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avr2012

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Everything posted by avr2012

  1. I'll be starting at SAIS in the fall, but I know a few current students who are doing both a functional and a regional concentration. It certainly requires careful planning, but it would seem that you would be able to do both ERE and CS (albeit at the cost of having fewer nonconcentration electives).
  2. Hey SAIS2013: A few questions: 1) Is there any way for a first year student who will likely place out of the core econ classes via waivers to serve as a TA during Pre-term? It doesn't really make sense for me to pay $2000 for classes I've had relatively recently and at a high level, but I'd still like to participate in Pre-term, even if it is just to meet people. 2) Am I right to assume that the more advanced economics classes are generally not oversubscribed, and thus don't 'go to bid' as some of the other more popular courses do? Thanks for the help.
  3. Dft309: Do you by any chance know of anyone that lives out near Woodley Park/Cleveland Park? Or is that generally considered too far from campus? Thanks
  4. Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Johns Hopkins University Previous Degrees and GPAs: BA Economics, Philosophy, GPA: 3.99 (PBK, Dean's List) GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 770 V, 720 Q (can't do math on a computer) Previous Work Experience Straight from undergrad, but about 9 months of paid economic consulting/research assistant work Math/Econ Background: More econ than I can keep track of, Single/Multivariate Calculus, Linear Algebra, Prob/Stat & Econometrics, Logic Foreign Language Background (if applicable to your program): Spanish since grade school. Intended Field of Study in Grad School: MA-IR/MPP Long Term Professional Goals: International economic policy for a few years (WB or Treasury), transition into political risk analysis, private sector consulting Schools Applied to & Results: Applied: Fletcher, SAIS, Georgetown MSFS, HKS, WWS, Yale Jackson, SIPA Admitted: Fletcher, SAIS, HKS Ultimate Decision & Why: SAIS. Best placement for the institutions/firms I want to work for, high level of economics content, strong faculty in IPE. SAIS just about fits my interests perfectly. And I'll always to be loyal to JHU. Advice for Future Applicants: Start planning early. I knew I wanted to do a graduate program going into my sophomore year. And I knew that my top choice was SAIS. Many of the academic and extracurricular decisions I made from that point on were focused on getting myself into SAIS and programs of comparable quality. I wouldn't look at my experience as typical for someone applying straight out of their undergraduate institution--I had a number of advantages, including the fact that I already go to Hopkins and had Hopkins faculty/alumni as recommenders. Don't skimp on quantitative courses. Math is an important vehicle for understanding economics, which in turn is essential for understanding foreign affairs, but it's also an important academic credential. It serves as a signal that you can think logically and carefully.
  5. If you take the waiver exams sufficiently far in advance, you'll still have time to register for pre-term if you fail them. I think the latest date for which this would be possible is the June 1 - 3 test date.
  6. Dinged. Probably too much math/economics on my transcript.
  7. My impression from talking with professors, practitioners, and students is that the IR MSc from LSE is fairly academic--closer to Yale's Jackson program than to Georgetown/SAIS/SIPA. That said, the LSE MSc in Economics/Econometrics & Mathematical Economics is perhaps the most respected master's program in economics in the world, and certainly would be recognized in the U.S. at financial institutions and international financial organizations. If the MPA program is housed within the Economics department, or at least has a strong connection to it, then I would imagine it would offer somewhat similar recognition.
  8. Re: taking classes at Homewood as an MA candidate at SAIS. I'm pretty sure this is possible. I know of a current BA/MA who is taking a PhD course in Hopkins' political science department. It's about a 50 minute train ride from Union to Penn Station, and then a 5 minute cab from Penn to the 3400 block of N. Charles (I'm an undergrad at Homewood). So it's definitely logistically possible, and said BA/MA candidate appears to be getting credit for the course they are taking. Now, I don't know if this is encouraged or discouraged, but if a class at Homewood is relevant for a capstone paper or something of that sort, than I can't imagine SAIS would have a problem with it. I'm sure there's some limit to how many courses you can take here, however.
