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Hi everyone! I am currently preparing my applications for Econ PhD. I have applied three times (18 19 20 fall), and this is probably my last chance. I am quite nervous and not sure if my profile is strong enough to get in good program. I would appreciate any advice. Here is my background: Bachelor: bachelor's degree in economics (mainland of China, top 10), 3.54/4.00 GPA (about B+ or high 2-1) I didn't take any advanced courses in bachelor. One short RA and one TA during my bachelor. Master I: MSc Economics, Barcelona GSE, 7.3/10 (B- maybe?). I did really bad in the first term (and also why after BGSE I have to do another master) master thesis, 7.8. Master II: Master of Statistics and Data Science, KU Leuven, 14/20 (barely distinction), just finished first year, the grade of this semester will come out a few days later, hopefully a bit higher RA: two year part-time RA, full-time during the breaks, coauthorship, drafting. we will submit the paper this fall. LORs: 1. my RA boss (from my bacholer uni, he has good publications) 2. my thesis supervisor (ORSTAT, econometic), 3. to be decided (1) researcher from Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, helped with an environmental econ paper (2) another coauthor of my RA paper (new AP) (3) my BGSE professors GRE: in September pervious: V153+Q166 Work: 6 month trainee at the OECD in development center, half year external consultant. (mostly cleaning data using Stata) Research Interests: labor economics, applied micro (I still want to try other field, and willing to try theory, but maybe not econometric) Applying to: good mres (leading to PhD) programs in Europe, top 20-50 in US (but not quite familiar with US unis) for European uni, I am considering Zurich, Bocconi, TSE M2, KU Leuven, UC Leuven, MGSE, Mannheim, Bonn, if any chance get back to BGSE maybe, CEMFI, SSE, Berline School of Economics I am also considering ANU, Monash, McGill, UT, and UBC. Concerns: low GPA, no advanced math course. the program should provide scholarship (maybe German and American programs outstand) I failed twice applying to PSE, science po, and TSE; once bocconi, warwick, and tilburg. I really don't know where I am and where I can go. I am okay with doing mres and taking QE again if with scholarship, but I cannot afford another master or another RAship. Please tell me if I should lower my expectation (to which level) and save the application fee for any of these schools I mentioned. Many thanks to any advice or comment.

Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics and Mathematics from a small liberal arts school, not very highly ranked or well known Undergrad GPA: 3.93 GRE: 169Q/167V/5.5W Math Courses: Calculus and analytical geometry I, II and III (A, A-, A); Foundations of Math (sort of intro to proofs and set theory) (B); Probability and Statistics, I and II (A and A); Differential Equations (A); Linear Algebra (A); Abstract Algebra (A); Mathematical Modeling (A); Topology (contains early real analysis) (A) Econ Courses Undergrad: Intermediate Micro (A); Intermediate Macro (A); Game Theory (A); Econometrics (A); Environmental Economics (A); History of Economic Thought (A); Senior seminar (thesis paper) (A); Political Economy of Africa (A); Independent research course/paper (A) Other Courses: Object Oriented Programming (Java): A Letters of Recommendation: Really strong letters from three economics professors, including my senior thesis advisor, that will place me near the top of students they have taught. A fourth strong letter from a math professor who does the same which I may submit for some schools. Research Experience: I wrote my senior thesis, and then a paper for an independent research course I designed with a professor, on capital flows in the eurozone, the Greek Debt crisis, and monetary unions. I was also a research assistant for a professor’s consulting business doing union arbitration cases, mostly doing research on local economies, development projects, and city finances. Since leaving undergrad 1 year ago I have worked as a labor market researcher for a state labor department. At first this was a pretty sleepy job that gave me a lot of time to do independent research and work on my programming skills. Since COVID-19 began I have been involved deeply involved our state’s response to the unemployment crisis, including data analysis, forecasting and modeling for unemployment insurance programs and the trust fund, and implementation of new federal programs. Other: I applied to PhD programs in fall of 2018, for admission in fall of 2019. I received several funded offers, from schools like Pittsburgh and Notre Dame. I was also waitlisted at UT Austin and Maryland, and received an offer off the waitlist from Maryland. I was excited by several of my offers, but my partner got into an amazing master’s program and I made the tough decision to move with her, find a job, and wait on grad school for two years. Unfortunately I expect this year to be significantly more competitive than when I applied before. Having gone through this once, I feel I should know where I have a shot, but COVID-19 and my work experience makes this tricky. I am planning to apply for a few reach schools in the teens and 20s (Minnesota and Hopkins), several schools in the 30s and 40s (Pittsburgh and Vanderbilt), and a few “safer’ options in the 50s and 60s, for about 12 total. Does this seem like a sufficiently cautious path? Any advice on leveraging my work experience? In my SOP I lean on this to talk about how my research interests have shifted from monetary economics towards labor economics. Unfortunately I also feel like my research interests are less specific and clearly defined than last time (when they were pretty honed in on monetary policy, monetary unions, debt crises). Not sure if this helps or hurts. Self-assessment: I think I made the most of my possibilities given the undergrad I attended. Not accepting a grad school offer in 2019 may have been a bad decision in retrospect. There are plenty of things that hurt me and things that help me in my background. Weaknesses: Having gone to a small not-highly-ranked school, lack of publications, working in government the last year instead of as an academic RA Strengths: Really good recommendations, solid GRE, high GPA, subject matter expertise in labor economics, especially with the state response to COVID-19 unemployment crisis.

