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Hi everyone, I am a long time lurker on this form and this is my first time posting. I would like to apply for a Mphil in economics at the University of Cambridge. However, I am not sure if my maths are strong enough to get into the program. I was wondering if applying is a worthwhile endeavor based on my profile and course/work history. Thanks for your interest and advice! Credentials: Econ Program: Top 50 liberal arts college in the United States GRE: Aiming for above a 168 in Quant and 160 in Verbal. College GPA: 3.9 Math Courses: Calc I-II (AP), Multivariable Calculus (A), Linear Algebra (A), Introduction to Real Analysis (A+), Evolutionary Game-Theory (Research project - In progress). Relevant Econ Courses: Macroeconomic Theory (A+), Microeconomic Theory (A), Political Economy (A-), The East Asian Growth Model (Honors Capstone Project - In Progress), Statistics (A+), Econometrics (In Progress). Relevant Work Experience: Last summer, I worked as a statistician for a Political Action Committee in the United States. Most of my responsibilities included gathering and collecting data and running simple regression models. This summer, I did a econometrics internship for the city I live in. My responsibilities included building multiple regression models (running stepwise regressions, testing for multicollinearity, etc...), data mapping using GIS software, and presenting my results to the city director. Other Experiences: I (with the recommendation of one of my professors) am trying to get a paper published. I received a revise and resubmit decision from the journal last spring and should have the paper resubmitted by the end of the summer. LORs: One professor got their PHD from the University of New Mexico One professor got their PHD from the University of Chicago (The one who suggested I submit my paper for publication). My greatest concern for getting into the program is that I did not take Differential equations. I have taught myself some Diff equ. for the independent research project I am doing on Game Theory (eg. variation of parameters, Laplace transformations, dynamic optimization) and I have used Fourier transformations before for statistical smoothing in one of my internships. Will this be enough to make up for my relative lack of mathematical coursework. I appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

I'm an undergraduate in my last semester and I intend to apply in the Fall. I'll also be a master's student in the Fall and I'm wondering if my credentials will be competitive by that time. In particular, I want to know if my math grades are good enough, since I did have a bad semester last year. The main question is: should I apply this Fall or wait another year and get some more education/experience. Thanks in advance for any comments! I'm sorry if this post is not of high quality or doesn't belong here. Please let me know. PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: My school is the smaller branch campus of a public U.S. university ranked top 50 in graduate Economics. My campus itself has PhD program in Econ and is ranked top 150 nationally (in general, not for Econ alone). I will be finishing a BA in Econ after 3 years instead of 4. I will then spend that 4th year as a grad student earning an MA in Econ. Undergrad GPA: 3.8 so far. 3.9 in Econ alone. This is my last semester as an undergrad and I'm going strong. Type of Grad: I have taken master's and PhD level coursework in statistics, computer science, and other master's electives (see coursework below). I decided to stay an extra year as a grad student and finish an MA in Econ, so I'll be a grad student at the time of application. Grad GPA: 3.65 after taking only 2 grad courses so far, but I'm taking 2 more this semester and I expect this to be higher by the Fall. GRE: I'll take this in the summer. Math Courses: Algebra (B+), Precalc (A), Calc 1 (A), 2 (A), and multivariate (B+), Linear Algebra (B+), Ordinary Dif Eq (B), 300-level Prob and Stat (C+, bad semester), 400-level proof course (W). Will take introductory real analysis course (only multivar calc as prereq) in the Fall. Will take 500-level proof course and micro theory in the Fall. Econ Courses: Intro Micro/Macro (As), Intermed Micro/Macro Theory (As), Statistical Methods (A), 300-level honors seminar in economic history (A), Intro Econometrics (A), Individual study in econ (A), 500-level statistics and econometrics (A), 500-level compsci/data mining (B+) I'm currently taking another 500-level elective and a PhD-level elective at the larger, better ranked university affiliated with my campus. I expect As in both. Other Courses: Honors independent study. Honors BA thesis. Letters of Recommendation: 3 professors. I expect them to be good to very good. Research Experience: RA intern for a small public policy think tank with a fellowship. Predictive analytics intern for a medium-large municipal government. RA for a professor in freshman year. Honors BA thesis. Progress on MA thesis by the time I apply in the Fall. Teaching Experience: Might be able to TA in the Fall for intro theory or stats. Research Interests: Urban econ, Econ history, crime, drugs, prostitution (BA thesis on this topic), land use and zoning (MA thesis on this topic). Other: Member of ODE, several other honors societies.