Profile Evaluation and Guidance Request

[Holan95]

Hi Urch forum members,

I am currently an economist at the BLS, but want to transition to a career in academia and am looking at economics PhD programs. I know that economics PhDs are very quantitative and my math background is poor, so I am retaking Calc II to demonstrate my ability curranty to do the math needed. Assuming I do well, I plan to take more math classes (Linear, Calc III, Probability, Analysis), to continue demonstrating my math abilities. I am interested in political economy, economic history and institutional economics, specifically as to the role of government in economic regulation in the post-WWII period, particularly in Eastern Bloc countries, and very much see myself in an academic career doing research on this issue and many others related to it. Furthermore, I would enjoy developing models to explain the economic effects of those policies to gain a better perspective relative to neoclassical economics. I am  looking for a more qualitative economics PhD program, if such a thing exists, and am interested in post-Keynesian and a more heterodox approach. I am looking at the New School, UMKC, UCSC, GWU, SOAS, UMass Amherst, and American. Does an economics PhD makes sense for me given what I want to do, or should I look for a PhD in Public Policy or Political Science? I want to primarily view the issues I am interested in through an economic lens, with the political effects being of secondary importance. Furthermore, given my profile, am I even remotely competitive for any PhD program, assuming good grades in further math classes? 

Thanks for your help!

PROFILE:

Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics and International Relations (double major) at Occidental College

Undergrad GPA: 3.35 Overall, 3.56 Econ,

Type of Grad: MA in International Economics and Finance from JHU SAIS

Grad GPA: 3.3

GRE: 156 V 163 Q 5.0 A (took in 2018, will retake)

Math Courses: Calculus I (B-), Calculus II (C+) Calculus III (C+), Statistics (A-) (undergrad)

Econ Courses:

Undergrad

Intro to Econ I/II (A-, A-), Intermediate Micro/Macro (B+, B+), Economic Development (A-), Econometrics (A-), International Economics (A-), Advanced Macro (C+), Firm-Level International Trade (B+), Macroeconomic Policy since the Great Depression (A-)

Grad

Microeconomics (B), Macroeconomics (A-), Econometrics I/II (B-, B), International Trade (B+), International Finance (C), International Money and Banking (B+), Economic Development (A-), Advanced International Economics (B+), International Financial Organizations (A-), Time-Series Econometrics (B+), Topics in Growth and Development (A-), Master’s Thesis (A-)

Other Courses: I am currently taking Calc II at UCLA Extension to prepare for my PhD applications and to make up for poor math grades in undergrad.

Letters of Recommendation: One from a Deputy Director at the IMF who is very aware of my PhD interests, one from professor I was an RA for in grad school, and one from professor who specializes in economic history who I was very close with in undergrad and is also very aware of my PhD interests.

Research Experience: Summer economic research internships at the Council of Economic Advisers, Economic Policy Research Institute, Committee for a Responsible federal Budget and Bipartisan Policy Center. RA for economic history professor in grad school (4 months), RA for political economist at undergrad (4 months), RA at IMF after grad school, Economist at BLS for 7 months.

Teaching Experience: None

Research Interests: Political Economy, International Development, Economic History, Institutional Economics, Post-Keynesian Economics

SOP: Interest in political economy and economic history and desire to analyze the current world through economic insights from the past. Love for research and desire to gain understanding of the world through qualitative and quantitative analysis. I also genuinely want to be a teacher to guide and inspire students to be academically curious and do their personal best.  

Other: During undergrad, I was struggling with mental health issues that negatively impacted my academic performance. I have since resolved those issues and hope to show my academic ability, particularly in math, with my better grad school grades and excellent performance in future math classes.

[SwissEconomist]

So your research experience is pretty good but unfortunately your grades aren't (especially Calculus I-III and Econometrics I/II don't look good). This will make it quite difficult for you to get into top PhD programs. However I don't know whether Universities like SOAS or The New School care that much about grades. But keep in mind that those Universities have not the best reputation when it comes to economic research.

[Holan95]

On 6/22/2022 at 4:10 AM, SwissEconomist said:

So your research experience is pretty good but unfortunately your grades aren't (especially Calculus I-III and Econometrics I/II don't look good). This will make it quite difficult for you to get into top PhD programs. However I don't know whether Universities like SOAS or The New School care that much about grades. But keep in mind that those Universities have not the best reputation when it comes to economic research.

Thanks for your feedback. I am aware of my poor math grades and my underperformance in econometrics. I am currently taking Calc II at UCLA Extension (for credit) and will work hard to get an A. One of the main factors behind my poor academic performance in the past were mental health issues, and frankly, poor study habits. I have worked on these, and hopefully my solid grade in Calc II will show that. Assuming I do well, I'm planning on taking more math to make up for past performance and prepare myself for applying to Econ PhDs. 

Furthermore, I'm not really looking to get into top programs per se, more so ones that consider more heterodox approaches and consider qualitative approaches to research as well. If I did go somewhere like the New School or SOAS, can I get a placement at an LAC? That's really what I'm aiming for, not so much to work at a huge university, the private sector or for governments. 

[remusane]

On 6/23/2022 at 8:23 PM, Holan95 said:

If I did go somewhere like the New School or SOAS, can I get a placement at an LAC? That's really what I'm aiming for, not so much to work at a huge university, the private sector or for governments. 

You should look at the PhD placements of the programs you're interested in, e.g. https://www.newschool.edu/nssr/economics-outcomes/

[Holan95]

On 6/25/2022 at 8:27 AM, remusane said:

You should look at the PhD placements of the programs you're interested in, e.g. https://www.newschool.edu/nssr/economics-outcomes/

Thanks, I'll check it out!