amrodfelafas

I'm a recent college grad ready to apply for PhD programs in the fall. I have my 3 rec letters, my GRE, and I think I have a shot at a school at least in the top 10. The one caveat is that my goal in getting a PhD was always to work eventually at the Fed, the IMF, the World Bank, or as a research economist in the private sector -- i.e., to do econ research, but not strictly as an academic. But some people I've talked to on the PhD track have told me that in order to be successful as a PhD student, I should really want to be a professor in the LR -- especially considering the 5-7 year-long commitment that is a PhD. Do any of the current PhD students on the forum have a perspective on this? Is anyone in a PhD program with similar goals in mind?