NYU vs. Yale vs. UPenn

[Sam_Jackson]

Hi,

 

I wanted to ask you all regarding the relative merits of NYU, Yale and UPenn (likewise similarly ranked departments: Northwestern, Berkeley, etc). I especially wanted to ask how NYU stacks up against the aforementioned departments. I apologise for the question not being entirely specific, to some point or the other, however any opinion on this matter is welcomed.

 

Sam.

[econphilomath]

We had another thread on this same topic a couple of days ago.

 

some of the conculsions I picked up for there and in general:

 

If you like macro Sargent style NYU>=UPenn>Yale

 

If you like metrics then Yale.

 

If you like theory maybe UPenn>=NYU and if you like monetary (as in search models of money) then UPenn.

 

I think NYU and UPenn are pretty similar except NYU fully funds everyone.

[Sam_Jackson]

Thanks for the reply. It confirmed my beliefs. I would put them all in a similar pot (tier), except obviously some are better at certain things than the other, as you mentioned.

 

My apologies that I repeated the topic.

[econphilomath]

Yup, I guess these kinds of diffrences only matter once you get into two or more places! ;)

[Stuy]

Yale and UPenn have been more successful with placements in the past. If you get funding Yale pays more than NYU that pays more than UPenn. As said before NYU gives fellowships to every admitted student. UPenn has higher attrition rates, that I believe to be quite low at Yale and NYU. In macro theory I think NYU and UPenn are overall a little better than Yale, but NYU is perhaps more diverse (Yes, Sargent is here but Gertler, Caplin and Leahy too). In Micro Theory UPenn and NYU are perhaps again a little better than Yale. In metrics Yale is better than UPenn that is better than NYU. In Labor UPenn is better than the other. For IO Yale, then NYU, then UPenn. But overall all three programs are probably quite similar.

[econphilomath]

I do think placements should pick up at NYU because the "new NYU" with Sargent and more money started only a few years ago and maybe placements haven't caught up yet. Because of the funding and low attrition, getting into NYU has become more competitive and thus you would expect the quality of the students there to also go up. Eventually placements should start to get better.

 

In summary I think NYU might be undervalued by the market because most people look at placements but might not take into account its a lagging indicator. Since I'm into macro, NYU is in my top 5, right before UPenn and Minnesota.

[commodore]

It's worth considering the typical comps experience as well. Yale fails about one student per year, while Penn is known for cutting quite a few (though I know only the reputation and not the statistics). That affects the stress of the first year experience quite a bit.