Search the Community

UG Top20 Math (3.9)+Science (3.6), overall 3.7 due to not studying -- partying too much during UG. No econ courses. I did well in UG real analysis and stochastic process, but I did not take any graduate level Math courses. Master Top 20 management, 3.7 due to not studying -- I am working and doing research at the same time. Some Econ courses but at the B-school level only. My work is policy related; not a top place/big brand. GRE: 160/167/4.5. I did not study for it because I got research to do. I can try to invest several weeks to score a 169 on V/Q but I guess it is unnecessary. Math Course: about 20 undergraduate level math courses, including calculus series, analysis series, linear algebra, algebra series, ODE, PDE, geometry, probability, statistics, stochastic process, math-fin. Mostly A with few A- and one B, 3.9 subject GPA Econ Courses: Business school econ courses, not PhD level, mostly A, one B. Research: One top field with revision requested. Two top fields submitted with AE/Editor coauthoring. One other working paper that could be tried to submitted to top 5. My research is between consumer theory, IO, policy, and a bit finance-related. Presented in top Economics/Business conferences (like AEA AFA) for five times. Letter writers: Currently one strong econ letter from a senior in top 5 (coauthor, regular meeting); one b-school letter from a senior top 5 (coauthor, met for several times); one strong stats/math letter from a senior in top 5 (coauthor, regular meeting last year); one letter from an econ AP (non star) from top 20 (taking courses only); one letter from an econ AP (non star) from top 20 (coauthor). May invest more time to find better letter writers. # of school to be applied: Honestly I don't know. If the number would not cause a problem for letter writers, then I would try to apply to as many schools as I can. Dream Schools: US top 5 or UK top 2 As a nontraditional applicant, I know that in top places UGs with perfect grade and a good thesis are preferred. So what shall I prioritize? Here is my list: 1. Revising papers 2. Submit to Top 5 3. Get another stronger letter in Econ/B-school 4. Write an impressive SOP to explain my experience, non-traditional background, and my poor grades 5. Improve GRE Does it sound reasonable? Thank you in advance for your advices!

