Profile evaluation for PhD in Management/Managerial Economics

[mat2089119]

Hi,

I have orginially focused on Europe for PhD Programmes, but going to the US has always been my dream. I believe I have a pretty solid academic profile, but I can imagine that the US Programmes are extremely competitive so do I have a chance at all for a fully funded programme?

Test Scores: GMAT 690/85% (considering to take the GRE)

Undergrad (Bachelors in International Management): Top 3% at a renowned European Business School

Graduate (one year Masters in Managerial Economics): Top 5% at the London School of Economics (I know several professors personally who would write me a distinguished reference letter)

Research Experience: Two dissertations (for my degrees) + 6 months as a reserach assistant (however not as a co-author)

Teaching Experience: none

Work Experience: Several internships in Consulting + at the time of application ~1.5 year of full-time experience (not McKinsey/BCG/Bain, but a good name)

 

Concentration Applying to: Management with a focus on Strategic Mangement or Managerial Economics/Applied Economics

Number of programs planned to apply to: not decided yet

Dream Schools: Something within the top 20 in the US, otherwise I would probably stay in Europe

 

Other Questions:

 

What made you want to pursue a PhD?

During my Master degree I really enjoyed doing research and after starting to work as a consultant, I realized more and more that an academic career would be better suited to me than an industry job.

 

Questions or concerns you have about your profile?

-I had only few Economics courses and only entry level Maths/Statistics courses within my Undergrad degree (and only Applied Economics courses in my Masters). Do I therefore disqualify for most Applied Economics/Managerial Economics programmes?

-Would a GRE score of ~85% be sufficient to have a shot? Having a 60h work-week, I unfortunately do not have the time for extensive preparation.

 

Any additional specific questions you may have?

--

[BrazilianPhD]

For business PhD, any decent program should be fully funded. So, that part isn't an issue.

 

I was reading your profile, and it seemed to be going ok until I saw that you are only targeting top 20. As you said, programs in the US are extremely competitive. Top 20 for business PhD programs are usually considered a crapshoot, very hard to predict even for very strong applicants. It's not common to see people limiting themselves to the top 20. And, although ranks matter, they are far from being the only factor to consider for school selection (and I would say far from being the most important).

 

So, you may have a shot at top 20, but don't get your hopes too high.

 

I wouldn't say that your coursework would disqualify you. And maybe a score of 85% would be sufficient. But you need to know that there will be applicants that are much stronger than you in that regard. You need to be among the best of the best, and not be just sufficient. And a GMAT of 690, for example, is much lower than the average even for schools way below top 20.

 

The real strength in your profile seems to be your letters of recommendation.

[BCB]

I would suggest that if you ultimately want to end up in the US it would be a good idea to go to a PhD program in the US unless you can get into a top ranked international program.

Limiting your search to the top 20 is a risky strategy for anyone so it may be a good idea to expand your list a bit based upon your research interests.

I cannot comment on the managerial economics programs but a 690 is good enough to get you into a decent management program at an R1 university.