Hello, first post on here. I would like to know what is reasonable for me before I get my hopes up. Is something in the 20-30 range attainable? For context, I would rather wait another year and improve my application than attend a school ranked 50+. I am very interested in pursuing a career in academia. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: Top 20, flagship public research university. Economics Major, French Minor + lots of chemistry, biology and some physics. Undergrad GPA: 3.35 cumulative, 3.65 last 2 years, 3.60 major GRE: 168 Q/164 V/4.5 W Math Courses: Calc 1 (B-), Calc 2 (B), Calc 3 ©, Calc 4 (C-), Linear Algebra (B+), Differential Equations (A-), Real Analysis (A+) Econ Courses: Stats for Economists (C-), Intro Economics (A-), Intro Economics 2 (A), Intermediate Micro (B+), Econometrics (A+), Econometrics Lab (A+), Intermediate Macro (B-), Theories of Growth/Development (B+), Advanced Econometrics (A+), Behavioral Economics (A), Advanced Macro (A+), Advanced Macro Lab (A), Economic Forecasting in R (A-), Advanced Microeconomics (B+) Other Courses: Mechanics (C+), Thermodynamics and Waves (A), PChem1/2 (C+/B), OChem1/2 (C/B), Cells&Tissues (C-), Stem Cell Biology (A-), Cell&Molecular Bio (A), Genes&Evo&Ecology (A) Letters of Recommendation: 1) Co-signed letter from neuroscience research advisor employed by my university and the head of the lab; 2) business school professor who I know personally, we are working to publish COVID-19 survey data from a survey that we co-designed, 3) *unverified* advanced econometrics professor who is near the top of the field and has encouraged me to chase my aim of becoming a professor. We are in touch and have been communicating but I didn't feel ready to ask her for a letter until now-- asking her this week or next. Research Experience: In neuroscience lab-- adapted github python script to parametrize neural power spectra, used this to transform and analyze multiple datasets of 100+ patients. Analysis included review of related literature and basic statistical tests. This was ongoing for 18 months. Covid-19 Survey-- assessing population level outcomes and integrating accepted behavioral scales to investigate mediating factors. I designed half the survey, the prof I'm working with designed the other half and has been providing guidance. I am solo performing analysis on outcomes of my portion, the plan is to publish the results in the next few months. Teaching Experience: None-- impossible for undergrads to get RA at my institution; chose extracurriculars over tutoring. Research Interests: Complexity and macroeconomics, although also curious about neuroeconomics/behavioral and I am sure that econometrics will be a key part of my toolkit. SOP: I dealt with a combination of depression, anxiety and untreated ADHD throughout undergrad but especially in the first 2 years-- would it help to mention in SOP? Other: Python (3/5, have used professionally to automate demand planning and numerous coursera projects), R (2/5, several large statistical projects), Stata (yuck). Graduated 2019, worked 9 months as a 'Product Development Analyst' before covid layoffs. I am worried that my performance in micro courses is going to be an issue (they bored me at the time, so not in terms of my capabilities), and I have no idea how my poor early math grades will be seen. Thank you for any input you may have.

