Roll Call Fall 2009

[roundabout]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: East Asian university(BS in electrical engineering),
another East Asian University(BA - second bachelor's degree - in economics)
Undergrad GPA: 3.4/4.0(1st institution), 3.96/4.0(2nd institution)
Type of Grad: Same university where I got Economics BA degree. MA, Economics.
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0 (progressing 2nd semester)
GRE: 800Q, 640V, 4.0AWA
Math Courses:
When I was an engineer wannabe: Cal I,II,III(diff. eqn),IV(sort of complex analysis), Dicrete mathematics
Since I became an economist wannabe: Numerical analysis, Probability and statistics, Linear algebra I,II, Analysis I,II(Baby Rudin), Topology I, Real Analysis(measure theory), Real Analysis I(Grad. Level, Big Rudin), Probability theory I(measure theoretic, Grad. level, progressing)
I took way more math classes as an economist wannabe. (It seems a bit weird, isn't it? )
Econ Courses: Bunch of them. Some highlights are: Grad. Micro and Macro, Micro theory related seminar class, Grad. Monetary theory, Grad. Econometrics (approx. 20 classes)
Letters of Recommendation: 4 econ and 1 math professors. I'm not really sure how my LoR would seem like
Teaching Experience: N/A
Research Experience: half year of RA during undergrad(worked on improving lecture material), half year of RA during grad(project related with auction)
Research Interests: Economic theory, Applied microeconomics (For right now, mechanism design and market design stuff.)
SOP: It would be OK. I don't really concern about this one though. Mainly about motivation, interests, highlighted classes and experience which would be helpful for Ph.D. study.
Concerns: LoR - I don't think it would be ugly. However, I have no evidence to believe that the recommenders would write a exceptionally good one.
TOEFL - score on speaking section is terrible due to the lack of practicing(I hate to do this).
Applying to: 10 among top 20, 7 among 20~50 U.S. Econ Ph.D program
Comments: TM has been a great resource for preparing Ph.D study since I've changed my career. I recently joined TM to contribute one sample, which would be my result, so I can pay back what I've earned from here. Let's see what will happen after 4 monthes.
(For those who might recognize me, I want to be remained as an anonymous TMer. Please do not talk to other friends that I posted my profile here. )

[precrasna]

PROFILE
Type of Undergrad: B.A in Econ/ Russian Lang. and Lit. from a East Asian university
Undergrad GPA: Overall 3.75/4.0; Econ 3.65, Rus 3.98
Type of Grad: M.A. in Econ.(Same university)
Grad GPA: 3.88/4.0
GRE: 780Q 560V, -unknown yet
Math Courses: Linear Algebra (A+), Stochastic processes(A+), Analysis I-II (A, A), Mathematical Statistics (B+,Grad. Level)
Econ Courses (Grad-level): Macro I(A) Micro I(B+) Econometrics I(A+) The Special Topics of Econometrics(A+) Economic time-Series(A) Seminar on Econometrics(A+) Human Capital Theory(A) ( Advanced Econometrics I(A+)...may be)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level):Prin. EconII(B+) Statistics for Econ.(A) Econ. History of XXX(A) Macro(A+) Mathematics for Econ(C+) History of Econ(B+) Econometrics I(B+) Money and Banking (B+) International Finance(C+) Econ History of Asia(B+) Micro(A) Econ. of Ind. Organ.(A) Econometrics II(A+) International Trade(A+) Macro(A+)
Other Courses: Lots of Russian courses, several courses in Social Sciences
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ and 1 math professors. one of them very well known professor.
Research Experience: co-authored paper with very well known professor. Two working papers on sample selection with ordered response and Fuzzy RDD.
Teaching Experience: TA for EconometricsI(Under), EconometricsI(Grad. Level), Micro-Econometrics(Grad. Level)
Research Interests: Econometrics(treatment effect, non-parametric and sample selection)
SOP: Drafting and revising. focusing on research interests (matched with faculty).
Concerns: Low GPA in Econ(under)
Other: I am focusing only on (micro)econometrics, need funding
Applying to: UCSD, U Washington, U Maryland, U Wisconsin-Madison, BC, PSU, Cornell, Brown U, Duke, U Michigan, UT-Austin, MSU,RICE U,Washington U St.Louis ,Indiana U, UIUC, Vanderbilt U, Tilburg-safety

[whiteandnerdy]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Econ from a tier 3 Midwest univ.
Undergrad GPA: 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 740Q, 550V, 4.5AW (what a waste of money)
Math Courses: Calc I-III (B+, A, A), Linear Algebra (A), Probability Theory (A), Math Stats (Spring 2009).
Econ Courses (PhD-level): n/a
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): All the good ones.
Letters of Recommendation: 4 from econ profs.
Research Experience: RA for prof and 1 year at a major govt. statistical agency.
Teaching Experience: Tutoring econ for a couple years.
Research Interests: Applied micro, labor, public, development.
SOP: The basics.
Concerns: The recession creates more competition.
Applying to: JHU, UMD, UVA, Georgetown, GWU, UNC, UMich, Minnesota, UC-B.

