asmithb

hey lightyears, where are you from? The say that they will send me some study material for the summer, What do you think I need to review? Are you graduating this year? Where you admitted at another PHD program, or you will complete your PHD at CEMFI?

I was admitted today at CEMFI with a full tuition waiver plus a 10000 EUR scholarship! I am still waiting for Fundacion Carolina scholarship, from which I will receive news by the end of May!

I called to CEMFI and they said that they will send the 2nd round offer by May 3rd or 2 days before.

Thanls, I didn't mean placements after 3-4 months, but after completing the master during the next admission cycle. I wanted to know if, as it happens with Queens, it is possible to placed at top 10 US schools after completing the MA in UBC.

But what about the placements of UBC at top 10 schools? Has that happened recently (10 years on)? Besides Minnesota, has anyone from UBC MA in Economics been placed in MIT, Princeton , Stanford, Berkley, Harvard, Northwestern, Pennsylvanya, Yale or Columbia? Do you think the top 3-5 students from UBC have great chances to be admitted at those schools? Does it happen every year? Like UPF or CEMFI, where the top students are placed regularly at those schools?

Beardo, do you mean that it is less likely and very difficult to get a strong LOR in order to be placed at a top US PHD program? Is it very difficult to have a close interaction with the faculty? I am asking you this because it seems to what I have seen and read that Spanish Msc programs such as BGSE and CEMFI place their top students much better than UBC, and I still cannot believe that since Canadian universities are ranked much better.

Any other comments?

Hi, I am an international student who got admitted to UBC and UPF (both with partial tuition waivers) and who is an eligible candidate for a scholarship in CEMFI (they sent me an email saying that I am eligible for fundacion carolina scholarship for latin american students). I think that I will be admitted to CEMFI. My goal is to be admitted at a top 10 US PHD school after the master's degree. I know it is very difficult, as most students have told me, and that you need to be among the top 10% of the class wherever master program you attend etc., but I want to know that, as happens in Bocconi, If I have an outstanding performance I will be placed in a top US program. I have seen some recent placements of the CEMFI MA students in MIT and Princeton, and the same with UPF Msc alumni (specially in Chicago). However, I have not seen those amazing top 10 recent placements from UBC MA. The problem is that I have to tell UPF and UBC about my final decision by the end of April, and I haven't decided yet. I really need your help here. I know UBC is a great university and the campus is awesome, as well as Vancouver and that its PHD program is top 30, but it seems that CEMFI and UPF place their top MA students better than UBC in the US, and I cannot believe this, since UBC is the best Canadian university and I thought it should have better recognition and more prestige in the US. I still cannot believe that and I would like your help to make this important decision. I also know that the 3 programs are extremely competitive and tough, and I am aware that being placed in a top US program is very hard and that you need to be a genius, that every top undergraduate student think that can make it easily and so on, but I want to know that if I do very well at UBC (top 5 or better) I will have be placed at a top US program, as it happens to UPF and CEMFI (if I am wrong with my comments on these Spanish schools please correct me). Thus the final and most important answer to me in order to choose a master's program is: "Which of these 3 MA programs have better placements at top 10 US programs: UBC, CEMFI and UPF?" (I am specially concerned with UPF, since I haven't known of any recent placements of its MA in top US programs, and I have seen some of CEMFI and UPF). I have also seen more placements of UPF than CEMFI at top schools, but I guess this is normal since CEMFI has a much smaller size of MA students than UPF. If I had to decide based only on the city, the campus and the university I will definetely decide UBC, but that's secondary to me since my final goal is to end up at a top US program, and I would really like UBC to help me with my final goal. Do you think that CEMFI and UPF will prepare me with better quantitative and analytical skills than UBC for a PHD program than UBC? Thank you very much.

I got a partial tution waiver of 3100CAD, so does that mean that UBC would be cheaper than Barcelona? and what about Madrid?

Can you guys tell me an estimate for living expenses in both Barcelona and Vancouver? Could I live in a student residence (dorm) of UBC and that would be cheapier?

Institution: UBC Program: MA Economics Decision: Admitted Funding: Partial Tuition Waiver Notification date: 03/18/10 Notified through: Email Posted on GF: Yes Comments: Awesome! But I still have to wait for Barcelona GSE and CEMFI. I haven´t made a decision yet.

Thankls Slowlearner and wal256. One of my LOR Professors who is the director of the research department of the Central Bank of Venezuela told me to choose Canada over Spain, and that he thinks one year instead of 2 is enough preparation to me! but do you guys think that is a great option even for pursuing a PHD? I saw that it swifts between the positicion 25 -30 in the world rankings. Do you think it still is a good option for better PHD placements in America? Plus, Vancouver was ranked as the most livable city in the world by The Economist The only problem to me s that I am used to tropical and warm weathers! I was an exchange student in Phoenix, Arizona and I have only lived about 2 weeks with snow in Boston, when I was there in February 2007 for a competition representing my university! I saw a snow storm during a camping in the Grand Canyon, but it was nothing compared to Canada!

My resesearh experience was at the Central Bank.

I forgot to say that I worked for 2 months in the Central Bank of my country and that I was teaching assistant for 3 years in calculus, statistics and macroeconomics. I also scored 109 in the TOEFL.

it would prepare more for the PHD and I don't want to be unemployed in a country with almost 20% of unemployment! Canada barely has 8 percent and salaries are higher.

I have the same problem as icebear! I've just been admitted with partial funding to UBC and I am still waiting for BGSE and CEMFI. Given the fact that I am a latin american student, I have higher chances of being offered financial aid in Spain, since they have many scholarships for us. The problem is that I haven't decided which program will I choose. My goal is to be placed at a top American University after the master's degree. I know that CEMFI and UPF are great for that, but their programs last 2 years. I would complete the 2 year master's degree in BGSE, because

I got 780Q, 340V and 4.0 AW. 3 trong LORs (one from a a professor from the best business school in Venezuela, who has taught and worked as a research fellow in Stanford. The other one is from the director of the Reseacrh Department of the Centrol Bank of Venezuela and the last one was from the director of the departmentv of economics of my university). I have taken 2 years of calculus and statistics, but I haven't taken formally linear algebra, nor real analysis or other graduate courses at all. My research interests are International Economics, Macroecnomics (specially open macro), Political Economy and Development. Regarding undergraduate courses, I have taken intermediate macro, micro and basic econometrics as well.

I've just admitted to UBC with a parcial tuition waiver! I am international student from Venezuela. I have to confirm them by april 30. I am still waiting for CEMFI and UPF and don't know what to choose yet!

Violetsky, is that offer for the MA or for the PHD? Thanks.

Do you have to make a decision and accept or reject their offer on a specific date?

Congratulations MicroIoGuy! Are you a Canadian or an internacional student? Did you score 800Q in the GRE?

Thanks. I've just read that as well. I guess I won't apply.

JBDonges. If I lack math background, does the MA at UBC helps for this purpose? How is the level of this MA interms of math and quantitative tools? I only have takes in my country 2 years of calculus and statistics.

I am an international student from Latin America. Do you know if I could still apply for a QEM scholarship? Or the deadline has already expired? Thanks.

What school do you think is better for A phd:Toronto or UBC? What are their differences in term of research fields? because Nanashi said that UofT is arguably the best school in Canada because I thought that UBC was better or equally ranked as UofT.