and how is it different to my resume

I know it's different

but tbh don't know how to lay it out and what I should (or really, can) put on it

can I put that I've made and run meetings for some math related clubs? undergrad seminar talks? seminar talks about my REU work? courses?

[shell kindle]

Yes

[smoky jetty]

anyone willing to share their CV (DM me, feel free to anonymize it)

[shell kindle]

There is a pinned template if you want

[smoky jetty]

oh neat

oh I can put teaching experience

I don't see a thing for courses, but I'd guess that's not something I put?

Also someone in my REU group is giving a presentation on our work at a different university. I am not the one speaking so I'd guess I cannot put that talk appearing there on my CV?

[shell kindle]

You would not put talks that you don't give

I put courses in the education section

[smoky jetty]

got it

[hollow steppe]

not sure if this is the channel to post but what are things i can do to make my grad application omega cracked

i have 4 years.

[tacit lark]

Take hard classes, get good grades, get to know profs well, do research

[hollow steppe]

mmm

[tacit lark]

If you can try to participate in REUs, summer schools and other opportunities like that

[hollow steppe]

where should i start with trying to get into research

[tacit lark]

It depends on your background. Its probably a good idea to at least have ug algebra and analysis under your belt. Then as you take classes and find out what you like try to talk to profs/postdocs ab research opportunities

[hollow steppe]

already have those 2 under my belt

[tacit lark]

What you need is highly dependent on what field you want to do research in

So as you take classes and figure out what the general field you’d be interested in doing research with you can talk to profs that work in that area

[hollow steppe]

i mean i already have an idea what field i want to get into

the problem is figuring out how to get to know the profs

[tacit lark]

Email them, take classes with them, attend seminars and talk to them

Its hard to be more specific without knowing more about your situation.

The advice is different for someone w just ug intro analysis and algebra than someone with knowledge of graduate level topics.

You can email profs and tell them about your background and interests and ask them for advice ab getting involved in research.

Many profs are happy to speak w passionate undergrads

[hollow steppe]

yeah i should try getting comfortable with talking with profs

[tacit lark]

If you plan on staying in academia then ya you should

[shadow bobcat]

Get in good with professors who have friends at the grad schools you want to go to

[feral shale]

I need a topic to discuss on my post degree ( specialization). Does anyone can give me an idea?

[livid shore]

What does "summer schools" mean here? Just summer courses? or something special?

[vague grail]

any math phd students here....?

[flint falcon]

https://dontasktoask.com

[tacit lark]

Something special like: https://www.ias.edu/pcmi/programs/pcmi-2022-undergraduate-summer-school

[smoky jetty]

They're like a week or two week long series of lectures surrounding a single topic

so my univeristy held one that I went to on using algebraic techniques in a certain type of graph problem. It was 5 days of 4 talks per day, learned some cool things.

Mostly grad students go to them but if you find one that sounds interesting and can somehow find a way to get funding to go, try that

[tacit lark]

Some are longer like pcmi that i sent above.

[smoky jetty]

o

[cold tiger]

Get in good with profs. Period.

You never know where you'll find something useful.

[stoic jewel]

Does anyone has suggestions on writing a personal statement? Like, where should I look, because I have no idea, other than “I like Harmonic analysis”

[tough ice]

i am not sure if this helps. i have a specific phd program in mind, so i start to write my statement of purpose by looking at this phd program's website. In the website, it might say something about what they want to read in your sop, like your education/career objectives, research experiences, role as a teaching assistant, any particular faculty member you want to work with, etc.

[stoic jewel]

Okay, that’s helpful 🙂 thanks, I’m just worried because I don’t really have any “experience”…. But I guess I can talk about my experience with previous professors/graduate students that I did a project with

[uneven saffron]

you can also reach out to your professors to see what they did for theirs, and see if they'd be willing to review yours and offer feedback. I was in a similar boat and asked both my advisors what they did, and they showed me how they did theirs and why, and that helped immensely

[stoic jewel]

“advisor” as in? I don’t have an advisor as an undergrad😭

Or do you mean prospective advisor?

