Finding the right school

[Raveesha28]

Hi everyone, 

I have an undergraduate degree in Economics with honors and I'm looking to get masters in International Economics combined with development. I have a decent GRE score (164 V + 168 Q) and above average grades in my undergraduate course (73% - no percentiles). I've been working for a year as an editor at the Economist Intelligence Unit. 

Does anyone know what are my chances of getting admitted at the top schools across US and Europe and what do I need to strengthen my profile. 

Also, which are the good schools and professors in this field?

 

Many thanks!

 

 

[DGrayson]

After first glance your record looks really good, but you have left out quite a lot of information in the form of math classes and grades received in them. I am assuming that you have completed Calc 1-3 and at least one linear algebra class. You also really need at least one proof based class if you want to make it into a top tier program. Have you completed any research projects?  How about those providing you a letter of recommendation? Your GRE scores are good enough, and that will likely get you past the first round, but you have to differentiate yourself from all the others who have similar GRE scores. As for field rankings, US News and World Report has a pretty good list as well as AEA who has rankings based on speciality. 

[Raveesha28]

Hi DGrayson

 

Thanks for your response. I have indeed taken a couple of math classes at the undergraduate level, such as Mathematics for Economics, Statistical Methods and Analysis, Linear Algebra and Calculus, and Introductory Econometrics. My grades in all have been above average (>60/100).

Apart from my GRE, I have a range of social activities that I participated in during my graduation, a strong proficiency level in French and one year's experience of working at the Economist (which has given me a huge database on different countries' policies and their trade-standings). I'm hoping that this will get me forward with admissions committees but I would love help on how to strengthen my profile.

I'm looking into the rankings that you've suggested, although I've sort of been through the US News Report already. I was hoping if someone knew schools that were specifically known for their programs in International Economics (Masters only).

 

 

[DGrayson]

I'm a little worried about the math background. Did you take the standard calc sequence? I see you listed Linear Algebra and Calculus but i'm not sure if that is one class or two. Mathematics for Economics is usually not the same as getting through the standard calc sequence. I'll wait for your comment before I add more though. 

Not a lot of Econ graduate programs look at the Statement of Purpose. One of the members of the admissions committee at UT Austin admitted that he never read an applicant's statement. That sucks! Nevertheless, I would highlight your time at the Economist and how that influenced you to pursue graduate study. By far one of the most important aspects of your application is your Letters of Recommendation. Make sure they highlight your potential to do quality research. My Ph.D coordinator told me that a great letter tells of your ability to be a "producer rather than a consumer of knowledge."

I'm a current masters student at UT Austin's program and I would recommend it highly (though I'm a little biased  ). It's a one year program with a excellent group of advisors. I can answer any specific questions about the program if you want. 

I do want to take a second to note the different between masters and Ph.D program. I thought that you wanted to do a Ph.D, but if you are instead doing a masters degree, your options for schools narrows pretty considerably. There are a smallish number of respected masters programs and none of them are going to be heavily focused on International. On the brighter side, however, the background requirements are a lot lighter! 

Finally, International can be broken down to international finance or international trade (finance is more macro and trade is more micro). I've attached the links to IDEAS's ranking based on fields for both. This should give you a good reference point though most of the schools probably don't have masters programs. 

https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.int.html

https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.ifn.html