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I am trying for a PhD in Economics for the second time. This last year I went 0 for 10. (I applied to only top 20 programs, no safeties) I've been told I have "everything needed to get in", I just ultimately didn't make the final cut anywhere (basically, just unlucky). GPA: 3.75/4.0 GRE: 165/164/5.0 Have two academic publications in peer-reviewed journals as the sole author of each completed internships with a top 10 thinktank and with the White House can supply 3 to 5 strong letters of rec currently working on a Master's degree in Finance, with the goal of obtaining additional quantitative skills and finance industry knowledge (my area of interest is the intersection of financial systems and economic development) my undergrad was at a top 200 college (I think somewhere in the 160s) my masters is at a top 20 university The problem now is that I am going to be in debt from doing the Master's degree (I had zero debt coming out of undergrad), and am not willing to take on more debt in doing a PhD. I'm trying to figure out places where I will not only get accepted, but obtain full funding. I have no problem with lowering my sights from a top 20 program if it means getting admitted and getting the financial package that I would need to attend the program. Any advice or comments are appreciated. Cheers!

Rejected at UVA. Worried now about chances elsewhere.

GRE: 165 Verbal/ 164 Quantitative / 5.0 Writing GPA: 3.72 Major GPA: 3.85 Math Taken: Cal I, II; Linear Algebra, Multivariable Cal, Social Statistics Extracurriculars: president of political science honors society 2X all american in pre-law competitions over 2500 volunteer hours through undergrad economics publication through an Ivy League university journal lots of internship experience dealing with international trade, economics academic research fellowship in Washington DC financial modeling/Excel guru Spanish and (some) Mandarin Chinese I'm a political economy major, so my math is a bit weaker than most, but I'm wondering if I can make up for it by being "more well-rounded", as I am a strong writer, and can bring in a different perspective. I can do a solid amount of stuff in excel. Any advice or anything is appreciated! I'm looking at top 30 programs, but if that seems unreasonable, then any suggestions are welcome.

GRE: 165 Verbal/ 164 Quantitative / 5.0 Writing GPA: 3.72 Major GPA: 3.85 Math Taken: Cal I, II; Linear Algebra, Multivariable Cal, Social Statistics Extracurriculars: president of political science honors society 2X all american in pre-law competitions over 2500 volunteer hours through undergrad economics publication through an Ivy League university journal lots of internship experience dealing with international trade, economics academic research fellowship in Washington DC financial modeling/Excel guru Spanish and (some) Mandarin Chinese I'm a political economy major, so my math is a bit weaker than most, but I'm wondering if I can make up for it by being "more well-rounded", as I am a strong writer, and can bring in a different perspective. I can do a solid amount of stuff in excel. I'm applying to be a developmental economics phd candidate. Any advice or anything is appreciated!