tryingforecon Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 (edited) Hi everyone I'm finding it difficult to guess where I stand in terms of application strength as my background might be a bit disadvantageous when it comes to applying for PhDs in economics since I didn't have room in my degree to do any foundational economics units. Would like to know what sort of schools I should be applying for. I don't think my profile is strong enough for US top 15, maybe top 50? Should I consider doing a masters in economics first? PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Pure maths, with some bioinformatics and philosophy from an Australian university. I guess top tier but we don't really care about that much down here. Undergrad GPA: 6.71/7 (about a 3.8), 1st Class Honours in Mathematics (this is comparable to summa cum laude but with a research thesis) GRE: Q 166, V 168, AWA 5 Math Courses: 3 semesters of analysis, 1 semester of probability, 6 semesters of algebra/geometry, some applied maths, other random maths courses Econ Courses: 1 reading course on economics Other Courses: Bioinformatics, philosophy, Letters of Recommendation: Honours maths thesis supervisor, worked together for a year, thesis was in combinatorial algebra/ solving a problem in linear algebra Maths professor I worked with for half a year as a teaching assistant, Final letter writer will likely be a professor who knows me fairly well but also in maths! Research Experience: Honours thesis in algebra: 1 year 4 research courses I did in my undergrad: each one lasted a semester. none of these are in economics. Teaching Experience: Got a job as a tutor for a first year course in my second year of uni. I've been doing that for three years. Research Interests: Development economics, mathematical economics Concerns: I reckon my lack of a strong econ background definitely sets me back. Is there anything I can do about this at this stage? Looking to apply this year. Thank you for any advice Edited October 12, 2017 by tryingforecon formatting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
startz Posted October 12, 2017 Share Posted October 12, 2017 You have a quite strong math background, although the quant GRE stands out a bit of an anomoly. But what makes you want a PhD in economics? Or, put better, how much do you know about what getting a PhD in economics entails? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryingforecon Posted October 12, 2017 Author Share Posted October 12, 2017 Would it be better to retake the GREs? I've heard that as long as you're past the 90th percentile most schools will look at your application? I want to get a PhD in economics so I can pursue a high impact career in development eg as a researcher for JPAL (I did some of their online courses). Honestly as much as I love proving theorems about cohomology it just doesn't feel like valuable work for me whereas economics might be a better fit. Well I guess I don't know what getting a PhD in economics entails but it's probably not that different from a PhD in maths, which I was fully prepared to do at one point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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