Random Thoughts, Questions, Etcetera

[TruDog]

Originally Posted by Corneconomics

You should also practice writing using the higher powered tools you learn in graduate level courses (especially econometrics), and know that if you fail out, you may need to chop a first-year paper into a concise, clear writing sample to pass around with your resume (which should include statistics software experience).

That also assumes that first-year classes have any writing involved. That's definitely not the case here...all you do the first year is problem sets.

[econphilomath]

Originally Posted by TruDog

That also assumes that first-year classes have any writing involved. That's definitely not the case here...all you do the first year is problem sets.

LOL ...writing.....LOL.

Sorry, I had not read the original post, I just imagined TruDog at Wisconsin asking for a writing elective in first year and I just cracked up...

I would want to take one on my third-fourth year, which I think might be very important for conveying results etc.

[TruDog]

Originally Posted by econphilomath

LOL ...writing.....LOL.

Sorry, I had not read the original post, I just imagined TruDog at Wisconsin asking for a writing elective in first year and I just cracked up...

I would want to take one on my third-fourth year, which I think might be very important for conveying results etc.

I've had a couple of exams ask for a few sentences on why a result is what it is, but that's about it for writing. If I asked for a writing elective, I think everyone here would be laughing, myself included.

During the second year, however, we do have a course called Quantitative Economic Policy (taken by everyone except pure theorists) that makes you reproduce the results of another research paper using their data and then write about it. If you are good at writing, however, you are at a great advantage when it comes time to do your field paper and dissertation.

[YoungEconomist]

Originally Posted by econphilomath

I would want to take one on my third-fourth year, which I think might be very important for conveying results etc.

What kind of class would you take for this kind of writing? Technical writing?

[econphilomath]

Originally Posted by YoungEconomist

What kind of class would you take for this kind of writing? Technical writing?

Something like that I guess. I really don't know and I'll worry about that after prelims and my second year. During my undergrad we also don't do much writing so I'm pretty sure I need to shape up my writing skills (especially in English). My 4.5 AWA hinted this might be necessary!

[Mr.Keen]

Originally Posted by econphilomath

Something like that I guess. I really don't know and I'll worry about that after prelims and my second year. During my undergrad we also don't do much writing so I'm pretty sure I need to shape up my writing skills (especially in English). My 4.5 AWA hinted this might be necessary!

Well, you know, based on my 3.5 AWA I shouldn't even be able to communicate basic ideas, and my technical writing skills have been praised by a number of academic and profesional economists. I'm not bragging, just stating the fact that the AWA score is a very imperfect signal of your ability to communicate research.

There are two books that have been recommended by different economists at some point: The Writing of Economics by Donald McCloskey and The Chicago Guide to Writing about Numbers by Jane E. Miller.

[pevdoki1]

I think the AWA section is a bunch of crap.

I never got a grade lower than an A on any essay I wrote (including a 60 page paper about justice in Aristotelian philosophy), but my AWA score is a 4.5. I think the key to securing a good Analytical Writing score is following some ETS guidelines (waste of time).