phoenixboat

I think I'll have to push up this thread a bit:) As I am planning to apply for scholarships which have very close deadline, it would be very great to hear some more information and opinions about Harris and the questions I raised above. Any comment is greatly appreciated.

Yes, I'd love to pursue economics PhD programs afterward. Sorry I forgot to write this in the beginning. I am not sure what range I should target, though. But I'd definitely love to fight for higher programs if there is a chance.

Hi all! I have been admitted into these two master programs: 1. U of Chicago, Master of Public Policy with Certificate in Research Methods, 15 months 2. University of Wisconsin-Madison, MS in Econ, 2 years(could be shortened to 1.5 years) I am having several questions regarding them so I am really looking forward to hearing your comments and advice. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: top 15 in Econ&Finance in China(an estimate) Undergrad GPA: 89/100 GRE: V153, Q170, AW4 Math Courses: Calculus I(A), Calculus II©, Linear Algebra(B), Probability and Statistics(A), Statistics(A+). Econ Courses (undergrad-level):Intermediate Micro(B), Macro(B+), Econometrics(A+), International Trade(B), Environmental Economics(A), International Finance(B+) Research Experience: One semester in macro workshop, mostly reading papers on macro and monetary topics. Research Interests: Macro and monetary economics, the interplay of the financial markets and macroeconomy Below are the comparisons of the two. Chicago macrm: would be taking phd-level courses with phd students at Harris School of Public Policy; hands-on research experience; chances to work with faculty in econ department and booth(still evolving); no additional math course on transcript when applying; about 20 students Wisconsin: could take math courses; taught by econ faculty(they are arranging great professors to teach); not easy to find research assistance according to students there; about 50 students Questions: 1. Can someone comment on the phd-level courses at Harris and compare them with the master courses at Wisconsin? It seems that Wisconsin is more stressed on econometrics while Harris is stressed on the political economy and the combination of courses and research practice. 2. How would you compare the rec letters from econ department at UWisc and from Harris at Uchicago if we presume they are both strong or both ordinary? 3. Is research experience much more important than math courses? As I only have five math courses in my undergrad, which is a better option? Thank you a lot in advance!

Thanks! Well, looking forward to hearing from those who know about this.

Hi Michalz, could you say more about international student doing full-time research assistant job? Do international students have to get an employment visa instead of student visa to get full-time RA jobs off-campus? Such as these Research Assistant Positions not at the NBER. Thanks!

Ok, I think basically I understand the situation. I think I'll apply to TSE, CEMFI and BGSE and some US masters for their flexibility. Fakeo, thank you very much for all the info and advice you have given! It seems you're applying to PhD programs this year. Good luck to your application! And also big thanks to publicaffairsny:)!

I am sorry I didn't state in the beginning, that I am from China. Don't know whether this makes things different. And I agree with you most masters in US aren't a good preparation for PhD, so I'll only apply to a few:) For math, I think my undergrad training is quite inadequate, not from the perspective of number of courses, but how profoundly they were taught, so kind of want to take the opportunity of master program to get a solid training.

Yeah, many European masters only have one or two math courses. Initially this aroused my caution but I guess I was somewhat illusioned(?) after reading so much about how mathematical a EU master is. That the micro/macro is mathematical does not represent it has many math courses. Thanks a lot for this important reminder, fakeo! And yes, these EU programs are indeed very good, and competitive if one wants to get to top. Thank you for your advice of choosing one that regularly places students in US! Definitely gonna take this into account.

