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gabriel404

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Everything posted by gabriel404

  1. I know in the USA this is the case, but in the UK as well? I tought in Britain you were also mostly encouraged to speak to professors in advance. In the Oxford DPhil Economics admissions page, for example, they say "You should feel free to make contact with any member of academic staff who might act as potential supervisor for your proposed research."
  2. Hi all, I'm currently shrotlisting a few professors with whom I would very much like to work as a PhD student aiming at 2018 applications. Since I believe first impressions count in this field (as in any other), I thought getting some insights from the Urch community could be valuable. Some points: - Should I address one specific paper/article or more broadly the area of expertise? The dilemma: while being more specific can be more appealing and show that you have done your homework and read his material, maybe the funding/research was limited to one specific paper, and I would also have an interest in other projects within his work. - Should I propose some further meeting in person/Skype? On one hand, an informal talk would always help. However, I can imagine that professors have insanely busy agendas and talking to students enquiring about PhD's can be undoable - Any rules about contacting more than one member of the same department? At all uni's I am considering applying, there is more than one professor with whom I would like to work General tips are also welcome =) PS: if it makes any difference, I'm mainly aiming at UK universities
  3. Hi folks! I am planning on applying in the coming year for Econ PhD positions in the top UK universities (Oxbridge, LSE, UCL, Warwick) and I have a GRE from 3 years ago, with a score of: 168 Quantitative, 164 Verbal, 4.0 Writing I believe it is a good score (I am a non-native English speaker, if that makes any difference for admissions), but I am unsure whether it is enough or I should retake it (at the risk of not improving my score). I am mainly concerned about my writing score, but I have read in a few places that only the quantitative score is really taken into account. To what extent is this true? Any advice in my case? Tweet-sized background: BA Engineering from good home-country Uni, MSc Statistics with great distintiction from top 50, starting MSc Economics at UCL next; some experience with RA and TA.
  4. Thanks a million, man! Very helpful. A quick follow up, if I may: do you know if the fact that your offer is conditional rather than unconditional tends to have an impact on funding opportunities for PhD? That's also something I am takin into account when considering my PhD applications for next year, but university sources tend to be very vague about it...
  5. Thanks a lot for the input man, that's very helpful! If I may follow up: would you know if the fact that a PhD offer is conditional rather than unconditional tends to affect funding opportunities in UK universities? And good luck with your dissertation!
  6. Hey! Resurrecting this thread to ask a closely related question. I am in a very similar situation for next year: I have a place in the UCL MSc Economics and I am planning to pursue a PhD afterwards, ideally straight after the end of the program. However, there are two differences in my case: 1- I would not like to go to the US for the PhD, but rather stay in the UK (UCL itself, LSE, Oxbridge, Warwick,...) or in continental Europe (Barcelona, Erasmus, DIW Berlin). Even though the deadlines are usually a bit later, it's still not the case that I can apply at the end of the MSc program. 2- I already have a Master in Statistics with a (very likely) distinction from KU Leuven, in Belgium. Would anyone happen to know whether those two points would improve my odds of being able to be accepted when applying in the MSc Econ year itself or if the situation is equally unlikely/risky? Thanks a lot =)
  7. Hello everyone, I am currently struggling with an important decision regarding a Postgraduate programme for next year and could use some input from the community. Current situation I have been accepted to the following programs: - MSc Economics (UCL) - MSc Economics, Two Year program (LSE) and am waiting for a response (which is very likely to be positive) from: - Master of Advanced Studies in Economics (KU Leuven, Belgium) Background I have a Bachelor degree in Engineering from a good university in in my home country but without that much international projection (PUC - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and I am currently finishing a MSc Statistics program at KU Leuven, Belgium, very likely with distinction. I have a strong quantitative background in Mathematics and Stats, but I lack formal knowledge in theoretical economics. My Economics knowledge comes from a lot of reading, 2 optional courses (Macro and Development Econ) and 2 Coursera MOOC's on (Principles of Macro and Micro). Goals For the past couple of years now, I have been doing the (surprisingly, imo) common transition from Engineering into Economics. I would like to pursue a PhD with a focus on applied econometric analysis to Development, Public Policies and Growth (if that doesn't sound too vague). I see myself working in academia, think tanks, research or policy making institutions. I have no intention of going into Finance or Consulting, or the business sector in general. Misc I applied to some PhD positions this year already, but was not accepted, in my opinion (just my opinion really, because no feedback was ever given), partly for lack of economic knowledge and training. In all three Unis, a good performance in the Master program is almost a guarantee to be accepted at the PhD program afterwards. However, this does not guarantee funding, so I would also apply to PhD's elsewhere (Oxbridge, LSE, UCL, Wawick, other places outside the UK). Due to already having a 2-year Master program (in Stats), I originally applied to 1-year programs only, both in UCL and LSE. During my application, LSE contacted me and asked whether I would also be open to be considered for the 2-year program, to which I said yes. One thing that concerns me a little was the fact that having two two-year Master programs and a switch of fields from my original Engineering degree would make me come across as somewhat indecisive and hurt my chances in the future. I have no clue whether this is indeed a thing or it's just me being an overthinker, I would also love to hear some thoughts on that if someone has any. Any advice on my situation? Thanks a million! TL;DR Engineer/Statistician seeking advice on choosing between MSc Economics at UCL, LSE (2-year) or KU Leuven as a first step to a future PhD.
