jeeku

Your post is an encouragement me to second-look T10-T25 schools. I was going to overlook them completely but I guess I can be a little hopeful if I can write a strong SOP, I guess.

This might sound really childish but I was wondering about what should you be communicating when you e-mail the PhD coordinator. Is it just like: I am interested in the PhD program and this is the summary of my profile? Or is there something else that I might ask the coordinator?

This might sound really childish but I was wondering about what should you be communicating when you e-mail the PhD coordinator. Is it just like: I am interested in the PhD program and this is the summary of my profile? Or is there something else that I might ask the coordinator?

I am right there with you. Scared and confused. Hopefully at the end of this painful process, there is some really good news.

Hi Everyone, I am planning to apply for PhD in Finance starting in 2019 Fall. Can someone please give me some advice on the range of schools that I should apply and about my chances? My stats are: Test Scores (GMAT): Total-710 (90%),Q-50(85%), V-36(80%), AWA-5(53%), IR-8(92%) Undegrad GPA: 7.43/10 (Indian CGPA); if converted to US GPA, it translates to 4.0 as advised by WES; B.S. in Electrical and Electronics Enginnering from a Tier 1 Enginnering school in India Graduate GPA: 3.97/4.00; MBA, Concentration in Global Finance from Arizona State University (Thunderbird School of Global Management) Research Experience: One of my Finance Professors named me as his assistant for one of his papers used in classroom discussion (I wrote a paper on the same topic in one of his previous classes as part of my coursework) Teaching Experience: Teaching Assistant for Masters level Finance course for a full semester for the same Professor mentioned above Work Experience: Pre-MBA - overall more than four years of work experience in the Manufacturing & Not-for-profit sector + Post MBA - more than one year of work experience as a business analyst in Financial services sector + Passed all 3 levels of CFA charter and 1 level of CAIA charter Concentration Applying to: Finance Number of programs planned to apply to: 10-15 schools from Top 25-Top 75 Dream Schools: Other Questions: What made you want to pursue a PhD? The industry experience limits one's exposure to intellectual challenges. My coursework during my CFA exams exposed me to the concept of behavioral finance, which is still in theoretical concept and it is my belief that a lot of research is still to be undertaken in this area. Questions or concerns you have about your profile? I know that my GMAT score is on the low side of the spectrum of all the candidates applying for the PhD program but will it hurt very much during my applications. I have already connected with three of my Professors during my MBA course who have agreed to write the recommendations for my applications. I am still waiting for a fourth Professor to say yes and I believe he will come around. Out of the four Professors, three have PhDs and have more than decades of teaching and research experience. The fourth Professor does not have a PhD but she has a lot of industry experience and later a lot of teaching experience. Any additional specific questions you may have: I have already crossed the top 25 schools which I am sure I won't get into. Is Top 25-Top 50 too high for my profile? Any other advice that anybody can think of will be really helpful.