GreenMan

The issue you have is that often times, leaving admissions wondering if a student is good at math is superior to being sure there are issues. I'm not positive what your Calc/RA grades are like, but the admissions for the PhD streams will fixate on them. I don't doubt you'll have any issue getting into the regular streams.

One data point: I failed Intermediate Micro in second year and got in everywhere (in Canada). Schools tend to care about what you've done recently, I wouldn't be a perfectionist. If you had A's in everything, I'd ask you whey you weren't applying to Harvard et. al.

At this stage in your schooling, consult the following: Are you taking so much math that it hurts? Yes? - Good No? - Take more math

Hopefully I can give you some help. Firstly, I would discount your non-school related stuff- you'll find that graduate programs care about your ability to succeed either in producing meaningful research (not an issue at this level) or succeeding in your course work. Were you applying to a professional program, like an MBA or some of the more specialized programs, it would be an entirely different story. If you are considering the private sector, I can't help but nudge you in that direction. With that said, I don't think you should have a problem. The Doctoral Stream might be a stretch, depending on how bad your second year grades are, but the A in real analysis is sort of a game changer. I suspect that you will be a serious candidate as a result. I don't doubt that you will otherwise have your choice of Canadian graduate programs. Depending on your interests, I strongly suggest you also consider Western. If you are just applying in Canada, don't waste time writing the GRE. Personally, I would also apply to American schools, but your admissions chances will be more of a function of where you are currently studying (I'm guessing its York).

Just from my own experince, the Schulich program doesn't require experience, but does prefer you have it. I would expect more than half the class has it. However, the Schulich program does have the CFA integration which is a very nice feature for someone looking to break into AM.

Rotman takes 1/2 of the people who apply. Just saying.

I'm not sure what the results out of the MFin programs are, but I can tell you that the ones I'm aware of are targeting individuals with experience. Many of them are offered such that you can work a job and take the program, begging the obvious question- how much can you really be learning? That said, I'm a biased source, and I haven't done my research on MFin programs. I think targeting HFs out of school is somewhat akin to targeting a CFO role at a fortune 500 company. While this is is hyperbole, you'll find that there are hundreds of extremely qualified investment bankers at the analyst/associate level, consultants, etc., who see those jobs as their long run exit opportunity. It has been done, but is the exception and not the rule.

See you soon. :3

This decision should be a function of where you want to work. Ultimately, you will find work in the UK much easier with the LSE degree, and I suspect Toronto with the Ivey name. That said, you are in the inaugural class at Western, so you don't really have that much to go on. Investment Banking is sort of spotty. An MBA is probably a better bet in terms of a formulaic answer. If you have excellent undergraduate grades, I would prepare for interviews and go in that direction. There really isn't a right answer for IB, just a right person.

I'm not sure that there are many people in my situation, but I'm positive my results will be horrible, and not because of excessive optimism. As a general rule of thumb, I tend to be fairly hard on the select few profiles I evaluate. However, because I applied from Canada, I'm really only familiar with the top thirty or so schools in addition to Canadian universities. I would assume most other internationals are in a similar situation- if I'm not going to break the top twenty or so, I'd rather just have free healthcare. The problem is, on the board, I'm able to pick and choose the profiles I comment on.

You'll probably find order matters for a different reason, I'd imagine that on average the people who apply the earliest have the best grades.

I completely agree with your first point, and hopefully I'm aware of that problem going forward. Tough love- check. I've always felt that people are far too optimistic. I'm currently working on a Masters degree at a big Canadian school, and have seen a number of our alumni move on to do PhDs at top 10 schools. This is despite the fact that my program is typically terminal, and the vast majority of us have no intention of continuing to do more education. I'm not sure what the MA Economics program is like in terms of PhD placement, but from what I understand it's pretty good. I wonder if there's differential results in top 1-5 schools- I would imagine that if you didn't have what it takes before, it's unlikely that you'd have what it takes afterwards.

Why not Canada? Lots of great options with good historical placement records. Given your profile, I would restrict my attention to Western, Queens, UBC, and UToronto- in no particular order.

Just to second what Evergreen is saying, MBA admissions at each one of those schools is far less competitive. With a B+ average, it isn't even worth applying- at least not at the above meantioned schools. For instance, the MFE of UofT gets about 400 applications each year for 25 spots, with the majority of the class having a near 4.0. The DSM, I believe, is equally (if not more) competitive. You have no idea what you're talking about. As for the OP, I know the MFE considers the CFA a major asset.

