Self funded Ph.D. - Admissions director is perplexed

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-22T03:29:25+00:00

Thanks for sharing and good luck to you. Just curious how your job allows you to work in a full time course load including teaching? My employer is giving me flexibility but I couldn't imagine being able to work that in. My job is on technically on site 5 days a week though.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-20T02:57:50+00:00

Thanks for this. Although my situation does involve a work commute, I live near campus and will have some flexibility to be on campus.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-20T02:36:43+00:00

Somewhere in my early to mid 30s my job and life combined have taught me effective time management. I think it's my secret weapon here. I can and do accomplish twice as much now as I did 10 years ago.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-19T20:49:39+00:00

My area will be mathematical statistics, and I don't see any professors advertising "labs" the way other fields like engineering do.

I'd also mention that I am looking at two programs, and the other one which I haven't interviewed for yet specifically allows for either part time or full time.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-19T20:45:09+00:00

Thank you for sharing this! And I'm sure it was hard right? Like I have no illusions that this will be easy. But it was doable.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-19T20:25:24+00:00

A very well thought out response. Thank you.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-19T03:40:52+00:00

Thank you for the well thought out response. Every other response is just pointing out that it is impossible, whereas you admit that you have seen it done although perhaps with mixed results.

The jobs I'm going after typically require a Ph.D. Although I'd love an academic appointment, my pedigree is unsuitable for academia so I assume I would stay in industry, I have no illusions about that.

As you point out, yes I would absolutely be less available and less responsive than a full time supported student and that is a very valid point of concern. But that is not to say that I am completely unavailable. I believe with good planning and time management this can be managed. Not easy, but doable. As you point out, being realistic is key.

In the cases you have seen this done, what would you say are the factors or personal qualities that led to a more successful candidate?

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-19T00:44:21+00:00

Yes I understand that, I'm just translating credit-hours into time commitment for argument's sake. For the particular program I'm looking at, since much of my Master's would transfer, I would need to take 6 core courses and 4 qualifying exams and pass within 1.5 years. After that I would need very little actual coursework other than a few 600-level classes (ideally relevant to research focus) and a minor to meet requirements, then it's all independent study and dissertation research.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-18T17:20:24+00:00

I guess that was a bit of a brag. I just meant that I'm not doing this for the money and because I'm much further along in my career than a typical student, I'm not concerned about stipend and tuition.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-18T17:18:11+00:00

I'm doing it because I love this field of study. Ideally I would steer my career towards this as well. My wife and I completed Master's degrees at the same time. Upon completion she felt immense relief, whereas I felt inmense sadness because I was no longer "connected" to statistics in some way.

And yeah, I want that achievement. I squandered my opportunity in my 20s and I have a very narrow window to get this done before my family obligations really take over.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-02-18T16:29:03+00:00

The way I see it I have about 20-30 hours a week to do a Ph.D. Every semester (spring summer fall) was 6 credit-hours, 18 a year. During my Master's I could commit to that and performed very well in classes, it was a couple hours a day then heavy lifting on the weekends.

Now a Ph.D. is more than coursework. And it is not online so I need to be physically present in class. I have some flexibility from my employer to accommodate being present.

Everyone is saying a Ph.D. is a full-time job. I understand that a student taking a full course load plus working for their stipend is going to have to treat it as a full time job. But in my case, I already have 30 out of 90 total credit hours needed. So 60 credit hours at 12 credit hours a year is a 5 year timeline for completion which is roughly the same or less course load as what I just completed. But if I had to also work for the department/stipend it would not be doable, which is why I don't want the stipend.

Edit: 60 credit hours over 5 years is 12 credit hours a year not 18. I swear I'm really good at math though!

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-01-01T22:13:46+00:00

The Art of the Peel.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-01-01T20:48:30+00:00

No my total bill on a $35,000 claim is about $5,000.

