jibran

Depends on why you want to do a Phd ... if you want to be a professor then a Phd will be worth it.. if your are doing it for a job... i don't think a Phd really helps until and unless your Phd improves upon some service or product however for lacking quantitative skills I suggest the Uol international programme Math Diploma and Bsc Economics...http://www.londoninternational.ac.uk/ ... then apply for the LSE MSc program in Eco then do a Phd from LSE or Cambridge.. UK Phds tend to take a bit less time than US ones ... i intend to do something similar few years down the road but I do not intend to become an academic just interested in learning stuff if you do not want to enroll at any university you can use the following to learn quantitative skills khanacademy.com The great courses (ttc) via torrents educator.com via torrents schaum's outlines https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwJRxp3blEvZyQBTTOMFRP_TDaSdly3gU - for econometrics ... use this with Wooldrige and Schaum's outlines learnitt.com You said:- 1. Is the two-year MSc Economics so much better that it's worth spending 250% more (not even including the opportunity costs of being in school for an additional year)? 2. Background: I'm interested in researching behavioral economics applications in policy, so there are many programs that provide useful training but from different angles. 3. I don't, however, have the math background for a PhD in econ, and the two-year econ program at LSE is super-expensive for someone pursuing a career in academia. Hence, I'm applying to a series of doctoral and master's programs, the latter of which would be an attempt to boost my competitiveness for Fall 2014 entry into a PhD program (e.g., PhD Public Policy or PhD Marketing at a department whose faculty explores applications in public policy). there is a slight conflict in the above 3 statements a career in academia depends what you want to teach, where you want to teach and how much you expect to earn... for example you cannot really teach economics revolving around public policy at a top economics program such as those at harvard, MIT, Columbia, etc, if you have say a Phd in Public Policy or Phd in Marketing (revolving around public policy) so far as i know... plus there is an overflow of Phds in the US because of which professors really do not earn a lot I think it would be best to ask a good Phd student and a well known professor who also gets paid for consultation services..just to get an idea about life as an academic