Profiles and Results 2007

[ekonomiks]

There is a thread out there that contains profiles, and people report results in their signatures, but combining the two takes some time. So let's just put them all together in this one thread. Please fill out the following form and be as detailed as possible. Those who are still waiting for final decisions, please wait until you receive them all before you post. Also, please limit discussion in this thread.

*** ANY DISCUSSION WILL TAKE PLACE HERE: http://www.www.urch.com/forums/phd-economics/66815-discussion-profiles-results-2007-a.html#post440442

 

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad:

Undergrad GPA:

Type of Grad:

Grad GPA:

GRE:

Math Courses:

Econ Courses:

Other Courses:

Letters of Recommendation:

Research Experience:

Teaching Experience:

Research Interests:

SOP:

Other:

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Waitlists:

Rejections:

 

What would you have done differently?

[butler blue]

Profile:

 

Gre: 800 Q, 650 V, 6.0 A

Type of Undergrad: Basically a liberal arts college; good but not elite

GPA: Overall: 3.99, Econ: 4.0, Math: 4.0

Classes:

Math: Calc I through III (A's), Linear Algebra (A), Analysis I (A), Differential Equations (A), Probability & Statistics I and II (A's), Topology (A), Topics in Game Theory (A), Discrete Math I and II (A's), Modern Algebra (A), Analysis II (in progress)

Econ: Intro (A), Int Micro (A), Int Macro (A), International Econ (A), Econometrics (A), Comparative Economic Systems (A), Environmental and Natural Resource Econ (A), Math Econ (in progress)

Other: A programming course...

Research Experience: Summer research program within my university producing a paper about Doha's potential impact on China; Senior thesis on the political economy of foreign aid donation

Teaching Experience: Lots of tutoring econ and math but no TA'ing

LORs: One from the econ prof (Ph.D. from Pitt) who advised both of my research projects; one from another econ prof (Ph.D. UCLA); one from my real analysis prof (Ph.D. Indian Institute of Technology). All of them were very high on me and know me well, but the economists are not well-known or well-published.

SoP & Interests: Talked about my interest in research, reasons for applying to the Ph.D., particular interest in working in development policy institutions, and reasons why I was interested in their department.

Other: American citizen

 

 

Admissions Decisions

Berkeley - Rejected

Brown - Rejected

Columbia - Rejected

Georgetown - Accepted w/ fellowship funding for 2 years and all summers

Harvard - Rejected

Indiana - Accepted w/ TA

Johns Hopkins - Rejected

Maryland - Accepted, no funding

UCLA - Accepted, no funding

UC Santa Cruz - Accepted, partial TAship

Virginia - Accepted

Yale - Rejected

 

What I learned: Research programs throroughly to find ones that fit your career goals and then be honest. I did what is generally taboo in my SOP by stating outright my interest in policy over academia. It may have hurt me some places, but I ultimately got into programs that fit what I want to do. Also, don't get caught up in groupthink on this board. I should have applied to Cornell (given my interests) but didn't because of concern on here about their placements. I may very well not have gotten in (given my record with Ivy's) but I should've applied there. Finally, it is true; your undergrad school is very important, but you can still get into a good (though probably not top tier) school coming from somewhere no one's heard of if everything else is top notch.

[Nalfien]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: SUNY University Center

Undergrad GPA: Econ (4.0)/Math (3.8) overall 3.84

Type of Grad: None

Grad GPA: None

GRE: 800/590/5.5

Math Courses: Multi Variable Calc A- , Diff Eqs A, Real Analysis A, Measure Theory A, Linear Algebra I B+ &II A, Computational A, Typical Math Major,

Econ Courses: Grad Micro, Metrics. undegrad Math Stats, Metrics, Money and Banking, Computational, Interm Micro and Macro. A's

Other Courses: Honors College

Letters of Recommendation: 3 strong ones. One very very strong one. I really think the biggest reason I got in where I got in is because one of my recommenders put his neck out for me and called people to tell them about me.

Research Experience: Year long honors thesis senior year.

Teaching Experience: none

Research Interests: Labor, Development

SOP: Pretty nice... I think, didn't hear anything bad about it. two pages.

Other: Used to go to departmental research seminars since sophmore year, got my face seen and showed an interest in research.

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Stanford ($)Yale ($)UCLA ($)UVa ($)UNC ($)..... no money: UCSDU,Mich

Waitlists:

UPenn,NWU,NYU

Rejections:

Princeton,Berkeley,Columbia,Duke

 

What you would have done differently: I would have applied to less places. But there is no way I would have imagined I would have made out how i did. Very very fortunate.

[applying07]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Large Private

Undergrad GPA: 3.81 (Econ: 3.9, Math: 4.0)

GRE: 800Q, 560 V, 6.0A

Math Courses: Calc I-III, Lin Alg, Prob Theory

Econ Courses: Principles, Intermediate Theories, Stats, Intl. Econ, Econ Thought, Environmental Econ, Econometrics, Intl. Econ Relations, Senior Thesis

Other Courses: A bunch of other International Studies class (poli sci, sociology, etc.)