Hello all, I am writing this post with the admissions season not complete, as I am wondering if there are any actions which I should take in the coming weeks. I have applied to programs this cycle, but it is looking increasingly likely that I won't be admitted anywhere. Apologies for the long post --- trying to provide as much information as possible. Before I get into this, I'll post my profile in the standard format. Profile: Type of Undergrad: Top 10 LAC, Econ major, math minor, poverty studies minor. Undergrad GPA: 3.63 Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: 165 V, 167 Q, 5.5 W Math Courses: Real Analysis II (A), Real Analysis I (A), Mathematical Statistics (A-), ODEs (A-), Introduction to Analysis (A), Linear Algebra (A), Multivariable Calculus ©, Calculus I (n/a), Calculus II (n/a) Econ Courses: Advanced Micro/Macro Theory (A), Research Seminar in Economics (A), Advanced Labor Economics (A), Advanced Macroforecasting (A-), Health Economics (A), Microtheory (A-), Macrotheory (A-), Econometrics (B+), Intro Macro (A), Intro Micro (B), a slew of other economics electives (all A or A-) Other Courses: Thesis written for poverty studies minor which was supervised by an economist and used an applied micro framework. Letters of Recommendation: (1) First letter from undergrad advisor/mentor, professor in two courses, and RA'ship supervisor. This writer is a tenured faculty with a PhD from a top school, but not particularly well known. Writer specifically recommended schools ranked 10-15 as a good landing spot for me and stated that they would write strong letter. (2) Second letter writer has supervised my predoc for two years, and we are in the process of coauthoring a publication together. He also mentioned several 10-15 schools as a good landing spot (especially Michigan). This letter writer is not particularly well known either, but am confident that he wrote an enthusiastic letter. (3) Third letter writer has also worked with me during my predoc; we have published a paper together in a top journal within the realm of public finance/tax economics. He is a more prolific researcher than the other two (and likely more well known), but doesn't know me quite as well. I still expect a strong letter from him. Research Experience: RA'ships for economists during two separate summers of undergrad. Two theses written through my final year of undergrad (one pure econ, one poverty studies). Two year predoc for an organization within the federal government (but not a fed bank). Teaching Experience: N/A Research Interests: Primarily labor economics and public economics/public finance. Also very interested in any applied micro type research. SOP: Lightly tailored for each school. Outlines research interests, a (very broad) potential research agenda, and each of the items listed in the "other" category. Very little room is left for narrative information (i.e. why economics, how I got here). Other: My current position is able to provide me with full funding (but only in years 2-5, not very valuable I know). More importantly, my current position also allows access to some unique and confidential data throughout my graduate studies. These data are identical to the SSA data which have been leveraged very successfully for research by those who can access it. My situation is as follows. This cycle, I applied to nearly 30 graduate schools. All of these are pure econ programs (the kind of schooling which I am most interested in), and they are ranked anywhere from 10-60 (think a uniform distribution between 10 and 60 with some attention paid to department specialty). The goal, here, was to be admitted to a top 60 program, and I would be absolutely thrilled to gain admission to any of the programs to which I applied. But, part way through this process, I have already been rejected from most of the less competitive programs to which I applied and am running out of hope to be admitted to any one program. If I am not admitted, I intend to try again next year. My questions for this forum are: 1) Was I unrealistic about my chances at a top 60 program? I did extremely poorly during my first year of undergrad ( 2) If I am not admitted anywhere, which seems likely, what would be the best next step for next year's admissions season? My most clear options are to (a) stay with my predoc for 1 more year, hopefully publish another paper that I've been working on, and take another class or two (phd micro/macro or functional analysis?); or (b) enroll in a full time masters program to more substantially improve my math background. If it is possible to do (a) and be admitted next year, I have a strong preference for that. How do these two options compare regarding my admissions chances? 3) In the event that I do not get in anywhere, should I contact a few admissions committees after April 15 and ask for any feedback? Is it considered rude to do so? Any advice/feedback would be very appreciated --- even if the feedback is that I'm not qualified and should look into other careers. Congrats to all admitted, and I wish everyone else who is still waiting the best of luck.

Normally I would say that asking in person is the right way to go about it but now that I can't actually meet my professor in person, should I ask him by email for a recommendation letter? Or should I ask him to meet on zoom or something, I am hesitant to do this because it just seems like it would inconvenience him

Hello everyone, I'm struggling to figure out whether I have a chance of being admitted into any good econ masters programs (I have 0 chance of being admitted into any decent econ PhD). I have almost no background in economics, which is why I'm looking for advice here. Undergraduate Degree: BA in International Affairs from a top 10 IR school, virtually unknown for economics Undergraduate GPA: 3.55/4.0 GRE: Q 168 V 169 AW 5.0 Math Courses: Calculus I (A-), Calculus II (A), Statistics (A), Linear Algebra and Real Analysis (A-) (this last one is an intensive, proof based linear algebra and multivariable differential calculus class with a real analysis module) Econ Courses: Intro to Macroeconomics (A), Intro to Microeconomics (B), Intro to Int'l Economics (A-) Related Experience: None. 2-3 years in industry doing policy (sometimes economic/financial) work, and I have some policy research experience, but no economics research experience. Letter of Recommendation: Two letters from former and current bosses (which would be 10/10 for policy programs, probably not worth too much in this scenario, and one letter academic letter that I still have to figure out (I graduated over 3 years ago and haven't kept in touch. Possibly will be from an international finance professor that I had a friendly relationship with). Research Interest: Development economics, impact evaluation. Programs I'm thinking about applying to: Barcelona GSE MA Economics, PSE PPD, Bocconi ESS, IHEID MA International Economics, SAIS MIEF, LSE Two Year MSc(I don't think I make the GPA cut for this but maybe my GRE can push me over the edge?), UCL MSc. I think the ideal program for me would be something like the LSE Two Year MSc that's specifically made for people with very little background in economics. I unfortunately haven't been able to find any other programs like this one, though. Any feedback is greatly appreciated! I know that my chances would increase substantially if I took intermediate micro and macro but my local academic institutions do not offer open enrollment and I need to save money for grad school so I can't take any more online classes.

