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mtjsvc 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: 3rd-tier liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.8
Type of Grad: straight from undergrad
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 650V, 4.0AWA
Math Courses:
calc I-III (A-/A-/B), linear algebra (A), ordinary & partial diff eq (A), complex variables (A), topology (A-), real analysis I-II (A/IP), prob & stats (A), interest theory & financial math (IP)
Econ Courses:
micro/macro principles (A/A), intermediate micro/macro (B+/A), advanced micro/macro (A/A), econometrics (A), game theory (A), experimental econ (A), int. trade (A), int. finance (A)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ profs (thesis advisor, advanced micro/macro prof), 1 math prof (real analysis/topology prof)
Research Experience: senior thesis (experimental/labor), summer RA for experimental economist at a different university
Teaching Experience: tutor and grader for micro/macro principles, tutor for advanced macro
Research Interests: experimental econ, micro theory
SOP: I talked about my experience with experimental econ (course, thesis, RA)
Other: My undergrad school is small and not very good overall, but the econ training is focused on preparing us for PhD programs. About half of the econ majors here go for a PhD after graduating, with a good success rate in actually completing the degree.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Ohio State (fellowship) <attending>
Purdue (fellowship)
Arizona (TA-ship)
Penn State (TA-ship)
Texas A&M (RA-ship)
Virginia (TA-ship)
Rejections:
probably Carnegie Mellon, Indiana, and Pitt since they haven't admitted me yet
What would you have done differently?
I would have applied to a few higher ranked schools and not applied to a few lower ranked schools.

anothereconstudent 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 50 research University with unknown econ dept.
Undergrad GPA: 3.97 cumulative
Type of Grad: Straight from undergrad
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 780Q, 690V, 5.5AWA
Math Courses:
Calc I-III (A/A/B+), Linear Algebra (A-), Diff EQ (A), Time Series & Spatial Analysis (A), Prob & stats (A-), Real Analysis (current)
Econ Courses:
Intermediate Micro/Macro, Adv Micro, about 12 subject courses and econometrics. (4.0)
Letters of Recommendation: Econ profs - senior thesis advisor, 2 profs I had TA'd for and had in at least 2 classes. They were pretty strong.
Research Experience: Senior thesis, research assignments at work
Teaching Experience: TA for Intro Micro/Macro
Research Interests: Applied Micro, applied IO
SOP: Fairly generic
Other: Won award for best thesis, best econ student. Extensive programming experience in SAS and stata. Economics-related job.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
UIUC (attending)
OSU
Georgetown
all funded
Rejections:
MIT
Berkeley
Chicago
Columbia
Northwestern
Maryland
UT Austin
What would you have done differently?
Applied to more schools, especially schools in the 5-20 range. Taken real analysis sooner.

rdblots 2007:
Profile:
Gre: 800 Q, 570 V, 6.0 A
GPA: Overall: 3.86. Math: 3.96, Econ: 3.94 (Econ major with math minor)
Classes:
Math: Calc II, Multivariable, Intro Lin Alg, Diff Eq, Math Stat, Intro Proofs, Linear Algebra (A's), Advanced Calc (A-)
Econ: all the usual undergrad courses (A's). PhD Math Econ (A), PhD Micro (B+).
Type of Undergrad: Virginia Tech
Research Experience: this past summer and fall I RA'd for a professor at my school, I only did minor tasks, but it was still a pretty good experience
Teaching Experience: 3 semesters of tutoring economics (principles and intermediate micro)
LORs: All of my letter writers were encouraging and thought my choice of schools fit me well, so I am taking that to mean the letters should be decent. 1) Assoc. Prof/Head of Undergrad (PhD Stanford) who I tutored for and with whom I took a class, 2) Assist. Dean/Assoc. Prof who I worked with on my RA project (PhD Northwestern), 3) Prof., tutored his intermediate micro course, took intermediate micro and PhD Math Econ with him. (PhD Minnesota)
SoP & Interests: I talked about being interested in applied micro research. I named some professors from each school who had research that I found interesting.
Other: male/white/american. Boring.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Funding- Duke (attending), Cornell, Boston College, UNC, UVA, Ohio State, Vanderbilt, Georgetown
No funding- Maryland, Boston U.
Rejections: Brown
What would you have done differently? I would have only applied to Duke.

TruDog 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top-five public liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.69, cum laude and with general honors
Type of Grad: None
GRE: Q800, V610, A5.0
Math Courses: Calc I/II/III (B/A/C), differential equations (pass), linear algebra (C?), nonparametric stats (B), two semesters of graduate probability (C/C?)
Econ Courses: Intermediate micro/macro (A/A), mathematical economics (B), econometrics (B), numerous electives (3.7 major GPA)
Letters of Recommendation: Strong, but from unknown professors (one each in economics, finance, and statistics--all familiar with my research)
Research Experience: Presented finance research at American Society of Business and Behavioral Sciences' annual conference, also submitted to professional journals. Also interned at US Treasury's Office of Economic Policy in Washington.
Research Interests: Public (higher education, pensions)
SOP: Fairly general--highlighted my writing and research experiences
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wisconsin (no $), Ohio State (deferred one quarter)
Rejections: Minnesota, Michigan, Northwestern, Chicago, Emory, Duke, WUSTL, Iowa, Virginia
What would you have done differently?
My problem was that my institution never emphasized the quantitative aspects of economics, so I had to overload on math courses late in the game after discovering econphd.net. That hurt my GPA, which certainly hurt the strength of my application.
Advice: Take math courses early on, and do lots of research and writing. My writing background was the only reason why I got accepted anywhere.

Andronicus 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Regional state university in North Carolina
Undergrad GPA: 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: Same as undergrad
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0
GRE: 760Q / 720V / 4.0AW
Math Courses: Calculus I-IV, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Introduction to Topology, Probability and Statistics I, Advanced Calculus I. Taking Probability and Statistics II and Advanced Calculus II this spring.
Econ Courses: All the basic micro, macro, and econometrics for BS and MS, plus electives in mostly applied micro fields.
Other Courses: Logic
Letters of Recommendation: Three from econ professors (Ohio State, Iowa, South Carolina), 2 of whom I have done research with. One more from the math professor (Michigan State) who taught my topology and advanced calculus courses.
Research Experience: I did a master's research project on dividend taxes. A further paper on this topic, coauthored with several professors (including one of my letter writers), is currently under review. I worked with another letter writer on a project examining the impact of brownfield cleanup and redevelopment on surrounding residential housing values. I've also worked with a professor in the geography department on a study of public transportation cost-effectiveness in North Carolina and another study of traffic congestion relief.
Teaching Experience: During my MS program I was the economics department tutor for managerial economics. I've also tutored and/or TA'd for many other courses at the undergrad, MBA, and PhD Public Policy levels. Last semester, I taught micro principles at the local community college. I'm teaching macro principles this semester.
Research Interests: Public, Urban/Regional, Experimental
SOP: Mostly talked about my coursework and research experience, with the last paragraph customized to the school.
Other: American male, 26, married (no kids)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UT-Austin ($?), Ohio State ($?), Pittsburgh ($), Vanderbilt ($$$)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Northwestern
Pending: UIUC, Indiana, Houston, Georgia State
What would you have done differently?: Worked extra hard to improve my GRE Q-score. Applied to a couple more top-20 programs instead of Houston and Georgia State. Applied to Wharton Applied Economics instead of Northwestern.