Thanks a lot publicaffairsny! This is indeed a crucial point I have overlooked. When I went through the forum, I see the good placement record of European masters but overlooked I am mostly in need of flexible curriculum which European masters do not provide. I have Duke, BU, NYU on my list. Not sure whether USC, UCSB are good option as their placement record is not very impressive (but this might also be due to students' own career choice according to program coordinators). And for curriculum, Duke is for sure flexible. But I heard it still requires some work(hardship?) to replace courses in the rest programs. And the courses offered at USC, UCSB is quite in intermediate level not advanced. Could you(or someone else) comment on the customization ease and course level of these programs if you know about this? And two concerns for European masters: 1. connection: in general, how is the connection between Euro and US compared with that inside US? Not much difference in these programs? 2. Math sub: is math sub comparable to graduate math? How much can it complement lack of math courses? I read in several places that it adds not much to one's strength and it's better to get good grades in graduate math courses than taking math sub. Quite curious about this, is this true?

(I have previously started this thread but never saw it appear in the forum. Don't know whether it's under inspection or not. But if it appears someday I'll delete this or that) Hi All! I have read a lot of the rich discussions about European masters in econ in this forum and really got a lot of valuable information. But as I only got to know them recently, I am unclear about which one I should choose to apply, that is, which one would match my background and goal. As my undergrad study only covers four math courses: Calculus, Linear Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Statistics and no advanced econ courses, to take a few more math courses like Real Analysis and advanced econ courses and get good LORs from profs who have connections should be the strategy. And my goal is to apply for econ PhD program in US afterward. The masters I am looking at now are: TSE(M1 Econ), CEMFI, UC3M (MEA), Bocconi ESS, Tilburg(Research Master), Barcelona GSE(Econ) PSE (ETE or APE) The links are their curriculums. From what I read online, TSE is quite mathematics heavy, so is CEMFI. But reading the curriculums of these six masters, I did not find too many math courses, for example, I did not find real analysis. So could someone help explain this? Are all math topics covered in a single math course or the advanced micro/macro/etc already covered it(but this cannot substitute math course right?)? Especially Bocconi, according to what I read in this forum, it has good placement record. But looking at its curriculum, I am wondering what contributes to such good placement? Is it because the students who finally place in good PhD already have strong math/econ background in undergrad? And Bocconi also has two foreign languages, how much a load it can be? Would it make it tighter for students to focus on econ study and research? Till now, the ones I feel quite sure to apply to are TSE, CEMFI and BGSE(hoping to enter the second year MRes if I am not wrong). For they are relatively better in math course offering, placement in US PhD and internationalization(more connection and easier for me to integrate) if summarizing the discussions in this forum. And because I am still unclear about the rest four, I am deciding in them. UC3M seems good as well, but I read that most students stay there after master and you need to write in your application that you will stay for PhD after master. So I felt the general atmosphere is not very encouraging for going on to US PhD. Bocconi, yes, about the curriculum that is quite different from others, two European languages(though I'd really love to learn them) and not much math. Tilburg seems to be a little lower than others, am I right? And PSE, not sure to choose ETE or APE. APE's got better known professors but someone has said that you could choose their courses(is this true?) and ETE's name sounds more of a preparation of PhD. But looking at their curriculum, ETE seems not that theoretical. And I've read some negative points about PSE, that its ranking is highly inflated and it has seperate institutions and campus, etc. But I guess it has got enough great professors and other resourses for a student to learn and use the master as springboard. Is it? So I've really raised a lot of questions, comparisons and guesses and sorry that they are not very orderly. Would really appreciate your opinions if you know about these programs. And anyone who is having similar questions will feel the same.

Hi paroofa, I PMed you several questions about the PSE but your inbox is full, could you please delete some so I could resend? Regards

Hi PubblesPig, I am wondering which one you chose at last. Care to talk more about these two programs? Did you get answer for the questions you asked?

Catrina, I am interested in the inter-institutional agreements. Did you take advantage of this as a master student or PhD student? And are you aware of other similar agreements? As I am not in US, I know little about this.

Hi Zubrus, your PM box is full. I'd like to ask you something about Masters at Canada through PM. Could you make some room for my message or you can PM me your email address? :)

Then how would you compare the MA programs at Duke and NYU or other universities in terms of preparing for PhD?