  8. Thanks a lot for the input, mate! That's very helpful. May I ask where did you end up going? Are you doing the LSE Master? Also, when talking about recommendation writers, do you think it's more relevant whether the people who wrote you are respected in the community or rather how well they know you and the things they have do say about you? And on RA positions, is it possible to do it as a Master student? I have done some RA in my Bachelor and also did an internship in a Research Institute for my first (current) Masters, which I believe are nice hands-on research experience to add to my CV. Oh, and at UCL you can also enter the PhD program if you end the Master with Distinction. Thanks again for the reply =)
  9. Hello folks, I wonder if anyone would have some experience in the MSc Economics at UCL to give me some advice. I have a double background in Engineering (BSc)/Statistics (MSc) and have been doing the transition to Economics in the past couple of years, through online courses, reading and and internship and my goal is to do a PhD, preferably in a good UK University. My main area of interest is quantitative analysis of development issues. I have a very solid math/stats background with some considerable experience in Econometrics. I was accepted to the MSc program at the UCL and I wonder if anyone could give some input on the level of difficulty of the program for someone who comes from a different (and heavily mathematical) background. Is it doable? What are the main difficulties students usually encounter? The doubt arises because I also have an offer to the Two-Year program at LSE (although I applied for the one-year) and I am having a hard time deciding between the two. Thanks!
  10. Hello everyone, I am currently struggling with an important decision regarding a Postgraduate programme for next year and could use some input from the community. Current situation I have been accepted to the following programs: - MSc Economics (UCL) - MSc Economics, Two Year program (LSE) and am waiting for a response (which is very likely to be positive) from: - Master of Advanced Studies in Economics (KU Leuven, Belgium) Background I have a Bachelor degree in Engineering from a good university in in my home country but without that much international projection (PUC - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and I am currently finishing a MSc Statistics program at KU Leuven, Belgium, very likely with distinction. I have a strong quantitative background in Mathematics and Stats, but I lack formal knowledge in theoretical economics. My Economics knowledge comes from a lot of reading, 2 optional courses (Macro and Development Econ) and 2 Coursera MOOC's on (Principles of Macro and Micro). Goals For the past couple of years now, I have been doing the (surprisingly, imo) common transition from Engineering into Economics. I would like to pursue a PhD with a focus on applied econometric analysis to Development, Public Policies and Growth (if that doesn't sound too vague). I see myself working in academia, think tanks, research or policy making institutions. I have no intention of going into Finance or Consulting, or the business sector in general. Misc I applied to some PhD positions this year already, but was not accepted, in my opinion (just my opinion really, because no feedback was ever given), partly for lack of economic knowledge and training. In all three Unis, a good performance in the Master program is almost a guarantee to be accepted at the PhD program afterwards. However, this does not guarantee funding, so I would also apply to PhD's elsewhere (Oxbridge, LSE, UCL, Wawick, other places outside the UK). Due to already having a 2-year Master program (in Stats), I originally applied to 1-year programs only, both in UCL and LSE. During my application, LSE contacted me and asked whether I would also be open to be considered for the 2-year program, to which I said yes. One thing that concerns me a little was the fact that having two two-year Master programs and a switch of fields from my original Engineering degree would make me come across as somewhat indecisive and hurt my chances in the future. I have no clue whether this is indeed a thing or it's just me being an overthinker, I would also love to hear some thoughts on that if someone has any. Any advice on my situation? Thanks a million! TL;DR Engineer/Statistician seeking advice on choosing between MSc Economics at UCL, LSE (2-year) or KU Leuven as a first step to a future PhD.
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