ward 2008:
PROFILE:
School: Oklahoma State University
Type of Undergrad: Economics (Honors) and Mathematics
Undergrad GPA: 3.9 (4.0 Econ, ~3.8 Math)
Type of Grad: none
GRE: V 530, Q 790, A 5.0
Math Courses: Calculus 1-3, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Calc. of Several Variables, Intro. to Modern Algebra, Intro. to Modern Analysis, Mathematical Statistics 1 & 2, Mathematical Modeling, Advanced Calc 1.
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Public Finance, History of Economic Thought, Econ Development, Econometrics (undergrad), Grad Micro Theory, Grad Math Econ.
Other Courses: Computer Science I, SAS Programming
Letters of Recommendation: not from well known professors but must have been fairly strong. Two tenured Econ professors and my Intro. to Analysis prof
Research Experience: honors thesis, but nothing substantial
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Applied Micro, Micro Theory, Behavioral and Experimental
SOP: I put some time into it but it was essentially the same for each school; I just changed a few sentences here and there.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Duke($$) <attending>
Wisconsin (no$)
Ohio State ($$)
UIUC ($$)
Arizona ($$)
Waitlists:
NYU
Rejections:
Harvard
M.I.T.
Northwestern
UCSD
Penn State
RA position at NYC Fed
What would you have done differently?
I would have tried to pick programs that fit my interests better and probably would have applied to more schools - especially in the 10-25 range. That's really about all I would have changed.

needeconhelp 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: large US public university(SUNY-SB), Econ and applied math Major
Undergrad GPA: overall GPA: 3.79; eco: 3.89 ; math:3.88.
GRE: 800Q, 510V,AWA 4.0
Math Courses: Calc 1-3 (A), differential equations(A),Logic, Language and Proof (B), Introduction to Real Analysis (A), Mathematical Statistics(A), Data Analysis(A), Finite Mathematical Structures (B+),Applied Linear Algebra (A), Linear Algebra(fall), Real Analysis(fall),
Econ Courses: A's: Intro, Micro, Macro, Strategic thinking, Regional, Mathematical Statistics, Applied Microeconomics, Financial; Econometrics (A-), Money and Banking (B+)
Grad classes: Graduate Data Analysis (A), Introduction to Probability(B-), Microeconomics(fall)
Other Courses: Intro to comp. sci.(A)
Letters of Recommendation:
4 strong letters(Yale, Stanford,LSE )
Research Experience: Independent research(fall) with Economics honors thesis
Teaching Experience: Grading assistant for intro to economics.
Research Interests: economics of education, family ( i guess labor, developement), applied microeconomics
SOP: probably below standard.
Other: I have been part of a scientific research on arsenic in drinking water in bangladesh. Thus, I have been co-authored in a few science publications. I can get some very strong recommendations from some of these professors who are really well-known in their fields.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UVA($$), Ohio state($$),Duke (no stipend), Wisconsin(no $$ or tuition), Pittsburgh(no $)
Rejections: Berkeley, Columbia, Michigan, yale, brown, harvard, stanford, wharton, Upenn, UCLA, Maryland
What would you have done differently?
-more Pure math classes and actually work harder
-not send my Honors thesis to some school, because it was not that great.

ephyou 2008:
Type of Undergrad: top 10 liberal arts
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: none
GRE: 790/630/6.0
Math Courses: multi, linear alg, real & complex analysis, diff-e-q, stat+prob
Econ Courses: metrics, math-econ, history of thought
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ profs, 1 math prof from top 10 uni's
Research Experience: RA at university, govt agency, private sector
Teaching Experience: TA, math/stats/econ/stata&sas tutor
Research Interests: "inequality," metrics
SOP: spent 5 min on it
RESULTS:
Acceptances: osu, virginia, jhu, ucsd (attending), boston uni, brown
Rejections: chicago, berkeley, mich, columbia
What would you have done differently? i graduated in '07 and took a year off. would have tried to do one of those full-time academic research assistanships

MNGoon 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics and Political Science with a Math Minor from large state University top 25ish in general, top 20 in Econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.07/4.0
Type of Grad: Master of Regional Planning
Grad GPA: 3.8/4
GRE: 780Q, 710V, 800A
Math Courses: Calculus (multi variate), Linear Algebra, Differential Equations
Econ Courses (PhD-level): None
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Public, Input-Output, IO, Urban, Housing, Game Theory, Micro and Macro Theory
Other Courses: A whole pile of Economic Development and GIS courses for Masters
Letters of Recommendation: 3 economic develoment professors (1 UC-Berkely PhD, 1 Cornell PhD, 1 Rutgers PhD), all extremely solid.
Research Experience: RA for Econ Development Prof, thesis, and cited extension work
Teaching Experience TA for Masters level Urban and Spatial Econ
Research Interests: Public Finance, Urban Econ, Spatial Modeling, Community Economic Development, Extension
SOP: Critiqued by Econ Profs
Other: Been out of school for a while, Former Peace Corps Volunteer, Currently working for a non-profit loan fund
RESULTS:
Attending: UW-Madison (Agricultural and Applied Economics)
Acceptances: Applied/Ag Econ Programs: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio State, Penn State, Georgia State, Clemson
Waitlists:
Rejections: Econ Programs: Brown, BU, UMass-Amherst, UConn Applied: Cornell, Wharton, UNC
What would you have done differently? Maybe not have waited until I turned 30 to accept an offer. In all seriousness, as far as the application process goes, I would not have done anything differently. I spent last summer talking to former professors and asked them to introduce me to the people they know in departments that they thought would be a good fit for me. I also talked to them extensively about my interests and the work I had done with them in the past so that they would have more information to draw upon when writing the LORs. As a result, I got into more, and better programs than my profile may have suggested. I am though going to get my *** handed to me at Madison.

EnviroEcon 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Mathematics and Economics; UCSD, Top20 Econ/Top10 Public University
Undergrad GPA: 3.73 Overall, 3.67 Major
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 770Q, 620V, 5.0AWA (5.5AWA the first time I took it, like they care)
Math Courses: Calc I,II (B+, A-) Mutil-Var Calc (A+), Diff Eqs (A-), Linear Alg (A), Real Analysis I,II (B,C), Math Stats I,II (A-,A), Probability (B), Adv Linear Alg (A+)
Econ Courses: Intro Econ (A), Inter. Macro I,II (A,A), Inter. Micro (A,A+), Game Theory (A-), Public Policy (A), Metrics III (A), Econ of Oceanic Resources (A)
Letters of Recommendation: Not "A" list profs, but I'm sure enthusiastic: Math prof (UCSD PhD) who I RAed for, History prof (Harvard PhD) from minor in Hebrew Lang and Lit, Senior Analyst from consulting firm
Research Interests: Environmental and Resource Economics
SOP: Relatively strong I'm told, then again, who's to judge but the adcoms.
Teaching Experience: None at the university level, but tutored for two years during BA at local elementary (math/reading/kickball).
Research Experience: Summer RA in Math dept studying mathematical transformations, Independent Research on Economic Sanctions
Work Experience: Research Analyst for 1+ year at consulting firm doing market/econometric research for the housing industry.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Maryland AREc, UCSB, Oregon St. ARE, Ohio St. AED, UArizona, Colorado @ Boulder, Riverside, Cornell AEM MS, Davis ARE MS
Rejections: Berkeley ARE, UCLA, UCSD
Pending: USC (don't care)
What would you have done differently?
Applied to some Top15-20 pure Econ programs. Gotten close to Econ profs for LORs (had 0 among my 3). Relieved at the time, my C in RA II killed me. Taken PhD Micro/Metrics in undergrad. Analogous to the job market, two people concurrently aiming for PhDs in different disciplines while wishing to wind up at the same school is beyond sanity. On a brighter note, I believe my SOP was essential at the margin as many programs noted its strength and appeal to their adcoms. Only found this forum after I sent in most of my apps. Glad I obliviously chose Math/Econ major, otherwise I'd be screwed.