Letters of Recommendation: Associate Prof. (Ph.D. MIT) thesis advisor and teacher, Assistant Prof (Ph.D. BC) Econometrics Teacher, Associate Math Prof. Lin Alg Teacher

Research Experience: Senior Thesis, summer of consulting as an RA

Teaching Experience: Tutoring

Research Interests: Trade and Development

SOP: Probably nothing too special, described career goals, why wanted to study econ and bits about each school

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Duke

Michigan State

Boston College

UNC-CH

Colorado

Rejections:

MIT

Northwestern

Brown

UMich

Columbia

What would you have done differently? Maybe waited a year and taken more math or worked doing a research job to fill in those gaps. Pretty happy with how turned out though

[sonicskat]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Small Liberal Arts...Not well known

Undergrad GPA: 3.76

GRE: 760/510/5.5

Math Courses: Calc 1-3, Proofs and Topology Class, Linear Algebra, Diff Eq

Econ Courses: Inter. Micro/Macro, Business, Math, Experimental, Forecasting, Econometrics, Statistics, Int'l trade and finance

Letters of Recommendation: Two Associate professors (Duke and MSU), and one Assistant Professor (FSU)

Research Experience: One paper published in undergraduate journal, research using dynamic programming with two professors ongoing, presented at professional conferences twice, associate editor for undergraduate journal for two years, presented at campus research forum twice.

Research Interests: Macro, Int'l

SOP: Wrote how I have adequate math skills, despite no real analysis. Briefly discussed extensive research experiences. Then honed in on a couple professor's who's work I enjoy.

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances: UVA, MSU, UC Davis, Vanderbilt, Rice,UCSB

Waitlists: Pitt (i guess), ASU (i guess)

Rejections: UT Austin, Iowa

 

What would you have done differently?

Taken more math and gotten an 800 on the gre

[commodore]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: top 20 private research university with an average econ department

Undergrad GPA: 4.0

Type of Grad: none

Grad GPA: n/a

GRE: 800 Q/750 V/ 6.0 AW

Math Courses: calc I & II (A), linear algebra (A), diff eq (A), advanced calc (A), stats (A), applied stats (in progress)

Econ Courses: everything, all A's

Letters of Recommendation: three good ones, two from people who are somewhat known. It turns out that one of my recommenders is a friend of Truman Bewley, Yale's DGS. I didn't know that until last week. I certainly hope that's not the reason I got in, but in looking at the results, I have to wonder.

Research Experience: undergraduate honors thesis (to be submitted for publication:luck2:)

Teaching Experience: 2 semesters as a TA for intro micro & macro

Research Interests: development, labor, economics of education, IO, trade

SOP: I really don't think it matters much. I talked about wanting to do development. I hid my love of teaching and played up my love of research.

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Yale ($)

Northwestern (no funding)

Michigan (no funding)

Kennedy School ($)

Duke PubPol ($)

Waitlists:

Brown

Rejections:

Princeton

Berkeley

Stanford

Cornell

 

Attending: Yale

What would you have done differently? I'm not really sure what was wrong with my application, but I'm very glad to have gotten into Yale, and I'm sure I'll be happy there. I guess that if I had it to do over again, I'd apply to even more good schools, because admissions really are random sometimes. Cast a wide net and don't take anything for granted. I really thought Cornell and Brown were my fallbacks, and I didn't even get in. Doing it over again, I'd probably pick 3 or 4 more schools to apply to.

[tunedradio]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Top liberal arts college

Undergrad GPA: 3.89

Type of Grad: audited 1st year micro, 2nd year development

Grad GPA: N/A

GRE: 800Q/700V/6.0A

Math Courses: Multivariate Calc (A-) Linear Algebra (A), Real Analysis (currently taking), Statistics (A), Diff Eq. in High School

Econ Courses: lots, A's throughout, A+'s in intermediate micro and macro

Other Courses: lots of political science / development / policy

Letters of Recommendation: one very famous, one very good one (coauthor) but junior, another junior

Research Experience: substantial; senior honor's thesis, presentations at four conferences, year of RA full-time, co-authored (yet to be published) less-technical papers with two professors (one very famous)

Teaching Experience: TA for three semesters (one at graduate level)

Research Interests: devo / trade

SOP: good (but it doesn't really matter)

Other:

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances: NSF, Yale ($), Berkeley ARE ($), Michigan Econ/Public Policy ($), USSD ($), Penn State ($), Brown (waitlisted $), Duke ($), UC-Boulder ($), LSE (Msc)

Waitlists: Princeton PolyEc PhD

Rejections: Harvard KSG, Cornell, LSE (PhD), MIT

 

What would you have done differently? I actually applied last year with substantial less math and research experience and was accepted into two top 20 programs but no top 10 programs (and honorable mentioned on the NSF), so for those who are considering it, I found a year of RAing and a few more classes (and better recs) can really boost your admits.