Type of Undergrad: top 10 econ Undergrad GPA: 3.9 Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: not yet taken, anticipating no problem Math Courses: calc 3-4 (A, A), honors linear algebra (A-), real analysis 1-2 (A, A-), probability (A-), statistics (A) Econ Courses: intermediate micro (A), intermediate macro (A-), econometrics (A), advanced econometrics (A), PhD micro 1-2 (A-, A), PhD metrics (will take in fall), PhD information economics (A) PhD industrial organization (A), PhD mechanism design (A), PhD experimental economics (A), thesis (will do in fall) Other Courses: intermediate programming (A), stochastic systems (A), algorithmic economics (A) Letters of Recommendation: - very strong letter from tenured prof - coauthoring a paper - very strong letter from well known, tenured prof - RA'd for two years and took multiple classes with him - (3) decently strong letter from tenured prof, took PhD class with him - (4) decently strong letter from AP, will RA* this summer See the questions for more info Research Experience: see LORs Teaching Experience: TAd random courses Some questions: 1. What range of schools should I apply to? 2. I'm not sure who should be my third recommender. I was supposed to RA for (4) this summer but that's been largely cancelled for obvious reasons and he's offering me a virtual RAship which would be substantially less involved. (3) seems like a good option except I haven't done any research with him, only taken one class where I did pretty well. What are the relevant considerations when deciding whose letter to take? Also, what are the circumstances in which a 4th recommendation is a good idea?

Hi All, (Not sure if the is the right forum for this sort of a question. Please excuse me if not) Here is my background: I was enrolled in a decent PhD economics program (top 30) back in 2018. Soon after I started out in August, my personal life took a a turbulent turn and pretty early on (circa Dec'18 - Jan'19) I decided to drop out of the program and return to my home country, due to urgent family+personal reasons. Now that things are returning to normal slowly but surely, I want to pick up the pieces and get back on track. So I am planning to apply for next year's cycle. But I have a ton of questions that are making me pretty concerned. Could you guys please share your thoughts on these ? 1) Whether I should talk about these developments in my personal letter, in detail? (emphasis on "detail") 2) I am skeptical about whether the schools I am applying to will buy this. (For understandable reasons) the schools might suspect that I dropped out because I failed my prelims (truth is, my aim was only to graduate with the Master's degree and come back ASAP) 3) Don't know if my previous letter writers will consent to writing a letter again. 3.1) Since nothing has changed between the last time they wrote it (2017) and this year I wonder if the same letter can be reused? 4) Will the fact that I was once enrolled in a PhD program, in general, hurt my chances of re-entry into another? Thanks a lot, all!

I’ve been wondering, if someone happens to get an RA position at J-PAL, who is the best person possible that will be able to write a good letter? I’m thinking that because the research is conducted away from Cambridge that despite working with J-PAL I wouldn’t be able to get a letter from any top faculty. Is this about right?

I worked on a project with two professors for more than a year. One of the professors recommends that she write a joint letter of recommendation with the other professor. What could be a reason why the professor would suggest that? How do admissions committee usually view such letters?

