UrbanWonk

Differential equations are used in macro, but having taken 2 semesters of diffeq (ordinary and partial) didn't help me with them much--the solving techniques are pretty different. Knowing what BVPs and IVPs are is somewhat helpful, but since most of them will be solved using numerical methods and not by hand, there's not a huge benefit to having taken it. Much more important are stats and real analysis, and secondly proving that you're capable of graduate-level coursework (that's probably why they suggested the intermediate course), especially if you're aiming at universities that are a tier up from your undergrad. Arguably most important is demonstrated research ability, so if taking the intermediate course would be in lieu of RAing, I wouldn't recommend it, but if you could do both, that would be ideal.

If you think the shortcoming of your profile is your math ability, I'd consider doing a master's in stats or some other math field rather than econ. Physics majors tend to do quite well in econ phd programs--success is not about knowledge of econ, but fluency in the language of math. Idk much about ag econ and what they prioritize, but if you were looking for generic applied econ, that would be my advice.

For what season are you applying? If you're doing this year, you're cutting this a bit close! You're going to want to have a few from all the tiers, etc etc. They'll mostly care about your stats and real analysis background, and so if you're not going to take analysis, you want to prove your ability in abstract math in other ways or tell them you plan on (and actually follow through) taking analysis over the summer at a local college or something. I didn't take it at all, and I got some questions about it, but I got into 2/3 econ programs, probably mostly on my research ability/recs. Basically, they don't want to invest in you if you're going to flunk out your first year, so prove them wrong.

Ditto on negarey. I've lived in PGH for the last 3 years (PhD at CMU) and though I have a car, I hardly ever use it (have put 6,000 miles on it over the 3 years and most of that comes from 5 hour drives to visit my parents). BUT I was very particular in where I chose to live. I live on the edge of East Liberty & Shadyside, which means there are 2 CMU shuttles and 6 public buses that could get me to school (and there is redundancy at the stops so weather isn't too much of a problem), and I live within 10 minutes' walk of Trader Joe's, Giant Eagle, and Target. You pay more for the convenience, but it's totally doable car-free. If you live in Oakland, you'll have a closer walk to school, but it'll be less convenient for groceries, etc. There's ZipCar as mentioned and also rentable bicycles at various stations throughout the city. Coming from up North, I will say that PGH drivers are terrible in the snow...I almost missed my flight because people were driving 30 mph on the highway just because there was a bit of white stuff in the air. Weather does screw up schedules somewhat, but you should never plan on taking "the last bus" with any public transportation in any city--it's never perfectly reliable.

Mine (I don't cook every night but I attempted to plan it as if I did)-- Chicken pot pie (I make it in advance; it freezes super well) Curry Steak or some other treat (the nice thing about being a PhD student) Spinach and red onion pizza (I make the dough in advance and freeze it; take it out to thaw the morning of) Blackened fish tacos Pasta (I make large batches of sauce and freeze them) Another favorite recipe of mine (from Pinterest) is stuffed peppers with minute steaks (or chicken sausage), mushrooms, onions, and provolone cheese. I also just discovered a recipe for samosa stuffed baked potatoes and they're fantastic (blog is Leaf Parade). I'm a big fan of making quinoa with black beans in advance and then bringing that with burrito toppings for lunches. Also with your hummus idea, have you ever had Hummus Ma Lahma? Seasoned ground meat over top of hummus, and carrot slices work well for scooping it up. Happy cooking!