[stoic jewel]

This is probably a dumb question but how should I fill this?

[undone yacht]

M.Sc. in XXXX

[half meadow]

If you don't have any professional qualifications (which I assume mean formal statuses that entitle you to practice an otherwise restricted trade) to declare, I'd just click "next" immediately.

[stoic jewel]

Okay thanks, didn't realize I could skip it...

[uneven saffron]

a lot of colleges, undergrad or above, have advisors who help with courses and etc (at least in the US)

[craggy nacelle]

Did my math masters, 2:1, last year @ Bristol, UK. I put off the idea of immediately applying at the time cus, well, didn't feel confident at all and wanted a break from studying. Truth be told, I floated pretty heavily through half my 3rd/4th yr courses (ADHD things). I want to get back into studying, eventually phd student hopefully, and actually, feel like I want to do another math masters if possible because my knowledge is probably on that of a Bachelors.

I've had a year to float around on here, and feel pretty confident I can get back into it. I haven't much clue where or what I should start looking into if I want to go down this route, don't have any contacts to talk to really - so anyone have any advice? Maybe that 2nd masters is a bad/impossible idea and I should self-study back to scratch?
[Am currently working in crypto as a quant, but no particular attachment here in the long term]

[cold tiger]

I don't see why a second master is a bad idea, you can always do Master on another aspect of Math. Say, you did applied math, and now you wanna do something more fundamental.

[craggy nacelle]

I'm most interested in algebra, am not really aware of masters being particularly specialized (mine wasn't)

algebra/category/foundations stuff has interested me in the last year

[cold tiger]

Idk any Master degree saying explicitly the topic of studies either. That said, there are programs where you can very much personalise your curriculum and do only what you want.

Iirc, the one at Bonn is an example

[craggy nacelle]

I see. In terms of where, at the back of my mind I don't rlly have a good impression of UK unis apart from Oxbridge. I don't have other languages, so abroad I feel like I'd be considering ones in the US/Germany?

Am not really all that aware of good places 😅

[cold tiger]

Thing is I don't work in math either 😄 so I have very few clues.

[craggy nacelle]

thanks tho, will talk to ppl

[cold tiger]

When it comes to Math, at least the Germans are very tolerant and have English Master (as opposed to French ppl).

But it also comes to your capability too. Bonn is amazing, no doubt. But it might be too much, if you don't plan to have Habilitation and aim for a Wolf prize or something.

It's no good if you can't digest them all

[craggy nacelle]

So most places would make me take an exam? to apply for a masters

[cold tiger]

I don't think so. I just fear if you could follow the courses

[craggy nacelle]

Ah I see.

[cold tiger]

I looked at Part III from Cambridge Tripos, and I feared for my own life 😄

[candid reef]

part iii sounds like a good idea to apply to

[craggy nacelle]

Ill have a better idea when I see course structures ig

[candid reef]

like you can just choose your courses

[cold tiger]

You get your own personal tutor and all to discuss (every week?) iirc

[candid reef]

uh

[cold tiger]

Just that you will have to bust your ass off for a year.

[craggy nacelle]

idk if uk student loans can still apply to me. if so yeah, thatd be way better lol. think they should

[candid reef]

well there are office hours but most people don't go because they're antisocial

[cold tiger]

Why am I not surprised 😄

[craggy nacelle]

i take it going abroad, im almost certainly going to be paying for myself, for masters at least

[craggy nacelle]

ah it actually appears, probably not.

[candid reef]

yeah if you already did a masters

[cold tiger]

I'm very tempted to say come to Paris 😄 but then, idk how hard it'd be if you don't speak French

[craggy nacelle]

i did do standard level french IB

but uh

[cold tiger]

At ENS, all the courses have schedule publicly available, you can choose to pick a class and sit in.

The only shitty thing is they don't offer Master in Math. Altho, they do co-organise with PSL.