[ekonomiks]

Hey hockeytime, I'm gonna copy your profile from the other thread and put it here for the sake of completeness. Let me know if you mind, I'll delete it.

 

Profile:

 

Gre: 800 Q, 700 V, 6.0 A

GPA: Overall: 3.97 (Undergrad). 4.0 in all econ/math/quant courses. Ranked 2nd in my graduating class.

Classes:

Math: Lin Alg, Calc, Diff Eqs, Vector Calc, Real Analysis

Econ: Intro to Micro and Macro, Intermediate Micro

Graduate: Probability and Micro at the PhD level at a top US school

Type of Undergrad: top Canadian undergrad school, major in Business, minor in Math.

Research Experience: Full time RA at a top US school for the year prior to starting my PhD.

Teaching Experience: None

LORs: Three strong econ profs in my field at a top US school.

SoP & Interests: Empirical IO. Energy/Telecom/High Tech sectors.

Other: Worked in consulting after my undergrad (first in Management Consulting, then Economic Consulting). Somewhat atypical applicant because my undergrad was in business/math. Strong comp sci background, and very strong technical skills (several programming languages, STATA, etc).

 

 

Admissions Decisions

 

Berkeley - Rejected

MIT - Rejected

Princeton - Rejected

 

Harvard Econ - Waitlisted (Declined)

 

UCSD - Accepted

UCLA - Accepted

Duke - Accepted

Stanford - Accepted

Stanford GSB - Accepted

Chicago Econ - Accepted

Chicago GSB - Accepted

Northwestern - Accepted

Yale - Accepted

Harvard Business Economics - Accepted, and attending in fall '07.

[wobo82]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Top 25 research university per USNWR

Undergrad GPA: 3.33 (electrical engineering BS)

Type of Grad: Top 100-ish research university without an econ PhD program

Grad GPA: 3.87 (economics MA)

GRE: 790Q/670V/5.0A

Math Courses: Calc I through III, Diff Eq, Matrix/Linear Algebra, Math Stats, Stochastic Proc, Analysis

Econ Courses: Micro Theory, Applied Econometrics, bunch of field courses

Other Courses: Bunch of undergrad EE courses (lots of Matlab, some C++)

Letters of Recommendation: Three from econ profs at grad school. (They were not alumni of the schools I applied to so where they got their PhDs was of no consequence.)

Research Experience: Very insignficant.

Teaching Experience: None.

Research Interests: Development, broadly speaking.

SOP: I liked it.

Other: Male, international

RESULTS:

Acceptances: USC (fellowship), UMD AREC (RA), UMN APEC (fellowship), UVA (waitlisted for aid), GWU (waitlisted for aid), UW-Seattle (no aid)

No news as of Apr 3rd (not that I care anymore): UNC-CH, Pitt, Purdue

Rejections: Berkeley ARE, Brown, Georgetown, Vanderbilt

 

What would you have done differently?

Nothing. (Well, perhaps tried the PowerPrep tests.) My personal circumstances were such that I couldn't have done things differently. I do feel that I had overestimated the difficulty of getting in (to the departments I chose) but underestimated the difficulty of getting funding. But hindsight is 20-20. The biggest holes in my profile going in were: unknown grad school, bad undergrad record, lack of research experience, complete absence of a macro course (taking my first one right now). I feared the lack of macro would shut me out from the straight econ depts. All in all I am happy with my acceptance tally.

[snigai]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: International Student, top 10 University in the country, exhange student in the US.

Undergrad GPA: 85%

Type of Grad: MA in Economics, Top 3 University in the Region

Grad GPA: 4,10 out of 4,33

GRE: 770/420/5.0, TOEFL: 115/120

Math Courses: Mathematics for Economists, Mathematical Programming

Econ Courses: relevant Micro I, II; Macro I, II; Econometrics I,II all grad

Other Courses: Statistics, Probability

Letters of Recommendation: all grom grad economics professors

Research Experience: GRA for 1 semester for visiting professor

Teaching Experience: GTA for 2 semesters

Research Interests: Macroeconomics, Monetary Economics

SOP: It was allright I suppose )))

Other:

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances: UVA, Penn State, UC Riverside, American U (probably)

Waitlists:

Rejections: Harvard, Berkeley ,Cornell, Georgetown

 

What would you have done differently?Nothing. I did the best I could.

