MAN
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Posts posted by MAN
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by Phonologist on Fri Jan 16, 2009 3:47 pm
I'm not superstitious, just a little stitious.
My wife and I quote The Office all the time. That's one of our favorite lines.
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Round using the standard rules (i.e. if 5 or over, round up. if less than 5, round down).
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I kept a color coordinated excel spreadsheet with pages for each of the schools I applied to and an additional page for my letters of recommendation (total of 10 pages).
On each school page, I broke down the pros and cons of attending, listed all of the application materials needed, noted where things needed to get sent to, and made various other notes. On the letters of rec. page, I listed each of my profs and had a check list for each schools paperwork (and whether they had a specific cover sheet they wanted sent).
I guess the job I've had for the past 3+ years has made me a bit anal about organization, but it really helped me keep track of what I was missing at which schools.
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I don't think it is a big deal.
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I signed up for that service on the GRE where they post your scores and schools can recruit you. Now I'll get e-mails in my inbox from random schools and I'm stuck thinking, "I don't remember applying to Iowa State." Good times.
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I applied to 2 schools that I considered safeties:
1) My alma mater - I figured that I would easily get in and could get funding if everything else fell through
2) An in-state school - I figured if I couldn't get in anywhere else with funding, at least I could get in-state tuition.
Oddly, the in-state school rejected me within a week of me submitting my application. They said it was some sort of technicality about the grade in one of my math courses. I'll tell you what, getting rejected by one of your "safeties" that quickly makes you completely re-think your admission chances. From that point until I got my first acceptance, I was freak-out central.
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Like every other grad school applicant, I have been constantly checking my schools websites for anything in regards to my admission status.
I was looking at one of the applications I sent in online yesterday. As I was clicking through the application, I saw something that said, "Congratulations!..."
My heart skipped a bit. I started to get excited. Then I read the rest of the message.
"Congratulations! Your application has been submitted successfully."
Why would they post it like that? They need it to something mundane like, "Your application has been submitted." Instead, they get my hopes up and then dash them.
Anyone else have a similar experience?
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I had my profs send the LORs directly to the schools I applied to (I gave them addressed/stamped envelopes). It made it easy for them and kept me away from any moral issues.
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Has anyone else here been looking at your prospective programs' course syllabi?
I've been concerned over my math background for Econ. So, I've been checking out what "math for economics" classes each of my prospective schools offer. Then I'll look at the syllabi and see what books they use, what topics they cover, how the class is set up, etc.
I know things may (and likely will) change between now and when I start the program, but I still like getting an idea of what I'm getting into.
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Accepted - 6
Rejected - 3
Accepted with funding - 2... hopefully more.
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I loved the Kaplan GRE prep book with practice tests and problems on CD. I studying that thing for about 3-4 months. I ended up getting 560 V, 800 Q, and 4.0 AWA. I really studied the Q section heavily and pretty much disregarded the rest (Q is the major concern for Econ).
Anyway, I'd suggest taking the GRE again. This time, focus your study a little bit more (hopefully you don't have any life interruptions).
I'm pretty sure GWU would look at your entire application before making a decision. Having one bad area won't kill you. Having several bad areas, though, might get you rejected. With a borderline GPA, you're going to need to have decent to good GRE scores or a ton of work experience or have a great research paper published (or a combo of all three) to have your application noticed.
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Based on that formula I have a score of 678.4.
In case there are lazy people who don't want to go to the order forum, the formula is as follows:
GRE Verbal * 0.3 + GRE Quantitative * 0.3 + GPA * 200 * .40
The poster of this formula says it is the first cut his/her school (a R1 school) takes in thinning down the applications.
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I found my admission decisions for Colorado State and Illinois State on their respective websites.
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Here's a list of all Econ schools in the U.S. It notes on what types of degrees it offers.
https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/economics-rankings
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I appreciate the advice, studentfromLA.
I have started studying a couple math for economists books to better prepare myself for the master's programs. Your post has inspired (aka scared me into) studying a bit harder.
I guess I forgot to mention that I have no problems with linear algebra (I loved my physics class that was all about the lin. alg.). Also, while at ISU, I took an Intro to Econometrics (aka stats 101) and an Advanced Econometrics course. I received an A in each class and thought they weren't too difficult.