bigleaguechew 2009:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ / B.S. Math from a top 100 econphd.net public school
Undergrad GPA: 3.5 Overall, 4.0 Econ, 4.0 Math
GRE: 790Q, 610V, 5.5AWA
Math Courses: One year of real analysis (A+'s); two quarters each of theoretical linear algebra (A+'s), numerical analysis (A+'s), math prob stat, nonlinear dynamics and chaos; one quarter each of PDE's, abstract algebra and complex analysis
Econ Courses: applied metrics (A+'s), public finance (A+'s), labor, game theory (A+), and a few others in addition to intermediate micro/macro
Letters of Recommendation: It seems as though I had one very respected letter writer, and other letters were more or less ignored at many schools (just what I gathered from my conversations with grad directors where I was accepted)
Research Experience: Virtually none. Started an undergrad research project that was never finished
Work Experience: 2 years in consulting (business, but not econ)
Research Interests: Applied micro, IO
SOP: Talked about how my experiences and coursework have influenced my research interests. Tailored last paragraph to each school I applied to. I cannot say this with enough emphasis... THE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE DEFINITELY MATTERS AT SCHOOLS OUTSIDE OF THE TOP 10. IF YOU DO NOT COME FROM AN IVY AND YOU DON'T HAVE A SPOTLESS MATH/ECON RECORD WITH SOLID RESEARCH EXPERIENCE, I WOULD ADVISE YOU TO SPEND SOME TIME ON YOUR SOP AND START WORKING ON IT EARLY!
Concerns: I had about a year straight of abysmal grades (yes, we're talking about F's and W's here people) in my sophomore year of college due to some family issues. I think it was important that this occurred when I was an english major, and I made up for it by excelling in all of my econ and math courses. So, if you have screwed up and permanently marred your transcript like I did, HOPE IS NOT LOST! It just means that you have to work extra hard to outperform your classmates from here on out.
RESULTS:
Attending: UCSD ($)
Admitted, Declined: Stanford GSB Marketing ($$$$$$$$), Penn State ($$), WUSTL ($), UNC ($/2), UVA ($), Texas ($$), ASU ($$), Arizona ($$), Pittsburgh ($), Ohio State ($), U of Washinton ($), Maryland (stiffed me)
Waitlists: Minnesota, BU
Rejections: Top 10, NYU, Columbia, UCLA, Michigan, JHU, Wharton (but it doesn't count in my mind cuz I hardly showed up for the interview)
Never heard back from: USC (not that I care anymore, but seriously WTF?)
What would you have done differently?
Nothing really. I had a huge black spot on my record with that one atrocious year, and nobody knew how that would affect me. My letter writers were extremely supportive in helping me apply to as many places as I could afford, and cover a broad spectrum of programs. I thought UCSD was a long shot heading into this process, and I am thrilled to be going there. I can honestly say that I would have been happy at just about any of the programs that I was accepted to, and it was incredibly difficult for me to turn down so many attractive offers. Obviously, this is a problem that I am happy to have, but you'd be surprised how gut wrenching it is to turn down a fellowship offer from a school that you had been day-dreaming about attending just a few weeks earlier. Still, I would advise everyone who isn't a superstar with stellar letter of recommendation's to adopt a similar strategy and apply to as many places as you can afford.

rvalchev 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small private school. First tier according to US News but dead last in that tier
Undergrad GPA: 4.0 - I have another 2 weeks till graduation but hopefully it'll stay this way
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800Q, 530V, 5.0 AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Linear Algebra, Optimization, Real Analysis, Topology, Probability Theory, Computational Statistics, Differential Equations
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro and Macro, Econometrics and Forecasting, Game Theory, Money and Banking, Public Economics
Other Courses: Assortment of Business core classes.
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Letters from Econ Profs and 1 from a math prof. I think letters will be good to great, math professor has taught me for 2 years and I've conducted research for an year together with one of my econ profs.
Research Experience: Honors Thesis, RA for two summers but I wasted those summers so nothing really came out of it.
Research Interests: Metrics, applied metrics ... i am open to anything
SOP: It was weak, unfocused and not customized for schools
RESULTS:
Attending: Duke ($$$)
Acceptances, declined: Wisconsin ($$$), Cornell ($$$), Ohio State( $$$), UNC -Chapel Hill ($$$), Michigan State ($$$), Pitt ($$$), Tinbergen Institute ($$$), LSE EME (Research), Oxford MPhil, Michigan (no $), Texas(no $), USC ($$$),
Waitlists: Duke funding waitlist, BU funding waitlist, Princeton Waitlist, Texas Waitlist, Michigan waitlist
Rejections: MIT, Princeton (rejected from waitlist), Berkeley, Yale, Harvard, UPenn, Chicago, UCSD, Penn State, Boston College, Cambridge
What would you have done differently? First, read jeeve's thread about suggestions for people from less known undergrads (it was impossible since it was not written until a couple of days ago, but that's what future people should do). Second, apply to NYU, Columbia and Northwestern (but most probably I would have only taken Northwestern over Duke. But still, my portfolio of schools was a little unbalanced). Third, write a much, much better SOPs that would be much better tailored to different schools. You'll be surprised how much SOPs matter (heard it directly from admissions directors at TOP10 and TOP20 schools).Fourth, don't get RA positions that are in the network of your schools and professors because you are already part of this network, so it doesn't add much to your profile. Go out and work for somebody different.

EconJames 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: International students. Good university in my home country but not well known.
Undergrad GPA: Major in Econ, minor in Math, GPA 3.8
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q 570V 4.0A
Math Courses: Mathematical analysis, Advanced algebra, Numerical analysis, Analytical Geometry, ODE, Real analysis, Complex analysis, Functional analysis, Probability theroy, Mathematical statistic, Dynamic optimization, Stochastic process
Econ Courses: many, all basic courses including intermediate marco,micro,metrics.
Grad Econ Courses: Advanced macro, Game theory, Advanced finance
Letters of Recommendation: Not famous professors, but know me well
Research Experience: Two papers published in domestic journals
Teaching Experience: No
Research Interests: Macro
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UMN, JHU, OSU, UBC, IOWA, IUB, ASU
Waitlists: Princeton UPenn (rejected on April 15)
Rejections: UCLA, UCSD, Michigan, Cornell, WUSTL, Rochester, Duke, CMU
What would you have done differently? Perhaps attend a MA first. Or maybe should prepare a paper with a DSGE model.
Comments: The undergraduate school's reputation matters a lot. If you cannot change this, try to get strong letter of recommendation then.