[kartelite]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Graduated Top 20 LAC, after 2 years at Top 30 University

Undergrad GPA: 3.79 both schools

Type of Grad: Top 50, MS in Applied Mathematics

Grad GPA: 4.00 (at time of application)

GRE: 800Q, 640V, 5.5AWA

Math Courses:

Undergrad Math: Linear Algebra (A), Multivariable Calc (A-), Applied Stats (A), Probability (A), Operations Research (B+), Foundations of Mathematics (A-), Combinatorics (A), Number Theory (A), Abstract Algebra I/II (A/A), Real Analysis I/II (A/A-), Graph Theory (A), ODE's (A)

Grad Math: Abstract Algebra (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Cryptography (A+), Functional Analysis (IP), Probability (IP), Combinatorics Seminar (IP)

Econ Courses:

Undergrad Econ: Intermediate Micro Theory (A-), Intermediate Macro Theory (A), Econometrics (A-), Int. Trade (A), Int. Finance (A), Econ Stats (A), Comparative Economics (B), Game Theory (A), Experimental Econ (A), Money and Banking (B), Mathematical Econ (A)

Grad Econ: Phd-level Econometrics (IP)

Letters of Recommendation: All math professors, 2 from undergrad (real analysis prof + adviser), 1 from grad (thesis adviser/probability prof)

Research Experience: Summer REU program in mathematics, research assistant for a couple summers

Teaching Experience: Calculus 2/pre-algebra/geometry instructor, Linear Algebra TA

Research Interests: Decision theory, perhaps financial or international econ

SOP: Yes

Other: Cross country captain, NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipient, lots of sports awards; one publication from REU program, hoping to get thesis published in good journal; applied for NSF

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Virginia ($19,000)

Duke ($17,000)

UNC ($14,400)

UCSD (none)

 

Rejections:

Princeton

Kellogg MEDS

Columbia

Cornell

 

What would you have done differently?

Gotten recommendation from econ professor, sent master's thesis to someone at programs, applied to Stanford

[Prometheus_Econ]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Top 50 public university

Undergrad GPA: 4.0 GRE: 800Q, 610V, 5.0AWA

Math Courses (all As):

Undergrad Math: 3 semesters Calculus, two semesters proof-based Linear Algebra, Intro to Statistics, Probability Theory, Differential Equations, Intro to Topology, Analysis 1, Game Theory and Math. Programming, Proof Writing, Stochastic Processes (IP), Analysis 2 (IP)

Econ Courses (all As):

Undergrad Econ: Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Intro Econometrics, Game Theory, Experimental Economics

Grad Econ: Quantitative Methods, Micro 1, 2nd year seminar in behavioral economics

Letters of Recommendation: 1 math professor, 2 econ professors, from 3 different universities, all advised me on research, only one I took classes with

Research Experience: Summer REU program, independent research in mathematical finance, honors thesis, gave 2 seminar presentations and 1 poster presentation

Teaching Experience: Calculus 1 (undergraduate TA), lots of tutoring

Research Interests: Microeconomic Theory, Financial Economics

SOP: emphasized research experience, and explained how I became interested in economics, customized last paragraph

Other: Applied for NSF (got honorable mention), got several departmental scholarships and awards in mathematics

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

(with fellowship)

NYU

Caltech

UPenn (after being waitlisted for funding about 2 weeks)

Carnegie Mellon Tepper

Johns Hopkins

University of Michigan (external funding)

Boston University

(with TAship)

Penn State

UT Austin

(without funding first year)

Wisconsin

UCSD

 

Rejections:

Princeton

Stanford GSB

Harvard

Harvard Business School

Northwestern

Berkeley

 

Waitlisted:

MIT

Stanford

What would you have done differently?

I would have applied to Yale as well, and perhaps applied to less safety schools.

[ockam]

hey, I just heard about this forum a couple weeks ago. wish I had know about it earlier, but I hope somebody else might find my info useful

 

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: large "top-ten" public research university w/ top 15ish econ dept

Undergrad GPA: 3.95 overall, 3.97 math

GRE: 800Q/610V/5.0

Math Courses: majored in math, with rigorous year-long sequences in analysis, stats, and abstract algebra. upper div electives included applied linear algebra and mathematical modeling. note to future applicants: the admissions director at princeton seemed to take very seriously the fact that i had taken the more rigorous math courses

Econ Courses: very few: intro to micro, mathematical econ, grad-level micro. After applying, some macro and behavioral (and said I would do so on application)

Other Courses: lots of philosophy including grad-level coursework in philosophy of science.

Letters of Recommendation: These were probably the strongest part of my application. One from a full professor each of: econ, math, phil departments. Math letter came from my real analysis prof who is also a college provost. Phil letter was from my honors thesis advisor. I took a grad course with the econ prof. I know all my letter writers quite well, so there were lots of very specific things they could say about me.

Research Experience: none in economics. Assisted research in epidemiology (with a sociologist) and genomics. Independent research in philosophy of science and sabermetrics.

Teaching Experience: tutor/TA for the computer science dept (java)

Research Interests: very broad. mostly micro and metrics, both theory and applied

SOP: 700 words, nothing fancy. described how my background in math and phil led me to economics. said my interests in econ were broad and described a couple specific topics that interest me. Used mostly the same statement at every school, changing just the last two sentences for each application

Other: Residential advisor, phil club president, and undergrad phil journal editor.

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

full funding:

Princeton, Stanford, Chicago, UPenn, Columbia, Northwestern Wisc-Madison, UBC

no $: UCSD

Waitlists:

Yale, MIT

Rejections:

Harvard, Berkeley

What would you have done differently?

absolutely nothing.

