yangyangwilliam

Interested in knowing that too. Also, which program will look better in say 5 or 6 years from now? I think the two departments are really on par with each other at this point. Do faculty members in UCLA and Michigan care about their students and are willing to coauther with them?

Anyone has something to say about the two schools? April is approaching :(

Hi, I got admitted to UCLA and Michigan (both offers are funded). I had a hard time deciding where I should be heading to and would like to have comments from you guys. I will most likely do macro, international and/or development. A lot of people say UCLA is in bad shape, but is Michigan doing any better? In terms of placement results, which school does better? I can find UCLA's placement history but not Michigan's except for 2010. I am leaning towards UCLA because of the weather, but I don't want to give up Michigan if it is indeed a better department. Anyone from UCLA or Michigan please?

I guess it somewhat depends on the job market as well...I heard Chicago's placement record hasn't been very good...instead of settling for a crappy job, some people might want to go for a PhD.

And for a one-year MSF program, I doubt how a professor can even write a good letter even without the student's grade...

Hi TraderJoe, Thank you very much for your comments. An MFE student from Coumbia told me that MFE is absolutely the wrong route if one wants to do a PhD aftewards because of the practical nature of the program and the courses. However, I heard some guy from MIT MFS got into PhD programs at MIT and Yale...Do you know any other examples? It is my understanding that MIT's program is the least rigorous among top schools (it's more like a general finance program), what value does the program give to a PhD applicant, apart from potential LORs from famous professors... Thank you!

Thank you so much, tiger2009 and asquare! I have a question somewhat related question: I ask two professors from a different school to write letters for me. One replies to my emails very diligently, while the other hasn't been replying to my emails since he agreed to write me a letter. I am wondering if not replying to emails is common? Or that actually indicates the professor does not really care about my application? PS: I guess the professor will still write me a letter given that he agreed to do so, but I start to doubt how strong it will be...I did a little bit research (mainly data collection) with him... All I want to know is, given my situation, how can I approach him and find out how he feels about my application? Thank you!!

Thank you so much...I guess I am facing a problem right not then...I asked too many people for letters...sigh

Canuckonomist, Thank you. Sigh, I guess I've missed the opportunity to allow my professors to say no...

And frankly, if a professor thinks he won't be able to write nice things about me, I think he/she will most likely tell me that. What's the point of hurting his own student's application? Or can anyone give me some couterexamples?

Another issue is: would it be rude to directly ask the professor to tell me sincerely if his LOR is a good or a bad one, just to understand if it is convenient to ask him to write the letter? This is the question I want to know for quite a while...

Just want to add, "Absolutely, I will write you a letter." this is how one of my professor replied to me when I sent him an email asking for letters. No one can tell if he will write a strong or a mediocre letters or not, right? I am having a hard time figuring out the strength of each letter...can I just directly ask the professor??

Thank you both for your comments. I've already sent requests to all six professors though...Sigh... Is there a way to ask a professor if he would write a strong letter or not without offending him???

Hi guys, I really need your help this time! I have six professors who said they'd be happy to write me a letter. However, for some of them, I really cannot say that they know me very well. For example, I did a little bit research with one professor. But it's mainly data collection and I don't think she really knows how good I am. I still put down her name as my recommender because that is the only research experience I have. I am also wondering if I should ask two assistant professors to write for me because I think they will write glowing letters. But they are little known. My problem is: I don't know if some of my more credible recommenders will write a strong letter while I don't really think a strong letter from an assistant professor (not from a very good school) will really help. I am inclined to submit all six letters if possible. May I know what adcoms would think about so many letters? Second, for those schools only three letters are allowed, how should I choose between my recommenders? Thank you!!!!

taurenchieftain, Is it true that you must submit your application before the shcool's deadline, while all the supporting documents (transcript and letters) can be submitted online after the deadline? I also face the same problem here. One of my professor agreed to write me a letter but hasn't replied to any of my emails since then. What about the grades for this semester? Is it a good idea to mail the transcript for this semester to schools? Thanks!