thisisnotapipe Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 The reason I am posting this here and now is to get an opinion from successful (and unsuccessful - sorry!) applicants for economic Ph.D programs. I don't tend to enjoy doing these types of profiles, but I want to be as prepared as possible should I pursue this career goal after undergrad graduation next spring. Any questions, comments, or critical accusations are welcome. Type of Undergrad: Mathematics B.S., graduating Spring 2016, at top 15 US public university, top 30 Economics Graduate program Undergrad GPA: 3.72 (3.9 in last four semesters, had a rough first semester) Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: Taking this May Math Courses: Calculus I-III Honors (A), Differential Equations (A), Statistics (A), Real Analysis (A), Discrete Mathematics Honors (A-), Probability Theory (B+), Mathematical Statistics (A-), Matrix Algebra (B), Linear Algebra (B), Numerical Computations (A), Statistical Regression (A), Linear Programming Honors (A), Classical Analysis Honors (Taking Fall 2015), Graph Theory (Taking Fall 2015), Mathematical Game Theory (Taking Fall 2015), Abstract Geometry (Taking Spring 2016), Topology (Taking Spring 2016), Classical Analysis II (Taking Spring 2016) Econ Courses: Introductory and Intermediate Micro and Macro (all A's), Economic Decision Making (Taking Fall 2015) Other Courses: five courses in Computer Science (learned Java, C/C++, SQL, Matlab, R, and SAS), Time Series Analysis, Risk Management Letters of Recommendation: Still deciding, unfortunately, though my prospective writers will be a recent graduate of UChicago's graduate school for economics and my undergraduate thesis advisors (one from Princeton in Applied Mathematics and another who is a researcher in game theory and behavioral economics). Research Experience: Undergraduate thesis in behavioral economics, revolves around dynamical modeling and growth/decay modeling for n-player games in communist countries (tentative idea... it is a little long-winded and probably too overbearing). Teaching Experience: Introductory Microeconomics (two semesters) Research Interests: behavioral economics, microeconomics, mathematical modeling and optimization SOP: Still working on making this succinct, but mostly to conduct research on behavioral economics and mathematical modeling for market inefficiencies Other: Interning at very large bank this upcoming summer from June to August, won a math scholarship and academic scholarship at university. Am a U.S. citizen from average socio-economic status. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spivakisgod Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 If you get a 166 or above on the Q section of the GRE, you are in excellent shape. You can aim high. How high? You have a decent chance at a top 10, and will most likely make it into a top 20. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Where To Go Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 People I talked to at T5 seemed to have higher GPA and not the occasional "slip up" in math courses. I didn't talk to all current and prospective students, of course, but this is just to warn you that your overall GPA seems to be on the lower end for top programs, so T10 might be difficult. (But it might be that your poorish grades were in some courses that don't matter at all and will be rightfully ignored - you never know) What's your time series analysis grade? The course might be considered relevant. (textbook?) Were any of your courses grad level? Much more important will be what your letter writers actually say. Do they think of you you as truly excellent, best of the year, past few years? Did they write letters for students in the past? If so, where did they end up? How do you compare to these previous students? That said, you can make it into great programs (which also exist outside T20), I just find the previous poster's opinion potentially too optimistic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Food4Thought Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 How well regarded is your potential game theorist recommender? If he is well-known, I imagine that it should be pretty easy for him to pull a few strings to get you into higher ranked program, given your interests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisisnotapipe Posted April 30, 2015 Author Share Posted April 30, 2015 Reply for spiv: Thank you for your encouragement! Reply for Where To Go: I recognize that I have some B's in math courses. My first semester GPA and one class that spring has kept my overall quite low (that was where I got two of my B's, and I received another in a physics class). I am taking Time Series now and will probably end up with an A- (book is Time Series Analysis with Applications in R by Cryer and Chan). I am looking to take a grad level course or two in the spring of mext year, but the requirements for almost all list Classical Analysis I, which I am enrolled in for the fall. Not perfect, but I have chosen to take on three areas of emphasis (minors) in my past few semesters as opposed to all the undergrad courses needed for grad-level math classes. Whether that was a good choice or not, I'll find out soon. Finally, as I am still meeting with and working on things with my potential recs, so this summer and fall I will test the waters to see how strong the letters can be. I have established good relationships with my two advisors already, and am meeting with the economics professor in the next week to talk about graduate schools. What they think about my potential, I believe, they will discover once I commence the big chunks of modeling for my