  9. It's my understanding that you only need to be formally admitted to the IDEV program; other functional/regional programs are open to any MA student. Meaning you're in for ERE and whatever else you decide to do (except for IDEV).
  10. In at SAIS. First choice. Incredible feeling.
  11. I can only speak to 2): Your intuition about professors' reluctance to allow policy-degree students into graduate level economics courses is correct, at least at my university and based on anecdotal evidence from students at top 20 economics programs. In general, however, this reluctance won't translate into an outright refusal to allow you to take the class, but you usually need to show the particular professor that you've had a sufficient math background to at least pass the course. For preparation: Econometrics: Peter Kennedy - A Guide to Econometrics (most grad students swear by this). Micro I: Just take Analysis. Think about going through Rosenlicht (Intro to Analysis). I wouldn't try and self-teach yourself PhD level micro. Also, most math camps at top programs are just an analysis course for those who haven't had it. Macro I: Advanced Macroeconomics - Romer Most of these courses are designed to train you to think like research economists, not policymakers. In general, they're going to be far beyond anything you would ever do in policy work, which is the reason that policy schools don't bother going into PhD level territory.
  12. http://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php?q=sais
  13. MySAIS is working as of 3/6/12 1:49 AM EST. As is ISIS. I don't think SAIS's decisions are supposed to be out for a week or so, so I would relax on that front.
  14. I hope that your personal statement to Hopkins did not refer to "SIPA" and that your personal statement to Columbia did not refer to "SAIS."
  15. 1) Neither investment banking nor consulting requires math beyond basic financial calculations. The only exception might be economic consulting firms, which tend to use regression analysis and econometrics more so than management consulting firms. 2) If you want to go into consulting or investment banking, why are you going to a public policy school?
  16. Assuming you are intending to go to Woody Woo: Basic economics: Micro: Intermediate Microeconomics - Varian Macro: Macroeconomics - Mankiw Econometrics: Introductory Econometrics - Wooldridge I wouldn't bother with many of the introductory micro and macroecononomcs textbooks. They're not really sufficient, and frankly a waste of time--just start with the intermediate stuff. Math: First: Fundamental Methods of Mathematical Economics - Chiang Then: Mathematics for Economists - Simon/Blume Each of these gives a good sampling of the methods normally used in an MPA program, without going into too much technical rigor. For online courses, check out MIT's Open CourseWare site.
  17. I don't know that characterizing SAIS (or SIPA, or similar schools that bill themselves as such) as "very, very quant-focused" is quite correct. For most of the students who attend SAIS and programs like SAIS (those from a typical political science, history, or international affairs background), the economics coursework will be more 'quantitative' than their previous coursework in the sense that it requires a bit more analytical thinking, the ability to read empirical papers, graphical/algebraic analysis, and occasionally some basic calculus. But you won't see much by way of multivariate calculus, real analysis, differential equations, or mathematical statistics at these schools, in part because policy analysis doesn't really require these tools (with the exception of maybe mathematical stats). At most, at least with respect to SAIS, you might encounter some linear algebra in the second- and third-semester Econometrics sequence, but my understanding from the students I know there is that these courses rarely have sufficient enrollment/interest to be offered. In any case, the goal of these courses is not to make you an econometrician, but simply to enable you to read (intelligently) work that uses econometric methods. In short, with your MS in statistics, the IR brand of 'quantitative' schools may not offer what you are looking for (i.e. you'll already have had most/all of the material). I would definitely look more closely at a PhD in economics, if you are interested in doing more advanced statistical work. A master's in economics would also be decent, but you should understand that MAs in economics in the U.S. (with the exception of the programs at Duke and NYU) are not that well respected (or rigorous).
  18. MSFS's information regarding coursework states that courses outside those specifically designated for MSFS students can be counted toward the degree (McDonough, etc). Does anyone know whether MSFS students can count PhD courses in the economics department? I know that MSFS offers a dual MA Econ/MSFS degree, but I'm not applying to this program, as I may do an economics PhD elsewhere (in addition to the MSFS). Thanks in advance.
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