UG: Top20 Math (3.9)+Science (3.6), overall 3.7 due to not studying -- partying too much during UG. No econ courses Master: Top 20 b-school, 3.7 due to not studying -- I am working and doing research at the same time. My work is policy related; not a top place/big brand. Some Econ courses but at the B-school level only. GRE: 160/167/4.5. I did not study for it because I got research to do. I can try to invest several weeks to score a 169 on V/Q but I guess it is unnecessary. Research: One top field with revision requested. Two top fields submitted with AE/Editor coauthoring. One other working paper that could be tried to submitted to top 5. My research is between consumer theory, IO, policy, and a bit finance-related. Presented in top Economics/Business conferences (like AEA AFA) for five times. Letter writers: Currently one strong econ letter from a senior in top 5 (coauthor, regular meeting), one b-school letter from an old endowment professor in top 5 (coauthor, met for several times), one strong stats/math letter from an old endowment professor in top 5 (coauthor, regular meeting last year), one letter from an econ assistant professor from top 20 (taking courses only), one letter from an econ assistant professor (not star) in top 20 (coauthor). May invest more time to find better letter writers. First Question: What discipline in B-school shall I apply to? I love to do marketing but my paper/background seems fit finance. Also my policy-related paper and work experience fits the TOM/innovation program. My strongest letter would be from an economics professor, but I did not have enough economics courseworks for an econ PhD. So I am having a hard time to decide. Second Question: As a nontraditional applicant, what shall I prioritize? Here is my list in the decreasing order of importance: 1. Revising papers 2. Submit to Top 5 3. Get another stronger letter in Econ/B-school 4. Write an impressive SOP to explain my experience, non-traditional background, and my poor grades 5. Improve GRE Does it sound reasonable? Would a strong rec letter from the academic advisor help to explain my non-traditional cases? Thank you for your advice! Any other comments are welcome.

Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics in a top Europe university (it consistently places both its undergraduate and graduate students into top20) Undergrad GPA: 3.75 (summa cum laude) Type of Grad : One of the top Euro master`s program that teaches the first year PhD courses (not LSE or Oxbridge but like Bocconi, UPF, TSE, Bonn etc). It is ranked around top25-30 worldwide according to Tilburg and Repec rankings. Grad GPA: 7.5/10 (it seems low but this program is like LSE EME, so I have distinction in the program) GRE: 155V/169Q/ AWA 5 Math Courses: Undergrad: Calc 1/2/3 (all A), Probability and Statistics I-II (A), Linear Algebra (A) , Differential Eq. (A), Stochastic Processes (A-), Real Analysis I (A-), Real Analysis II (C+), Linear and Integer Optimization (A), Discrete Math (A) Econ Courses: Undergrad: Usual two semesters Micro-Macro-Metrics sequence (all A, some A+). Growth Theory (A), Econ of Information (A), Institutional Economics (A) Graduate: All the first year PhD courses at the graduate institution that I mentioned above. Research Experience: No RA experience, but I was a summer research intern at a top Think-Tank in my country. I also wrote a honors thesis in undergraduate, and currently I`m in the process of writing a master`s thesis. I´m also a teaching assistant at my current graduate school if it counts. LORs : I haven´t decided on this yet. My undergraduate professors would write me a better letter since I have a closer relationship with them. Graduate professors can´t write anything beyond `this guy got a good grade in one of my hardest courses´, but not including a letter from my graduate profs may also signal erroneously that I did bad in master`s. So probably I will include 2 letters from my undergraduate institution ( both of them publish in top journals, and would write a stellar letter for me), and one mediocre letter from a graduate prof. I can stay at my current graduate institution for my PhD (I am already qualified to proceed to PhD here as a result of my master`s gpa), and its PhD placements are nice especially within Europe. So I don´t want to go to a mediocre US school just because it is in the US. JHU or Carniege Mellon would be the bottom line in my application list. Do you think I have high enough chances for top15 places like Brown, Cornell, UMich or UCLA?

Applied, just sitting on my hands now. Type of Undergrad: top 10 undergrad/econ department Undergrad GPA: 3.9 Type of Grad: N/A Grad GPA: N/A GRE: 167 Q, 166 V, 4.5 AWA Math Courses: multivariable calc (A), proof based linear algebra (A), real analysis 1 & 2 (A, A), probability (A-), statistics (A), stochastic processes (A), measure theoretic probability (A) Econ Courses: intermediate micro (A), intermediate macro (A), econometrics (A), ML and inference in economics (A), honors thesis (in progress) PhD micro 1 (A), PhD micro 2 (game theory) (A-), PhD metrics (A-), PhD market design (A), PhD experimental economics (A) Other Courses: mechanism design course in CS department (A), intermediate computer science (A) Letters of Recommendation: strong letter from honors thesis advisor (tenured, well known theorist whom I also RA'd for in the past and who taught me in multiple courses), very strong letter from another tenured prof (RA for around a year, taught me in a class), decently strong letter from another prof (RA for around a year). All letter writers have strong connections to top 10 programs (PhD there, used to teach there, etc) Research Experience: see LORs Teaching Experience: N/A Research Interests: applied micro theory Applied to: top 10s, a couple of top 20. Thoughts?