[econchick06]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Large, not highly ranked public university

Major: Economics Minor: Mathematics

Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.96, Econ: 3.98, Math: 3.85

GRE: 780 Q, 600 V, 5.0 A

Math Courses: Calc I through III, Diff Equations (A+), Discrete Math (A+), Foundations of Math (Intro to Proofs) (A-), Matrix Algebra (A+), Linear Algebra (A), Probability (A), Advanced Calc (A, only A in the class)

Econ Courses: Undergrad:

Int Micro (A+), Int Macro (A), IO (A+), Urban/Regional (A+), Public Choice (A+), Math Econ (A), Econometrics (A+), Development Econ (A), International Economics (A), Money and Banking (A+)

Grad (taken as an undergrad):

Macroeconomic Theory (A), Mathematical Economics I (A-)

Other Courses: Intro Stats I and II (A+, A+), Intro to Comp Statistical Packags (SAS) (A+)

Letters of Recommendation:3 econ profs- 1 who I RA'd for and co-authored w/, 1 from grad macro prof, 1 from department chair.

Research Experience: RA for 1 year for one of my professors/TA this

Two sort-of publications (co-authored with professor,1 empirical paper in non-peer reviewed journal, and one study funded by a think tank)

Completed a thesis-type paper (we don't have a formal thesis program), will be submitting for publication shortly (and I did submit this paper to the schools I applied to as evidence of my research aptitude)

Teaching Experience: TA one semester

Research Interests: mostly applied micro

SOP: talked about my experiences with and passion for research, first para was tailored to each school

Other: founded economics club

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

full funding:

Chicago (Will be attending :D)

Rochester

Duke

University of Maryland

University of Virginia

Johns Hopkins

no funding:

UCLA

University of Pennsylvania (accepted off waitlist)

Waitlists:

Stanford

Rejections:

Harvard, Berkeley, UCSD, Michigan, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, NYU, Northwestern, MIT

What would you have done differently?

Hmm.. I think it turned out pretty well, I probably applied to too many schools but I am happy with the outcome and wouldn't really change anything. At least I don't have any "what ifs"!

[mtjsvc]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: 3rd-tier LAC

Undergrad GPA: 3.8

Type of Grad: straight from undergrad

Grad GPA: N/A

GRE: 800Q, 650V, 4.0AWA

Math Courses:

calc I-III (A-/A-/B), linear algebra (A), ordinary & partial diff eq (A), complex variables (A), topology (A-), real analysis I-II (A/IP), prob & stats (A), interest theory & financial math (IP)

Econ Courses:

micro/macro principles (A/A), intermediate micro/macro (B+/A), advanced micro/macro (A/A), econometrics (A), game theory (A), experimental econ (A), int. trade (A), int. finance (A)

Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ profs (thesis advisor, advanced micro/macro prof), 1 math prof (real analysis/topology prof)

Research Experience: senior thesis (experimental/labor), summer RA for experimental economist at a different university

Teaching Experience: tutor and grader for micro/macro principles, tutor for advanced macro

Research Interests: experimental econ, micro theory

SOP: I talked about my experience with experimental econ (course, thesis, RA)

Other: My undergrad school is small and not very good overall, but the econ training is focused on preparing us for PhD programs. About half of the econ majors here go for a PhD after graduating, with a good success rate in actually completing the degree.

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Ohio State (fellowship)

Purdue (fellowship)

Arizona (TA-ship)

Penn State (TA-ship)

Texas A&M (RA-ship)

Virginia (TA-ship)

 

Rejections:

probably Carnegie Mellon, Indiana, and Pitt since they haven't admitted me yet

 

What would you have done differently?

I would have applied to a few higher ranked schools and not applied to a few lower ranked schools.

[macrodude84]

Type of Undergrad: Graduated top 5% of top 10 university

Undergrad GPA: 3.90 overall and major (double major math and economics)

GRE: 800Q, 800V, 6.0 W

Math Courses:

Undergrad Math: Linear Algebra (A+), Differential Equations (A), Differential Geometry (A), Grad level Abstract Algebra (A-), Topology (A-), Grad level Real Analysis I/II (A-/A-), Statistics (A), Partial Differential Equations (A-)

Econ Courses:

Undergrad Econ: Intro Econ (A+), Intro Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), Intermediate Micro (A+), Intro Econometrics (A+), International Trade (A), Monetary Economics (A+), Health Economics (A-), Financial Economics (A), Industrial Organization (A), Game Theory (A+), International Macro (A)

Grad Econ: PhD-level micro (A), PhD-level macro (A-), PhD-level econometrics (B+), Mathematical Economics (A+)

Letters of Recommendation: All economics professors, including the chair of the department.

Research Experience: Two years research with public policy professor, plus summer internship with think tank in DC.

Teaching Experience: TA master's-level micro and macro

Research Interests: Macroeconomic theory, search theory, labor economics (theory), some interest in behavioral econ

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

UPenn (funding)

 

Rejections:

Princeton

Harvard

MIT

 

What would you have done differently?

