Are the admissions statistics at Peterson's reliable?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the reliability of admissions statistics provided by Peterson's for various graduate programs, particularly in astronomy. Participants explore the accuracy of specific data points, such as average applicant age and acceptance rates, and compare these with other sources like gradschoolshopper.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express skepticism about the reported average age of 26 for graduate students, suggesting that many students apply directly from undergraduate programs.
  • Concerns are raised regarding the accuracy of the acceptance rates and applicant numbers for the University of Washington, with one participant stating that they have seen conflicting statistics elsewhere.
  • Participants note that the small number of admissions can skew statistics significantly, as one admitted student can disproportionately affect averages.
  • There is a discussion about the differences between graduate and undergraduate admissions processes, with some suggesting that certain state schools may have more exclusive programs than prestigious institutions like Harvard.
  • One participant mentions that the University of Washington had a year (2010) with no admissions, possibly due to budget constraints, while another provides a link to a document stating a 20% acceptance rate for that year.
  • Concerns about the reliability of the statistics are highlighted, with references to discrepancies in the descriptions of statistics on the University of Washington's website.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally do not reach a consensus on the reliability of the statistics from Peterson's, with multiple competing views regarding the accuracy of the data and the implications of the admissions processes discussed.

Contextual Notes

Participants note potential data quality issues due to self-reporting and the possibility of outdated information on institutional websites, which may affect the reliability of the statistics discussed.

Simfish
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At that website, you could look at a lot of statistics. For example:

http://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools/cornell-university-graduate-school-field-of-astronomy-and-space-sciences-admissions-000_10028228_10088.aspx

But the information at the website says this:

Application Deadline: For fall admission, 1/15 for domestic students.

Application Fee: $70

Student Statistics: Average age 26. 77 applicants, 19% accepted, 3 enrolled.

I have a hard time believing that the average age at a school like that would be 26. While many people do take breaks and gap years, you also have a lot of very gifted students who skipped grades or entered college early. It still seems that the "default path" is to apply directly from undergrad, even if there may be a few much older students.

==

And for Washington (http://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools/university-of-washington-college-of-arts-and-sciences-department-of-astronomy-admissions-000_10037770_10088.aspx), the information is flat-out wrong (no way in hell would it have 150 applicants *and* a 1% acceptance rate - I've seen different statistics at grad school shopper). But is the information wrong for the other schools too? I would generally trust gradschoolshopper more, but there are some schools (and programs) for which these statistics aren't available.
 
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Simfish said:
I have a hard time believing that the average age at a school like that would be 26.

With three admissions, one student can through everything off.

And for Washington no way in hell would it have 150 applicants *and* a 1% acceptance rate - I've seen different statistics at grad school shopper

Why not?

I would generally trust gradschoolshopper more, but there are some schools (and programs) for which these statistics aren't available.

The statistics are from self-reporting so you do have some data quality issues, but there isn't any particular reason why I'd doubt those numbers.
 
With three admissions, one student can through everything off.

Oh, that's a very good point. Although I've seen similarly high average ages at other graduate programs I've looked at in the database (mostly bio programs). Although bio grad students are probably older than others on average. Math grad students are probably the youngest (on average), since it almost never helps people to have work experience if they want to pursue theoretical math - so I should look at the math programs in that database.

Why not?

Washington is my UG institution so I know that the actual rates aren't that low.
 
Simfish said:
Washington is my UG institution so I know that the actual rates aren't that low.

Graduate and undergraduate admissions are totally different animals. I can think of several large state schools with small astronomy programs that are more exclusive than Harvard.
 
Graduate and undergraduate admissions are totally different animals. I can think of several large state schools with small astronomy programs that are more exclusive than Harvard.

I actually meant that I know that my UG's department rates aren't that low.

Which state schools were you thinking about, by the way?
 
Also looking at the website for U Washington it appears that that they admitted a lot of people in 2009 but no one in 2010, so it's quite possible that for budget reasons they just decided not to admit anyone one year.
 
Simfish said:
I actually meant that I know that my UG's department rates aren't that low.

Which state schools were you thinking about, by the way?

Hawaii and Arizona.
 
Also looking at the website for U Washington it appears that that they admitted a lot of people in 2009 but no one in 2010, so it's quite possible that for budget reasons they just decided not to admit anyone one year.

Hm, really? The 2010 data is below:

http://www.grad.washington.edu/about/statistics/admissions/admissions10.pdf

Acceptance rate is 20%.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I'm looking at this list of current students, and there isn't anyone that joined in 2010. Lots of people in 2009.

http://www.astro.washington.edu/grad/gradresearch.html
 
  • #10
Oh okay, I guess that just means that they haven't updated the department website for them yet.
 
  • #11
On the other hand, they are a bit dodgy with statistics. On

http://www.astro.washington.edu/grad/why.html the description of the statistics doesn't match the link.
 
  • #12
On the other hand, they are a bit dodgy with statistics. On

http://www.astro.washington.edu/grad/why.html the description of the statistics doesn't match the link.

Hmm, I'm confused. What do you mean by that?
 

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