In general, how would LOR writer's specialty impact the influence of the letter? For example, if I am interested in doing macro or finance, how would a strong letter from a professor in fields like labor or micro theory be viewed differently comparing to a semi-strong letter from a professor in macro-finance?

Thanks for you guys’ opinion! Undergrad: Agricultural Econ in China; GPA:3.91/4.00 One Year Exchange Program in a Top 5 Econ program in the US GPA:4.00/4.00 Grad: Master in a Top 5 University in the US. GPA:3.90/4.00 RA: currently doing a one year RA in one of the Top 2 econ programs. Proposed Research Interest: Macro and Labor GRE: 165V 170Q 3.5 AW. Really worried about my writing part not sure if it’s sending a really bad signal. Maths Classes: Haven’t taken many maths classes. But have taken: Real analysis1&2, intro to Proof, Optimization, linear algebra, Calculus, Probability Theory. Got A in all of them. Econ classes: Have taken the PhD level Macro sequence:(A B+ A-). But this program is reknowned for having hard cores. Plus I get a strong letter from one of the professors in the core sequence (ranking top5 in the final exam but got an A- somehow). Grad electives(two A’s). For all the other undergrad level econ classes, I mostly got A’s. Letter: One from a full professor in a Top 5 econ program teaching the macro core sequence and the chair of the department. Have taken two classes from him and confirmed I have a strong letter. One from my current boss/thesis instructor. An assistant professor. But this letter should be really strong. Have a work in progress (not in paper form yet but working on to get the algorithm sorted out) coauthored with him. This is listed on my CV not sure if it's going to help or not. One from an assistant professor from whom I have taken a second year phd level labor class. Confirmed by my boss (they know each other pretty well) that I should get a strong letter. To be honest, i’m Not sure if I can get into one of the top 10’s.... But I didn’t apply to many programs beyond the top 10.

Hello guys, Just a question out of the blue. Does anyone not waive the right to see the recommendation letters? meaning they check that they wish to see the letters after the admission cycle? Can the letter writers see that you have not waived it? and what do they think about it?

Hi All, Requesting views, experiences, opinions on below dilemma: I'm currently in my first year (and first semester) at a top-30 PhD program in the US, but now needing to relocate to Europe for (entirely) personal, and unavoidable reasons. Most EU schools have a cap on the number of letters I can submit and I have to optimize on which letters I choose: do I choose a letter from my current university, so that the admissions committee do not think that I am quitting because of any bad experiences or due to failing my exams here? (Such a letter will reduce information asymmetry but it will not be as strong as my other letters because it will be built off of just 2 months of interaction with my professor, and grade A-, on his subject. OR Do I submit letters from my old professors who know me better, and can write a relatively more detailed letter. Also, I know those letters are not bad because they got me into this T-30 program in the first place!. The drawback with this strategy is that reviewers will not have any faculty's validation/assessment about my performance at current phd program. They will have my transcript though, and my SOP, where I shall clearly state my reasons for moving. Thanks a lot !

