jhyun

I think there's some misunderstanding on what T5 RA positions mean. T5 refers to top 5 schools - harvard, mit, stanford, chicago, princeton (there may be disagreement on which are considered top 5). Anyways, full-time RA positions are generally good for people who feel that after 4 years of undergrad, they don't feel confident about their CVs to apply directly to gradschools (for example, lack of research experience), and for those who just don't have the money for masters programs (like myself). So the time spent as an RA acts as a buffer period. For students who are geniuses and have excellent records, no need to waste time working as an RA before gradschool. There are 3 full-time RA options, and each have pros and cons. 1) RA at T5: may be ideal for those whose undergrad institutions are not one of the top schools. direct access to top-professors, will have excellent LORs at the end if they perform well. + you can take advanced courses at school, which also increases your chances of getting into top programs. 2) Fed: may be good for those who want a more sense of working at a corporate. when you work at schools, you may still feel like you are a student, whereas when you work at the Fed, you will feel like you actually have a proper job. + tuition supports for RAs who take classes at nearby schools (may depend on location, also there just may not be any good schools nearby, like Richmond for example) + city life (for places like NY, Boston, SF..) but, depending on where you go, and which division you are placed into, you may work with somewhat mediocre economists, so the letters from them will not look as awesome as the ones you might get from T5 3) Other research institutions such as NBER, IMF, etc. similar to Fed Hope this helps.

Undergrad: UChicago BA in Econ, minor in Stat Undergrad GPA: 3.76/4.0 overall, 3.95/4.00 in major Undergrad math courses: multivariable cal (A), Linear Algebra (A), Intro to Analysis (A) regression analysis (A) categorical data analysis (A) linear models and experimental design (A) Additional math courses: will be taking Analysis at Georgetown University as a part-time student Undergrad econ courses: micro, macro, econometrics, intro to finance, money and banking, public finance, pay&performance (all A's except one A-) Research experience 1) 1-2month RA work for Booth professor 2) 2 years of full-time RA at well-known international organization GRE: n/a letters of recommendation: most likely economists at the organization I'm working for, all econ PhDs interests: macro, money and banking, development economics, financial mkts applying to: top 15 programs concerns 1) weak undergrad courses, not in terms of grades but in terms of courses taken (had to graduate in three years due to financial constraint) 2) no papers or senior thesis written (aiming to co-author at least one paper with an economist at the international organization, but unsure) Am I aiming too high if I'm thinking of Top15? I don't really have much hopes for Top5, but I'd really like to make it in Top15. (such as wisconsin, ucla, or cornell at least)

Thanks for the reply. I didn't mention it above, but I think I do have a decent background in math. I definitely have taken Calculus and Linear Algebra, and I was a Stat minor, so I have some exposure to Stat as well. I have never received a grade below A for all math and stat courses taken as an undergrad. I considered myself weak in math because I haven't taken upper-level courses.

Thanks for the reply. I didn't mention it above, but I think I do have a decent background in math. I definitely have taken Calculus and Linear Algebra, and I was a Stat minor, so I have some exposure to Stat as well. I have never received a grade below A for all math and stat courses taken as an undergrad. I considered myself weak in math because I haven't taken upper-level courses.

Hi everyone, I plan to apply to PhD program in Finance next year (for Fall 2017 entry). Please help me find the target range of schools I should be aiming at. Any comments will be valued and appreciated. Test Scores (GMAT/GRE): N/A Undegrad: Class of 2015, Univ of Chicago BA in Econ, minor in Stat Undergrad GPA: 3.76/4.0 overall, 3.9+/4.0 in major Math: Intro to Analysis and Linear Algebra (A), no Real Analysis courses taken Research Experience: 1) 1-2 month part-time RA work for Finance professor at UChicago Booth 2) Full-time RA at the IMF Research Dept Aug 2015 ~ Aug 2017 (expected) No papers written yet, aiming to write at least one paper before applying next year and/or co-authorship with the IMF economist Work Experience: 1) Summer Internship at Societe Generale Seoul Office Sales&Trading Summer 2013 2) RA at BCG Seoul Office Summer 2014 Concentration Applying to: Finance Number of programs planned to apply to: ~25 Dream Schools: Top 10 programs Concerns you have about your profile: 1) Weak math: I was once discouraged from applying to Econ PhD programs because I've not taken Real Analysis courses as an undergrad. I am not sure if same applies to Finance. 2) Research: I've not written a BA thesis, absolutely no experience in writing papers. (Although I am planning on writing one while working at the IMF, I may fail to finish before the application deadline.) Any additional specific questions you may have: 1) Assuming that I get a decent score on GRE/GMAT, what are my chances of going to top 10 Finance programs? Which programs should be the target range? Which programs can I consider as safety schools? 2) What can I do to strengthen my resume before I apply next year? I have absolutely no idea as to which schools I should be aiming at. Please help me find the right target range. Thanks.