Best Preparatory Master's Programs in Economics

[econ2015]

Hi all,

It seems well known what the best Ph.D. programs in Economics are; for instance, US News and World Report's rankings (http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/economics-rankings) of economics Ph.D. programs are fairly widely-cited.

However, I have heard that to get into some of the top programs, it helps to have completed a preparatory master's degree. London School of Economics' MSc is probably the best, however I have some questions:

1. Is LSE's MSc in Economics and Mathematical Econometrics as competitive (hard to get in) as US top 10 econ Ph.D. programs, or do I have a better chance of getting in here?
2. What other Master's programs are particularly well-respected and help place graduates in high-ranking Ph.D. programs?

I have heard that a Master's in pure or applied mathematics could be even better than a master's in economics and I do have an undergraduate major in mathematics. However I unfortunately didn't take the Math GRE Subject Test -- unless this is not absolutely necessary?

Thanks for the thoughts!

[NBZ]

Hi all,
However I unfortunately didn't take the Math GRE Subject Test -- unless this is not absolutely necessary?


Not only is the Math GRE Subject Test not absolutely necessary, it is absolutely not necessary.

[teddyb]

It definitely helps to get a master in economics, all else equal, especially if your background is only in math. As for you specific questions:

1) LSE EME is easier (in my opinion) to get into than top 10 PhD, since they focus very heavily on math grades.
2) Oxford and Cambridge MPhils are well-respected as well. I can only speak with concrete evidence for Oxford though. If you are one of the top at Oxford, then your chances of getting into top 10 PhD in the US are very high. Oxford MPhil is also two years, so you can do a great deal to get good letters from professors.

[startz]

Typically, U.S. undergraduates do not get master's degrees before going into econ PhD programs. International undergraduates typically do. There are, of course, exceptions in both directions.