So, I feel comfortable that with hard work, I'll be able to do well in grad school. But I know I'm against odds playing some catch up here (still no matrix algebra, diff.eq., or real analysis experience under my belt).
Thank you for your insight!
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Here is the GRE's website's information on the faulty algorithm:
The GRE Program has recently implemented another review process of individual test performance for the computer-based GRE General Test Verbal and Quantitative sections. The purpose of the process is to analyze each test taker -
If you wanted to be really devious, here's what to do:
Never tell any one about the girl. Then, hopefully, she gets admitted to a prestigious program. Then she goes through the program and does really well. After school she lands a job that pays some big bucks (or has some high-powered connections). That's when you come in. Do a little blackmailing, make some decent money, and have a good time all around. :twisted:
This plan might not be for everyone (like the people saying that forging letters of recommendation is wrong). If you are less scrupulous, it may be an option.
Note: I'm just playing devil's advocate here. I probably wouldn't follow this plan. :?
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Small mistakes seem to be pretty common among applicants. I wouldn't worry too much about them (unless you are going for a PhD in English or something of that ilk).
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Colorado State (the school I mentioned earlier in this thread) just posted my admission status on the website. I've been accepted. Now I just have to see what kind of financial package I get (if any).
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I don't think the Quantitative scores are going to be all that improtant for you (seeing as though you are an art history major).
If you can get a 400 or above, I'd say you'd probably be okay. If I read your original message correctly, you are going to start applying next fall for programs (so, I'm assuming you are going to apply for the Fall 2010 year). If that is the case, you have plenty of time to study up on the GRE.
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I'd be willing to blog about my experiences.
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I ended up doing the standard five paragraph on #1, a paragraph on #2, and I used the #3 as a chance to talk about some issues with my academic record (I had a terrible first year and then bounced back the rest of the way).
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I had one school with rolling admissions e-mail me and said that they'd get back to me with the results in about 2 weeks. It has been 3 and a half weeks so far. Still haven't heard from them.
I'm assuming they are being held up because they have to get the record-setting jumbo-sized financial aid package they are giving me approved.
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You have a few options available based on what you want to do.
If you want to pursue a career/job, go ahead and apply to positions that say "3.0 GPA required." Most of the time that is more of a guideline than a strict policy. Also, you can adjust your resume to show yourself in the best light possible (i.e. when discussing your educational history, use your 3.4 Econ GPA). If they have any questions about you overall GPA/Math GPA, you can explain it in an interview. The only issue I can foresee for applying for a job would be the current economic downturn. A lot of companies that would normally be looking Econ majors are on Wall Street. As you probably know, those are the companies that have been hit the hardest lately.
If you are looking to get some research experience you might want to look into the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). From what I've seen, they tend to have a few Economist/research assistant type of positions listed. So, this might be a good place to apply to get some experience that looks good on an application/resume.
Pursuing graduate school is a little more complex. Here are some options to consider (since you say you would like to pursue Econ, I'm focusing more on that than on math):
1) If you are looking to get a more job that uses applied economics, you can just go for a masters degree. There are some lower tier schools that have lower GPA requirements (I know the Illinois State econ department only requires a 2.6). Of course, getting a masters degree at a lower tier school makes it more difficult for you to find a job post-graduation.
2) If you ultimately want to get an Econ PhD, I'd say apply for a masters in math. This would give you the chance to A) show your proficiency in math (this is huge for an Econ PhD) and
you would be able to submit your Masters scores when applying to Econ programs. If you end up kicking butt in the math masters program, you will show you are capable of grad level work. Thus programs are more likely to be interested in you.Note: If you want to pursue an Econ PhD, do not apply to an Econ masters program. The Econ masters programs are usually more of an applied nature than PhD programs. So, it doesn't really help out your application to the PhD programs.
If you want to look further into Econ graduate schools, I've found this link to be a huge help:
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AEA/gradstudents/Schools.htm
You can also check out this site:
Web Still Reporting Missing Documents
in Applications
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I kept my important files on a flash drive as well as the hard drive. Flash drives are so large and inexpensive now.