I am interested in people's opinions as to the criteria I should be using to choose my letter writers. If it matters, I am an Australian student finishing Honours (some weird concoction involving postgrad level coursework and a substantial thesis). I am applying to top 10 + business schools. I have four people who are my primary options as referees: 1. Main supervisor for my honours thesis. I have also been his RA for 18 months or so. Very well known. Harvard PhD + top 5 assistant professor early in his career. Now full professor with lots of top 5 pubs. Will definitely be writing. 2. Secondary supervisor for my thesis. I have been intermittent RA for last 2 years, although the projects were not as substantial as for 1. Harvard PhD + MIT postdoc. Now equivalent to assistant professor at my uni. Will write a very nice letter, although isn't that well known (perhaps is at Harvard + MIT owing to education there). 3. Very well known professor from exchange uni I spent a year at (US top 30 for economics). I took an undergrad class and came first with 100% by a large margin. I audited a very difficult graduate class and kept up quite well despite, at that point, having not taken real analysis. This was almost 2 years ago though. I have, however, kept in contact and asked (and confirmed and re-confirmed) that he will happily write a letter saying I did very well in hard courses and have research potential in his opinion. But I haven't done any research with or for him. Also slightly unreliable (ocassionally takes a while or forgets to respond to emails). But I hope for something this important he would do it on time. 4. Very well known professor from my uni, who I am currently taking PhD level game theory/mechanism design class with. My marks are very good, and he has encouraged me to go to grad school and happy to write, but I have not done any research with or for him. 5/6 etc: a few professors I have done very well in courses with, and have done one or two brief RA projects for, all less well known than 1 - 4. So, I guess I am asking in general (also specific advice here would be great) whether having three letters from famous people even with only one directly speakign to research abilities and experience is better than substituting one for a much less famous but probably stronger letter that can speak to research ability/potential. I have also intermittently been an RA for faculty other than 1 and 2 in the last year, so if the advice is that speaking to research experience and potential is paramount, than I guess even 1 + 2 + 5 could be a possibility. Anyway, any advice is very much appreciated.

Hi all I’m currently in my first year, thinking of my re-application for NSF GRFP. I applied last year and got Honorable Mention, so I know I’m marginal, hoping to make it over the edge this time. I’m on the fence between applying this year or next year (note now you can only apply once after starting a program). Looking for tips, especially from any faculty lurking who may have more direct insights into how NSF apps are reviewed. There are two main Q’s that I think would help clarify things for me: - Does it look weird to not include a rec letter from anyone at your current institution? As a first year I don’t know any profs that well, so they wouldn’t be able to write a terribly informative letter. But does it look weird then if I apply this year with no letters from my program? If I apply next year instead, I could RA this summer and include a letter from my school that way, which I imagine would be a solid letter. I think my letters this year are pretty strong, so I’m not overly concerned about adding a strong letter; I think the strength of letters could marginally improve if I wait a year, but the larger factor might be whether or not I actually just need to have one letter from my current school. - If I apply next year instead of this year, how much will reviewers weight my first year grades? I’m sure I’ll do fine, but I’m guessing more in the B/B+ than A range. Maybe that would be taken as a negative if that’s the case? So the main tradeoff seems to be a possibly better set of letters next year versus the risk of non-strong grades being weighed heavily. Any insight on how reviewers weigh these things would be helpful. Also open to any other thoughts on applying first vs second year that I haven’t touched on. Thanks!

I've been a long time lurker and finally it is my turn to apply to PhD programs. My question is related to my title: is it okay for two economists to co-write a letter of recommendation? I am a research assistant and the economist I work with most is a young economist with only a working paper. I've worked with him on a few policy projects and one major research project that is ongoing. He gave me the unsolicited advice that he doesn't think his word will carry much weight in the application process. Still, he said that he'd be willing to offer me any advice and help with the process. He received his PhD a few years ago from a Top 10 school. The boss of our team received his PhD 15 years ago from a Top 5 school but does not have many publications either. I have worked with him only on policy projects and I have gotten good feedback. Recently, when talking to him about what the younger economist said, he offered to co-write a letter of recommendation. Though it was his idea, he told me I should look into whether or not it is okay to have as part of my application. I imagine they'll be able to write about different aspects of my skillset and that the letter will convey my abilities well (the team has at least 1 RA go to grad school a year). Does anyone have any thoughts? Is there anything I can tell them that would make their job easier if I do take them up on it?

