Longhornomics

Hey all, I was wondering if y'all could give me some advice about my mathematics coursework. Last semester, I made an A- in Real Analysis I which I was pretty eager to make up for by taking Real Analysis II this semester. However, after actually experiencing it for myself...the rumors I'd heard were true - the professor who teaches it each Spring is a terrible lecturer. Unorganized, talks to the board, apathetic, etc. It's irritating. I'm not sure if staying in the class and powering through to an A (if that's even possible) is worth the time and effort it'll take away from other things (i.e. economics classes, independent research, RA work, etc.). I'm in graduate Econometrics and graduate Public Finance this semester, too, and I'd really like to do well in those, but I think Real Analysis II will be time-consuming, to say the least. So far, my mathematics background looks like this: Multivariable Calculus - (A) Linear Algebra - (A) Differential Equations - (A) Discrete Mathematics - (A) Real Analysis I - (A-) Topology I - (?) Probability - (A) Mathematical Statistics - (?) Applied Statistics - (A) Stochastic Processes - (A-) Microeconomics I & II - (A, A) Macroeconomics II - (A) Applied Macroeconomics - (A) Computational Economics - (A) Graduate Econometrics I & II - (?, ?) Graduate Microeconomics I - (?) Graduate Mathematics for Economists - (?) Graduate Theories of Public Finance – (?) And I'm sitting at a 3.93 cumulative GPA. ?'s are for classes I'm currently enrolled in or haven't taken yet. Do you think it'd be worth it to trudge through Real Analysis II to get some experience with measure theory, functional analysis, etc. even with the danger of not making an A, losing time for other endeavors, etc.? And for what it's worth, I'm taking Topology with a professor in the fall who runs an IBL class and gives A's pretty damn generously. I'm aiming for top schools. Thanks.

How negative is the effect of an A- in Real Analysis on an otherwise untarnished application to the top 15 schools? And would making an A in the second semester and in Topology do much to mitigate the effect? *My school offers A-'s, but no A+'s.

....?

This is only my third year, though. I'm actually working on an independent research project with one of my professors (MIT PhD.) advising right now, and working for another (younger MIT PhD.) as a research assistant. I still plan on cranking out a thesis next year.

Thanks, chateauheart. Right, I think it'd be a good introduction to what I'd like to study in graduate school and a more rigorous version of it, as opposed to the math-light undergraduate version, might help me out when doing my senior thesis. I'm still planning on taking graduate Micro and Math Econ (and possibly Macro) fall semester of next year.

Hi all, First post here. I'm a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Mathematics and Economics (obviously), and next semester, I'm considering taking a graduate course in Public Finance - graduate Micro and graduate Econometrics are both recommended, and I don't have either (I'll actually be taking graduate Econometrics concurrently, though, and may have enough background in that to deal with the empirical portion of public finance that's studied in the second half of the course). As far as coursework goes, I've taken (and gotten all A's in) Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Probability, Discrete Mathematics, Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, and I'm enrolled this semester in Real Analysis, Stochastic Processes, and Applied Statistics. The professor for the graduate class told me to try it out and play it by ear - if I don't feel comfortable with the work, I can drop. Were I to take the class, my semester would consist of graduate Econometrics, graduate Public Finance, Real Analysis II, and probably some easy core elective, and maybe a P.E. course for grins. Were I not, I'd probably substitute Topology I in for Public Finance and leave just about everything else in place. I appreciate any feedback!