EcoBd 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad/Grad: BSS and MSS in Economics in a South Asian University.
Undergrad/Grad GPA: 3.7/4.0 in Undergrad and 4.0/4.0 in Grad
GRE: 790Q, 380V, 3.5AWA
TOEFL: 106 (29R, 29L, 23S, 25W)
Courses: Lots of econ courses. PhD level micro and econometrics. Calculus, probability theory, linear algebra, real analysis etc.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 economics professor from my University. 1 got his PhD from Harvard and taught me Microeconomics. Another did her PhD from MIT and taught me Econometrics. The last one got his PhD from Manchester and taught me International Economics. I am sure that they all gave me excellent recommendations.
Research Experience: Currently working in a research institute in my home country. I also have 2 RA positions in two different organizations previously.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Econometrics
SOP: Traditional. Emphasized my interests in economics.
RESULTS:
Attending: Texas A & M University
Acceptances: TAMU ($$), FSU (no $), OSU AEDE: (no$: informally)
Rejections: UCSD, UIUC, UNC, UF, Vanderbilt, IUB,
No word: USC
What would you have done differently? I think I should really do well on GRE verbal and AWA. And I should be more focused on my SOP.

allinwonder 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ B.S. Math from top 5 university in Princeton Review China
Undergrad GPA: 3.7/4
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 620V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I,II(including multivariable one)linear algebra for two semesters, math stats, optimization, Analysis I, II, Complex Analysis, ODE,PDE, Abstract Algebra
Econ Courses (PhD-level): N/A
Econ Courses (undergrad-level):Intermediate Micro and Macro, Econometrics
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors (2 of them are mentees of Nobel Laureate)
Research Experience: RA for Econ prof
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: Experimental Economics, Game Theory
SOP: Focus on research
Concerns: Low grade on PDE
Other:
Applying to: Harvard, Caltech, UMichigan, Pittsburgh, OSU, ASU, UArizona, UVirginia, Purdue, George Mason U

phd09 2009:
Institution: OSU
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Have no idea
Notification date: 2/18/09
Notified through: Website(status changed today)
Comments:

eigenman 2010:
Type of Undergrad: BS Economics/Biochemistry from US R1 school, Top 10 economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.59
Type of Grad: Non-degree math/stats coursework
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 800V/800Q/5.0W
Math Courses: Undergrad-level: calc 1-2; multivariable calc; linear algebra; "applied" linear algebra; differential equations; series, sequences, and foundations (proofs intro). Grad level: stat theory I-II, applied linear regression, analysis II, time series analysis I, advanced linear algebra. Even mix of As and Bs.
Econ Courses: Intermediate macro/micro, econometrics, Latin American economics, + honors in: macro policy, quantitative macro, international trade, game theory, urban economics, money and banking. As and Bs.
Other Courses: lots of biochemistry and cellular/molecular biology, intro physics, physical chemistry, organic chemistry. As and Bs throughout.
Letters of Recommendation: Varied. Two from regional Fed economists, one from Analysis professor were generally used. For more behavioral places had letter from coauthor; for programs requiring a letter from an undergraduate instructor, tapped my quantitative macro graduate instructor. I'm sure they had nice things to say about me but perhaps they were not so influential.
Research Experience: First author on an experimental animal behavior paper published in medium-tier journal. Unpublished undergraduate thesis in behavioral neuroscience. 1.5 years (as of now) RAing at a regional Fed, one publication (another pending) in our in-house journal. Two semeters in a biochemistry lab.
Teaching Experience: Nil
Research Interests: At the time I submitted my applications, behavioral economics and evolutionary game theory, but I'm leaning toward econometrics and computational economics lately
SOP: Mostly addressed my background and suitability for graduate study
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UT-Austin (wl-$), OSU(wl-$), UW-Seattle(wl-$), Duke (MA), NYU (MA)
Waitlists: UMN, UW-Madison (bad waitlists in both cases)
Rejections: UCSD, Cornell, Brown, Northwestern, UPenn, U-Michigan, Caltech, PSU, LSE(MRes/PhD Track 1), CMU-Tepper
Pending: LSE(MSc-Research)
What would you have done differently? I probably should have bothered another Fed economist rather than asking my math prof, but I was worried about my mediocre math GPA. I also ought've interacted more with professors as an undergraduate, but nearly all of my economics courses were taught by graduates, and I made a decision to go to econ school fairly close to graduation. All of this considered I'm perfectly satisficed and looking forward to relaxing over the summer before putting my shoulder to the wheel in September.

msu2010 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Big Ten School
Undergrad GPA: 3.7/4.0
Type of Grad:-
Grad GPA:-
GRE: 790Q 550V
Math Courses: I did a math major, the typical math courses
Econ Courses: Game Theory, Grad Metrics, nothing else outstanding
Other Courses: Some science courses (physics)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 very well known, 1 well know, 1 newer prof (all econ)
Research Experience: Wrote and presented paper at a conference, no publications or anything outstanding
Teaching Experience:TA for intro econ
Research Interests: Labor/Micro/Metrics
SOP: Very odd statement
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Boston College ($), University of Virginia ($), Ohio State ($$), Illinois ($$), Boston University, Arizona, UCSB, UC Davis, George Mason
Rejections: Too Many
Stanford, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, a lot more, I really am drawing a blank...
What would you have done differently? Gotten a better GPA. I guess a few things, but its over and I am happy, two years ago I didn't think I would be here. I am happy to be going to Boston College in the fall. Its not Stanford, but it suits me

epinefrin 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Mathematics, one of the best in my country
Undergrad GPA: 3.35 (it is hard to get it: the graduation average is 2.78)
Type of Grad: M.A Economics (one of the other best
Grad GPA: 3.87
GRE: 800Q / 400V / 3.5AWA. TOEFL: 101 (R:27 L:27 S:22 W:25 )
Math Courses: Undergrad: Calculus I-II-III (BA), Real Analysis I-II (CB-DC!!!), Linear Algebra (AA), Algebra I-II (AA-BA), Statistics (BA), Probability (BA), Differential Eqns (AA), Calculus of Variations (AA), Matrix Theory(The GRE Big Book), other courses like Numerical Analysis-Mathematical Logic-Discrete Math I,II-Coding Theory are ranging between AA and The GRE Big Book.
Grad: Math for Econ (A-)
Econ Courses: Undergrad: Intro-Intermediate Micro (AA-BA), Intro-Inter-Advanced Macro (AA-BA-BA), Mathematical Statistics I-II(AA), Econometrics I-II (AA-BA)
Grad: Macro I-II (A), Econometrics I-II (A), Micro I-II(A-, B+), Time Series (A), Independent Study about econometrics and Time series (A)
Other Courses: U/G: Lots of German and French Courses, lots of Physics and Chemistry, and Seminar Course where I presented my (some kind of) undergrad thesis (or graduation project)
Grad: Financial Markets and Institutions (A), from the Industrial Eng. department Stochastic Processes and their Applic. (Intro and Adv) (non-credit)
Letters of Recommendation: 4 professors. A good reference (I hope!) from my thesis advisor but he is from Europe, thus not known much in US. Others are moderate ref. letters.
Research Experience: Master thesis and undergrad thesis.
Teaching Experience: Undergrad & Grad Econometrics I-II TA (4 semesters), instructor in the math camp for the 1st year master students.
Research Interests: (both theoretical and applied) Econometrics, Time Series, Macroeconometrics and Monetary Economics.
SOP: How my math undergrad contributed my career, explained my theoretical master thesis
Concerns: Not much research experience, bad Real Analysis grades (!), and not much known ref. letters.
Applying to: Yale, LSE, UCSD, Northwestern, UPenn, Columbia, Duke, Cornell, Wisconsin-Madison, Ohio State, Boston U, Boston College, UNC Chapel Hill, Michigan State, Washington Uni St.Louis, UNC State Raleigh, Pompeu Fabra, Tinbergen, Carlos III
In: Ohio State (waitlisted for funding)
Waitlist: Boston College
Out: Yale, LSE, Northwestern, UPenn(implicit), Columbia, Duke, Cornell, Wisconsin-Madison

