<p>I'm only an undergrad prefrosh right now, but I want to think down the line a bit. What do grad programs (most likely PhD) look for? Does school name/prestige matter much? I imagine GPA and GRE scores are important, but how important, and is one more important than the other? Research/internships?</p>
<p>I didn't really do a whole lot of planning for getting into college (not nearly as much as a lot of people in my school - didn't really study for SATs, waited a while to do my apps, didn't have a whole lot of ECs), and I want to try and be more on-the-ball this time.</p>
<p>Strong letters of recommendation.</p>
<p>Research experience and publications.
Grades.
Relevant courses in other fields (mostly math).</p>
<p>GREs. </p>
<p>
Students from small or relatively unknown schools get into top graduate programs, but they have to work a bit harder to prepare themselves for grad school. For example, a student at a small liberal arts college might have to find research opportunities off campus.</p>
<p>Were those three groups supposed to be in order of importance, or were you just listing them?</p>
<p>Also, are there specific math courses that would look better than others?</p>
<p>And so, as far as prestige, as long as you go to a relatively well-known school, minor differences in prestige or reputation won’t make any difference? I’m going to UIUC as a freshmen, so, talking about just the name, would I not be at any disadvantage when compared to people at MIT, Stanford, or similar.</p>