Not really sure. Perhaps done a little better in the math classes. Written a better statement of purpose, maybe?

[EconChump]

GRE: 800Q 610V 6.0AWA

 

GPA: BSc Econ (1st Class), MPhil Econ (Pass, but near-miss on distinction)

 

Classes:

Math: 2 years of calc, linear algebra, stats; pure math - all ug.

Econ: usual ug courses & electives; grad micro, macro, metrics, adv theory, IO.

 

Type of Institution: LSE bsc econ; Oxford mphil econ.

 

Research Experience: distinction-class mphil thesis in theoretical IO; 2x6-month long RAs (financial econometrics & environmental science); macroeconomic forecasting in research division of top-tier investment bank (recently published in top think-tank journal).

 

Teaching Experience: 1 year leading ug micro theory tutorials during mphil.

 

LORs: 3 econ profs, all fairly well published.

 

Interests: international, macro, industrial org, applied econometrics; pretty much anything other than micro theory.

 

Other: 23 yo international male; currently working as research associate in economics for i-bank, directly under former economics professor (now uk chief economist).

 

Admissions Decisions

 

In (and attending): NYU Stern (Econ PhD)

 

Out: Harvard, Yale, Berkeley, Stanford, MIT, Penn, Duke, Columbia, Northwestern, Chicago, Princeton, UCLA

 

Moral of the story: Be careful who writes your recs. I got a rec from a very famous mathematical economist professor that did (and probably could) not say I was outstanding. i did so in order to make up for a somewhat deficient math background (i.e. no analysis). i confirmed this with Stern who said that my recs (they only needed the other two) were outstanding. A mediocre rec is a real problem if you are only applying to top schools. (Note that I didnt apply to any more safeties as my outside option was a fully-funded dphil at oxford). If I could do it all again I would get a rec from someone that was ridiculously positive even if this person was unknown/junior. that said, i am very happy with the Stern admit and the ball is very much in my court now. in addition, i probably wouldnt waste so much time on this blog worrying that i dont have topographanalysis on my transcript.

[Zoethor2]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Large public state university, no reputation in economics or mathematics. I will be the 3rd graduate ever from the economics department to pursue a PhD in Economics.

Undergrad GPA: 3.93 overall, 4.0 economics, 3.85 math

Type of Grad: N/A

Grad GPA: N/A

GRE: 780Q, 660V, 4.5A

Math Courses: Intro Calc, Intro and Theoretical Linear Algebra, Intro Proofs sequence, 2 semester Theoretical Stats sequence, 2 semester Real Analysis sequence, Theoretical Complex Variables, Intro to DiffE

Econ Courses: Intro and Advanced Econometrics, Intro and Intermediate Macro and Micro, Managerial, Monetary, International Trade, Experimental (Game Theory), 6 Independent Studies doing my own research (fun!)

Other Courses: Majored in Psych, also, so a whole slew of those, but I doubt they hugely impacted my application.

Letters of Recommendation: Very strong, but by relatively unknown professors. Two econ, one math.

Research Experience: Did about 6 independent (though overseen by faculty) pieces of research, each culminating in a paper. 2 in experimental economics, several in economics of education, and one in game theory and conflict situations. Each paper was presented at a professional conference, mostly in non-student sessions.

Teaching Experience: Was a TA for Johns Hopkins CTY for 2 summers for the Probability and Game Theory course.

Research Interests: applied microeconomics/econometrics, experimental economics, economics of education

SOP: I think it was reasonably strong. My advisors and I revised it quite a bit.

Other: Triple-majored in economics, mathematics, and psychology. This meant a lot of semesters with 6 courses, as well as taking me 5 years to graduate.

RESULTS:

Acceptances: U of Maryland (no funding), UCLA (no funding), U Michigan (no funding), Georgetown (funded), Boston College (funded), CMU's Decision Science PhD (funded)

Waitlists:

Rejections: MIT, UPenn, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Caltech, Princeton, NYU (presumably), UPitt (presumably), GMU (presumably)

(Presumably = I still haven't heard either way from these schools as of 4/12.)

What would you have done differently? I would have applied to more schools in the top 20. When all my results were in, I was choosing between unfunded offers from top 20 schools and funded offers from schools ranked below 40. I wish I had looked into and applied to more schools in the 10-30 range, where it seems I could've performed well. As I said, pretty much no one from my school has applied to graduate programs before, so I had very little information to go on as far as my chances at top programs. Overall, though, I'm ecstatic about my results. I was expecting to get into GMU, UPitt, BC and maybe one other school. Getting into UMD, UCLA, UMich was a fantastic surprise.

[anothereconstudent]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Top 50 research University with unknown econ dept.