AppliedEcon 2010:
Profile
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Double Major in Math/Econ. Public liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: A couple B’s but Phi Beta Kappa and probably Summa Cum Laude and honors in both majors
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: None
GRE: 800Q, 620V, 5.0AWA (only took once)
Math Courses: Standard undergraduate courses including Real Analysis and Topology. Two A’s in Real Analysis
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Standard undergraduate program with quantitative emphasis
Other Courses: Some science related to resource and environmental econ
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ professors and 1 math professor. I had small classes and they know me so I expect that the recommendations are good
Research Experience: Paid summer science intern in mathematics researching a topic related to econometrics. Currently performing honors research applying econometrics to a resource issue
Teaching Experience: None
Other: Officer/Member of four honor societies. Partially self supporting as Head Resident of a medium sized dorm
Research Interests: Applied economics, resource and environmental issues
Statement of purpose: I applied to a small number of schools (only ones I would happily attend if accepted). I used my research in finding these schools to write a statement relating their programs to my interests
Concerns: Few. I feel prepared and am comfortable with the programs to which I’ve applied.
In: NC State Econ(no$), Ohio State ARE($$$+), Miami U (Florida) Econ ($$$+), Maryland ARE ($$$)
Out: Duke Econ
Waiting: Florida International Econ, Georgetown Econ, UNC Regional Planning.

xxxzzz2509 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ/Math/Comp Science from a 2nd Tier LAC in the MidWest
Undergrad GPA: 3.78/4. Econ 4.0 Math 3.6
Type of Grad: none
Grad GPA: none
GRE: 580V/800Q/ Dunno AWA yet
TOEFL: N/A
Econ Courses: Econometrics, Inter Micro, Macro, Financial Institution, Topics Courses All A's
Math Courses: Cal I-III (A,A,A-), Intro to Real Analysis (A-), Math Stats (B+), Numerical Analysis (A), Optimization (B+), Applied Matrix (B+), Linear Algebra (A), Real Analysis I (pending), ODE (pending)
Other Courses: Some accounting courses, Physics
Letters of Recommendation: 1 U Illinois (Senior Thesis Adviser), 1 Notre Dame (Summer Research with), 1 UPenn, 1 UT Austin (Math teacher) All seem to be very strong.
Research Experience: 2 summer research: 1 math, one econ, senior thesis in Econ
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Microecon/ Financial Economics
statement of purpose: N/A
Concerns: No graduate courses, average amounts of math, from LAC
Schools: Ph D: OSU/JHU/UMD/Cornell. Msc:LSE, Oxbirdge, Warwick, UBC, Torronto, McGill.

WorkingOvertime 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BS in Econ with Math minor from top 75 US undergrad school. My school does have a low ranked PhD program.
Undergrad GPA: 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: None- My Econometrics, Prob. Theory, Regression, and Stats II classes were offered as grad school courses, but it is not designated on my transcript.
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 740Q 510V 4.5 Analytical
Math Courses: Into to Math Analysis (Applied Calc I), Multivariable Calc. (Applied Calc II/III), Intro to Business Statistics. Elementary Statistical Inference (AP), Statistical Theory II, Diff EQ, Linear Algebra, Probability Theory, Regression and Time Series
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, International Econ, International Macro, Development of American Economy, Junior Honors Research, Econometrics, Independent Study Research, Senior Honors Thesis.
Other Courses: Creative inquiry with Ag. Econ graduate professor
Letters of Recommendation: Three strong ones from professors I have done research with. None are famous, but all have significant experience.
Research Experience: Did research with graduate professor on manufacturing trends. Strong Econometrics term paper. Did a paper on Defense Economics with seasoned professor over the summer. Writing a Senior Thesis on Steamboat price efficiency.
Teaching Experience: Supplemental Instructor for Managerial Accounting. It is the most difficult class in the business school.
Research Interests: Financial Economics, Behavioral, Macro Trends, International, Historical Econ, Resource Econ, Environmental Econ
statement of purpose: average.
Applying to: Ohio State AEDE, Vanderbilt, Miami OH, Michigan Applied Stats, UVA, Lehigh MA, Cornell, Toronto MA

devtron 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A Econ/BS Commerce, top 25 university
Undergrad GPA: 3.80/4
Type of Grad: Math, non-degree
Grad GPA: 4/4
GRE: 800Q, 690V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Undergrad: Multivar. Calc (A-), Intro Analysis (A), Diff EQ (A), Linear Algebra (B+); Grad: Real Analysis II (A), Advanced Linear Algebra (A), Math Stat I (A) and II (In progress), Stochastic Processes (In progress)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): NA
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro/Macro, Corporate Finance, Econ of Advertising (A-), Econ of China, Econometrics, International Trade - All A's and A+'s, except advertising
Other Courses: a lot of business/finance courses, probably only marginally helpful
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ phd's, 1 econ professor, 1 math professor
Research Experience: 2 years at a federal reserve bank as an RA, 2 publications in an internally reviewed journal
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: macro and IO
statement of purpose: Pretty standard, made some changes for each school to talk about whose research I am interested in... I talked mostly about my experience, in more detail than elsewhere on the application - only briefly about my future plans
Concerns: no graduate econ, could have taken more math.
Applying to: UVA, Duke, UPenn, Minnesota, Wisconsin-Madison, NYU, Northwestern, Princeton, BU, BC, OSU, Wash U in St. Louis, Georgetown, Penn State, ASU, Maryland

unc_jesse 2010:
Institution: Oregon State
Program: Applied Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: TBD
Notification date: 2/22
Notified through: E-mail & Post
Posted on grad cafe: Unfortunately yes - Had to let you guys know somehow, right?
Comments: Good program, hoping for money.
Institution: Wisconsin Madison
Program: ARE Economics PhD
Decision: Reject
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 2/24
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments: kind of sad because it's a good program, but seriously wisconsin is cold.
Institution: Texas A&M
Program: ARE Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 1700 per month = 20,400
Notification date: 2/25
Notified through: Phone
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments: Safety, but still a relatively good program. Up in the air about this one.
Institution: Purdue
Program: ARE Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: $21,000 RA
Notification date: 12/16
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments: Also a safety, we have a lot of Purdue people in my department. visited, and loved the people there though, but resource is not their strong point.

