Advice on Economics Graduate Programs

[lordofsheep]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am a senior majoring in marketing and resource economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. I have a 4.0 gpa, am in honors writing a thesis on government transfer programs, and have taken 2 calculus courses.  I am planning on taking linear algebra and multivariate calc as well as econometrics next semester, although these courses will be after I apply so I do not know how much they matter.

 

I just took the GREs and received 157 quant and 158 verbal.  I know I am falling short in the quantitative section but my overall goal is to go to a top program, such as the ag econ program at UC berkeley or University of Washington Econ PhD.  I realize the likelihood I am admitted to a top PhD program now is minimal, so I am wondering what masters programs you guys recommend as a stepping stone towards my ultimate goal.

 

I am looking for a good masters program with probable funding as I am very reluctant to take out loans of any kind. UMass resource economics typically funds their master students $17,000 a year, which is fantastic and it is a good program, but I am intent on a change of scenery and new academic contacts (as I have gotten to know the UMass department quite well)

 

Does anyone have any recommendations on masters programs with funding that it is feasible that I will be admitted to?

 

Thank you SO much for your help

[aspvg]

I'm not sure about master's funding, but I would think a lot of the 2nd tier ARE schools give decent funding (probably not 17k). Here's a list you should check out:

 

NCSU

Washington State Ag

Colorado State Ag

Montana State Ag

Wyoming

Michigan State AFRE

UIUC ACE

Purdue Ag

Penn State ARE

Ohio State AEDE

 

If you work hard the 1st tier  PhDs should be within reach. Though I don't think many people would call University of Washington top tier for ag and resource.

[UrbanWonk]

If you think the shortcoming of your profile is your math ability, I'd consider doing a master's in stats or some other math field rather than econ. Physics majors tend to do quite well in econ phd programs--success is not about knowledge of econ, but fluency in the language of math. Idk much about ag econ and what they prioritize, but if you were looking for generic applied econ, that would be my advice.