Hi all, I am an applied math and econ major in an Ivy-League school and I am thinking of applying to phd programs in econ this fall. So far I have had three professors agreeing to write me recommendation letters (one I RAed for, one supervised my independent study and one I took seminar and wrote a term paper) and I had good relationships with all of them. The issue is, all of my three recommenders are young assistant professors. Should I try to have a more senior professor as my recommender? (If I do so, the letter from the senior professor may not be very strong, I only took his class and wrote a final paper). And in general, how is a strong letter from a young AP compared to a semi-strong letter from a tenured professor? Thanks.

Hi urch,:dejected: I am going to get a reference letter from my thesis adviser, who is currently unemployed and probably will not be employed until next year. Is it ok to get a reference letter from him. As far as i understand i need to identify where he works and provide his email, which in general has to be an email from his institution (.edu or something). So is it ok to choose him if he is unemployed right now? Thank you in advance!

I submitted the online application of some programs in time. However, one of my letter writers hasn't submitted his letter yet and told me letters could come late that then application letter, otherwise the school will specify that they have to submit letters by a certain date. I assume this is true since he seems pretty experienced at being a recommender. However, he didn't submit the letter for the program that says "make sure letters be received by the deadline" in the online application. I'm kinda worried if I'm wasting my efforts and money for this school because of the late submission of a letter. Can anyone share some insights on this? Thx a lot!

Delete

Hi, I would like to seek advice on managing a fourth letter writer for econ PhD applications. I think I'm in a situation where three of my letter writers dominate the fourth letter writer. The profile of my letter writers (profs who have agreed to write me an LOR) are roughly: A: My thesis supervisor. Relatively younger, but has a pretty good publication record. B: A pretty senior prof. I did well on his/her field course. He/She was also one of my thesis graders. C: Moderately senior prof. I took his/her real analysis class. But it is not evident at all from my transcript that the class resembled anything close to a real analysis class. Aside from this, the only other math module on my transcript is a "math for economists" type of module. D: Fairly junior prof. I did well on his/her field course. He/She was also one of my thesis graders. Slightly below the other 3 in terms of tier of school attended. My impression is that if all four letters are roughly equal, then the conventional approach is to mix the letters up. But in my situation, I think that A B and C form a dominant set of letter writers. If so, how should I manage D, and what should I tell D? e.g. do I tell D that A B and C have already agreed to write me letters? - but if so, is that not essentially conveying that his/her letter is subpar or unnecessary, which is just not very nice overall? Additionally, I think one other relevant consideration is that the two more senior profs B and C aren't the most responsive to emails, and D could still serve as a backup writer if necessary. So I'm hesitant to convey that I don't need his/her letter. Appreciate any advice on this, thanks!

Hello everyone, my name is Pedro and I'm from Portugal. I need to pass the IELTS exam with 7 on each module in order to be able to immigrate to Australia. I already did the exam, bur unfortunately I missed it, probably cause I had no time to finish my writing exam (not enough word) and it wasn't probably good enough as well. My grades were: Reading: 8 Listening: 8 Speaking: 7.5 Writing: 6.5 (needed 7). Now I'm going to repeat my exam and found this forums, hope you guys can help me out, therefore I will be posting some writing exercises I do at home to get some feedback. Here's the first of them, a letter about some defective kitchen product bought from a shop: " Dear Mr. Paul Young, I am writing to let you know that last week I bought a new dishwasher for my kitchen from you shop. Unfortunately it doesn't work as I expected. When I turn on the machine, it emits a really strange sound, like if it was a Formula One car passing by at 200 mph. After being washed, my dishes look dirtier than before and my silverware looks like it's made of brass instead of silver. I tried to call your shop about this issue, but I was told there was nothing they could do unless the machine didn't work at all. I've even considered cutting some internal wires after hearing this, so that it stopped working and your company would then provide me with support. Considering all of this, I would really appreciate that you would let me return the machine and receive a refund. These kind of issues are really not acceptable, so, if you don't give me a refund, I will follow all the needed legal procedures to sue your company. Best Regards, Pedro " Thanks a lot in advance to all of you. edit: found 2 typos