My two cents: Looks like a pretty interesting program. The course offerings look very solid, there's a strong desire for students to have a lot of this stuff (financial regulation, etc). Tuition should be interesting when they release the numbers. My sales pitch: They won't have the type of alumni network that the Toronto program has, nor does it have the luxury of being located in downtown Toronto. With that said, can't say enough good things about Ivey.

Two electives from Rotman is through the MFE program. I am not aware of MA students being able to take Rotman courses- just based on price. The $6000 for the MA program is a far cry from the $80,000 MBA. Rotman students have to bid on their courses, there isn't open enrollment. MFE Students have access to MBA Accounting Area courses, but they do not have access to the PhD stuff. Hope that helps.

I think that's a little far. I wouldn't want to attend without a substantial amount of math, particularly in MA streams geared towards PhD (Western, Toronto). I am aware of people admited to the straight MA programs with not lots of math. You'll be behind your average classmate, but it's still possible to be in the class.

To re-iterate (sorry), for an admit into any Canadian school you'll need at least the intermediate microeconomics/macroeconomics series, as well as a course in econometrics. That alone will be a 5 full courses. On top of that, you should probably take a course in advanced theory, as well as the typical math for economics. If you're very interested in financial engineering, I'd spend a year (or two) taking math courses and go in that direction and skip right over doing a degree in economics. The problem you have is that the forum has convinced you these programs are "easy" to get into- that isn't true. They're certianly easier than Harvard, but by no stretch of the imagination are they easy. Most kids in Canada who end up doing a PhD will pass through these courses. There are some very good schools that have been meantioned, I think Carleton in particular is a good fit because of their Financial Economics program. I'd look into it, they're a well ranked school and don't get a lot of credit.

Firstly, I wouldn't automatically conclude that Western and UBC are significantly easier to get into than UofT or Queens. The admissions process simply has too many unknowns to make much of a difference in a single case. I would highly suggest applying to all four. Secondly, very rarely does a person pursue a PhD and have to pay tuition. Western funds well, for instance- roughly $18K+tuition waiver. The problem with staying in the same city for you isn't so much that you won't have enough variation in your academic background, but that the school just isn't that great. Your choice of school, regardless of where it is located, will have implications on your job search. You would be significantly better off elsewhere. Even if you can't get into one of the so-called big four, you would be better off at a school like SFU or McMaster. Not entirely sure who told you it wasn't "that competitive"- pay close attention to the roll call thread, you'll understand why. Unless theres a weak year, you won't be a lock up at Toronto DSM with perfect grades from UMontreal unless you have some stellar references. A personal friend heading to a top-20 school for a PhD was waitlisted. I doubt you'll have a problem with the regular MA. Once again, if you get into any of these schools, you will be funded. An MA from a list of about 10 schools would be a far better choice. I get it though guys. I wouldn't want to leave Montreal either. The strip-clubs per capita is just too high.

McDonalds pays significantly better in Canada... Like $10USD/Hour to start.

In terms of Canadian programs, I think you're being too modest in terms of what you consider to be a "target"- even considering the clear bias they have towards internationals. If you end up applying to Queens, Toronto, Western, UBC track, I don't doubt for a minute you'll probably have four admits- I had a very smiliar profile last year. With that in mind, I think you should save the few hundred dollars on McGill and SFU, perhaps leaving McMaster if you're very risk adverse. I've also heard a number of people say Queens is excessively hard on internationals. I wouldn't worry about the grades early on, you're not applying to Harvard (are you?), the people who didn't have fun in their first couple of years will probably not be applying in Canada.

I moved from a 700 sqft flat to a 350 sqft flat. Moving down in the world. Also, I wish I got my grades to two decimal points.

I have no idea where you'll end up (graduate school grades look pretty good though) but apparently going in with a plan-B is just about the easiest way to not finish. You sure that you want to do a PhD? I mean, I don't think it's the kind of thing a person does for the money.

You originally identified an interest in Canadian schools. For the most part, I'm not sure I could justify the tuition at any of those places given that with an international fee waiver you could be paying roughly $6,000USD unfunded, and nothing with some extra money funded. Plenty of good options, although less attractive than schools like the LSE. You'll want to look at Toronto, Queens, Western, and UBC. I believe a couple of them are excessively hard on internationals though. Depending on how familiar US PhD programs are with your school, which hinges on past students more than anything, I see no reason why you couldn't place well.

You basically hit the nail on the head. I had a strong preference for a school, and favored one program over the other. My admissions experience was one of many deadline extensions, and even worse, a request to have a decision expedited. After all of that, turning down an admissions offer looks awful. In short, it's a lot easier to turn down an offer if you never have to visit the campus again.