stopped a PhD program in economics want to start another PhD program in economics

[dabila]

I got admission into one of the top univ in the USA economics PhD prog. i was suspended from a PhD program in economics from a top USA univ due to family problems and shocks i had during the program. eg I lost 2 important persons in my life.

iwant to start another PhD program in economics from another good univ in the usa so im applying for fall 2011. however im getting MA degree from this top univ and alrealdy haave good masters in economcs before entering into this univ

my questions are:

1)can i get admission and funding like i had before with this new problem?

2) should i or not include transcript from the univ i have withdrawn from?

3) how will this affect me

please i need advice.

[DariaIRL]

1) If you were able to get into a top university before and you're currently getting an MA from there to go (shifted from the PhD to the MA) with your previous MA, it sounds like you've kept up good academic progress. Your personal loss shouldn't be considered a new problem because unfortunately, big life changes happen a lot and that can derail you. People/faculty understand this. The important thing is that you kept learning! The funding is dependent on where you apply and how much money they have.

2) Read through the application procedure for each school you apply to. Some require transcripts from all schools, some require transcripts from just degree-earning schools. Not all applications are the same.

3) Personal losses and big life changes happen, but you kept going and are looking to continue learning/growing. Good luck!

[dabila]

1) If you were able to get into a top university before and you're currently getting an MA from there to go (shifted from the PhD to the MA) with your previous MA, it sounds like you've kept up good academic progress. Your personal loss shouldn't be considered a new problem because unfortunately, big life changes happen a lot and that can derail you. People/faculty understand this. The important thing is that you kept learning! The funding is dependent on where you apply and how much money they have.

2) Read through the application procedure for each school you apply to. Some require transcripts from all schools, some require transcripts from just degree-earning schools. Not all applications are the same.

3) Personal losses and big life changes happen, but you kept going and are looking to continue learning/growing. Good luck!

Thanks

[dabila]

Thanks. But I thought if I reapply and add transcript from the school where i was suspended from the PhD but where im due to get MA in 2011, that will affect my chances of getting admission.

[DariaIRL]

Just add a brief note that explains you were initially admitted to the PhD track in the department, but then experienced huge personal losses which affected your schoolwork. Due to this, your program was shifted to an MA track in the same department. Now you are ready to continue on with the PhD with your two Master degrees in-hand. Then spend the rest of your application talking about what you've been doing in the MA program and why you are still a very competitive and strong applicant for a PhD program.

[DariaIRL]

To add onto your #2 question: Again, check w/ each school because some schools may not want every transcript from every school you went to. However, they will commonly ask for a transcript from any school where you earned a BA or higher. In this case, the program where you were shifted from the PhD track to the MA..you'll have earned an MA there and so you would likely have to submit that transcript because you earned a degree there. But again, I wouldn't think of it as a bad thing because things happen and people understand that.

[adaptations]

I think the advice that was already given is pretty spot on. Check individual application requirements regarding transcript submission. In general, you need to submit a transcript from any school you received a degree or you expect to receive a degree, and many schools require a transcript from all college/univ. level courses. In most cases you'll need to submit the transcript.

I believe a cover note with a brief explanation should suffice to account for your circumstance. This could also be handled in about two sentences in your SOP (it needs to be addressed somewhere). Switching from PhD to MA is not that bad of a thing to have in your application file. Unpredictable and challenging life-events occur, and sometimes require people to change plans. Admissions committees should/will understand this.