Bravo92

Please also advise if this is the best course of action to get into a decent PhD program? will good performance in MA program of UB with a few math courses boost my chances towards a PhD and cover up my poor undergrad record?

I have just completed my Undergraduate degree in Economics with a cgpa of 3.12 and a poor record in Math courses. I really want to pursue a PhD in Economics and therefore have decided to do a Masters in Economics to improve my profile. After being rejected from all good MA programs in Canada, I applied to programs in US and got offers from University of Buffalo and Georgia state university. The question I want to ask is, which university of the two will provide me the best opportunity to get into a good PhD program? University of Buffalo ranking: 98 (IDEAS) 150-2000 (shanghai Ranking) rank not published (US news) Georgia State University ranking: 41 (IDEAS) 60 (Shanghai Ranking) 72 (US news) The trouble I am having is that although GSU has a way better ranking, yet it does not provide me with the flexibility I need to take the math courses. Furthermore I can also do a specialization in fields such as financial economics or international economics if I attend University of Buffalo. So how much would the ranking of a university matter as compared to the course content when trying to get into a PhD program? Now I am going to add another dimension to this. I am worried that I will not get into a funded PhD program and therefore I also have to look into my plan B. Now my plan B comprises of me doing a CFA and getting a decent job. So what would support my Plan B is that I get an MA from university of buffalo with financial economics specialization. The specialization also gives me additional time to take math courses as it requires 3 semesters as compared to 2 in GSU. To summarize, the question is basically a UB VS GSU question, keeping in mind my particular needs which have been mentioned above.