Like the title says, I decided a bit late to try to pursue an Econ PhD--it's been a major of mine for a while, and I've been taking some math courses, but I do graduate in a year, so there's not just a whole lot of adapting I can do at this point. I understand the programs are competitive, and if I can't get in to anything, that's fine. I'd just like some thoughts on what I can do with what little wiggle room I've got. I'll work on my applications plenty, but that's easier to change. Graduating: May 2021 Type of Undergrad: Unranked U.S. University. BS in Econ, BA in Political Science & Spanish, Data Science minor Undergrad GPA: 3.9+, should remain above or maybe dip into high 3.8s Undergrad Econ Courses: AP Macro, Intro Micro, Intermediate Macro/Micro, Applied Econometrics, Theories of Economic Growth, Labor (As). Game Theory and History of Econ (the latter required) planned. Math Courses: Linear Algebra (A). Calc III, Discrete Math, ODE planned. LORs: Professor I had for Intro Micro and will have for Game Theory, other I had for three courses and will assist with (informal) research over the summer. Maybe an old CS professor who I will have for Discrete--not sure. Programming: R, limited Python Research Experience: None in Econ at the moment, will have limited experience after summer. Was chosen for a Canadian Fulbright for the summer, but, y'know, pandemic. Work experience: Nothing relevant to Econ. GRE (estimate) I haven't taken the real test yet, but from the practice tests, it seems like about 165Q/163V/4. Will study over the summer, obviously. This post was for peace of mind, even though that's probably not what will come out of it. I don't have a great math background, or good research experience. I'll be doing a senior project during the spring semester, since that's how my university does things. Main questions: -What PhD rank, if any, should I be aiming at? -If looking at Master's programs, should I focus on math, or econ? -Past what rank should I write off PhD programs? Coming from an unranked UG, I'd like something with a positive reputation for graduate school. Just not sure right now if that's possible.

Hello all, I'm beginning to apply to Canadian masters programs and thought it would be beneficial to get your input on my profile. School: Public university unknown/non-ranked econ dept with no phd program in Canada Degree: B.Sc. honours (economics) UGPA: 80% PGPA: likely mid 80s Math courses: Calc | (80) calc || (96) linear alg | (84) intro to proofs (78) mathematical finance | & || (71,82) Euclidean geometry (91) registered in differential equations and linear algebra || next semester stats courses: intro econometrics (100) intro to statistics (80) empirical economics (74) econ courses: intermediate macro (88) intermediate micro (80) advanced macro (90) advanced micro (94) math econ (91) various other econ electives with grades mostly in the 80s, a seminar course with a research component (88) Letters of recommendation: 3 from econ PhDs (from good Canadian departments) who know me well Work experience: internship in public policy, co-authored a major research report that got some media attention in my province Applying to: Queens, SFU, UBC, U of Calgary, Western (MFE not MA), McMaster, Carleton, Guelph, U of T (MA and possibly MFE), York, Wilfrid laurier, ryerson I would appreciate any feedback on programs i am likely to get into, or not, or any suggestions on further places to apply. Thanks for any feedback

Hello! Im applying to economics masters programs in the next few months and I'm curious to see how prepared I am for an advanced degree in econ? I've taken the following courses: Introductory/intermediate/advanced micro & macro (intermediate and advanced courses covered what you would expect, but very quant-intensive) Statistics I, II, and III for economists (covering everything from basic probability concepts, to regressions with time series data, to simultaneous equations and two-stage least squares etc etc.) Mathematical Economics I & II (covering univariate, multivariate calculus, Khun-Tucker, integration, linear algebra, static and dynamic optimization [diff eq] with economic applications) Advanced Mathematics for Economists (PDEq, topology, dynamic optimization) Calculus I & II Applied Econometrics (maximum likelihood, constructing price indices, estimation and forecasting with univariate time series processes etc.) Econometrics I (the simple and multiple classical regression models, problems of mis-specified structures, multi-collinearity, and forecasting etc...lots of proofs). What are your thoughts? I know the information I provided is a little sparse, but does it look like I am prepared for an advanced degree in economics? And bonus question...answer if you want..what sorts of schools am I a competitive applicant for given that I received A's in all of these courses and scored a 163 on the GRE quant? Thank you!

Hi everyone, I am CIS country citizen and plan to apply for PhD in USA and Canada. I have an undergraduate degree in World Economy from top university in my country (GPA 4.0); MSc in Accounting and Finance (research oriented )in top 10 UK universities (GPA 3.0-3.33, but thesis grade - 4.0 (distinction), that accounts for 60 credits out of 180 received from MSc). Work experience: 2 internships ( Ministry and major telecommunication company) during 2nd year of BSc studies 2 years as part-time tax consultant at one of the Big4 companies during last 2 years of bachelors 1 year (after my master's degree) in audit department at another Big4 company. I got promotion in half a year and currently work as an advanced staff. Also I am a lecturer at state university in my country (teaching Economics to 2year bsc students) GMAT Score: 650 My master's degree was research based and contained lots of econometrics, which at first lowered my gpa due to lack of sufficient knowledge. But then with the help of my Econometrics Professor who was my thesis supervisor I was able to advance my knowledge and got distinction on my dissertation. I loved doing research and currently enjoy teaching. Therefore I would like to continue my career in academia. Would be glad if anyone could advice me whether my background is enough to be admitted to PhD program in USA? And which range of schools should I consider?