MYCCTV 2010:
Institution: OSU
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Wait in March
Notification date: 02/13
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: no
Comments: It is OK, I just need funding. otherwise I cannot go.
Institution: Cornell
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 02/24
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: no
Comments: I was almost in the game...I am an international student...
Institution: Northwestern
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 02/24
Notified through: website
Posted on grad cafe: no
Comments: I feel really bad since top schools are not accepting me....
Institution: Rutgers
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Nominated for a Graduate School fellowship, heard in April
Notification date: 02/25
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: no
Comments: Again, without funding, it is the same as rejection.
Institution: U of Iowa
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 02/25
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: Yes, same day as notified
Comments: It is OK... As my friend said, I do not really want to go to Iowa~~

wouldliketoknowit 2010:
Institution: UT-Austin
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: None, because they think I'll have better offers, but they'll make me an offer if I want one.
Notification date: 3/11/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
in: penn state, ohio state, rochester, wash. st.louis

Econg 2010:
Institution: UC Davis
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: No
Notification date: 1/15/2010
Notified through:Personal e-mail
Posted on GC:No
Institution: OSU
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Fellowship, 20K stipend
Notification date: 1/15/2010
Notified through:E-mail
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 1/19/2010
Notified through:E-mail to check site
Posted on GC:No
Institution: UPitt
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Fellowship, 15K Stipend
Notification date: 3/5/2010
Notified through:Letter
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Harvard
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 3/8/2010
Notified through:Letter
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 3/8/2010
Notified through:Letter
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Wyoming
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Assistantship, 15K stipend
Notification date: 3/9/2010
Notified through:E-mail
Posted on GC:No

Potica 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA econ and psych from top 10 liberal arts college. Post-BA math classes in continuing studies program at top 20 University
Undergrad GPA: 3.5 (overall), 3.4 (BA institution), 3.8 (post-BA), 3.6 (econ classes), 3.6 (final two years of UG at liberal arts college)
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q780, V650, AWA 5.0
Math Courses: Calc I-III (C, A, A), Linear Algebra (A), Differential Equations (A-), Game Theory (A-), Probability I-III (A, A, A-), Real Analysis I-III (B+, A, A-), Math Stats I (B-). All but Calc I taken post BA.
Econ Courses: Intro Micro (B+), Intro Macro (B+), Intermediate Micro (A-), Intermediate Macro (A), Econometrics (B+), IO (A), Decision Making (A-), IO Seminar (A), Trade (B+), Managerial Econ (A-), Law and Econ (P)
Other Courses: lots of psychology courses, a few history classes.
Letters of Recommendation: Two young (well known) economists at top 10 econ PhD program for whom I had a 1.5 year RA job. One economist who previously had a senior position at the FTC who supervised me at a consulting firm for 5 years. Letters were clearly strong.
Research Experience: Undergrad thesis (both econ and psych), work at econ consulting firm (5 years), full time RA job at top 10 university (1.5 years), co-authored working paper with supervisors at RA job, and a little bit of very preliminary work on a couple of my own ideas
Teaching Experience: TA for 2 quarters of intro micro and 2 quarters of intro macro
Research Interests: Applied micro (changed the fields a bit from school to school)
SOP: Probably strong. Good argument for why I want to study econ and why I am prepared. Wrote extensively about two research ideas. Customization varied from school to school.
Concerns: Relatively old, weak undergraduate grades, no grad classes.
Other: Presented co-authored paper as a poster at a conference in late March (a mention that the paper was accepted for the conference made it onto about half of my apps)
RESULTS
Acceptances: UW Madison ($), Cornell ($), UT Austin ($), UVA ($), OSU (unclear), Vanderbilt ($), UC Davis ($), UC Irvine ($), Notre Dame ($)
Waitlists: U Chicago Booth econ (accepted), U Michigan Ross econ (accepted), Brown (accepted), U Maryland (accepted, no $), U Michigan (withdrawn, prob could have gotten in at last minute), UNC (withdrawn), U Minnesota (rejected)
Rejections: Yale, Harvard PEG, Berkeley ARE, Stanford, Princeton, UPenn, Wharton Applied Econ, U Chicago, Northwestern, Columbia, NYU, CMU, Duke, JHU, Rochester, University of British Columbia, UCSD, Wash U
Attending: U Chicago Booth econ
What would you have done differently?
Not much. Would have changed my mix of schools slightly and not applied to UBC (with its $150 application fee). Obviously I could have done better as an undergrad, but at the time I had no interest in graduate school. I think the RA job was hugely beneficial (for a number of reason). My results would have been much worse without it. The last five months have been very busy and stressful, so I'm happy it's done even, especially given how well it turned out.

LoveFinEcon 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics at top university in my country
Undergrad GPA: 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: MSc Economics from UK
Grad GPA: About 3.9 equivalent
GRE: 800Q, 480V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Few, just math econ I & II and statistics
Econ Courses: Lots of both intermediate and advanced economic courses
Other Courses: Lots of finance courses
Letters of Recommendation: 2 undergrad profs and 1 master prof
Research Experience: RA after my master and 2 independent projects (undergrad and grad)
Teaching Experience: Lots
Research Interests: macro-finance, applied econometrics
SOP: standard - just my goal, academic experiences, research interests, and fitness to the school
Concerns: very very few math courses, unknown LORs
RESULTS:
Acceptances: OSU, UNC
Waitlists: WUSTL (eventually accepted)
Rejections: 11 US schools (within top 30) and 2 Canadian schools
Attending: WUSTL
What would you have done differently? Take more math. Get LORs from more famous people. And read this thread before pursuing my master.

guins 2011:
Profile PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Econ, U Chicago
Undergrad GPA: 3.0 overall, even lower in math / econ / stat
Type of Grad: Currently taking grad micro at Yale
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 660V, 4.5 AWA
Math Courses: I took Real Analysis this summer at Columbia and got an A. As an undergrad, I took Calc 3 (B-), Real Analysis (F), Math for Social Sciences (B, A) Statistical Theory (B-).
Econ Courses (grad-level): None
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro I and II (B- and D), Macro I and II (B and A-) Econometrics (B) Public Finance (B) Development (B+) Regulation of Vice (A-) Latin American Econ (B)
Other Courses: As a middle / high schooler at a local tech college I took Calc 1-3 (B-, B, B+) and Linear Algebra (A-), and programming 1 and 2 (A , A)
Letters of Recommendation: 4 econ profs, all development stars (2 MIT, 2 other Ivies). I've worked directly for all of these profs for 2+ years, doing data analysis and study design/management, ended up coauthoring with 2 on a paper that will eventually be submitted to a top-tier econ/political economy journal. I think these will be quite strong.
Research Experience: Worked as an RA for 3 years at J-PAL. Spent two years in India running field experiments, and for the last year have been at Yale doing data analysis for the academic papers based on these experiments.
Teaching Experience: TAd a brief course on program evaluation
Research Interests: Development, Political Economy, Empirical Micro/IO, Applied Econometrics, Behavioral
SOP: Acknowledging my checkered past, describing my bright future
Concerns: Terrible undergrad GPA. I dicked around completely in college, and rarely did more than the bare minimum amount of work until my last year. Not sure if great research experience + stellar references + A in real analysis + (hopefully decent grade in grad micro) is a strong enough signal to adcoms that I am truly serious.
Applying to: Top 20 + a couple public policy programs
Do I have a chance?

