lbox

https://www.ets.org/mft/about/content/economics

How do adcoms view the ETS Major Field Test? I got 99th percentile on the test. List it on my CV?

Ditto on getting an RA position, but don't limit yourself to FED. Look for RA positions with Profs at top schools. Also try and do an REU or similar research experience during the summer.

More like a difference between 1-2 and 3-10.

With the objective of getting into the best doctoral program possible, which full-time RA position is more preferable a position at a top government institution (Fed Banks, World Bank, IMF) or a position at top Universities (top 10)? My thoughts are that the top 10 will tend to have better economists to work with on average and will also be more connected in the academic world for admissions purposes. You'll also stand out more as the government institutions higher many students and possibly have the opportunity to take classes at better schools. Any thing I'm missing?

I second the motion and am also interested in information about Maryland Econ, beyond the WB/IMF connections, etc.

Here's the issue. I'm applying for doctoral programs this semester, but am also planning on applying to RA positions in case I get shut out. The problem is that it will be much more difficult to get a good RA position after I have found out about grad school acceptances, because less positions will be available and more people will be scrambling for a back up plan. How frowned upon would it be to apply to RA positions this semester also and if I get offered one, accept it, then back out if I get into one of my top choices for phd? What's the protocol for these situations because I'm sure many people have found themselves in similar places?

Last two people who went for a phd in econ from my school went to Cornell and Duke, though not directly, but it gives my professors people to compare to and they have informally given me favorable comparisons. And I'm planning on applying to RA positions in case i get shut out this year. I feel like thats the best way to get more well-known letter writers for me at this point.

I'm planning on graduating a year early and applying for Econ grad schools. I came in with essentially a freshman year's worth of AP credits and am at a liberal arts school. So I will have already completed all the required and relevant classes that are offered for my Math+Econ double major by the end of the third year. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Regionally Ranked Liberal Arts in the Midwest Undergrad GPA: 4.00, Math & Developmental Economics BA in 3 yrs Type of Grad: None Grad GPA: N/A GRE: Verbal – 170, Quantitative – 168, Writing – 5 Math Courses: Problem Solving, Calc 1-3, Diff Eq, Linear Algebra, Intro Stats, Mathematical Statistics, Topics in Actuarial Science, Advanced Statistical Methods, Advanced Calculus (Intro to RA), [All either A’s or 5’s on AP test]. Fall 2014: Topology (will be taught with a modified Moore method), Math Seminar Econ Courses: Intro Micro/Macro, Interm Macro, Developmental Economics, Economics of Microfinance, Econometrics (Built off of Math Stats/Adv. Stats Class), [All A’s]. Fall 2014: Interm Micro and Advanced Econometrics (An IS with my Stats professor focusing on Spatial Econometrics) Other Courses: Calc-based Physics I & II [5 on AP], random liberal arts requirements Letters of Recommendation: Econ Professor, Stats/Math Professor at my school who both think extremely high of me and would write glowing letters of recommendation, however, they will be unknown to admission committees. My 3rd letter will be from an AP Econ professor from my summer research REU at a relatively high ranked liberal arts school. Research Experience: Paper for my Econometrics Class that is currently a finalist for an International Best Undergraduate Paper Competition. Also, did a summer NSF REU at a top ranked liberal arts school on the east coast (PA). I will be continuing my independent research during the fall in my Adv. Econometrics class. Teaching Experience: I’ve been and will continue to be a TA for Intro stats (3 semesters) and Principles of Microeconomics (3 Semesters) Research Interests: Developmental Economics, Econometrics, International Economics SOP: Mention limited opportunities at school which is why I’m graduating in 3 yrs, since I’d have reached many of the limits of my school by then. Otherwise, standard. I'll be applying to Harvard, MIT, Yale, Northwestern, NYU, Michigan, Cornell, Duke, Brown, Maryland, Michigan State, and possibly Georgetown. and NSF. So that gives you a little understanding of why I chose to graduate in 3 years, because staying a fourth year wouldn't really increase my application in anyway. My biggest deficiency is prestige (both school-wise and professor LOR), which staying won't help. I also think graduating a year early can be a positive signal if you still have significant experiences and accomplishments.

Do most programs have flexibility to take classes outside the Econ dept? In which case, you're saying my best bet is to just find a class outside the econ dept that fits my interests instead of worrying about if the Econ program contains such a class. If by interventionist type work, you mean work that examines solutions to poverty/inequality, then that would be a fair assessment. I'm wary of going to a public policy program though, because from what i've heard and read, it seems easier to go from Econ->Policy than from Policy->Econ, so Econ would keep more doors open and better placement opportunities, in general.