[vivalavida]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A.H. in Applied Economics from a top Canadian school.
Undergrad GPA: 3.5/4.0
Type of Grad: M.A. in Economics from a not so respected Canadian School.
Grad GPA: Most likely A-ish.
GRE: N/A only Canadian Schools
Math Courses: Calculus (A+), Linear Algebra (B+), Probability Theory (A), Math Cognate from MA Level.
Econ Courses (PhD-level): n/a
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): You name it.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 from M.A. Econ Profs some young ones, some old ones...
Research Experience: Only from my papers. Nothing too special.
Teaching Experience: TA for intro micro and fourth year international monetary.
Research Interests: Applied Economics, IO, Labour.
SOP: I can't see it being any different than yours.
Concerns: I'm average and I'm taking graduate Micro, Macro and Econometrics all this semester as my master's program is bad at scheduling...
Applying to: U of T, Queen's, UBC (for fun), and SFU? Also applying to real world jobs as my profile is about as exciting as burlap.

[FierceEconDR]

Type of Undergrad: B.A. Math & Econ from the Poor's people Harvard
Undergrad GPA: 3.924/4, Summa Cum Laude
Type of Grad: M.S. Economics
Grad GPA: ?
GRE: 790Q, 540V, 4? AWA
Math Courses: All required courses for math degree, Calc I-III + Real Analysis I, Abstract Algebra, Linear Algebra 1 and 2, Probability Theory, Statistics (Theory)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro and Macro Theory, Labor, International Finance(Macro), Development theory- All A's
Grad courses: Taking the Macro, Micro, Econometrics, and some other stuff at the MSE
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors, maybe one math all should be solid
Research Experience: AEA Summer Training Program
Teaching Experience: Macro & Micro, Math Tutor
Research Interests: Labor, Development, Applied Micro-econometrics
SOP: In the Process of writing it, almost done.
Concerns: Undergrad is good but not Ivy, limited research experience.
Applying to: MIT, Harvard, Yale, Chicago, UPenn, Berkeley, Michigan, NYU, UMD, Cornell, Northwester, UCSD, UC Davis, Brown, Penn State

**This is the update of a previous post, I could not find how to edit it **

[allinwonder]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ B.S. Math from top 5 university in PR China
Undergrad GPA: 3.7/4
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 620V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I,II(including multivariable one)linear algebra for two semesters, math stats, optimization, Analysis I, II, Complex Analysis, ODE,PDE, Abstract Algebra
Econ Courses (PhD-level): N/A
Econ Courses (undergrad-level):Intermediate Micro and Macro, Econometrics
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors (2 of them are mentees of Nobel Laureate)
Research Experience: RA for Econ prof
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: Experimental Economics, Game Theory
SOP: Focus on research
Concerns: Low grade on PDE
Other:
Applying to: Harvard, Caltech, UMichigan, Pittsburgh, OSU, ASU, UArizona, UVirginia, Purdue, George Mason U

[DreamFactory]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BBA (minor Econ), International applicant, not top but one of the best schools in my country.
Undergrad GPA: 3.83/4.00 after rescale, summa cum laude (within 2% of the graduates, but the transcripts doesn't offer the rank anymore)
Type of Grad: Same school, MA econ - major:econ theory (expected aug. 2008)
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0 after rescale (after 3 semesters)
GRE: 800Q, 670V, 4.0AWA
Math/Stat Courses:
Calculus I,II(multivariate), Intro to Probability, Differential Equations I, Linear Algebra I,II, Analysis I,II(Rudin PMA), Topology I, Stochastic Processes(mostly queing theory), grad Real Analysis I(Rudin RCA) - mostly A's and A+'s
Econ Courses: undergraduate - Principles I,II, Biz Econ, Monetary, Financial, Micro, Macro, Metrics / graduate - Micro(MWG), Macro(Bunch of papers) sequences, Metrics I, Financial Economics, other grad courses related to micro theory.
Other Courses: Bunch in biz. especially in finance
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ (both micro), 2 biz (both finance), 1 math (analysis 1,2, topology 1) - I don't know how my advisor (first half of grad micro(A+), TAed, RAed) will write me. Math professor seems like he'll write me a good letter but not sure if it will be great. Finance profs (1 Dean and very well known in his field, 1 very strong connection with his advisor) and other econ professor (second half of grad micro I (A+), was a visiting professor and not in my school anymore) told me they'll write me very strong ones.
Teaching Experience: grad Micro I (MWG) - 2 semesters, looks like he's going to have me as a TA again in the upcoming spring for the same class (then it'll be 3 sem).
Research Experience: RA for 2 semesters (participated in a project), 1 working paper for a grad course which is my writing sample for schools who want/like to see one (A simple, theoretical one. There is no single statistical/empirical work used here...), a term paper for my graduate financial economics class which uses signed rank test...but sloppy.
Research Interests: Behavioral Fin/Econ(Experimental?), Market microstructure, various topics in Micro Theory......actually almost everything in Finance and Economics since most of them are interesting (I'll choose them after I get to know more)
SOP: Done, but no idea how this will look like to the adcoms.
Concerns: Ur......almost everything? Not very nice UGPAs in my last 2 semesters. My alma mater is not the best school in my country.
Applying to: 5 out of Top 15 econ, bunch of biz schools(finance)
Other: nominated external fellowship. I think they made a mistake, or else I'm not sure why they let me in. Anyway, good news for me . But I don't think it'll help much to the biz schools since they fund (almost) everyone. For economics...empirically, seemed to be a very good signal...but the ones who were offered the fellowship had jesus profiles.