Cognazor 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: Geography
Grad GPA: 3.92
GRE: Q-760 V-640 A-4.0
Math Courses: Calc 1-3, Linear Algebra
Econ Courses (grad-level): 0
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Tons
Other Courses: Lots of GIS/spatial analysis stuff
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from Geography MS (including thesis advisor), 1 from Econ BA. Pretty good I hope
Research Experience: RA during master's, RA for Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), graduate thesis
Teaching Experience: TA during MS
Research Interests: Applied Research in Development/Environmental/Regional Economics
SOP: Yes
Concerns: Low undergrad GPA, Low GRE analytical.
Other: I have been out of school for a few years, am probably a little older than most applicants. Hoping my work experience will be beneficial.
Applying to: Berkeley ARE, Davis ARE, Maryland ARE, Oregon St applied, Cornell Applied, Wisconsin Applied, Michigan St AFR, Ohio State AED, Minnesota Applied (MS), George Washington University, Clark

donhunz 2011:
Institution: Ohio State University
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: ?
Notification date: Feb 04
Notified through: email
Comments: not bad

Bobo46901244 2011:
Institution: Ohio State University
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: ?
Notification date: Feb 08
Notified through: email
Comments: very excited, my first offer, still waiting for 20+ more schools to respond

delimitless 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 60 Economics UG
Undergrad GPA: 3.75 (3.85 math & econ)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 790Q/640V/5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc series; Linear Algebra; UG Analysis; Grad Analysis I; Grad Topology I-II; Dynamical Systems
Econ Courses: Grad Macro; Grad Micro; Grad Metrics; standard UG classes
Other Courses: Philosophy minor
Letters of Recommendation: Grad Macro Professor; two economists at regional fed where I worked
Research Experience: 2 Years at Regional Fed. Couple co-authored papers in the works. Felt this was instrumental to my intent/results
Teaching Experience: Tutoring and Grading at UG
Research Interests: Macro, Labor, Computational
SOP: Customized for a little while then just got lazy and sent the same one
Other: good to be moving on
RESULTS:
Acceptances: NSF; UPenn(after NSF); UCLA($); Ohio State($$)
Waitlists: Maryland (Accepted after NSF); WUSTL
Rejections: Yale; Northwestern; NYU; Chicago; Stanford; Minnesota; Columbia; Duke
Pending:
Attending: U Penn
What would you have done differently? Probably would have customized my SOP a bit more. It just got so dull. Second-guessing the past is easy...I guess work harder in UG is the easy answer; but I wasn't so sure that I wanted a PhD at that time.

greenrebelette 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA in International Studies and Chinese, Minor in Economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.95
Type of Grad: MA in Economics at top 20 Econ Department, PhD-Track
Grad GPA: 3.49
GRE: Q800, V720, AW5.5
Math Courses: Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Advanced Calculus, Probability
Econ Courses: Econometrics I & II at PhD level, lots
Other Courses: first course in Stat PhD sequence
Letters of Recommendation: 1 excellent (well-known economist), 1 great (unknown instructor), 1 excellent (from political scientist), 1 of unknown (and suspect) quality.
Research Experience: 1 paper, presented at a conference & published on conference website
Teaching Experience: TA for Master’s level class, TA for introductory Chinese course
Research Interests: Environmental Economics, International Economics (Trade)
SOP: Told it was excellent by several profs
Other: none
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Michigan Econ, UMD AREC, UC Davis ARE, MSU AFRE, Ohio State AEDE, Duke UPEP, Iowa State Econ, Wisconsin AAE
Waitlists: Michigan Econ (originally)
Rejections: UC San Diego Econ, Harvard PEG, Brown Econ, Cornell AEM, Berkeley AREC, Georgetown Econ
Attending: Michigan Econ
What would you have done differently? Figured out what kind of career I wanted (in an econ dept or ARE dept) BEFORE I applied!

unfallible 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 50 State School (flagship), BS Econ, BA Philosophy
Undergrad GPA: 3.9
Type of Grad:N/A
Grad GPA:N/A
GRE: 800Q, 760V, 5.5AW
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Intro Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Intro to Proofs, Linear Algebra, Intro Real Analysis (All As, except for A- in Linear Algebra)
Econ Courses: Intro/Intermediate Micro/Macro, Econometrics, Industrial Organization, Game Theory, Labor (All As); Grad Level: Math for Economists (B+)
Other Courses: Intro Probability
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Economics Professors I had in class + one administrator that I did something significant with (vague to protect anonymity)
Research Experience: Senior Thesis
Teaching Experience: 2 semesters TA (Intermediate Micro and Labor)
Research Interests: Labor, IO
SOP: brief, with a 'cutesy' anecdote about incentives
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UT Austin ($$), Ohio State ($$), UC Davis ($), UC Irvine ($), UArizona($), UNC Chapel Hill (?)
Waitlists: Berkeley(rejected), Georgetown (declined)
Rejections: MIT, Stanford, Northwestern, Michigan, Wisconsin, UCLA,UCSD,Cornell,CMU,Maryland,Penn State
Pending: UIUC(Never responded. Maybe my application didn't fully go through?)
Attending: UTAustin

unfixie 2012:
Type of Undergrad: Private US university, top 100 U.S. News and top 100 Ph.D.-granting econ program. Double-majored in economics and international relations. All math except for Intro Stats and Calc II taken post-bac at a flagship state school known for econ and math.
Undergrad GPA: 3.8
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q 166 V 170 AWA 4.5
Math Courses: Intro Stats (A), Calc II and III (B+, A), Lin Alg (A), Intro to Proofs (A), Probability (B-), Real Analysis (B)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Labor Econ (B+), Math Econ (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intro Micro (A), Intermediate Micro and Macro (A-, B+), Intro Econometrics (A), Econ of Africa (A), U.S. Econ History (A), Micro of Econ Development (A), Senior Thesis (B)
Letters of Recommendation: Moderately strong. One from my development econ professor with degree from Berkeley AREC. One from supervisor of senior thesis with degree from UIUC. One from supervisor at work, with MA in econ from Cambridge U.
Research Experience: Senior thesis that included some fieldwork. 2 years working for public policy nonprofit as a researcher.
Teaching Experience: TA 1 semester for intro macro
Research Interests: Applied development
SOP: Tried to demonstrate my long-term commitment to development economics. Explained that B in senior thesis and withdraw from first Calc II course was due to illness. Mentioned specific professors at each department in all SOPs.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wisconsin AAE ($$), Michigan State AFRE ($$), U Connecticut ARE ($$), Ohio State AEDE ($$$), UC Davis ARE Master's ($)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Cornell AEM
Attending: Wisconsin AAE
What would you have done differently? I should have aimed a little higher in my application strategy. I underestimated my competitiveness and ended up getting into almost all of the programs I applied to. I should have applied to Berkeley AREC and the PhD program of Davis ARE, and perhaps Maryland AREC. I'm not sure I would have been accepted, but at least I would have the peace of mind that I went as far as I could. I also would have done the Peace Corps instead of working at a nonprofit after college. The research I was doing at the nonprofit wasn't particularly rigorous, and the Peace Corps experience probably would have generated a lot of research ideas and intuition.

smmoo 2012:
Institution: Ohio State Univ.
Program: Econ PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Not decided yet
Notification date: 2/3/2012
Notified through: Website status
Posted on GC: No
Comments: First admission, very excited!

ededo 2012:
Institution: Ohio State
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: ??? needs to find out
Notification date: 02/08/2012
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: I need to send GAO some financial forms follow on. This makes the following weeks much easier ^_^.