Here's the course outline from an old "Distribute Justice" Syllabus at BC: http://fmwww.bc.edu/ec-j/f2012/EC884.01.pdf I'd like to stay within the Econ or Applied Econ Phd programs, but i'd be interested in other programs that are heavily econ dependent.

I looked through the Heterodox Economics Directory and it didn't seem to be what I was really looking for either. The welfare, inequality, poverty topics are what I'm interested in. I want an orthodox economics education, but would like to have access to classes that explore the implicit or explicit philosophical/normative questions that are addressed in aforementioned topics, which seems to be what Boston College offers. I just didn't know if anyone was aware of other programs that had similar offerings.

So I was looking at Boston College's list of classes for their doctoral program online (Boston College Department of Economics) and they had classes such as "Social Choice and Justice" and "Distributive Justice". I've been somewhat interested in these topics from an Econ perspective and was wondering if anyone new of any other Econ departments that had classes in these areas? I tried searching and couldn't find much.

Decided I’d get a profile evaluation for what will likely be all that is on my transcript/resume when I apply to Grad schools in the Fall. Only thing that might change is grades for my Fall 2014 classes. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Regionally Ranked Liberal Arts in the Midwest Undergrad GPA: 4.00, Math & Developmental Economics BA in 3 yrs Type of Grad: None Grad GPA: N/A GRE: Verbal – 170, Quantitative – 168, Writing – 5 Math Courses: Problem Solving, Calc 1-3, Diff Eq, Linear Algebra, Intro Stats, Mathematical Statistics, Topics in Actuarial Science, Advanced Statistical Methods, Advanced Calculus (Intro to RA), [All either A’s or 5’s on AP test]. Fall 2014: Topology (will be taught with a modified Moore method), Math Seminar Econ Courses: Intro Micro/Macro, Interm Macro, Developmental Economics, Economics of Microfinance, Econometrics (Built off of Math Stats/Adv. Stats Class), [All A’s]. Fall 2014: Interm Micro and Advanced Econometrics (An IS with my Stats professor focusing on Spatial Econometrics) Other Courses: Calc-based Physics I & II [5 on AP], random liberal arts requirements Letters of Recommendation: Econ Professor, Stats/Math Professor at my school who both think extremely high of me and would write glowing letters of recommendation, however, they will be unknown to admission committees. My 3rd letter will be either another Econ professor from my school or an Econ Professor from my current summer research who would be slightly better known. Research Experience: Paper for my Econometrics Class on the Gravity model of Bilateral Trade that my prof and I are editing and going to try to send to undergrad journals this summer. Also, doing a summer NSF REU at a top ranked liberal arts school on the east coast (PA) where I will be focusing on forecasting the NRU using Bayesian Econometrics. I will be continuing my independent research during the fall in my Adv. Econometrics class. Teaching Experience: I’ve been and will continue to be a TA for Intro stats (3 semesters) and Principles of Microeconomics (3 Semesters) Research Interests: Developmental Economics, Econometrics, International Economics SOP: Mention limited opportunities at school which is why I’m graduating in 3 yrs, since I’d have reached many of the limits of my school by then. Otherwise, standard. Other: My grades and GRE are good. Decent research experience this summer. My biggest concern is lack of graduate Econ classes and lack of well-known professors/school. Also, I won’t have a grade in Interm Micro when I apply to a lot of schools, but I figure my previous math and econ coursework should demonstrate that I’m more than capable of it. I’m thinking of apply to 10-12 schools mostly in the 10-30 range with a couple top tens and 1-2 safeties. Some schools I’m thinking of: Cal Berkeley ARE, Yale, UPenn, Columbia, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Cornell, Brown, Duke, Maryland, Boston U, Penn State, UCLA, UC-SD, Georgetown Am I aiming too high/too low? Any other schools that I should be thinking of? Any schools I should definitely take off of the list? All else equal, I’d prefer schools close or in the Midwest and in small towns instead of large cities. Thanks for everyone’s suggestions.

It seems that economists shy away from normative statements, yet make implicit normative assumptions in regards to "overall welfare." My own personal view is that these normative assumptions get treated too lightly within the economics community and that they are especially important in developmental economics, though I'm not sure I'd say that in any statement of purpose...