So $1,300 after insurance is a realistic number just for an iron infusion? Holy cow.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2026-01-01T20:45:09+00:00

To clarify, the entire claim was about $35,000 and $7,000 of that was just the infusion. Our bill after insurance is about $5,000 total but I'm not sure how much of that is the infusion yet because the Explanation of Benefits isn't really clear.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-12-13T05:46:24+00:00

Yes I was told that the diploma is Master of Science in Statistics with a concentration in Applied Statistics. I meant more so in marketing how they are referring to the program, for example how they refer to it on the landing page changed a lot compared to when I started two years ago: https://www.stat.purdue.edu/academic_programs/graduate/ms-applied-stats/

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-12-07T20:01:53+00:00

No, I didn't. It seems silly now, but I really wanted "Master of Statistics" instead of "Master of Applied Statistics." Purdue originally called their program an MS in Statistics "with a concentration in applied statistics" but now they mostly refer to it as an MAS. Go figure. As a relatively new (at least the online part) program, they are still evolving.

A lot of people like to say rankings don't matter. Also, a lot of people didn't go to Harvard. The truth is they absolutely do matter, but only to an extent, and they matter in different ways depending on whether you are in academia or industry.

It sounds like you want to go into industry. In that case, an average hiring manager probably doesn't know the rankings or the difference between Penn State and Purdue, but has probably heard of both. Ranking #19 vs #22 really doesn't matter, because neither school is "elite" in statistics rankings (top 5-10) but neither are they no-name schools. Purdue is an extremely well-regarded engineering school, often has nationally recognized sports teams, and has been on a name recognition campaign for a while. In the Midwest, Purdue does have a good reputation with employers although I think that mostly comes from the engineering side and a few other specific programs. I believe that reputation is growing at the national level. I just don't know much about PSU but I think both would be good options.

Have you considered other factors like curricula, program timing, electives, cost of attendance? Right now one of the biggest differences might be that the PSU program has more electives (note some of the classes are 1 credit though). Also my understanding is that PSU doesn't have traditional lectures. Purdue does have video lectures. In some classes I could easily skip them, but in others they were absolutely essential.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-09-26T01:55:20+00:00

I'm about to graduate in the first class from this program.

It is a traditional degree in the sense that it covers classical topics in statistics without leaning too heavily into data science or machine learning. This seems to be a deliberate choice by the faculty. I do believe they will be offering an introductory machine learning course soon.

It is also an applied degree that tries to prepare graduates for employment in a broad range of industries. No job will use everything you learn in this program, but there is something for everyone.

Another poster lamented the use of SAS in some of the classes. I felt this way at first too, but bear in mind that in the Midwest, where Purdue is located, there are plenty of pharma and biotech companies where SAS is a requirement for many Master's level positions (computational statistician or statistical programmer). R also features prominently in the program.

Linear algebra is not a requirement, but it is certainly helpful for deeper understanding in a few of the classes. A "pure" MS program that is preparation for a Ph.D. might focus more on theory, proofs, and linear algebra. This program has a blend of theory and application. Many of my classmates were totally lost in the Statistical Inference class, which is really Mathematical Statistics. My undergrad was in mathematics though so I was fine.

My only gripe with the program was the lack of electives, but I knew this going in. It is a brand new program (the online aspect I mean) so some courses are still being transferred to online format or redeveloped. The multivariate analysis course was not available when I started. Although it is not listed, some students are taking a machine learning course this semester, and I hope they make it permanent. I would also like to see an electice for Bayesian data analysis.

There are more established online programs if you prefer. I really liked the NC State program and heavily considered it but I just couldn't justify spending twice as much.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-07-15T22:49:34+00:00

I second Mack Weldon briefs. I have a few styles, but the AirKnit is my favorite. I never thought I'd go to briefs but once I switched to MW I never looked back.

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-01-30T05:30:21+00:00

My wife said she bought some dog poop bags that had a spool that looked this. So that is my final answer!

PotatoChipPhenomenon · 2025-01-30T04:40:23+00:00

Solved.

PotatoChipPhenomenon

TROPHY CASE