rouh

Thanks. I'll try to ask the department and update the community for future reference.

You are right. I edited my original post and added details.

Thanks for responding. You are right. Duke is more expensive: about 70K in tuition which is subsidized by 4-5K/semester of student jobs (RA, TA, library, etc.). Toronto is 55K for non-Canadians with 4-5K/semester TAship+ 20-30K summer internship. (and it's 8 month shorter) Of course money matters, and I'm trying to subjectively evaluate if the extra cost is worth it or not. But I'm getting the sense that, putting money aside you believe Duke program is strictly better than that of UofT, right?

I honestly don't know, and that's part of the reason I want to do a masters before committing to phd.

Hey guys, Long-time lurker, first-time poster here, I'm trying to choose between Duke Econ. masters and UToronto Financial Econ. masters. My undegrad degree is in math+ econ. and my goal is ultimately a phd in economics. So how would you rank these programs according to future phd prospects. Below is what I think as of now: Toronto mfe:Pros: 16 month program, basically their 1 year MA program+ 4 finance courses. Small program, only 25 in class. TAship= ~5K a semester Paid internship for 4 month= ~20K + another possible employment for 8 month before Fall 2016 Cons: No info. on phd placement found online( not even for their MA Econ.) Duke:Pros: 2 year program, focused on economics phd preparation. Duke is better respected(?) Fine phd placement according to their website. Cons: No funds, no TAship, no internship. Any comment is valuable. I appreciate your time. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Math and Economics, at Top 3 Canadian school Undergrad GPA: 3.70 Type of Grad:- Grad GPA:- GRE: Q168, V161, AW3.5 Math Courses: Calculus I-IV: A+/A+/A/A. LA I/II: A-/A-. Proofs: A-. ODE:A, PDE:A+. Optimization: A. Group theory:A+. Diff. Geometry: A+, Classic Geometry:A-. Topology: A. Real analysis: B+. Complex analysis: A. Econ Courses (grad-level): none. Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intro Econ: A+. Intermediate micro: A+. Intermediate macro: A. Stats: B+. Monetary economics: B+. Development economics: A-. Adv. micro: A. Adv. Macro: A-. Econometrics I: A-. Other Courses: a few philosophy and french courses, entirely irrelevant. Letters of Recommendation: 1 Econ prof+ 1 Math prof+ 1 summer internship supervisor. Research Experience: limited to reproduction of an econometrics paper.