Also I don't think you get to choose as much. French ppl like generalism approach

[craggy nacelle]

Well, with math, its never been too clear to me what im getting out of a degree I couldnt by self-studying. At least I very much felt that way in Bristol.
Yh there are office hours, and the courses are structured but... yeah idk 😓

I've found this server to be much more helpful than office hours

just got to make myself learn the things i want to though...

[cold tiger]

I like talking with profs in person, and possibly have useful connections after. Covid time makes me very intolerant to online meeting, courses through YouTube, or self-studying with pdfs.

[craggy nacelle]

Yeah I definitely did not make the most out of office hours and such before.

[cold tiger]

At least until you become an expert in your topic, having some guidance is useful. They point you to problems they know to be of your calibre and worth investing it.

[craggy nacelle]

Right, fair enough

[fossil monolith]

I want to apply for some universities in Hong Kong for MPhil, can anyone tell me what's a sample research paper, they asked me to make one of 15 pages, I got my bachelors in CS, I don't have any idea.

[main marlin]

damm son

[undone yacht]

B.Sc thesis?

[fossil monolith]

its written sample research paper / bachelor thesis on their site

[undone yacht]

so, either your thesis or some other paper/manuscript if you have one

[fossil monolith]

No, I don't have any paper of my own, I got my bachelor in CS

they asked of 15 pages sample research paper, what does sample means here
actually I need a university badly

[shell kindle]

A sample of your academic writing

[fossil monolith]

Can you please tell me more about it, one example please if you have

[subtle knoll]

Many people do expository thesis for their thesis degree, so it isn't necessarily an on par publishable research paper they are asking for based on your description. If your college library have a collection of past thesis you could start from there for examples.

But if you are applying this year, I also would not suppose there's enough time for you to produce a thesis quality piece of paper if you are starting from scratch (unless you are very exceptional).

[feral shale]

Well, its good to read you guys talking about it

I am trying to looking for a theme to talk about it. But soo far I coudn´t find nothing . I need help

[subtle knoll]

A theme for a research paper?

[feral shale]

Yes

I am trying to apply on a Master, but here on Brazil I need to make a specialization to prepare for my Master.

[subtle knoll]

Then maybe do something close to the specialization you are thinking of?

wait is specialization comparable to a thesis or something?

[feral shale]

I need to write a research paper. Just some applications about a theorem , its pretty simple

but I have to find something interesting .

[last zodiac]

allegedly, doing an obscure combinatorics problem is the fastest way to producing research level material

[rocky dome]

there are always things to count

[grand palm]

one of my profs counts these combinatorics papers as a negative in a Ph.D. application

[smoky jetty]

the trick is to motivate the counting by some other field that's what I'm doing rn

[fossil monolith]

are you talking of working on open problems in combinatorics?

[smoky jetty]

I'm beginning some more combinatorial research and in my first meeting with the people I'm working with we talked about how we need to actually motivate the problem as something people may care about so that it's not just "we invented and solved some random counting problem"

[olive crater]

Why does this professor look down upon undergraduate research in combinatorics?

[grand palm]

He said that this means that you have very low standards for publishing; for him it's better to just take hard classes and do well and keep learning more math instead of doing some combo problem to publish as an undergrad.

[olive crater]

Hmmm makes sense

[smoky jetty]

I think by "these combinatorics papers" he means like toy problems no one cares about

but like for an undergrad I think that's fine?

[olive crater]

Yeah that's what I felt they meant too

[olive crater]

I've heard people say that they don't hold undergrads to the same standard as more experienced researchers when it comes to assessing their publications, but then I have also heard the sentiment expressed earlier multiple times

[smoky jetty]

I think holding undergrads to the same standards of experienced researchers is crazy

If people do that then I'm fucked lol

[olive crater]

That seems to be what the above mentioned professor does

Not sure how common that is

[lucid robin]

Hello

I need a graduate friend who can help me in maths , i am in first year of BSc maths and its going little hard for me 🥲

[olive crater]

Wrong channel. I suggest you go to the channel pertaining to the topic(s) you are finding difficult, and ask for specific help rather than asking for a 'graduate friend'.

