lila1047

i would say CBT. i've taken both, the iBT is harder.

I speak American English, and have spoken it for more or less my whole life. I do not speak with an accent. I took the TOEFL because my birth certificate says I'm Korean. I didn't post up my score because I think I might get stoned to death. I will say that I took the TOEFL (CBT) before and got a more or less perfect score. My iBT score was disappointing in comparison, so I was wondering how everyone else felt about CBT vs iBT. excuuze me for saying any weird stuff i say here. i've had a bit of wine. ai yai yai

Do you think the conversion table on iBT-CBT scores is an accurate estimation of what the scores are worth? http://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/TOEFL/pdf/TOEFL_iBT_Score_Comparison_Tables.pdf I just got my iBT score today the CBT score that corresponds with it just seems a lot lower than it should be. Oh, by the way. I got a 29 in Speaking, even though I'm a native English speaker. What does it take???!! *pissed*

I've heard so many professors and friends say that your GRE score doesn't really matter unless you just pass a certain score. If you're planning to go to a top ten grad school for a PhD, how much would your GRE score matter, and what would the "certain score" to pass be?

How math-intensive would a program like Int'l Business & Business Econ at UMICH be? Yes...sadly, econ and finance seem to be the most competitive at business schools. They pick a few more students than other programs, but the number of applicants is several times larger. :( Another site for a list of business schools is: http://www.ascenteducation.com/US-higher-studies/GRE-GMAT/GMAT/topusbschools.shtml

Thanks...some (actually, quite a few) schools I want to apply to have deadlines around January 15th. What about those?

I should have read this before taking the ibt yesterday...no real harm done, but I would have been prepared for the horrible boredom that settled in after the 4th listening passage. 'oh my GOD, there's another one?! Whew, that's probably the last one. Uh oh, ANOTHER one? and ANOTHER? and ANOTHER?! Will this never end????? Let me die please'

When is the latest I can take the GRE if I want to get grad applications in this year? Deadlines seem to be end of december // early january. Is November (6~11) too late?

Thank you everyone for your advice. In answer to your question, asquare, I suppose the job title is as important to me as anything else. I plan to return to Korea, and titles really do matter here...and my father being a professor of a rather esteemed position, I can't really imagine going up to him and saying I'm going to be a counselor or a community college teacher, even if I wanted to (which I don't). I suppose it could sound a bit strange, but...eh, cultural differences. user_name, I was very relieved to find someone in a similar position :) In a family of PhDs, it's a little hard to think of a career that is lesser than that of a college professor.

mm absolutely, studying for a phd must be hell, being passionate about the subject would make it a lot easier...but is the order always (choose subject)-->(phd)? because enjoying research, studying and teaching would also be an important factor in facilitating the long process of obtaining a phd, wouldn't it?

Hmm...I think I thought about the degree first because I grew up around professors (my father being one) and not too many of them said that they chose to study further because they were passionate about the subject, but that they prefered to do research and teach rather than pursue other careers. They seemed pretty satisfied with the outcome. It would be great to be passionate about the subject, but aren't career needs/preferences also a valid point (and perhaps for some people, THE most valid point) ? I'm sure some people get BAs in certain subjects, decide they can't get a job or that they don't want to work for corporations etc., and decide to get a phD in that subject so that they can teach. Just what I think :)

good point...I guess I haven't really been thinking about that. The reason I sound unfocused is because I was really serious about wanting to study economics further, I realized I couldn't meet the requirements for a econ phd. I suppose I really should find another field I'm passionate about.

I have JUST realized that a PhD in business was an option. I have an international relations undergrad major with minors in econ and english lit, GPA is 3.9. I would appreciate any kind of info/advice, but I do have a few specific questions that I hope someone can answer. 1. Does a PhD in business require as much of a mathematical background as econ? As in, can you not apply if you don't have a background in math? (I have taken no math courses in UG, but have a 800Q on the GRE and took advanced calculus in high school) 2. What are some good sites I could look at for more info? Law school has LSD and AutoAdmit, Econ has econphd.net..........anything for business PhD? 3. Is there a separate list for business PhD schools, or are the rankings the same as MBAs? 4. Why are there so few posts in this thread???!!! Is Business PhD unpopular or new? Just curious :D Thanks in advance!

I've decided that I hate my undergrad major (international relations) and I want to change my field when I go to grad school. I was considering economics until I realized that it's nearly impossible to get into a decent econ MA/PhD program without a strong econ/math background. Now I'm looking into other departments, but none of them really jump out at me. I have a 4.0+ GPA in int'l relations, with a minor in econ and english lit. Here are my questions: 1. What are some fields that I could consider applying to, that don't require strong undergrad backgrounds in that specific area? My interests lie in: econ, business admin, management, literature, communication (actually, almost anything other than IR, political science, anthropology, and the sciences) 2. I am planning to get a Ph.D and teach in the future. Would a degree in a non-major field hurt my chances of getting a job? For example, since I probably won't be able to get into economics, would something like economic history or development economics be inadvisable? Thanks :)