baffourakoto

you definately have a very good chance at any top 25 programme. most of the poeple you are competing with are fresh out of undergraduate studies with very little in terms of work experience and practical field work so you should have a competitive advantage there because this showcases the fact that you know what you are getting yourself into and are thus more likely to persist with the tough PhD course requirements. your GRE scores are also VERY decent so i wouldn't worry if i were you. best of luck with the application!!

@tm_guru....wise words!! thank you!

i don't think it will ruin your chances. the writting sample is sopposed to demonstrate your best work so don't be shy to submit the work you think portrays you in the best light. besides, who is to say the ad hoc paper will be as good as the one you presently have? best of luck!

your analytical writting section mark is abit low but it will not doom you. there is more that goes into the admission decisions than just the GREs especially for us political scientist. like changreyee said, i think you should focus more on your SOP and writting sample. those count alot more in political science than in other programmes. best of luck!

has anybody got info on George Washington, Syracuse and U of florida? what's the holdup?

Institution: American University Program: MA Economics Decision: Accepted FUnding: will be sent seperately Notification Date: 03/25/2011 Notified Through:Email Comments: Yay!!! i finally got in somewhere!! feels good to be accepted after the string of rejections i've had :)

sorry about the rejections :( it can be tough to take but you can always re-apply. the econ Phd field is very competitive especially if you're aiming for the top places because everyone else also applies there. this means your profile and LORs have to be above average to really give you a realistic chance of getting in. having said that, a good masters will significantly boost your chances of being accepted. LSE,Oxford, Duke, Barcelona GSE, Toronto and some of the big canadian universities offer some very good masters programmes that have consistently placed students into the top US phd programmes. you should look into these. the typical number of students admitted into a phd programme is about 10-15 whilst for masters it could be as high as 30-40 or even higher so your chances of getting accepted out of the applicant pool is quite good. some of these masters also offer generous funding. i would strongly suggest to those applicants who were not successful this cycle to look into getting a good masters degree from a reputable university first (especially poeple from less well known universities) before applying for the phd programmes at the top places. best of luck to you! :)

how many times is Carnegie Mellon going to email me to tell me i've been rejected from their programme?! this is the 5th email!!! it stopped being funny at the 3rd email! yes i get it! i have been rejected!!! now please leave me alone to grieve in peace!!!:yuck:

good advice! :) this doesn't just apply to environmental economics. one can follow the same general process in any applied econ field as well.

i get what you saying bru but we live and learn. like they say in those rejection letters..there are many more qualified candidates than they can admit. like you, i didn't know how competitive the Econ PHD field was until i stumbled on these forums here but im glad i did. i plan to fix all the holes in my profile and try again next year. its not over until i get in somewhere! luckily, im a very patient individual:D

excellent analysis! :)

Come now bru, don't give up on me. its not over yet but if need be, we'll try again next year :) chin up!

me too bru!! but from the way the blank page looks, it appears as if its going to be a rejection :) lol hope you have better luck man!

just checked. nothing :(

hahahaha...centralbanker, i would give a kidney to get some good news right now! i know how you feel dude....but you have to hang in there. i am sure you and i both will get some good news sometime this week. i've already bought the meat for the braai and im not prepared to let it go to waste! :) my motto for the rest of the admission season is to not give up until the fat lady sings...and even then, i'll ignore her!! cheers dude:D