tacos95

Good work to you on the GRE Sargon! Yeah, the subfield bit makes sense. I did end up taking it again and got V:168 and Q:160 (13 percentile improvement in quant), so even if some schools take only most recent score, my verbal is only one percentile lower than I would've had otherwise. However, I've decided to go MPP route . . . I know, I know: not pure academic goodness. I really do appreciate that and would love to dally around with a PhD, but I don't want to have such minimal income for 5 years (even after considering PhD fellowhips vs MPP cost).

Program Applying To: Georgetown McCourt MPP, Johns Hopkins SAIS MA, George Washington University MPP, American Uni MPP, U of Maryland MPP Undergraduate institution: Private liberal arts better than 170 . . .Undergraduate GPA: 3.5 Major GPA: 3.7Undergraduate Major: EconomicsGRE: V: 170, Q: 160, AW: 5.0Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3Years of Work Experience: 1.7Describe Relevant Work Experience: Data analyst at startup quant consulting firmStrength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): Should be pretty strong. I can communicate well, and I'm (perhaps obviously) super interested in policy. I think I can leverage my quantitative work experience into a relevant qualification. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): One from chair of undergrad department, one from founder/CEO of job at consulting job, one from executive methodology type at consulting job. Should all be positive. Other/Questions: Largely interested in how much funding folks think I can get. That, probably as for most, will be the primary determinant. Thanks!

I took the GRE a couple weeks ago and was very pleased to end up with a 170 on verbal. However, my quant was lower. Not horrendous, but not where I wanted it to be. I had taken several practice tests, and my official score was about 5 points below the average of my practice tests. Not sure what happened. Primary study plan now is to take practice tests with reduced time. Now, I just want to see if an idea I have is totally hair-brained: what if I just didn't answer the verbal questions on my second test, and then sent GRE scores from both tests to all my desired universities? That way, they'll see the 170, and I don't have to worry about not doing as well on the verbal while I try to recover some quant points. But I could also see plenty of reasons that this would look weird to people reviewing my application , e.g. did I just focus on one section each time and I have a really one-track mind, etc. And I don't feel daunted by taking the verbal again. I just wanted to see if taking the verbal again is like disposing of a gem. Anyhow, advice on whether it's stupid to consider not answering verbal on my second test would be appreciated. My undergrad background isn't super impressive, so I'm trying to bulk up where I can. thanks.

Thanks. That's all very helpful information. And I like the idea of the MAPSS at Chicago. If I could get a good scholarship, I would definitely be interested in doing that before a PhD program.

I'm piggy-backing on this question. My background isn't nearly as impressive, but I'd like to know my odds for a top 30 school. Type of Undergrad Institution: Nationally ranked liberal arts college, but only in the top150 rangeMajor(s)/Minor(s): Econ/EnglishUndergrad GPA: 3.5 (major was 3.8, but idk if that means anything at all)GRE: V: 166, Q: 162 (based on a few practice tests)Any Special Courses: n/aLetters of Recommendation: Two from econ profs that should be pretty favorable but not well-known, third probably from employer/owner of consulting firmResearch Experience: Senior thesis about domestic policy econ stuff, professional quant consulting, but I'm not sure how much that counts Work experience after undergrad in analytic consulting. I'm interested in the theory track, but I think I'm well-suited to methods/other quant stuff, maybe as a minor. I can handle whatever must be said. Like I mentioned, I'm shooting for top 30. If that's not feasible, would like to know what my expected range should be. Thanks.