[floral grove]

is age a factor in grad school applications?

if say, one starts undergrad late

[shell kindle]

No not really

[vocal carbon]

Guys, I'm wondering which course should I go with, I can choose between mathematics and maths and computer science, I'm mainly interested in machine learning and AI which I need maths for however I'm already in a good coding level and I believe that coding can be learned on your own. I don't know if the mathematics course would contain a load of stuff that I wont actually use for machine learning.

[shell kindle]

For masters or phd?

[subtle knoll]

For research statements, how formal is it supposed to be for PhD applications? Should I do it like writing an expository paper, with questions, remarks, propositions etc., or should I avoid block of maths in the statement and give a short glossary?

[shell kindle]

I did not write mine like an expository paper

[subtle knoll]

fair. It's just that I found out somebody's statement is 24 pages long that worried me a little bit.

[shell kindle]

You should not do that

A research statement should be 1 or 2 pages, the application will usually specify

In fact, writing a 24 page research statement is a good way to get rejected

[tacit lark]

Ya this is insane

[smoky jetty]

24?!

[crimson valve]

wtf lmfao

mfw the research statement is just a research paper

[shell kindle]

I feel like something here deserves a pin

Or not deserves

Needs

[smoky jetty]

(ignore if I can't ask this) What are some good schools that do computational algebra (group theory and/or commutative algebra)

I have no one to ask about this at my university as far as I can tell nor at my REU 😔

[shell kindle]

I know that bernd sturmfels does some stuff at berkeley

Have you looked at authors of papers and checked what institutions they're at

[smoky jetty]

Oh I should have been more specific

In the US

[smoky jetty]

1: not sure of what journals to look at
2: what I have found seems to be mostly in Europe

So far I've only found Hulpke at Colorado

[shell kindle]

https://www.siam.org/conferences/cm/conference/ag23

Lots of people here

[steep belfry]

My prof who was going to write me a rec letter passed away last week, he was kind enough to give me reference books. I'm not sure what will I do now, since the department is very small, I'm thinking of emailing my topology prof who is going to organize an event to honor him, but I did really bad on his topology class (C+), even though he invited me for seminars, and showed me some pics by Escher

[low tundra]

What do you want to do? I think you should join the event

[shell kindle]

I think invariants is looking for advice on rec letters

If you think the topology prof is your best option, email them and ask if they can write a good letter

[low tundra]

Oh right, I missed that, people passing away seems more important

[fathom pilot]

my entire thesis was only 32 pages

[pulsar isle]

Is it acceptable ask a prof you’re planning on taking a class with in the coming semester for a recommendation letter (it would be due soon after the final exam)? If yes, how do I go about it?

[shell kindle]

You can certainly ask, it's up to them if they agree or not

[quartz pollen]

I don't want to break the rules of the discord, so let me know if I can ask here. (Whether or not someone answers is okay, just want to make sure it's alright.)

Can I ask a question here about undergraduate math scholarships/applications, etc.? Or just sort-of advice?

[half meadow]

Keep this channel focused on graduate admission. You could try #advanced-lounge for talking about other applications.

[quartz pollen]

Okay, thank you. 🙂

[bronze spoke]

I'm applying to Math/CS grad programs and it's kind of weird how my SOP outline is going considering how different my research experiences are.

Outline:

Intro:
I'm interested in the mathematical structures underlying optimization for Artificial Intelligence, and how we can improve our understanding of them with applications from numerical linear algebra and random matrix theory. (Now refer to specific work from professors at that school)

Experience:

I have worked on 3 projects in math/cs.

• A kind of "technically weak" paper (no heavy math, in fact it's mostly linear regression) in machine learning which my mentor thinks has a strong message.
• A paper that proves an "obvious result" in metric geometry of surfaces with bounded curvature joint work with 3 others has been submitted to a bunch of top journals and rejected but with positive feedback.
• Improving a code library to improve performance of a calculation by 300% using parallelization and compilers.

Research Interests:

• Expand on two points: (could actually be a bunch of things but I like loss landscape geometry and tensor algorithms the most )

Look Forward to Work

(now mention professors again/institutes).

basically there is very little connection between what I have done and my interests.

