Jenkins

Hello all, I am considering my course schedule for my final year, and I am hoping for your advice. I have enough free space for classes to do one of the following: (1) Get a double major in math in addition to my stat major (2) Take a year of computer science (including Python, C, and Java). I currently only have basic statistical programming knowledge. (3) Just use the spaces for stat and accounting electives. Maybe a survey sampling class and a matrix computation class. Does any one of these options jump out as seeming better than the others? Both in terms of admission and especially in giving me good skills for doing research in the future.

Thank you all for your advice. I will definitely add a few of those schools to my list. Do you think there is any reason to avoid schools with large undergraduate accounting populations (perhaps because those schools will want TA's with a stronger institutional background)? I have heard this from some other people, and I have wondered if that is a reason to reconsider UT Austin/OSU/UofA, etc? This is one of the reasons (in addition to midwestern weather) I dropped a lot of the large state schools earlier.

I am hoping to live somewhere a little warmer than Ohio. Granted, Chicago and Northwestern are also very cold, but I have some ties to Chicago which off set the cold weather. I don't want to apply frivolously, because applications are expensive, but I also don't want to be tight fisted on an important life decision. If you think it's necessary to apply to more schools, I definitely need to hear that, because I really do not want to get shut out. If you do think more schools are necessary, could you possibly suggest a few (or suggest what tier of school I need more of)? I would be willing to consider the midwestern state schools again; it is definitely reasonable to lives somewhere cold if it gives me the best possible chance of getting a good education.

I think I am going to write/redo a paper and begin working on my applications this summer. Would you mind letting me know what you think of my tentative list of schools (too long, too short, overly optimistic, etc)? I want to make sure I have a list where I will get into at least a few; I do not want to have a last minute job search or have to move back home because I did not get into any programs. I am thinking of applying to: Stanford UChicago Northwestern Duke UT Austin UNC Chapel Hill Emory U of Southern California Rice UF U of Arizona Utah And then applying to Stanford's 2 year RA/Post bacc program as well. Thanks for your Advice.

Thank you all for your advice. YaSvoboden, I agree with your point about my profile falling in between the quant/private school type and the work experience/public school type. I still have a few classes and a summer left before my applications are due; do you think I should try to move more towards one of those two categories? I could take an additional 1-2 mba accounting courses to try to beef up my practical accounting background, or I could take some more pure math courses. My current plan is to take statistics and probability courses and continue to audit the phd research course for my remaining terms. I can also use this upcoming summer to alter my profile a bit. My current plan is to do an informal BA-thesis in accounting, where I do my own small project and meet with a professor once a week to make sure the project is on track. Alternatively I could do math or statistics research over the summer, or perhaps volunteer at an accounting firm to gain more institutional knowledge. I think I could also get another RA job with an accounting professor, but it would almost certainly be data entry again, and I'm not that's any better than doing an informal independent project.

Undergrad: Top Ten US News GPA: 3.5/4.0 Single Major in Statistics GMAT: 730 (V40, Q49) letter of recommendation: 1 from statistics professor, 1 from economics professor, 1 from accounting professor Work: Internships at a small investment bank and a nonprofit consulting firm Research assistant: Worked as a research assistant (data entry) for an accounting professor University Employment: Math tutor for my university's tutoring center and paper grader for multivariable calc and linear algebra Math background: Calc 1-3 and ODE's at regional university during high school (A's), Real Analysis in college (B+ average), Abstract Algebra in college (A- average) Accounting Background: I am not an accounting major but I have taken two accounting classes and I sit in on the doctoral accounting research classes Economics Background: Micro (A- average) Awards: Dean's List My interest is mostly financial archival. I am especially interested in accounting standard setting, for example how the debt/equity structure in a country affects the demand for disclosure in that country. I am not sure where I would be competitive for PhD's directly out of undergrad. I know I really fit the standard profile of someone with an accounting or economics undergraduate plus a few years of work experience or a master's degree. I don't feel like I would be competitive at top 5 programs given my GMAT/GPA and lack of accounting experience, but would I still be competitive for places like Emory, USC, Ohio State, UT Austin, etc? Would a place like Utah be more of a match or a safety? I understand that fit is important (the schools I listed above each have 2-3 professors whose work interests me), but I want to make sure I am applying mainly to schools that are in the right ballpark for me, competitiveness wise.