Special Instructions for Application to Master of Science in Survey Methodology

Please Also See:

• Admission Criteria

1. Codes for Graduate Program and Interests/Specialization

On the Application for Graduate Admission, in box 16 (on page one) and box 34 (on page 2), you are asked to enter a 4 letter alphabetic code for the Proposed Graduate Program/Department. Enter "SURV" in those fields.

2. Statement of Goals and Research Interests

The Statement of Goals and Research Interests (page 31 in the Graduate Admission Application) forms an important part of the admissions committee's evaluation of your application. The committee uses the essay to measure your experience and interest in various components of survey methodology:

• Survey management

• Budgeting and cost modeling . Sample design and selection

• Questionnaire design and pretesting

• Survey data entry, coding, and data management . Weighting and imputation

• Estimation and analysis of survey data . Writing survey reports

Identify the components you have experienced and describe the nature of that experience. Describe how you hope the MS program will advance your training in survey research. For applicants without experience in survey research, be specific about which components of survey methodology you find particularly interesting, and why.

The committee prefers essays that are no more than three typewritten pages (single spaced, 12 pitch font).

3. Letters of Recommendations

The admissions committee uses letters of recommendation to help judge how well you might perform in the MS Program. There are two equally important criteria to use in choosing people to ask for recommendations: That the individuals know you well and that they are able to comment on your academic abilities in statistical and research methodology. Persons knowledgeable about the demands of technical graduate programs often can make the most informed judgments about the likelihood of your success in such a program.

Applicants who are returning to school after years in the work force face a more difficult task in seeking recommendations from persons with the attributes listed above. The admissions committee is aware of this difficultv and seeks to take that into account when evaluatinq applications. In these cases, persons who have current knowledge about the applicant's aptitude and skills are more desirable recommenders than professors whose knowledge pertains only to academic performance many years earlier.

It is important to ask the recommenders to focus their evaluation on your academic aptitude in statistical and research methodology.

4. Prerequisite Courses

You must submit a supplemental form, Summary of Prerequisite Courses, which describes the coursework required for admission to the MS Program. For the statistical science area of concentration, three courses in calculus, one course in linear algebra, and one statistics course are required. For the social science area of concentration, two quantitative courses, at least one of which must be a statistics course, and at least two undergraduate courses in the social sciences are required.