Am I moving too fast?

[srslee]

Hey everyone! This is my first post on this forum, and my main concern is - am I rushing to take classes that are too advanced? My intermediate micro professor gave me the thumbs up to take graduate microeconomics I next semester, but I figure I need a second opinion.

 

Also, if anyone has any general comments about what other classes I should take to help bolster my profile, that would be great too. The obvious gaps are in intermediate macro and advanced probability/statistics, but I might have missed something else.

 

Thanks!

 

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Rising Sophomore, Mathematics/Economics Major, Top 15 USNWR, Top 30 USNWR Econ

Undergrad GPA: 3.94

GRE: Fall 2015?

 

Math Courses: Advanced Calculus (A); Linear Algebra I (A+); Abstract Algebra (B+); Intermediate Statistics (A); Taking Analysis I, Linear Algebra II and auditing Optimization in Function Spaces (graduate) this fall.

Econ Courses: Mathematical Economics (A+), Intermediate Micro (A); Taking Microeconomics I (graduate) and Intro to Econometrics this fall.

Other Courses: A bunch of French and humanities electives

 

(Possible) Letters of Recommendation:

1.) Microeconomics professor. He taught me intermediate micro and will teach me advanced micro I next semester.

2.) Advanced Calculus professor.

3.) TBD. Probably my thesis advisor in Math/Econ; we'll see!

 

Research Experience: Data analysis for an engineering design start-up competition team; looking for a research mentor in math/econ for summer 2015.

Teaching Experience: 1 month as a substitute teacher in my high school; residential peer mentor for calculus in 2014-2015.

 

Concerns: Possibly ugly grade in Abstract Algebra; rushing to take advanced classes.

 

Applying to: Presumably the usual suspects!

[Food4Thought]

I dont know how you have all of this done by the end of your freshman year. But aside from that, I will address the question.

 

It is freakish that you have taken so many advanced courses so early into your undergrad career. I trust your professor when he says you could do grad micro. He teaches the class, afterall. So, he'd know the prerequisites more than anybody.

[chateauheart]

You can probably do it, but the optimal time to do grad micro is probably the 3rd year. You can focus more on analysis, probability, math maturity and some economic electives in your second year, ace grad micro and metrics the year after, take grad field courses and do a solid thesis in your final year, and do part-time research assistance the whole time. If you take grad micro in your 2nd year you might end up spending too much time on it instead of developing other skills at a proportional level.

[srslee]

Thanks for the tips. The reason why I was thinking of taking grad micro early was because I wanted to fit in a study abroad program in the spring semester of junior year (the Mathematics programs in Budapest, Moscow or somewhere else), and I did not want to delay grad micro to senior year.

 

Would such a study abroad program be compatible with my plans for an Econ PhD?

[Food4Thought]

I wanted to do a study abroad thingy too. My school advertises the Moscow exchange program.

 

It is a widely held belief that grading standards are higher in foreign countries (especially in math). So, if you do well in relatively difficult coursework at a recognized foreign university, I can't imagine that would hurt you. That being said, studying abroad isn't something which you would be doing to increase your chances of getting into a good Econ PhD; it would be for personal fulfillment and for the once in a lifetime opportunity that it would provide!

[fantinity]

If the exchange program is with HSE or MSU in pure math, then you should probably take it. It will be very hard, but worth it. Other universities are much less acclaimed. Moscow is a very specific place to live in though, and most people (like me) try to get out xD

 

In the two places I mentioned grading standards are very high, and midterms / exams are mostly verbal.

[sevet]

I dont know how you have all of this done by the end of your freshman year. But aside from that, I will address the question.

 

It is freakish that you have taken so many advanced courses so early into your undergrad career. I trust your professor when he says you could do grad micro. He teaches the class, afterall. So, he'd know the prerequisites more than anybody.

 

Maybe he's the next Glen Weyl

[srslee]

I wanted to do a study abroad thingy too. My school advertises the Moscow exchange program.

 

It is a widely held belief that grading standards are higher in foreign countries (especially in math). So, if you do well in relatively difficult coursework at a recognized foreign university, I can't imagine that would hurt you. That being said, studying abroad isn't something which you would be doing to increase your chances of getting into a good Econ PhD; it would be for personal fulfillment and for the once in a lifetime opportunity that it would provide!

 

That's right! It would be good to see a different part of the world and be immersed in a foreign culture while learning math at the same time. It sounds like a great deal to me.

 

@Fantinity: What is the academic/social culture like in a Moscow/Russian university? I'm quite curious...

 

@Sevet: Jokes aside, I think I have a long way to go...

[sevet]

@Sevet: Jokes aside, I think I have a long way to go...

 

But I do srslee wonder how much of a genius Glen Weyl is.

 

One does not simply do a AB, MA, and PhD at Princeton in 5 years.

[seta]

If I were you I would worry more about Maths than Grad Micro, you can definitely take grad micro in 2nd year (I did). Besides, I don't see the point of going abroad for more maths if your goal is PhD in Econs. It's very risky since getting an A in, say, Moscow or Paris is much much harder than in the US and it could do more harm than help. Finding RA in your school and letters from well known economists is a better option. Edited May 27, 2014 by seta

[huaxue09]

I agree that chateauheart and seta have the best opinions. You can go abroad for fun, and you can afford to waste some time..., but the optimal way to get what you want- a phd in a top Econ program is suggested well by both.

[yankeefan]

You can probably do it, but the optimal time to do grad micro is probably the 3rd year. You can focus more on analysis, probability, math maturity and some economic electives in your second year, ace grad micro and metrics the year after, take grad field courses and do a solid thesis in your final year, and do part-time research assistance the whole time. If you take grad micro in your 2nd year you might end up spending too much time on it instead of developing other skills at a proportional level.

 

That last sentence is extremely important. Unless you're very interested in doing theoretical research, you'd probably be better off taking spending the fall developing your stata/programming skills and postponing grad micro till your junior year. A first course in econometrics barely scratches the surface of what is needed to do successful empirical research, and as such you'll find yourself spending a lot of time outside class trying to pick up the appropriate skills. OTOH if you're interested in theory research then that could justify taking Grad micro next fall assuming you can keep up. Chances are you'll be one step behind everybody else if you're gonna be learning Analysis I concurrently, unless your advanced calculus class was really an intro to analysis and not vector calculus in disguise (which was the case at my school).

 

I'm not sure if rushing through all these hard classes just so that you can study aboard is the right decision from the perspective of an aspiring econ PhD. Of course I'm biased because I never got the chance to study abroad (I did my primary and secondary education in a foreign country, does that count as "studying abroad"?) but I suspect that there is a lot more value added from remaining in residence at your current school and doing research/RA stuff. I could be wrong though and maybe there are study aboard programs that may improve your chances of getting into a good PhD. I'll defer to someone with more expertise in that area.

[econphd14]

If you are dead set on studying abroad, you could do a British program at Oxford, Cambridge, or LSE, which offer many of the same grad level economics courses and upper level math courses you could take at home. You would still have the opportunity to study abroad, without a noticeable loss in quality or options in your education. Again, the downside here is that the British system can also be more difficult in grading. Luckily, with all study abroad grades, American schools tend to reinterpret them along their own grading scale. You will still have to send your grades from your international institution, but you can point to the grades on your home university's transcripts as better signal of the quality of your work. The academic systems of other countries can come as a shock, and if this hurts your grades, be sure to elaborate in the SOP.

[srslee]

Update: Thanks everyone! I'm postponing Micro I till junior year, and I'm taking Real Analysis, Linear Algebra, Introduction to Econometrics and a PhD Math-for-Economists class.