Also, is it worth shooting for top programs with no actual publications?

I have two potential publications but they are in pre-print hell

[bronze spoke]

https://simonscollab.icerm.brown.edu/team/ just filter by computational

find the professor -> school

[smoky jetty]

oh neat

[bronze spoke]

Also like you should look up computational algebraic geometry

Algebraic Geometry is a extension of group theory/commutative algebra

John Voight is pretty well known for his work on making a database of modular forms.

is that the kind of stuff you like to do?

Also I was told by another professor at BU that Jenn Balakrishnan is a really good person to work with if you like number theory and algorithms.

https://www.jointmathematicsmeetings.org/meetings/national/jmm2023/2270_program_ss25.html

this might give you some indication too

[smoky jetty]

anyone wanna critique my CV 👉 👈 (DM plz)

[tacit lark]

Ya

[main nebula]

what was it about?

[shell kindle]

No

[smoky jetty]

That gif is too cheery for this channel

[merry field]

This place is not a place of honour

[floral grove]

Hello. Is doing at least one REU a must for applying to masters programs in Germany?

The situation is that my college releases semester results late and I think the applying dates for all REUs here would be finished by the time these people declare semester results.

So it's a possibilty that I might not be able to apply for the REUs

[shell kindle]

It is not necessary

[main marlin]

this is some SOP advice from another server, does it really apply to Math at all?

[shell kindle]

Yes, except that you don't need to have a single PI/advisor in mind

[grand palm]

Do U.S universities do interview for PhD admissions ?

[main marlin]

From what I know, it's not the norm. Duke does.

[grand palm]

Nice

[main marlin]

Ikr, I was asking because their advise sounds like for lab-based programs where defining PIs is a must

[shell kindle]

Some do interviews

[main marlin]

https://cse.umn.edu/math/doctoral-admissions

So for research interests, I don't have to be specific and can have general ideas of what I want to work on, right?

[shell kindle]

Yes

[cold tiger]

Caltech does for Physics afaik

[worthy apex]

A big problem with math is that there's a lot of math that you still don't really know even as a first year PhD student. For example, you may have never heard of geometric group theory in your undergrad despite it being a massive area of math research, so you're less likely to know that you want to research that in particular. Same goes for most areas of math - if you don't know that it even exists, you can't say that you want to do it.

You might have a broad area you want to do - "I want to do algebraic number theory" or "I want to do PDEs" and so forth - but knowing what you want to specialize in beyond those broadest of strokes is hard to do as an undergrad, and having spoken with professors at least where I am now, it seems like they want first years to be able to keep something of an open mind.

[main marlin]

In addition, (Pure) Math typically isn't lab-based, so it's not like one needs to identify the PI of a lab as a condition for the admission or know if that advisor will take prospective students from day one.

It also irks me when this person claims not knowing research topics is a death sentence though (regardless, it's vital for a Math PhD applicant to have general sense of what she's getting into), such an elitist attitude that doesn't help anybody.

[coral vault]

i think umich also does or did, i don't remember which one; but my mentor mentioned this to me at one point

but most do not

[torpid echo]

Most places I applied to did

But the interview are for people who pass an initial sort of screening

Examples were:
Berkeley
UMich
Columbia
UUtah
Stony Brook

[main marlin]

did they interview you about research or something?

[torpid echo]

What I wanted to study, answer questions about the program, maybe ask a bit about what I did

They were not technical

[main marlin]

yes, that's what I thought

[empty ice]

What are some things I should avoid to not diminish my chances of getting into a good grad program?

[shell kindle]

Bad grades

[feral plaza]

do undergrad grades really matter? not really related to graduate application but im thinking of investing less this semester and wondering how it might affect my future career

[half meadow]

They matter some. As long as they're all you have to show that purport to be at least somewhat objective indicators of your ability to dig down into something for the long haul, then of course people who need to compare you to other applicants (for whatever) in a hurry will look at them.
You can harm yourself by investing so much that you burn out, and you can harm your prospects by investing too little. It's pretty much impossible for random strangers on the internet to know which side of the optimum your current level of effort is.

