Colourful possible PhD Economics candidate...

[fp3690]

Originally Posted by Railroadme

Thats what I thought you were meaning just making sure. I try and balance it out with Mother Jones so I should be covered LMAO

I had to look up Mother Jones (I'm not American). Had no idea it existed. Guess it took over from TNR when the latter had its 180 degree rotation.

[wind up bird]

I'd say getting some letters of recommendation from economists should be a concern, unless the work of your other professors is especially quantitative. Beyond things like math grades and GRE scores, letters are really what make you stand out and can compensate for other things that might be lacking about your application.

[singmeat]

Well, LORs from non econ aren't so good with the exception of math, but having said that you don't want LORs from math across the board.

[Railroadme]

The Phd in PolSci is one of few Urban researchers, while one of the Phds in Social Work does heavy quantative research with substance abuse but with so many PhDs out there---how do admissions commities have time to figure out who is better than who other than by the University theyre from?

[singmeat]

oh, and Utah State is practically ag econ.

[tangsiuje]

I am obviously exaggerating. It's just that I, personally, find the Economist sometimes too partisan to be sensible. There's nothing wrong to sticking to your opinions, but they have a Talibanistic approach to the issues they treat, in the sense of being too biased.

Well, all media reports are obviously biased and partisan. I find the economsit a fun read (and so does my partner who doesn't know squat about economics). Is it in any way related to my graduate economics courses? No.

To the OP, I think it's going to be hard to convince adcoms both about your passion for economics and about your ability to manage graduate coursework.

Put it this way---I like economics as a means to evaluate social programs and needs.

Many social scientists work on this, not only economists. And to the dismay of some posters on this board, many academics in fields such as sociology are becoming increasingly aware of the econometric methods used in applied economics and have started applying them to their own work. Because of this, I would suggest you also look into quantitatively oriented programs in sociology, public policy or political science, which might turn out at least as good for your purposes. I would think that you stand a decent chance at getting into quite a good school if you applied for one of these programs, whilst you would have to go pretty far down the rankings to get into an economics program.

If you are still convinced that you want to go into economics, take some economic classes and befriend some economics professors. I would say that at least one letter of reference from an economist is absolutely necessary.

[fp3690]

Originally Posted by tangsiuje

Well, all media reports are obviously biased and partisan. I find the economsit a fun read (and so does my partner who doesn't know squat about economics). Is it in any way related to my graduate economics courses? No.

Of course it's not related, and of course all media is biased. Nevertheless, noone expects quality coverage of anything other than sports from TV. You do expect it from "the best publication in the English language". The Economist is fine as long as you can read between the lines. It can be very patronising if you're not taking what you read with a grain of salt.

[One on One]

Originally Posted by GymShorts

I don't see you getting into Georgetown. Even though it's not highly ranked, they get a lot of high quality applicants, because 1) the undergrad program is prestigious, and 2.) Washington D.C. is a great place to study if you're interested in a job at the IMF, World Bank, or the Federal Reserve, and 3.) Washington is just a fun place to live in general.

How difficult is Georgetown to get into? Would it rank top 20 in difficulty to get in?

[Railroadme]

Originally Posted by One on One

How difficult is Georgetown to get into? Would it rank top 20 in difficulty to get in?

Its not that its hard to in, its where its located. Its actually in the lower tier---but its in DC---the thick of our federal govt. Essentially, even with its lesser reputation it attracts higher caliber students than say Utah.

[One on One]

Originally Posted by Railroadme

Its not that its hard to in, its where its located. Its actually in the lower tier---but its in DC---the thick of our federal govt. Essentially, even with its lesser reputation it attracts higher caliber students than say Utah.

So that would make it harder to get into right? I know its ranked around 50 in quality, but where would it rank in difficulty of admissions?