PROFILE: European student studying economics for 6 years now (3yrs BA, 1yr MA discontinued, 2yrs MA)
Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics
Undergrad GPA: 4.32/5
Type of Grad #1: MA in Economics (discontinued)
Grad GPA: 4.37/5
Type of Grad #2: MA in Economics
Grad GPA: 3.75/4
GRE: V 156 / Q 170 / A 3.5
Math Courses: Calculus, Algebra, Probability Theory, Optimization
Econ Courses: Microeconomics (8 terms), Macroeconomics (6 terms), Labor, Public, Empirical IO, Networks
Other Courses: Statistics (4 terms), Econometrics (7 terms)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 prof, probably a bit general but he's known in empirical fields; 2 assistant profs, not well known but their letters are--presumably--detailed and pushy
Research Experience: Central bank, 2 summers
Teaching Experience: Held own course 2x, TA 1x
Research Interests: Empirical IO, labor
SOP: Although drafted it a zillion times, quite standard
Comments: I discontinued my first MA as it was preparing students for industry, not academia. By the time of applying, I wasn't sure whether I want to go for a PhD. After my first year, my professors advised me to switch to a more academia-oriented MA.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCLA, Wisconsin ($$), Boston College ($$$), Duke ($$$), Penn State ($$$); UCL (?), Tinbergen ($), Autonoma Barcelona ($)
Waitlists: Michigan, British Columbia
Rejections: Harvard, Berkeley, Stanford, Penn, Northwestern, Toronto, BU, Cornell
Pending: --
Attending: Duke
Comments: I am super happy with my result! I tried my luck with top 10 as I would've regretted if I didn't but I didn't have my hopes up. Go Blue Devils!
What would you have done differently?
I am happy to report that I wouldn't have done anything differently. I think I did my best in choosing the right ratio of T10 to lower ranked schools, asked the right professors to recommend me, prepared for my GRE well, and--most importantly--demonstrated my interest and ability to enter academia. We, economics and me, are taking our relationship to the next level from this fall!