[tacit lark]

They definitely matter.

Most good programs are going to expect very good grades in math classes and good coursework.

[feral plaza]

I push to getting a 95 average while I could much more easily settle on 90, because 95 is where the top excellence program here cuts off. Is that pushing too high?

85 here has the expectance of "average", although I suspect the average is lower

Jek what would you say is "very good"?

[pulsar furnace]

That absolutely depends on the uni. 90 at Princeton and 90 at a small community college are quite different. But in either case if you're getting around 95s that should be sufficient

Also varies across countries too

[feral plaza]

Yeah no easy answers eh

[merry field]

I do believe many applications committees also view grading scales quite differently between graduate and undergrad classes

Most grad classes are more lightly graded and this is taken into account

Which creates a rather irritating paradox of taking grad classes and not getting a perfect A can be a detractor compared to simply taking a standard pace of undergraduate courses

[feral plaza]

Interesting. Our professors grade the undergrads very lightly

[merry field]

This might be a fairly specific thing

[tacit lark]

Grade inflation is also a thing in the US

[tacit lark]

Im not sure how your grading scale works. Being in the top excellence program (whatever that means) would probably help.

Grad schools dont have that much to go on. So things like grades/coursework and letters of rec mean a lot. Things like research are a plus as well.

[feral plaza]

it's just a award they hand out
the program i can get into is one where they do special lectures and let you connect with proffesors and that's a 90 cut off and that i'd like to keep

[tacit lark]

Ya that sounds good

[feral plaza]

yeah i think im pushing for 95 for bragging rights and it's stupid

[tacit lark]

I wouldnt do it for bragging rights but its good to be challenged. The preparation is good for grad school. Also it can help your application. Getting into grad school isnt everything (also your current grades still seem pretty good). I wouldnt push for 95 if you think it would have a big negative effect on your well being.

Profs at your uni may be able to give you advice.

[feral plaza]

Thank you

[placid wagon]

when I was applying last year, my research advisor suggested I ask my upcoming abstract algebra Prof for a letter of rec. it was similar in that many of the letters were due before or shortly after the final exam. he said to try and get to know him and do well on the first exam before floating the idea. impress him, you know?

I ended up doing extremely well on the exam, and went to office hours almost any time he had them, or at least once a week. eventually, the Prof offered to write letters for me and the other people I studied and came to office hours with.

not sure if it was the strongest letter possible, given that he didn't know me for that long or know 100% I would keep my very high A up until the very end (tho I did). but I got accepted somewhere so I guess it worked out

[simple mason]

What are some good schools that do analytic number theory? I'm thinking of applying to a graduate program even though I don't really have an undergraduate degree so it might seem something ridiculous to ask/to do, but I'm interested in what you guys say.
If that seems absurd thing to do then what are some good advices to start publishing meaningful papers? I'm not really familiar with the process of publishing. I heard that it's possible but why would you do it (it's very hard and painful in this society )

[pulsar furnace]

Are you not in UG deltoid?

[simple mason]

Yeah

I am in UG

[main marlin]

Undergrads in Math rarely have any meaningful publications so you shouldn't be too worried about that

[simple mason]

That's also true

[pulsar furnace]

Are you suggesting applying before you finish your UG? Or like are you applying in your last year of UG (or something else)?

[simple mason]

Consider both cases

[pulsar furnace]

Hmm well unless you're an exceptional student/have a very good reason for it, I don't think many grad programs would take your application too seriously if you're applying early tbh, so I don't think that's a good idea

Otherwise, you'd be better off doing as many nearing-graduate-level courses as possible; if there aren't enough offered at your uni then I guess supplement that with reading textbooks (or even then that's an option). As far as research goes, really the best you could hope for is something like an REU over the summer, but you can also ask around with profs at your uni/nearby unis if they would be able to take on students over the summer

[simple mason]

I could definitely supplement them with textbooks

The thing is will they "believe"

My uni doesn't offer that much stuff

No analytic number theory, no algebraic geometry, no algebraic number theory etc

[tepid forum]

kevin ford at UIUC was one i encountered on my own searches, though idk about ANT generally

[last zodiac]

this has probably been asked a million times before but how do i ask my lecturer for a master's application reference?

i've been in regular contact with this lecturer who's supervising me for a small project, and he regularly gives me exercises to do on the spot

and i can't do them 💀

how do i ask for a reference when i'm evidently terrible at maths in front of him

[olive crater]

Ask him if he would be able to write a 'strong' reference for you.

