sotgia

Hello, this is the first time I post here so apologies if I repeat a previous post. I have spent many hours of research on the forum but unfortunately, I could not find anyone sharing the same thoughts and considerations. I truly enjoy economic science and I am highly motivated to follow a research career. The main problem lies in the fact that I don't have sufficient support from people who have experience in admission processes and criteria. I suppose urch forum members can help me sort that out though! Let me outline my academic achievements so far: age: 25 Type of Undergrad: B.Sc in Economics from the best economics department in my country (top 150 worldwide) Undergrad GPA: 88.6/100 - valedictorian Type of Grad: M.Sc in Economics from Warwick Grad GPA: Distinction- summa cum laude (top 25%) Econ Undergrad Courses: Micro I (A+), Micro II (B+), Macro I and II (A+), Econometrics (A+), Applied econometrics (A), Analysis (B+), Advanced analysis (A+), Linear Algebra (B), Statistics I (A), Advanced statistics (A+), no dissertation-- the grading here does not follow the distributional methods followed by most universities abroad. For that case, a B grade could have been the highest among the rest of the students.Econ Grad Courses: Micro (A), Macro (A), Econometrics (A), Presessional Maths and Stats (A+, top 5%), dissertation (B+) (btw teaching at Warwick was below expectations and it was impossible to adapt to that in such a short period of time) GRE: not taken yet. Possibly around 166 for quant Research Experience: Research Assistantship during my internship placement (lasted only 4 months) LOR: A top class professor from my undergrad uni who is an LSE graduate, currently teaching at Tufts university in the USA. I have been his best student in the cohort and wrote a very good LOR when I applied for the Masters' program. Another professor coming from LSE is willing to help and he will definitely write some good words. Other: Merit-based scholar from a highly reputable private institution during my Masters' studies. Best student award for (undergrad) 3rd year. Concerns: No actual supervision during my Master's studies led to a poor performance on my dissertation. I am currently trying to find a RA position in order to show my research potential. Any comment about that? Do you think that the dissertation will negatively affect my candidacy and to which extend? Applying to: Should I go for a top30 department worldwide? SSE and PSE seem some pretty decent options and close to my research interests, but will I be a competitive candidate? The dissertation results were pretty disappointing but it was my first effort and I did not have actual supervision or guidance. I must agree that If I want to follow a research career I should prove that I hold the appropriate skills but I am pretty much convinced that it was the selection of the topic which led to these frustrating results. Apologies for the long post... I wish there was someone who can shed some light on these concerns.!