Welcome to both of you! I'm in my second year of a joint Econ/Pub Pol PhD at CMU (Tepper & Heinz). Pittsburgh is a great city--some of the cosmopolitan nature of bigger cities without the higher pricetag! I believe the Heinz Master's Facebook page has some sort of a roommate request board, so I'd suggest looking there. You want to have a rental secured by May, or else the good bargains will be gone. Also, STAY AWAY from Lobos (you'll see pink signs). My landlord is CJ Greve and they're excellent. I've heard mixed things about Mozart as well. If you haven't had a shared apartment before, make sure when you're negotiating your lease that your payments are independent; i.e., you can't be evicted for your roommate's failure to pay. As far as houses go, several of the students in my program with families have purchased homes in Greenfield and really like the neighborhood. Dogs are tough with renting--a lot of landlords are cat-friendly but far fewer are dog-friendly, and most of those aren't places you'd really want to live (with the exception of a few snazzy new buildings like the apartment complex by SouthSide Works and the one owned by the same at the Waterfront). Those would run you close to $1200/month, though, and you can get a house for much less. There are some condos in the city but they've been on the market for a few years--the market for traditional houses is much more stable--Pittsburgh didn't see too much of the bubble, so also not too much of the burst. Think about what your preferred mode of transporation will be--there are some folks who bike from the more remote areas, but most drive or take the bus. If that's your plan, then consider the Port Authority routes and plan for potential cutbacks on those. I'm not on here too often, but feel free to message me if you have further questions and hopefully I'll see it in my email. Cheers!

Hey all, I'm a first year PhD student at CMU, so I've lived in PGH the better part of a year. I live in Shadyside--while it's pricier, there's lots to do but it still has a residential feel. For the poster looking for a not-yet-gentrified area, I definitely second the recommendation of Lawrenceville--I don't promise that it won't be gentrified in about 5 years, but there's an awesome vibe right now and though it's on the way up, prices haven't caught up yet. I haven't heard much about Mozart, but I've heard to avoid Lobos at all costs. I'm renting from C.J. Greve and have had a great experience with them--really responsive maintenance, and they were flexible with a couple of changes I wanted in the lease. For finding a flatmate, I'd talk to other people in your program--that's probably your best bet. If you're sharing with someone else it will be quite easy for you to find a place only paying 600...but apartments tend to go quickly. I waited until June and that was almost too long (I wanted an 8/1 move-in), so I'd at least start researching some places and setting up appointments. About Highland Park--it's a nice, safe, family-friendly area, and the 71B is quite convenient (although bus services /may/ be getting reduced in the fall), but there's not a lot over there other than Bryant St. That said, there are some great restaurants on Bryant St. and if you think you'll be happy to travel elsewhere for nightlife, go for it. For all--Pitt's housing website is pretty darn good. I definitely recommend checking it out.

I'll clarify my recommendation for the Westcott area--it's best if you're looking to rent with a group. If you have 3-4 people, you can get a house (yes, with claw foot tubs! my bf's apartment on Westcott has them) for $300 or $400 a month each. If you're looking for a single, you're going to be paying $600 and up in the SU area...it's hard to find reasonably priced singles because the market is dominated by groups of undergrads. Some of the houses in the area have been subdivided to create studio apts (I know that's how a lot of the Euclid offshoots are, too), but this isn't really a neighborhood that caters to those who want to live alone. There will be a bit of a displaced graduate population looking for housing this year, though--the university used to let grad students live on South Campus (maybe 2 dozen did) and is changing that policy. Apartments usually are gone by early summer here, though, so if you can trek over in the near future, I would really recommend that.

Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Syracuse University Previous Degrees and GPA's: B.A. in Policy Studies, B.S. in Economics, GPA: 3.92 GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 680/800/5 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): 2 years (nonconsecutive) work as research asst for think tank & research asst for econ prof Math/Econ Background: Math minor...I've taking everything but Real Analysis! (B.S. Econ is our quant. econ degree) Foreign Language Background: Semi-fluent in Spanish Intended Field of Study in Grad School: Urban policy/economics Long Term Professional Goals: Consultant for non-profit to help cities revitalize Schools Applied to & Results: Econ PhD: Duke ®, Brown (A w/o 1st year $), CMU (A, mucho $); MPP: CMU (A, $), Brown (A, $), HKS (A, no $) Ultimate Decision & Why: CMU for the dual PhD in Econ/Policy. I picked it mostly because of financials, but the program is a really good fit for me and I'm stoked about the city. I might have spent more time looking at apartments and faculty mentors than working on my thesis of late... Any advice to Future Applicants? Name schools are nice, but don't let them rule your application list. Only apply to schools that you'd actually attend with the amount of funding you think you might get (that perception might be off, but it's a better guide than U.S. News & World Report). Also, write your personal statement over the summer. I wrote one for a fellowship application, and I ended up tweaking it for my MPP apps. I wrote the one for the PhD apps right before their deadlines...look at my results... =)

I got the same as mmac--loans, loans, and more loans! There will definitely be a spot opening up at HKS for someone on the waitlist. Thanks everyone for all the support throughout this crazy process...CMU, here I come!

