Saturday, 23 July 2016

graduate admissions - Getting into math ten years after a BA in English


I got a BA in English at a pretty good school, spent the next 10 years in a fruitless pursuit of screenwriting with a day job in a legal department, and now that I'm sick of all that, I'd like to do something mathy. And it seems pretty clear that that's going to require going back to school.


Since this is a HUGE redirection -- a ridiculous one, really -- I assume I should get a second BA/BS before even considering a masters, right? I did well in math in school, but I left off at single variable calc. (I'm currently studying linear algebra on my own and loving it.) But what, really, are my chances for even getting into a decent second bachelor's program?? I'm thinking of taking college extension classes to get more experience and recommendation letters for that purpose. If I get some online bachelors degree (EDIT: or a post-bac), are any (reputable) masters programs even going to consider me??


You may well ask what my eventual goal is, but I'm at such a basic level that I'm not sure that that question is all that relevant. If I were to pick a goal just for the sake of aiming for something, getting a job in statistics sounds interesting, but who knows what I'd want to do after getting a second bachelors. I'd like to try my hand at research, but that sounds way too pie-in-the-sky given my background.


Thanks for any advice or feedback.



Answer



You are not prepared for a Master's program right now, which I think you recognize. That said, it may not take too long to prepare yourself. I would recommend looking at requirements for continuing education and graduate programs at nearby regional universities. Many of them have programs designed to accommodate a student with your needs. For example, here are the requirements at CSU East Bay, a regional school near Oakland. Note in particular the Post-baccalaureate unclassified status. You might not expect it, but many such programs are quite strong and have a solid record in placing students in PhD programs. Don't discount them.


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