Hello All ! I am from Bangladesh with BS in Economics (CGPA 3.61/4) and MS in Economics with Thesis (CGPA 3.87/4) from NSU (top private university in my country). My GRE score is Q 167, V 162 AWA 4.0 and TOEFL score is 114. I have about 1.5 years of experience in working as an Associate at a consulting firm. We work for World Bank, IFC, GiZ, GE, JICA among others. Some of the work has been quantitative, policy analysis and monitoring and evaluation. Also, I have published several articles in newspapers. Additionally I am a CFA level 2 candidate. The key weakness I have are Fails in Applied math 1, Applied Stat 1 and Basic Econometrics in undergraduate. This is because I did not know (honestly and sadly did not care back then) about course dropping process. I had A`s in Applied Math 2 before failing in Applied Math 1. I also took Cal I-Cal V (All As), third year stats and real Analysis (Bs), graduate quantitative courses with good grades. I am expecting very good references - from very senior faculty (Dean or higher post) and my current employer (An ex-professor, very accomplished in government and policy) and department chair. They all know me very well and will write excellent recommendations. I will eventually go for a PhD but want to do masters from a more 'global' university to update my profile and thereby increase chances for a good PhD. I would love if someone can comment on my chances for Masters (preferably with funding) at some European universities - namely Tilburg / CEMFI (are they taking intakes now?) / University of Amsterdam / Maastricht / Stockholm School of Economics / Uppsala / Aarhus / LM University at Munich. Moreover, suggestions are welcome. I know my profile has many flaws. So please do not restrain in criticism.

Hello, Could you please evaluate my profile and help me in choosing the universities? I am looking for PhD in Biomedical engineering for the Fall 2015 session. So far, I have selected following universities: University of Wisconsin Madison University of California , San Diego Vanderbilt University Case Western Reserve University Northwestern University University of Southern California Educational Qualification: BE(Biomedical Engineering) and M.Tech (Biomedical Engineering) TOEFL: 101 GRE : 313 (Q 162, V 151) AWA 4 Research Experience : 4 years 2 International Conference papers, including 1 in IEEE conference. 1 journal Paper but currently under review process. Please help. Thanks

Hi everyone, I'm currently filling out applications for PhD in accounting for 2015 Fall. The following is my profile summary. Any comment or help is much appreciated. International applicant Undergrad: Regional State College in the US GPA: 3.95/4.00 Double Major in Accounting and Economics GMAT: 650 (V29, Q49) (My practice tests scores were higher but I never got more than 700. I screwed up further during the actual test. And I did put more more than 3 months in preparation. I believe 650 +/- 30 is my range. I do not plan to retake GMAT for my fall 2015 applications,) LoR: 1 from Accounting, 1 from Economics, and 1 from Mathematics Department. I am pretty sure they are going to be excellent. SOP: Mediocre Work: Did 3 internships (at small regional tax firms). Taught a class of 20 11th-grade students in 2009 for a year. That experience is my inspiration for teaching. Research assistant: Worked as a research assistant with a professor (International Business related) Extracurriculars: 400+ volunteer and leadership hours in the past 6 years. University Employment: Official Tutor for the School of Business for 4 years at my college. Math background: Calculus I, Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, Independent Study: Sotchastic Calculus (All A's except an A- in Linear Algebra) Accounting Background: Intermediate Acct I & II, Tax I & II, Auditing, Cost Accounting and Advanced Financial Accounting (All A's except a B+ in Tax I) Economics Background: Intermediate MicroEconomics, Intermediate Macroeconomics, International Economics, Environmental Economics, Money and Economic Activity, Econometrics (All A's) Awards: Academic Achievement Award- Economics Class of 2014, Best Economics Student- 2013. I am interested in researching in Archival Financial Accounting. As of now I think I will be more interested in areas related to Disclosures in Publicly Traded Firms. I have sent my scores to UT Austin, University of Houston, Texas A&M, Penn State University, University of Central Florida, and Morgan State University. I plan to apply to 2 more TOP schools, 4 more schools matching my profile strength, and 3 more Safety Schools. My broader list includes: NYU, Northwestern, Uni of Illinois Urbana, Temple Uni, Florida St Uni, Florida international Uni, University of Florida, All of Uni of Texas with accounting, Arizona state, University of arizona, University of Gerogia, Georgia State Uni. The list was basically based on Availability of Accounting programs as mentioned in their websites and cost of living. (I suffered a lot living in NJ for my undergrad). Any suggestions on this list and addition to is more than welcome. P.S. I cannot afford to attend the program if I do not get tuition waivers and stipends. I found the related information is well stated in the top universities but not clearly mentioned in the lower ranked universities. I was wondering if sufficient funding is available in lower ranked universities. Again, I will appreciate any help or comments. Thank you, Zikxy