Undergrad GPA: 3.97 cumulative

Type of Grad: Straight from undergrad

Grad GPA: N/A

GRE: 780Q, 690V, 5.5AWA

Math Courses:

Calc I-III (A/A/B+), Linear Algebra (A-), Diff EQ (A), Time Series & Spatial Analysis (A), Prob & stats (A-), Real Analysis (current)

Econ Courses:

Intermediate Micro/Macro, Adv Micro, about 12 subject courses and econometrics. (4.0)

Letters of Recommendation: Econ profs - senior thesis advisor, 2 profs I had TA'd for and had in at least 2 classes. They were pretty strong.

Research Experience: Senior thesis, research assignments at work

Teaching Experience: TA for Intro Micro/Macro

Research Interests: Applied Micro, applied IO

SOP: Fairly generic

Other: Won award for best thesis, best econ student. Extensive programming experience in SAS and stata. Economics-related job.

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

UIUC (attending)

OSU

Georgetown

 

all funded

 

Rejections:

MIT

Berkeley

Chicago

Columbia

Northwestern

Maryland

UT Austin

 

What would you have done differently?

Applied to more schools, especially schools in the 5-20 range. Taken real analysis sooner.

[anukriti]

Type of Undergrad: Masters in Economics from the best economics department in my country...history of students being accepted to Top 10 universities every year.

Undergrad GPA: 69%. Ranked 3rd in my class.

GRE: 800Q, 570V, 4.5 W

Math Courses:

Undergrad Math: Linear Algebra , Differential Equations, Topology, Real Analysis, Statistics, Partial Differential Equations, Game Theory, Calculus

Econ Courses:

M.A.Econ: Microeconomic Theory, Advanced Macroeconomic Theory, Basic and advanced Econometrics, Public Economics, International Trade, Forecasting Methods and applications, Economics of Regulation, Applied Consumption Analysis, Comparative Development

Letters of Recommendation: All economics professors with Ph.D.'s from Yale, Cornell, Princeton. One of them working in a leading research institute in the US now.

Research Experience: One year research with an international research organization in DC.

Teaching Experience: Undergraduate Statistics for one year.

Research Interests: Development, Health, Education

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Columbia

Rochester

Maryland

Brown

Wisconsin

Waitlisted

NYU

Rejections:

Princeton

Harvard

MIT

Yale

Cornell

UPENN

What would you have done differently?

Nothing actually. I tried my best!

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[Mobil]

Profile:

GRE: 800Q/520V/3.5A

TOEFL: 263/300, 4.5/6.0

GPA: I don't know how to translate:

Undergraduate: 8.7/10

Master: 8.13/10

Classes:

Math:

Undergrad: Calculus I-II, Static Optimization, Lin Algebra, Int to Probability and Statistics.

Grad: Real Analysis, Dynamic Optimization, Probability and Statistics

Econ:

Lots of undergrad, core grad sequence in Micro, Macro and Econometrics

Electives: Money Theory, Development Economics, Advanced Theory

Type of Undergrad: International

Research Experience: Master's thesis

Teaching Experience: TA for two grad Macro

LORs: 5 LORs from professors who are based here in my home country. 3 are tenured professors (PhDs from Berkeley, Minnesota and UPenn) and two more junior (PhD from Chicago, PhD from a domestic university).

SoP & Interests: It was just about my academic history, research interests (emphasizing the field in which each university is best) and professors I could work with in each of the universities.

Other: International, Latin American, 25 yo.

Interests: Macroeconomics, Money Theory, Development Economics

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

(with funding):

NYU

Minnesota

Columbia

PennState

(no funding): Rochester

Rejections:

Princeton

UPenn

Northwestern

Yale

No answer at all: Toronto

What would you have done differently?

Nothing, I guess...

[peterB]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Top public univeristy, excellent econ dept.

Undergrad GPA: 3.1; 3.95 continuing ed. program

Type of Grad:

Grad GPA:

GRE: math 780 verbal 780

Math Courses: stat and probability, real analysis, calc II and III, linear algebra

Econ Courses: inter'l trade, monetary econ., 20th century econ. history, development economics, history of development economics, econometrics

Other Courses:

Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ people and one poli sci prof, no big names. Two of them knew me very well, and this must have helped a lot.

Research Experience: summer RA

Teaching Experience:

Research Interests: development, IO, applied micro

SOP: explained the circumstances for my low GPA, other than that pretty standard

Other:

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances: UT, BU, Davis, UCLA, Riverside, Penn State

Waitlists:

Rejections: lots, NYU, Columbia, Stanford, Berkeley ARE, UCSD, U Mich, Cornell

 

What would you have done differently? If I had more time and money, I would have taken a grad-level micro course. Overall I feel really lucky to be in at UCLA; anyone else headed there?

[SMH]

Type of Undergrad: No one knows my university outside my country (which is a third world country).

