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rob59404 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: State University with unheard of econ department
Undergrad GPA: 3.99
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA:
GRE: 760 Q 640 V 5.5 AWA
Math Courses: Cal I-III(A,A,A), Linear Algebra(A),Probabilty/stat(A), ODE(A), Probability theory(A), math stats, intro analysis/proofs
Econ Courses: Intro micro/macro, intermediate micro/macro, development, adv. development, trade, history of thought, econometrics, graduate econometrics, graduate micro and macro. All A's
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: thesis advisor, department chair, other econ professor
Research Experience: Senior thesis
Teaching Experience: Some math and econ tutoring
Research Interests: Growth, political economy, applied micro
SOP: Standard
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Missouri($$), kentucky($$), Oregon($$), Colorado(no $), UW(no $), Virginia, GMU, Notre Dame ($$$ Attending)
Waitlists:
Rejections: NYU, BC, UIUC, Rochester
Pending: OSU (implicit rejection at this point)
What would you have done differently?
1) More math earlier
2) Should have got a math professor to write letter of recommendation
3) Get an 800Q

SlowLearner38 2010:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics, Medium Less-Selective Midwest State School (no PhD)
Undergrad GPA: 3.52
Type of Grad: Masters-level ECON courses during undergrad.
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 790Q 350V 3.5 AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III (B,A,B), Linear Algebra (A), Differential Equations (A-), Discrete Math (B)
Stat Courses: Intro Stats (A), Regression and Variance I-II (A,A-), Probability Theory (B+)
Econ Courses: Intro/Inter Micro and Macro, Senior Research Seminar, Honors Thesis, Managerial Econ, Econ Forecasting, History of Econ Thought, Public Econ, Econ of Crime, Econ of Sports
Grad Courses: Math Econ I-II (using Simon/Blume), Managerial Econ
Letters of Recommendation: 4 ECON Professors -- None are very well known, but their letters were very strong. They coordinated it so that each focused on different aspects of my ability to do graduate studies in economics in their LORs {1 research ability, 1 teaching ability, 1 classroom ability, 1 summarizing letter from the department chair with a focus on personality}.
Research Experience: Presented undergrad honors thesis at ASSA/AEA conference (won 2 awards at my school for it), Contracted research for a non-profit economic education organization, and 2nd undergrad thesis underway during the time of application.
Research Interests: Applied Micro, IO, Behavioral, Experimental
Statement of purpose: Told an elegant story about how I used to suck at college and now I don't. Tailored the last 1-2 paragraphs to each school.
RESULTS:
Ph.D. Accepts: Emory($$$), UT-Dallas($$), Arizona(Tuition Waiver), Oregon(?-Withdrew)
Ph.D. Rejects: Iowa, Vanderbilt, Virginia
Masters Accepts: UBC M.A.(Partial Tuition Scholarship), Tinbergen M.Phil.(no $)
M.A. Withdrawls: Toronto, Queen's, Simon Fraser
ATTENDING:
Emory University
What would you have done differently? Considering the constraints I was up against, coming from a low ranked state school with only a B.A. in Econ, I think I did very well for myself. Emory is a great fit for me!

takethemoneyandrun 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Mid-ranked liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.7/4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 770Q/700V/5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III (A/B/A-), Linear Algebra (A-), Probability Theory (B+), Mathematical Statistics (B+), ODEs (A-), PDEs (A), Advanced Calculus (A), Real Analysis (A), Topology (IP), Complex Analysis (IP)
Econ Courses : Intermediate Micro (B+), Intermediate Macro (A-), Intro to Econometrics (B), Labor Economics (A), Senior honors thesis (A)
Other courses: Nothing of value
Letters of Recommendation: Three econ professors (PhDs from top 30 programs) who advised me on research papers that turned out pretty well and one statistics professor with whom I did summer research. They are all very nice, helpful people and I get along well with them.
Research Experience: Two econ term papers and a senior honors thesis that I am proud of; one co-authored statistics publication based on summer research.
Teaching Experience: TA for 2 sections of introductory statistics and 2 sections of introductory economics.
Research Interests: Economics of labor, health, aging, and education.
Statement of purpose: I made it clear that I want to become an academic economist, discussing my math preparation and research interests.
Concerns: Low GRE Q and limited undergrad econ background with very shaky grades.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Virginia(wl-$), Texas(wl-$), Washington-Seattle($$), Indiana($$), UC-Davis($$), UC-Irvine($$), Rice($$), Colorado($0), Maryland AREC($$), Cornell AEM($0), Oregon($$)
Rejections: Brown, Johns Hopkins, Michigan, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, WUSTL
What would you have done differently? I would have applied to more schools in the 15-30 range. I didn't expect to be accepted to at least half of the programs that admitted me and was biased towards lower-ranked schools. I have heard this over and over, but it's worth repeating: The MC of sending out an additional application is extremely low; apply to any and every school that you think matches your research interests!