thesis. Thanks for your questions! Reply to FFT: I wish I could give you a better answer than this, but all I know is that he is an active publisher in journals ranging from numerical computations to game theory and has collaborated with many professors both at my university and elsewhere. In the past few years alone he has 7+ journals both published and pending review, so he is active, to say the least. He has been a wonderful resource so far on my thesis. Thanks for your comment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisisnotapipe Posted June 30, 2015 Author Share Posted June 30, 2015 [uPDATED 6/30/2015 - BOLD means edited] Type of Undergrad: Mathematics B.S., graduating Spring 2016, at top 15 US public university, top 30 Economics Graduate program Undergrad GPA: 3.72 (~3.86 in last five semesters, had a rough first semester) Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: 170Q/162V/5.0AW Math Courses: Calculus I-III Honors (A), Differential Equations (A), Statistics (A), Real Analysis (A), Discrete Mathematics Honors (A-), Probability Theory (B+), Mathematical Statistics (A-), Matrix Algebra (B), Linear Algebra (B), Numerical Computations (A), Statistical Regression (A), Linear Programming Honors (A), Classical Analysis Honors (Taking Fall 2015), Graph Theory (Taking Fall 2015), Mathematical Game Theory (Taking Summer 2015), Abstract Geometry (Taking Spring 2016), Topology (Taking Spring 2016), Classical Analysis II (Taking Spring 2016) Econ Courses: Introductory and Intermediate Micro and Macro (all A's), Economic Decision Making (Taking Fall 2015) Other Courses: five courses in Computer Science (learned Java, C/C++, SQL, Matlab, R, and SAS), Time Series Analysis, Risk Management Letters of Recommendation: Still looking around for three strong candidates. Have in mind two mathematics professors, neither of whom are economists by trade by have published in economic journals. Third candidate will be a mentor I seek out in the school's economics department. Research Experience: Undergraduate thesis in behavioral economics, revolves around dynamical modeling and growth/decay modeling for n-player games given a set of pre-determined constraints Teaching Experience: Introductory Microeconomics (two semesters) Research Interests: behavioral economics, microeconomics, mathematical modeling and optimization SOP: Still working on making this succinct, but mostly to conduct research on behavioral economics and mathematical modeling for financial markets Updated Information: I have shifted my focus somewhat since April, when this was originally posted. I think I want to pursue a masters before I shoot for a Ph.D for several reasons: ability to get into a top Ph.D school, desire to gain experience in a master's program and use resources to establish a stronger view of my own education, commit to a lower-level program before "diving in" for the long haul with a Ph.D program. This summer, I am interning at a large U.S. financial institution and am attracted to business, but I also realize that I enjoy being a student and the idea of being a student. If there is any information I seek to gain by updating this post, it is this: what are my prospects for masters in economics, limited to the U.S. and U.K.? Am I a candidate for a program you know well, based upon my interests and your experience? Your opinions would be greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chateauheart Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Poster #2's advice here is unrealistic. You don't stand a chance at the top 5 or top 10 currently, regardless of your GRE. If you don't have good letters from economists yet, then you'll almost certainly need another year or two, or you don't stand a chance at even the top 20 programs. Besides a master's, you should consider a full-time research position, which is financially much nicer, and could be more effective in solving your LOR problem. You also have a problem in your lack of economics coursework (either electives or grad level), making it difficult for either you or the adcoms to ascertain whether you'll be committed to economics research. This is somewhat evident from your post, where your description about your research interest reveals a lack of familiarity with the current state of the discipline. An economics master's can't solve this problem because you'll mostly be learning econ theory, but a RA position could. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisisnotapipe Posted July 2, 2015 Author Share Posted July 2, 2015 Appreciate the feedback, chateauheart. I definitely am a little late to the game with regards to finding strong letters of rec - I don't doubt that I can get them, but my selections are not a majority Ph.D economists. This is a weakness, and I appreciate you pointing that out. Your suggestion on getting a research position is one that I am considering once I graduate in the spring, as that could expose me to not only well-known researchers but also (and to tackle another criticism you made later on in your post) help me identify a field that I would enjoy researching. The biggest weaknesses in my case for an economics Ph.D at a Top 20 school is that I am trying to jam a whole bunch of important parts of my application into a small window (~1 year): letters of recommendation from well-known economists, research experience, and a relatively firm grasp on the area I want to pursue. More time to get these letters, meet with researchers and professors, and understand the actual attractiveness of this option for me is probably necessary for a fully informed decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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