Undergrad GPA: 3.78; Econ:3.81, Math:4.0

GRE: Quant : 800, Verbal : 570, AWA : 5.0

Math Courses: Cal 1-3 (A/A+/A), linear(A),prob(A),stats(A), ODEs(A), numerical solutions to ODEs (A+), Partial diff eqs (A+), Discrete Maths (A+), Quantitative and Computational finance(A)

Econ Courses: inter'l finance, monetary econ., dynamic econ,dev econ,IPE,econometrics1-2, Applied econ, macroeconomic analysis, public econ, (apart from all the regular micros and macros and a couple more)

 

Recommendation: 2 econ people and one math prof, no big names. i know all of them were full of praise for me in their letters like they are for everyone else

Research Experience: RA for a year

Teaching Experience: TA for ODEs, stats, elementary formal logic, microeconomic-II, econometrics & research methodology (grad level course)

Research Interests: econometrics

SOP: nothing special

Other: a substantial part of my CV and personal statement was only to show my achievements in sports, i know it doesnt count much but i cudnt just leave it out

 

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances: UVA, Rice, Rochester, Wisconsin-Madison, UNC (UNC funded from univ, rest funded via a scholarship)

Waitlists:

Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Chicago

(did not hear from U florida and ohio state)

 

What would you have done differently? if the econ dep at my univ had not made it mendatory for us to take stupid univ core courses (50 units of that) in SS like politics and sociology then i wud have taken courses like real analysis and functional analysis

 

overall it was pretty difficult to choose between wisconsin and rochester first and then after that i got a funded offer from UNC so another difficult decision, but i wud probably stick to my original decision of going to rochester

[EconCandidate]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Small, relatively unknown private university in the northeast.

Undergrad GPA: 3.65 (3.83 in Econ and Math)

GRE: 800Q/550V/4.0A

Math Courses: Intro Calc (A), Calc of Single Variable I (A-), Calc of Single Variable II (A-), Calc of Several Variables (A-), Integral Calc and Differential Equations (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Numerical Analysis (A-), Advanced Calculus (A), Intro to Real Analysis (A), Math Stats and Probability I (A), Math Stats and Probability II (In Progress)

Econ Courses: Honors Principles of Micro (A), Honors Principles of Macro (A), International (B+), Money & Banking (A), Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), Law & Economics (B+), Public Finance (A-), Game Theory (A), Econometrics (In Progress), Advanced Public Policy Thesis (In Progress)

Letters of Recommendation: From 3 professors who knew me extremely well. I can't imagine they could have been any stronger.

Research Experience: Completed a summer research project about the term structure of interest rates. Currently working on a senior thesis about funding for public education.

Teaching Experience: Certified Level III Tutor. Math and Econ tutoring experience. Teaching Assistant for Intro Calc and Calculus of a Single Variable II.

Research Interests: Public Finance, Game Theory, Applied Micro.

SOP: Discussed my math preparation, research project, teaching/tutoring experience and my goals.

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

University of Wisconsin-Madison ($) (Attending)

University of Virginia ($)

Waitlists:

Boston College

Rejections:

University of Chicago

Yale University

Northwestern University

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

University of Minnesota-Twin Cities

University of Rochester

Duke University

University of Maryland-College Park

Brown University

The Ohio State University

University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign

 

What would you have done differently?

My experience suggests that this process is incredibly random. I ended up with funding at a program that is clearly top 12- top 15, and got rejected outright by many programs that were not ranked as highly. Don't rule out any programs that you have been admitted to, because you never know what can happen, even at the last minute! Overall, I should have tried to improve my overall undergradaute GPA and scores on the other sections of the GRE, because coming from an unknown university probably hurt my applications some. Additionally, I would have tried to complete more research as an undergrad. A combination of these factors might have made my applications considerably less random. The best advice I can give people is that a high GPA, high GRE Math, and an extensive math background are the norm for applicants, and they are minimum preparation to be an appealing candidate. These do not seperate you from the pack any more. In the end though, no regrets at all.

[macrotime]

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: Third world country (unknown to most)

Undergrad GPA: 76/100 (math 90/100)

Type of Grad: Third world country (well known top program)

Grad GPA: 6/7

GRE: 780Q/500V/4.5A

Math Courses: Calculus, Linear algebra, ODE, Dynamic prog., optimization, probability, econometrics

Econ Courses: micro, macro, just as many courses an econ major should take

Letters of Recommendation: 1 (MIT), 2 (NYU), 1 (Duke), 1 (UCLA) all of them really strong. 4 of them publish or have published in top journals, one less known.

Research Experience: 2 years as an RA in a well known research institute, 2 years working in an interntional organization but in a more policy oriented position

Teaching Experience: TA ecometrics grad level, TA international macroeconomics, instructor undergard macro, TA while undergrad macro, an intro courses to economics

Research Interests: Macro, econometrics

SOP: Honest, just described my research interests

Other:

 

RESULTS:

Acceptances:

Duke ($$)

Georgetown (no $$)

Rochester ($$)

Waitlists:

NYU

Rejections:

MIT

Harvard

Northwestern

Columbia

BU

 

What would you have done differently?

First, I would have resaerched more the universities I wanted to apply. Probably, that would have led me to apply to other set of universities. I would have worked less, and I would have taken more math classes.