[canadamike]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics (Honours) from a top Canadian School (though not top in Economics)
Undergrad GPA: With 2 terms left, almost a 3.3 but if you look beyond first year it goes up to over 3.8
GRE: 790Q, 600V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Calculus 1, Algebra 1, and I failed Linear Algebra in first year
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): All the core courses plus advanced Econometrics and international economics courses (trade, finance, institutions). 83% Average overall
Other Courses: Philosophy minor
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Econ (1 Assistant Prof, 1 Lecturer) and for Oxford I got a 2nd Assistant Prof
Research Interests: Trade theory, sports economics
SOP: Done and Done
Concerns: Poor first year (poor is an understatement); only a 78% overall; worried my bad first year performance will outshine my grades since
Applying to: LSE, Oxford, UCL, Warwick, Nottingham, Bristol, York

[ethomso]

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics (Honours) from a top Canadian School (though not top in Economics)
Undergrad GPA: Not very good. Econ GPA ~3.8 Overall GPA ~ 3.0
Graduate GPA: Should be in the neighbourhood of 3.8-4.0 for this semester at a top Canadian institution in Economics
GRE: 760Q, 590V, 4.5AWA (I know applying with only a 760!)
Math Courses: Calculus 1-3, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Computer Programming, Intro. to Proofs
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Far too many to list
Econ Courses (Grad level): Micro (MA), Macro(MA), Econometrics I and II (PhD), Economic Analysis of Law(MA), North American Economic History(MA), Empirical Analysis of Microeconomic Topics
Letters of Recommendation: 1 head of UG Econ department, 1 prof that I did some research for, 1 prof that a TAed for, and the fourth is TBD.
Research Interests: Microeconomic Theory, Apllied Micro, Institutional Economics
Teaching Experience: Teaching Intro. to Micro and Macro and Economic Policy (at least 3 semesters by the time I start my PhD)
Research Experience: UG Thesis on optimal wage contracts overtime, a couple of term papers on decision theory. Nothing too major or published.
SOP: It should be good.
Concerns: My GRE score and I fear that my profs who are recommending me won't know me well enough.
Go Big or Go Home: UMinn, UMich, Berkeley, Cornell, UCSD, Queen’s, UBC, Rochester, Northwestern, Cambridge, UPenn, UC Davis, MIT. I will likely add a couple of 'safeties'.


If I get rejected from everywhere, which is not impossible given the economic conditions and my profile wouldn't be described as part of any sort of Holy Trinity, I am going to have to go get *sigh* a real job.

[geek_goddess]

I'm applying for master's right now, but here goes:

PROFILE:
Type of Undergraduate: BSc. Mathematics from crappy Indian university
Undergraduate GPA: Percentage system, scores are above average, but not exceptional
GRE: 1600, 5.5 AW.
TOEFL: Not required so far
Math Courses: Real Analysis, General Topology, Abstract Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Vector Calculus, Numerical Analysis, Differential equations, Linear Programming, Linear Algebra, Number Theory.
Statistics Courses: Studied basic statistics in my Probability and Statistics course.
Economics Courses: None
Other: Physics and Chemistry (I wanted to study Physics till a while ago)
Letters of Recommendation: One excellent from my Head of Department, one kind one from my NumComp professor, an outstanding one from my employer from one of my internships.
Research Experience: None so far
Teaching Experience: Nil
Research Interests: No idea
SOP: Is very factual.
Concerns: No economics background, poor programming skills.
Applying to: LSE, Warwick, UPF, so far. I plan to do applications successively.
Other: I'm yet to send out my LSE app