For those who don't want to be in the immediate university area with the undergrads, i'd recommend looking in the Westcott area. It's an easy bike ride or a 15-20 minute walk to the university, and has its own "theater" (mostly for concerts), restaurant strip, laundry, liquor, etc. Sort of an urban village within Syracuse. There's a community center up the road that has a ton of dance classes, and also hosts a farmers' market during good weather. Talk with the landlord about utilities, though--this is an older area and heat in the winter can get pricy. They'll have an idea of the typical bill. Money goes a lot further in this area than Euclid/Comstock which is adjacent to the university. Syracuse isn't a huge city, but it does have a reasonable nightlife. There are clubs, bars, etc; most close at 2am (I believe Buffalo is the only part of upstate NY where the bars are open later). The theater isn't bad for its size (not Broadway-quality but excellent for Syracuse), and there are a lot of cultural events throughout the year. And don't knock the university events before you check them out--Syracuse is pretty unique in having strong programs in very disparate areas, so campus concerts are as incredible as model shows by the architecture students. As per the bike comments--it doesn't work November-February, but it makes your rent payments a lot lower in those other months (because you can live further from campus). The bus system is pretty good, and free for students...the Westcott area I mentioned is covered by the East Campus bus. I did 4 years at SU without a car, and while it's nice for grocery runs, it's definitely not necessary. Feel free to PM!

98% sure I'm headed to CMU in the fall! For the poster who's from the Pitt area, any idea on when one should secure an apartment? In my undergrad city, most of the good places were gone by January of the year before...should I try to find a place during my campus visit next week or can I wait until summer? Congrats to everyone!

So I've been accepted to HKS for the MPP, Brown for the MPP, and CMU for the MSPPM. I got slightly more money from CMU than from Brown but am hoping that I can go back to Brown and lobby for a bit more or a TAship. I want to study urban policy and hopefully go into policy consulting/non-profit work. Thoughts on each program? Obviously HKS wins the name battle, but I've heard some negative things about the school's relationship with Boston and Cambridge, and I'd really like to be able to do fieldwork. Thanks!

Sure (accepted for MPP, Social & Urban Policy) Undergrad Econ & Policy double major, math minor (Private mid-tier school) GPA: 3.9 GREs: 800Q, 680V, 5AW Several summers of work experience (research, think tank), two submissions for publication As far as advice, I guess sometimes it's nice to coming in as a big fish from a little pond, rather than one of many very distinguished students at HYP, etc...I had a lot of opportunities that I wouldn't have gotten at a "better" university, and I think they helped my application a lot.

So by a great stroke of fortune, my financial need wasn't an issue in undergrad due to an extremely generous merit scholarship. Now that I'm about to attend graduate school, I've filled out the FAFSA, and gotten merit aid offers from several schools, none of which are enough to cover tuition. I know there have been a few posts on this topic, but none have fully spelled out the process (please forgive my ignorance). Specifics about my situation--I have a very low EFC, a small scholarship ($5k) from a private foundation that will carry over to graduate school, and partial tuition merit scholarships at several schools. I'm guessing I'll need to take out student loans, but I was wondering if anyone knows how a graduate school responds to demonstrated financial need...do I have any shot at getting any grants/work-study positions from the school itself, or is that really just an undergrad thing? Does demonstrated need ever help you secure a TAship or RAship? I'm also a bit lost with the myriad types of government and foundation-based loans available...if anyone could give me a quick rundown on preferences/advantages, I would really appreciate it. Lastly, what kind of expenses are eligible for government loans? Can I use them for housing? Meals? Thank you SO MUCH! I really appreciate the help.