That lets you know whether he would be able to write a good reference for you or not, eliminating the need for you to speculate(whether you are 'terrible at maths in front of him' or not).

[last zodiac]

gulp

just the thought of saying that makes me nervous

but i'll try and slip that into a convo somehow, thanks

[tacit lark]

you shouldn't 'try to slip that into a convo' ask to meet about grad school and be up front

[tough ice]

Hi, guys, when people apply for phd, how to target the unis where they have best chance of being admitted?

[tacit lark]

By talking to professors that know you well and are familiar with the graduate admissions

[tough ice]

Thank you! But is there any other ways? because my professors suggest me to apply along the rank, but i am not sure which interval of the rank i have best chance

[tacit lark]

You can talk to other people like graduate students

Theres no obvious answer

[upper mortar]

hi guys

[tough ice]

Thank you!

[torpid temple]

Suppose I have never been to this professor's office hours, and have attended classes only like 10 times the entirety of the time they have been teaching me for 3 of my courses. Would it be reasonable to expect him to write good master's application LoR for me...?

I had high 90's in all my classes with him

[shell kindle]

No

What could they write?

"This student did well in my classes"

They can't say anything else

[tacit lark]

These kind of letters do not help

[shell kindle]

The people reading the applications are professors and they can see the subtext when all a letter mentions is that a student did well in classes and doesn't mention anything else

[main marlin]

Apply to graduate school as a senior V.S. apply a year later

What do you guys think

[torpid temple]

Well that is a problem because that was the prof I had the most interactions with throughout undergrad

[smoky jetty]

what do you want to do in that year?

[main marlin]

Haha I have no plans of doing that but I just wanted to hear anyones thoughts

[stray seal]

@torpid temple it's true that not interacting with professors directly can make it harder for them to write for you, but sometimes it's okay. If you stand out in some way (write really well, came up with particularly interesting solutions to problems, etc), you can still get a good letter.

I'm not talking about solving open problems here, just something they were somewhat impressed by.

[smoky jetty]

how will they know you did a thing without having some sort of closer relationship than going to class?

[stray seal]

Through assignments

[smoky jetty]

¿

What

[torpid temple]

I mean, there were like 10 people in those classes, and the prof marks all our assignments and tests. What additional information about a student would the prof gain if the student regularly attended lectures...? Besides thinking the student is lazy af, and potentially feeling a bit spiteful.

Imma just email a few profs and see what happens :/

[chilly turret]

You should have atleast some relationship with a professor, more than just doing well in their class, for them to write a strong letter for you

[grand palm]

Does submitting app earlier matter? I might not have the money for app fees before a month or two from now.

[shell kindle]

Some schools do rolling applications but generally it doesn't make a difference

[hexed ibex]

How long does it take to submit a rec letter

As in to upload and not to write one cuz this guy wrote me one last year and this year it’s probably just gonna be a change of the date

like my advisor told me applying to 20 places isn’t considered too many these days

I feel like 20 places are gonna take him like at least two hours just to click through
or is it actually much less time consuming than I thought

[shell kindle]

Uploading is not too time intensive

[hexed ibex]

Ah ok I’ll ask him to send the letter again then

Hopefully he’ll agree to do it

[tame oriole]

Hi, how hard is it to get into Bonn math master? My gpa scaled to German is somewhere around 2.2 and I’ve had challenging enough courses

[cold tiger]

Maybe some unis have some stupid form to fill or something. That's not unheard of before.

then it'll take some more time

[smoky jetty]

if you're worried about this (so am I)

I'd recommend getting a preliminary list of schools you know for sure you are applying to

and sending the prof that list asap

and then later on if you add more, then tell them later

but not too many more

at least that's what I've been told, get them a good list early

[hexed ibex]

Ima probably make up a list in October

for now I’ll wait for his response

[main marlin]

can i ask if you had publications/preprints when applying?

