Profile evaluation - Am I too Agressive/Ambitious?

[chris_tyman]

Here's my profile. Please feel free to have any suggestion.
If there is not enough information, I can post a follow-up reply.

I would like to apply PhD programs in Finance.

Do you think I am too aggressive? I appreciate your response and wish everybody good luck!

PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: B.S. Mathematics/Economics (Not double major). 1st and 2nd Yr : Large state university in Louisiana. 3rd and 4th Yr: Top 5 public university, located in southern California.

Type of Grad: None

GPA: 3.95 Overall. 4.0 Math and Econ

GRE: 800Q, 570V, 4.5 AWA

Although I am a foreign student graduated from a U.S. college, I am not sure if the low verbal is going to hurt.

Math Courses (undergrad-level):
Real Analysis I (A), II (A), Topology (A+), Introduction to Lebesgue Integration (A), Optimization (A), Game Theory (A+), ODE (A), Linear Algebra (A+), Probability (A), Calculus I - III (A), Stochastic Processes (A), Integral Transforms (A), Discrete Dynamic Systems (A)

Note: Everything before probability was taken after transfer.

Econ Courses (undergrad-level):
Into to micro (A), Intro to Macro (A), Intermediate Micro (A+), Intermediate Macro (A+), Statistics for Economists (A+), Introductory Econometrics (A), Price and Strategy (A+), Mathematical Finance I & II (A+), Honor's thesis (A+)

Note: Although I got an A+ in Honor's thesis, I do not think the quality of my thesis is high.

Letters of Recommendation:
2 Letters from my college: One from a Econ Professor Emeritus who is my thesis advisor. One from a Math Professor for my game theory class (with honors adjunct, i.e. a little project, besides doing well in class).

The 3rd one will come from my assigned economists in the Fed, who's also a professor of Finance in UK.

Research Experience: Honors thesis, 2 Years of research experience at a regional Fed.

Interests: Financial Economics, Asset Pricing, Dynamic Portfolio Choice

Statement of Purpose: Extensively on my research experience at the Fed + a little part on projects I did in undergrad.

Schools: Wharton, Sloan, Kellogg, Fuqua, Stanford GSB, Booth and Haas

[possible_phd]

Dude, I'm not a finance guy, but I think your profile looks pretty damn sweet. Your GPA is flawless, your relevant grades are all amazing (obviously, given the GPA), and you'll apparently have some strong, relevant references. I know finance is particularly competitive, but profiles don't get much better than yours. The only thing that would make it better is if you had gone to an Ivy for all 4 years or something; but since I assume the "top 5 SoCal public school" was UCLA, it's not a problem.

As long as those references are solid and from respected researchers, I can't imagine that you won't get admitted to a top program. That being said, perfect profiles are the norm for top schools, not the exception, so you should probably expand your consideration set a bit, if you REALLY want a PhD. After all, the marginal cost of adding a few more schools is low compared to the lifelong payback of an admission to, and completion of, even a top 50 program in finance.

[taxPhD]

I think you have the profile to aim for top schools, but I would certainly advise you to mix some non-top 15 schools into your application pool as well.

[phdhope]

Overall it sounds good. A higher GRE in verbal wouldn't hurt but I wouldn't be terribly worried about that. I don't know if your research experience at the fed would be more applicable to understanding finance or understanding research. I am thinking it is more of the former than the latter. The only other thing I would recommend is applying to more schools other than the top finance programs. Finance phd programs are becoming way more competitive since people don't think there are jobs on wall street anymore. You will have plenty of good competition at the schools you listed.

[chimerical]

I don't think you're being overly ambitious. Your profile is great. Finance is, however, exceptionally competitive, so if you absolutely must start a PhD program next year, or don't like the idea of having to re-apply, I would advise adding some lower-ranked schools to your list. If, on the other hand, you are okay with potentially being rejected across the board (always a possibility when applying to only top schools) and having to do this all over again, then it can't hurt to aim big.

[vega]

Your profile's great, but I'd add a few programs further down the quality ladder if you're keen on starting next year. Not that you won't get into one of those programs, but they're all very, very selective, so admissions, even for competitive candidates, is somewhat of a crapshoot.

The low verbal score shouldn't be a huge issue, but the low verbal paired with the low AWA, makes me think that your application essays may not be written as sharply as some one who scored much better in those areas. At the level that you're targeting, the essays are what will get you in and keep you out, so make sure that they are very, very polished. Sorry, kind of an odd ball response, but I have read enough essays from prospective applicants to MBA programs (note, not PhD), and those who haven't scored as well in verbal/writting, tend to have essays that aren't as insightful as those who scored higher, making admissions a bit more of a headache.