ArcticApplicant

It's always good to have solid quant preparation. A micro econ masters is a good idea, but I would evaluate in light of your current application stats. E.g. you say you have no research experience, but do you have a stellar GPA from a good undergrad institution? Or do you think you can nail the GMAT or GRE? if so, then for admission purposes the MA might not make a huge difference. It will obviously help you, as you'll be better equipped with quantitative skills, once you're in, but for the application it may not be necessary. Look at profiles of people that got into the levels of programs you're hoping for, and see how you stack up. This decision may also depend on your research interests. Consider the academic articles/researchers that you admire in the field, what type of methods and theoretical approaches do they employ? Hint: do you see a lot of formal models in the articles, and advanced econometric techniques or simulation models? Finally, I wouldn't go for the MBA, both because they're expensive and are not quantitatively or research inclined.

That's great news!! Congrats

In management (read: strategy or organizational behavior), interviews are very common, and generally for top candidates that they are considering giving offers to. Some acceptances may be without interview, but I concur with XA, that those tend to occur at lower ranks generally.

One last thought - perhaps you can contact professors from your MBA whose research you enjoy and ask if they know anyone at the institutions local to you that they might recommend to speak with re: PhD pursuit. It's always nice to have a referral.

Sorry, the sessions I meant were like paper sessions (they're called different things at different institutions). These are usually listed on the respective department websites. Here are a couple of examples: https://bepp.wharton.upenn.edu/department-information/seminars-conferences/ https://marketing.wharton.upenn.edu/events/colloquia/ I think emailing is definitely another, and potentially easier, way to go, per XA's advice. Again, the key is just to put yourself in front of somebody, and offer to do research.

Volunteer with professors you know from your Master's or others you're comfortable approaching at your local university. If you don't have any ins, try attending seminars and introducing yourself after the talk. Whoever you approach, pitch: I'm interested in xxx, would you have some time to talk to me about a PhD, then when you speak to them in person at a one-on-one, pitch that you're looking for research experience and that you come cheap - i.e. $0. It's a high cost strategy, but one that has the potential to pay off. I would weigh it against the quality of your application as it stands today, and your expectations of which schools you want to get into, and then evaluate if it's worth it. Ultimately, it will be a considerable time commitment, both up front to find the RA opportunity, but also to do it, as you don't just want to tick the box, you want to wow whoever you RA for.

Your Q=170 and AOM paper are very nice signals, so you'll definitely get interviews. Don't know much about TOEFL so I can't comment. I think that since you're above 80% for V, the AW is likely to be overlooked (not clear how much attention schools even pay to this). It's a bit late to say this now, but syntactic errors in SOP would be a problem, but hopefully you had someone proof-read. Best of luck!!

You have a great profile, especially with your AOM presentations. WRT your question on 'future goals' in your SOP, I think all most committees are looking for is that you're hoping to work at a research university in the future. I don't think it has to be more complicated than that (or at least, I certainly didn't say much more). Best of luck and enjoy Vancouver!

I think you've got a solid profile. Your GPAs are great, and likely resolve any hesitation top schools may have about the Q48. Volunteering on research is definitely something you should do - something you can mention in your SOP. LORs from non-research uni are not a death-nail by any means (I had the same), the professors enthusiasm for your candidacy will hopefully make up for it; however, to the extent that you can discuss your research interests with your LOR writers ahead of time that would help them even more in communicating how well prepared and passionate you are about research. Additional things that you could do over the next 4 months for me would include reading research articles in your area of interest; this will come in handy when you're writing your SOP. Even a cursory understanding of the literature will help you understand where you fit in, and maybe generate some interesting research questions you can propose in your SOP (by no means is this necessary, but can be helpful if done properly). Good luck.

If the GPA and GMAT/GRE are bad or mediocre then probably; it would be hard for a school to justify an admit based on a LOR alone, an objective (if often flawed) measure such as GPA or scores sit more comfortably. To your second question, low GPA + reco from little known school is best overcome by killing the GMAT or GRE (killing = rocking = dominating ... etc.).

I got asked this a bunch of times last year, and was honest. For the first, just say you've applied to a lot of schools where you thought you had a good research fit and you can briefly say what type of programs you're targeting (thereby demonstrating also your knowledge); I don't think you need to get more specific than that. And if they ask you about interviews or specific schools, then say you've had them, but reiterate your enthusiasm about their program (if in fact you remain enthusiastic). In one email I was asked if I would be comfortable sharing which schools had interviewed me, and where the school ranked in relation. I was honest, and got a very nice email in reply that basically said 'it looks like you have a lot of better options and congratulations'. I actually appreciated the candidness. Ultimately, this process is about finding the best match, and you can only do that by being as honest as you can with yourself and the schools. To your second question, the schools just want to know how seriously you're taking them. Based on my experience, I'm confident that most schools will give you an offer even if they know you have one from some big name school,if you communicate your enthusiasm for the program to justify their making that offer.

It varies widely. Last year, I had one where it was an email in the afternoon the previous day and asked if I had time for a 'chat', and others that it was a week in advance; everything else is in between. They are generally quite flexible and they often give you an option of days to do it, especially since most people are trying to juggle jobs/travel at the same time.

Also my first term here. I definitely prioritized our two core departmental seminars and my RA work. I figured a good impression in core courses sends the right early signals to the profs in those courses, and word gets around. Importantly, the material in those core seminars will be on our 1st year qualifying exams, so I tried not to skip any readings and so on. At the same time your RA-ship also involves impression management (beyond the obvious rewards of the research itself), and word likely travels fast there too. I put the least amount of effort into an elective outside the department. As for the GPA required to stay in the program, they're usually quite forgiving (around a B or so) which I've been advised comes in handy if you want to stretch yourself by taking some harder methods courses. I also have the impression that course work becomes less of a priority as you progress in the program - to the point made above about 1st impressions being sticky.

As many above have already suggested, this is a hotly debated issue. I had contact with two professors before applying but it was just by chance, and I certainly don't think it in any way influenced anyone's decisions. Ultimately, it is a personal choice. You need to weigh the pros (your charming personality and your deep knowledge of their research) and cons (they are strapped for time and you are one of potentially hundreds of applicants) for your specific situation; and there are many others on each side of the debate. The thing that I always kept in mind is that their reaction is equally personal. You have absolutely no way of predicting what it will be: excited, neutral, negative. It will depend on so many variables that are outside of your control, like whether they just got an R&R or a rejection at a top journal that day, or how many other applicants have been banging on their doors. Equally worthy of consideration is whether they choose to do anything based on that reaction, and perhaps more fundamentally, if they even have an influence over the decisions made (which are often decided by the Doctoral Committee members). So the question really is, do you want to spend the time and energy on something that has very uncertain payoffs, when instead you could spend your time polishing your SOP or studying for the GMAT so that your application is the best it can be when it comes before the entire Doctoral Committee. And if your answer to that is that it doesn't take a lot of time to contact professors, then I would suggest you're probably not doing a very good job of it (assuming you're trying to sway their opinion) anyway, so better off not doing it.

Your profile looks very good. I can guess who two of your letter writers are and I'm sure they'll go a long way especially if you're applying to faculties that have IB researchers that will recognize those names. The only obvious issue that may concern some of the very top schools is that 156 in verbal, but hopefully you can overcome that in the interview process. Definitely think you have a very good chance at top 30. Do apply to a bunch of schools because you never know who you're going up against or if that particular year they have openings in the areas that are of interest to you. Also, have one or more of your letter writers look over your SOP and make suggestions and have someone edit it for syntax too. Best of luck!