[torpid echo]

None

No REUs either

[main marlin]

thats good to know ty

[main marlin]

Does anyone know in general how graduate schools feel about course withdrawels? I am a math major taking a physics class and am realizing i absolutely hate it and its taking too much time away from math and im not sure if im going to be able to do good in the class. there is still time for me to withdrawel from the class but im afraid it would look bad on my transcript. Any recommendations?
also sorry i if this is not the place to put this, i can delete and put it in dicussion if its bad here.

[shell kindle]

A withdrawal would be better than a bad grade

[undone yacht]

I can't imagine anybody would care...

[main marlin]

thats what i think as well, but when i talked to some people irl about they said it would look terrible but i dont rly see why

[undone yacht]

who are the people saying this. and what is the context, where will you apply?

[main marlin]

you're probably right. united states, and it was just some undergraduates in a math lounge, im guessing they just guessed?

[shell kindle]

It will be fine

[main marlin]

bet 🤙

[undone yacht]

So, they probably have no clue. I do not work in the US, only time I have become weary was a guy that had begun like 20 different courses and not finished them. Why would anybody care about a few courses?

[main marlin]

yeah

[main marlin]

mm

i just realised

idk how graduate school works

and i might want to actually do that

well prolly for cs and not for maths but i assume the process is mostly similar

i mean i am just a sophomore in uni rn so i guess its early (?)

but

idk still worried

my uni offers an accelerated phd programme but idk if i wanna do that because my uni is uh

not great for pl theory

and idrk where i wanna go

and im just

completely lost

:despair:

any advice would be appreciated :>

[shell kindle]

What specific questions about doing a phd do you have

[main marlin]

how to apply

and how to pick a school

im like

87% sure i want a phd?

i would much rather work in academia than industry

and a phd seems to help in that regard

but also big time investment so not entirely sure

i still have time to think it over ig

i guess reasons to want vs not want a phd would be nice too

to help assess if i actually want a phd or can get by with a masters or something

[cold tiger]

topics -> continent -> country -> schools/teams. You narrow it down one by one

[cold tiger]

this one varies a lot between schools and between countries

[shell kindle]

PhD is necessary, masters is useless

[main marlin]

damn

well uh

i guess i gotta get a phd then

[main marlin]

do i just search for like "grad schools good for pl theory" or something?

[undone yacht]

not if you want to do a Ph.D. where and M.Sc. is a prerequisite 🙂

[main marlin]

damn

is a masters required for a phd

[undone yacht]

In most of Europe yes, in the US I do not think so

[main marlin]

damn

good thing i live in america :>

[undone yacht]

that is one way to look at it.

[main marlin]

im ignoring high tuition costs holy fuck its so expensive

and also like every other problem in american but i dont wanna talk politics

[austere pasture]

yoooooooooooooooooo

[shell kindle]

No

[main marlin]

me when i ask questions and one of the responses is just "yoooooo"

[tacit lark]

Phds are funded

[tacit lark]

Does pl mean programming languages?

[main marlin]

i know and yes

[subtle knoll]

should I latex my research statement? should I have sections and blocks for theorems, or just paragraphs? should I have a citation?

[shell kindle]

No, paragraphs, no

[subtle knoll]

Thanks!

[main marlin]

idk why but it feels like my questions werent answered even though they were

i think its because i still feel confused but idk how to voice my concerns

idk

grad school apps are hard

:despair:

[subtle knoll]

well you are a sophomore right now so that's a bit early to be anxious on grad school applications.

[main marlin]

fair

idk

i still feel worried because like

im pretty sure i wanna do academia over industry

and you need a phd for that apparently

and

idrk what to expect or how to do that

[subtle knoll]

Start from looking at reus?