Elchorro

I would advise you to work on your GRE. Q159 does not seem competitive even for medium-range schools. If you look at the GRE tables by intended major you will see that 30% of econ applicants have scores 165+. With such a solid mathematical background you can score 167+ with some practice. It seems like these standarized tests matter more for people from not-so-well-known unis and intentional applicants. V149 may also disqualify you straight away at some (many?) schools.

I can speak for Edinburgh. You have small ok chance to be admitted if you are willing to pay full tuition. Your chances to get any financial help seem very low to me. It's almost exclusively given to the people who show promise of staying for PhD and have excellent qualifications.

LSE is excellent if you are thinking of applying to PhD and if the costs are not main concern. They have a good track record of placing their graduates in good PhD programs. Also, their masters degree includes conditional offer for their MRes/PhD which is a bonus, since you don't have to worry that much. LSE is definitely a good option for PhD too. Further, LSE has a stronger theory group than the other schools, see John Hardman Moore. In Europe PSE masters program does not have as strong reputation, especially in Micro. This might be different in US, though. Also, free tuition is great. £40k+ of debt after a year at LSE is not appealing for me. I was applying to UofT this year as a backup and I can tell you that they are willing to increase you financial package if you want to negotiate. They more then doubled mine to $40k+ (including TAship) when I indicated that I might still consider their offer. Finally, remember that the admissions to PhDs at Top 10 are much more competitive then to any masters program. No matter where you end up going, make sure that you are at the very top end of the distribution so that your reference letters will shine.

@natnathay Yes, It is definitely possible. I am international student about to graduate with 4 years MA from a Scottish Uni and I got multiple offers for PhD in Top 10 US schools. But as AP said, it probably depends on the quality of the course you are doing now, rank of the university, and all other usual stuff such as SoP, RLs, standarised tests (if any), etc. Good luck with your admissions season!

I know it is not always required to have a degree in Economics to enroll in PhD in US. My current supervisor did his undergrad in Computer Science. You personal statement/statement of purpose would then be very important as you have to demonstrate that you know what economics is about. While you can probably take some econ courses while doing physics it is not going to be much. There are several benefits of the degree in economics at LSE. First, you have access to professors who are know in their fields and it's known that admission committees pay attention to reference letters. Second, it would allow you to clarify your interests and help you writing strong statement of purpose. Third, with Masters degree in Economics you can do to phd program in UK, which is shorter as it doesn't have much coursework component. If you do Masters in Physics and decide you want to do PhD in Economics anywhere in europe you will have to do second masters (this could be MRes). EME I believe is intended for people with some preliminary knowledge of economics and applications are very competitive. I know a person with very good grades and a recommendation from well known professor from LSE and still got rejected. Your situations seems to fit more into 2 year MSc Econ program. The benefit of that is that it has conditional offer for their PhD program (conditional on getting distinction), so it's great to fall back on if you don't get admitted to Top 10. Research in economics is definitely beneficial although not necessary. I am in my final year of undergrad in Edinburgh, and at the time of applying I could show some software I developed for computational economists, but that was about it. I got multiple Top 10 acceptances. To summarize, my advise would be, if you are considering PhD in Econ, do your Masters in a related discipline. I'm sure other people may have different views. Feel free to ask any questions here or in PM.

Hi Cabraloca, I think it is completely acceptable. Just be honest about it and they may well be in a position to give you more funding, or at the very least pay for you travel. If you read this forum you will find plenty of stories of people successfully asking for more funds in general, or for funds for specific purposes. Your case is definitely justified. I am also an international student from a poorer country with no access to debt. I explained this to one of the school I got into and they were able to significantly improve their offer, which made it competitive financially. Good luck!

Hi Peter, I am currently finishing my undergrad in Edinburgh so I can tell you few things about the city. First of all, I think you will love it! Everybody that I know love it. It's really green, yet historic, great music venues and extinct volcano almost in the city centre. As per cost of living, it's not that bad. You can find nice 1bed flat for around £650-700 + bills (probably around £60) in nice location where you can walk to university and even cheaper if you are willing to commute. You may also want to look at private student halls (line Unite Student), which tend to be more expensive, or private letting agencies. I can recommend Southside, they have plenty of properties around university. If you buy your groceries in Lidl you will be under £40 per week per person if you pack you lunch and dine mostly at home. Tesco is slightly more expensive but still manageable. Some other relevant prices: lunch around £5, dining out with glass of wine from £20, cinema £10. Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

@tere93 Welcome fellow Edinburger! I looked into health insurance already so I can share my findings. My fellowship offer allows me to enroll my dependents on University insurance plan and they will pay half of the premiums. We are probably going to do that at least for half a year - better safe than sorry! This information wasn't explicitly stated in the letter but it was confirmed by the Graduate School, so you may want to look into that.

@TakeruK Thank you very much! That was very helpful

Hi all! I am European admitted to funded program at Columbia ($35k stipend). I have done some research and it turns out I am eligible for J-1 visa, this was confirmed by the university. Does anyone know how the application process for J-2 for my spouse looks like? Do we need to prove that we will be able to live on my stipend itself. Obviously the reason I want to be on J-1 is that my wife will be able to work. Do you have any experience with looking for a job while on J-2. Is it much harder? I am aware that some kind of authorization is needed? Is it just a formality or do people actually get declined? I would appreciate if you could share your experiences with J1/J2 visas. Thank you very much!

Hi! First of all, congratulations on getting accepted! I am not sure if my post will be of any help but I will write it anyway. This funding package seems terribly low. Do you know if it includes health insurance and whether you have access to subsidized on-campus accommodation? I am not admitted to Berkeley but I got offers from some other Top10 departments. For comparison, Columbia offers $35k for 5 years (including summer stipend, health insurance and cheaper accomodation on campus). There are usually some opportunities to earn some money by doing additional RA work which is paid hourly. You may want to look into that. I was told by several professors that you can try negotiating funding, especially if you have better funded offers from comparable universities. Having said that, if you have means or ways to support yourself through grad school, it will definitely pay out in long run. Best of luck!

Hi there! Thank you very much for your responses. That's very helpful and I feel safer now. @AKACaz I'm in Economics which offers additional fellowship on top of GSAS Dean's Fellowship and a summer stipend. In total it adds up to about 35k. The comment about healthcare is very helpful - I have researched it a bit and it's still a bit worrying. Especially when I hear POTUS talking about obamacare... I lived in Poland and Scotland where you very rarely pay any health fees, so it's a big change for me. I was told I could try negotiating try Platinum Plan, cause I have asthma. I'll see how this goes. I will apply for student housing as soon as I am sure I will be going to Columbia. For now I am still waiting for other results. Once again, thank you very much for all the replies!

Hello! I have been admitted to Columbia with $35k pre-tax funding package in addition to tuition waiver and health insurance coverage. I can also rent university accommodation - a room for circa $1200 or studio for aroud $1500. I am international student and I have never been to New York so I do not really know what those numbers mean. I have some questions and would appreciate any answers. Do you know how much is left after tax? Is there any unpleasant surprise around the corner? Can you get by in New York for that much? Are those rents good or should I look elsewhere for a better deal? If so, where is the best place to start. Those questions all seem pretty basic but googling wasn't very helpful so far.