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BigPink

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BigPink last won the day on May 8 2010

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  1. Here are some TED talk links I posted in a previous thread.
  2. Have you considered continuing at BU? It seems like a good place for development, since all of these people there work in development-related areas. Dilip Mookherjee is a big name as well. Doesn't hurt being close to MIT and the people there, either. Your professors at BU should have an excellent idea of your admissions prospects, since they'll probably be on the committee.
  3. It sounds like your interests are more applied than theoretical, so you may want to look into a business PhD rather than a pure economics program. A business program will look more fondly on your work experience, which may compensate for some of the problems with your undergraduate record. There are few econ programs that focus heavily on behavioral & "complexity" economics, and they are hard to get in to (Caltech, Carnegie Mellon SDS, Michigan). Also, a business program will be more interdisciplinary, which might be what you need. You should take a look at Carroll & Hannan & co.'s work on organizational ecology (e.g., here and here), it's an evolutionary approach to market organization that I have a hunch you might find interesting.
  4. Carnegie Mellon is very competitive due to its small entering class, and I don't think they have anyone working in development, so it might not be worth it for you to apply. You may want to look in to some of the agricultural/resource economics programs in the US (Berkeley, Maryland, etc.) because some of them are quite strong in development on the micro/labor side (there is more info about these in the stickied threads). I believe it's harder to get funding in European schools if you are not an EU citizen, but I'm not sure - you might want to look into that before you apply. I believe the University of British Columbia is strong in labor and development.
  5. With self-taught courses, I think it's better to get a concise treatment of the material; otherwise, it's easy to get lost in a huge book without a professor guiding you towards what is important. Also, shorter books are less daunting and that reduces the likelihood that you'll give up (even if the short books are harder). I'd recommend Rubinstein's "Lecture Notes in Microeconomic Theory: The Economic Agent". It covers the consumer stuff extensively, which is what you'll need in the math finance class, and I believe it covers Arrow's theorem. The problems looked thoughtful to me as well, not surprising since Rubinstein is a very clever guy. Also, it's free on the author's website and cheap to buy in paperback.
  6. I think basic probability is second only to calculus in terms of usefulness for your core grad classes. Dropping the class to avoid a B+ seems shortsighted unless you really are comfortable with all of the course material (i.e., can figure out how to do most of the problems in your textbook); you will have to learn the material at some point, ideally not during your first econometrics class (or your first measure theory class). If you can get an A in measure theory, no one will care about your probability B+, and having the time now to solve lots of problems is very valuable. Good luck
  7. You might also want to consider applying to Caltech as well as CMU's Social and Decision Sciences program. Worth a look, at least. As a backup, U Arizona has Martin Dufwenberg and they seem serious about behavioral.
  8. Your range of schools looks good, and your current course/research plan is sound. With your background, the strength of your LORs will overwhelmingly determine your outcomes, so it's smart to cultivate those. My hunch is that the philosophy prof will provide a better letter than the grad student since he/she is more senior, has seen your research abilities, and has substantially more letter-writing experience. I would not suggest many more top-20 schools since the competition is so fierce; it's probably better to focus on finding schools somewhat below that level that fit your interests well. Definitely apply to a few reach schools, though. Your GRE score is good enough for the range of schools you're focusing on, so I don't see much value in retaking it. I would NOT mention your interest in Austrian economics in your SOP unless it is a school with a strong Austrian presence, like George Mason or Florida State. NYU is a tough call; it has Mario Rizzo, so they may consider you as a quota-filling Austrian student...but I really have no idea. It's hard to tell from your summary of your interests, but you may be a good candidate for an agricultural/resource economics program. They tend to be more forgiving on the math end and the top ARE programs have good placements and solid training (so I hear). One of the stickied threads has more info on these programs; check it out if you're interested.
  9. The grad analysis class probably focuses on measure theory (you should check). If so, it would probably be unwise to attempt it without a background in undergrad analysis (like this).
  10. I believe many schools allow you to defer, but most (all?) will reassess their financial aid offer the following year. So, you'll still have an acceptance but you may have to take an unfunded offer even if you originally received funding.
  11. The advantage of Warwick is that it's a two year program, which means you'll have more time to impress your professors before you need them to write recommendations for your applications to PhD programs. Of course, you could wait until after you graduate from Tilburg to apply, assuming there are no visa/money issues that complicate that. I don't know much about each of these programs, but I think the Tilburg MSc may be more suited toward PhD preparation than the Warwick MSc. I know one person who got an MSc at Tilburg, after an undergrad light on math and econ, and he ended up in a top-50 US econ PhD program. Two years at Warwick will be expensive; if you have a scholarship for Tilburg, you may be in better financial shape to take an PhD offer without first-year funding. I would use the search function here to look up more info about each of these programs. Also, you should see which school has the most well-known people in the fields you're interested in, since that could make a big difference in your outcome. Good luck.
  12. What topics does the advanced calculus course cover? At many schools, undergrad real analysis is called "advanced calculus." I would be surprised if you could ace a grad complex analysis course with no background in undergrad analysis, but I suppose anything is possible. In addition to showing mathematical maturity, real analysis covers a lot of topics useful in economic theory, including basic topology, sequences, series, etc. It is very helpful, both for its signalling value and for the basic elements of advanced mathematics that it provides.
  13. That seems like a good selection, I might only add UCL and Tilburg as both of those are good programs with a least a few faculty working in development. I know someone from an unknown LAC with a math background similar to yours who got in to the Boston U masters program (he got other admits as well, but I can't remember them). I know others from the same school with limited math backgrounds who've gotten in to Tilburg. As long as you have good LORs from some professors who know you well, I would be surprised if you didn't get in to at least a couple of those programs.
  14. Don't worry about it. Adcoms seem to ignore the GRE verbal and your score is pretty good. If you retake it you run the risk of getting a substantially lower quant score, which might be a problem. Personally, I think the scoring on the GRE verbal is only weakly correlated with actual reading/writing skills and vocabulary.
  15. I would strongly urge you to consider staying for a fourth year if you can. That's what I chose to do (I went to a small public LAC) and it turned out to be a very good decision. You're at a disadvantage since you're from a LAC. The extra year will help you improve your LORs, which are essential if you want to crack the top 20. Either way, I wouldn't apply this fall; if you apply next fall or the year after, you'll have the grades in all of those classes and that will help a lot. Even with those grades, though, the top 20 is a stretch (see the data compiled by TM member untitled here for 2007-2009 and 2010). The research gig is a good idea if you do decide to graduate, just make sure that you have your professors write you letters of recommendation before you leave. That way, when you need them in two years, they'll have some record of who you are and why you're great. You don't want your letter writers forgetting who you are.
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