| Frequently Asked Questions Do I need a Masters (MS) degree before applying for the PhD program? No. You can apply directly to the PhD program. Do I need a background in biology? You need one college level biology course. If you have no biology course you may be admitted provisionally on the stipulation that you complete a biology course prior to graduation.What is the requirement on the TOEFEL and GRE for financial assistance? To be admitted to the program, the student must have a TOEFEL of at least 550 (213 on the computerized test). For financial aid the TOEFEL should be at least 600. There are no minimum requirements for admission or financial aid for the GREs although most students entering into the MS program have a Verbal and Qualitative combined score of 1000 and for entry into the doctoral program most students are above 1200. What kinds of financial assistance are available for new international students? New international students are eligible for graduate student research stipends (GSR) and if they have good English skills and some background in statistics they are eligible for a teaching assistantship (TA). Both of these require 20 hours of work per week, and provide a stipend of $1,500.00 per month along with a tuition waiver. Do you have support for MS students? We do have some support for new MS students. What is the deadline for considering financial aid? The completed application and all required materials should reach the Admissions Office by February 15 in order to maximize the chance for financial aid. However, the Office of International Services (OIS) may take additional time to process applications for international students, so it is suggested that international students apply earlier. Do you have a rolling process or collect all the application materials and then process them together? There is a rolling process for applications. I have been accepted into your program, but was not given financial aid and I do not have the money to enter the program? What can I do? Please send a request that your application be deferred until the next year. A letter (or email) from the student must be received by the department and approved and then forwarded to the Student Affairs office. In turn they will send you a confirmed letter of deferral. An alternative is to borrow money for the first year and if you do very well in the program your chances for financial aid will increase. What are the requirements for being given financial aid (teaching assistant or grant research assistants)? Strong GREs, grades and letters of recommendation. Assistantships require the student to work 20 hours per week, and the student receives a stipend of $1,500.00 per month along with a tuition waiver. The Department also has some training grant positions that require US Citizenship or permanent residency in the US. Training grant positions do not require the student to work and include a tuition waiver and a stipend of ~$1,600.What is the deadline for applications for the Fall term? To simply be admitted to the program US citizens should have all materials submitted by August 1 for the Fall term. For international students, the applicanat should have all materials in by April 1 in order to allow processing by OIS. However, if the applicant is interested in financial aid, it is preferrable that US citizens have all materials submitted by February 15 for the Fall term and international students should have their materials submitted earlier to allow processing by OIS. I already have an advanced degree (MS, PhD, MD) do I need to take the GREs to apply, or can they be waived? The Department of Biostatistics requires the GREs for admission unless the student has a PhD or MD. If you have only an MS you must take the GREs. However, if you want financial aid in addition to admission you should take the GREs even if you have an MD or a PhD. Do I have to apply separately for financial aid (i.e. a teaching assistantship or graduate student research assistantship)? No. You will automatically be considered when you apply. Can I start classes in the Spring of the Year? We discourage students from starting in the Spring since they may not have the prerequisites to take the courses offered in the Spring term. However, students with one semester of applied statistics such as BIOS 2041 and one semester of theoretical statistics such as BIOS 2043 can apply. In particular, students who already have an MS degree in statistics or biostatistics can start in the Spring term.
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