SMH 2007:
Type of Undergrad: No one knows my university outside my country (which is a third world country).
Undergrad GPA: 3.78; Econ:3.81, Math:4.0
GRE: Quant : 800, Verbal : 570, AWA : 5.0
Math Courses: Cal 1-3 (A/A+/A), linear(A),prob(A),stats(A), ODEs(A), numerical solutions to ODEs (A+), Partial diff eqs (A+), Discrete Maths (A+), Quantitative and Computational finance(A)
Econ Courses: inter'l finance, monetary econ., dynamic econ,dev econ,IPE,econometrics1-2, Applied econ, macroeconomic analysis, public econ, (apart from all the regular micros and macros and a couple more)
Recommendation: 2 econ people and one math prof, no big names. i know all of them were full of praise for me in their letters like they are for everyone else
Research Experience: RA for a year
Teaching Experience: TA for ODEs, stats, elementary formal logic, microeconomic-II, econometrics & research methodology (grad level course)
Research Interests: econometrics
SOP: nothing special
Other: a substantial part of my CV and personal statement was only to show my achievements in sports, i know it doesnt count much but i cudnt just leave it out
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UVA, Rice, Rochester, Wisconsin-Madison, UNC (UNC funded from univ, rest funded via a scholarship)
Waitlists:
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Chicago
(did not hear from U florida and ohio state)
What would you have done differently? if the econ dep at my univ had not made it mendatory for us to take stupid univ core courses (50 units of that) in SS like politics and sociology then i would have taken courses like real analysis and functional analysis
overall it was pretty difficult to choose between wisconsin and rochester first and then after that i got a funded offer from UNC so another difficult decision, but i would probably stick to my original decision of going to rochester

EconCandidate 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small, relatively unknown private university in the northeast.
Undergrad GPA: 3.65 (3.83 in Econ and Math)
GRE: 800Q/550V/4.0A
Math Courses: Intro Calc (A), Calc of Single Variable I (A-), Calc of Single Variable II (A-), Calc of Several Variables (A-), Integral Calc and Differential Equations (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Numerical Analysis (A-), Advanced Calculus (A), Intro to Real Analysis (A), Math Stats and Probability I (A), Math Stats and Probability II (In Progress)
Econ Courses: Honors Principles of Micro (A), Honors Principles of Macro (A), International (B+), Money & Banking (A), Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), Law & Economics (B+), Public Finance (A-), Game Theory (A), Econometrics (In Progress), Advanced Public Policy Thesis (In Progress)
Letters of Recommendation: From 3 professors who knew me extremely well. I can't imagine they could have been any stronger.
Research Experience: Completed a summer research project about the term structure of interest rates. Currently working on a senior thesis about funding for public education.
Teaching Experience: Certified Level III Tutor. Math and Econ tutoring experience. Teaching Assistant for Intro Calc and Calculus of a Single Variable II.
Research Interests: Public Finance, Game Theory, Applied Micro.
SOP: Discussed my math preparation, research project, teaching/tutoring experience and my goals.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
University of Wisconsin-Madison ($) (Attending)
University of Virginia ($)
Waitlists:
Boston College
Rejections:
University of Chicago
Yale University
Northwestern University
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
University of Rochester
Duke University
University of Maryland-College Park
Brown University
The Ohio State University
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
What would you have done differently?
My experience suggests that this process is incredibly random. I ended up with funding at a program that is clearly top 12- top 15, and got rejected outright by many programs that were not ranked as highly. Don't rule out any programs that you have been admitted to, because you never know what can happen, even at the last minute! Overall, I should have tried to improve my overall undergradaute GPA and scores on the other sections of the GRE, because coming from an unknown university probably hurt my applications some. Additionally, I would have tried to complete more research as an undergrad. A combination of these factors might have made my applications considerably less random. The best advice I can give people is that a high GPA, high GRE Math, and an extensive math background are the norm for applicants, and they are minimum preparation to be an appealing candidate. These do not seperate you from the pack any more. In the end though, no regrets at all.

whitewinghk 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: A School in HK, statistics major, no analysis
Undergrad GPA: 3.66, first class honors
Type of Grad: A school in HK, MA (Econ)
Grad GPA: Grade A average
GRE: Q800, V570, A5.5
Math Courses: no rigorous math courses, but some hard statistics courses, e.g. Statistical Inference A+, Stochastic Inference A+, Nonparametric testing (A+), linear model and forecasting (A-), Stochastic calculus (A-), Risk theory (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate macro (A+), Micro theory I, II (A+), Macro analysis (A+), Econometircs (A), International trade (B+)
Letters of Recommendation: all strong, two from econ and one from statistics
Research Experience: 2 year RA experience, working on trade and economic development of Mainland China
Research Interests: Development and micro theory
SOP: very general indicated my research interest and RA experience at university and United Nations
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Wisconsin ($), Boston University ($), MSU (no $), PSU (no $), UC Davis (no $)
Waitlists: ever waiting, Uni. of Toronto and UBC
Rejections: A long list, Minnesota, UCLA, NYU, Columbia, Maryland, Brown, OSU, Cornell
What would you have done differently?
I think I have tried my best or may be I should have applied to some applied econ programs as I have strong interest in development. Yet, I am happy with the results.
Advice: Apart from Math, RA exp really helps a lot, it may make up weak math background. There would be lots of RA opp at any university. The job may be very simple like formulting Excel sheets, collecting data or plotting charts, yet it shines in your application.
For international students, the process can be quite random especially for some are from unknown schools like me. Try to apply as many as possible, certainly you need to take into account money and how willing your referees are to write so many letters for you. Yet, if you can, try to apply as many as possible and do have a super safe one as a back up. I have seen a lot of Chinese students transfer to another school in one to two years.
All the best and good luck

baconos 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ/Math from good liberal arts college (~50)
Undergrad GPA: 3.71, 3.90 math, 3.80 econ
Type of Grad: -
Grad GPA: -
GRE: 800Q, 600V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I-II (A-), Discrete(A), Probability and Statistics I-II (A,A), Lin Alg (A), Diff Eq (A), Abstract Algebra (A-), Real Analysis (A-), Real Functions and Measures(B), Complex Functions (A), Financial Mathematics (A), etc.
Econ Courses (PhD-level): -
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Macro (A), Micro (A-), Statistics, Econometrics(A), American Economic History (B+), Ind. Study on Criticisms of Economic Thought (A)
Other Courses: some philosophy, history and religion
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors, all full professors - 2 from Chicago, 1 PSU - solid but nothing too spectacular
Research Experience: Best econometrics paper of the semester, some research on financial mathematics published in undergrad math journal
Teaching Experience: TA for Calculus I-II, Principles of Micro, Macro for a couple semesters
Research Interests: Anything and everything, Applied Micro, Development, International trade, and some political economy
SOP: it's an SOP, not looked into too much
Concerns: Lack of research, undergrad reputation/connections
Other:
RESULTS:
Attending: UColorado!!!
Acceptances: UWisc (no$ first year), UWashington (no$), UColorado ($$)
Waitlists:
Rejections: UMich, Cornell, OSU, PSU
Pending: None
What would you have done differently? Not really sure. I definitely did not make a huge effort to get to know professors (skipped classes a lot, no participation or visiting office hours too much) but I did well in their classes and they liked me, so that could've been better. Recommendations matter! I also applied when I was in a different country away from my home institution so I don't really recommend that - it's hard to get things done. Maybe applied a year earlier? hah.

decide_aposteriori 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Large State School in the US
Undergrad GPA: 3.69 (overall including math and econ majors)
Type of Grad: MA Economics (Canadian Uni)
GRE: 760 Q, 670 V, 5.0 W
Math Courses: Calc III, Intro to Proofs, Abstract Algebra, Numerical Analysis I&II, Differential Equations, Analysis, Probability, Linear Algebra
Econ Courses: Micro (grad), Macro (grad), Econometrics (grad), IO, Topics in Micro, Econ history
Other Courses: Java
Letters of Recommendation: Math PhD Duke, Econ PhD LSE
Research Experience: None
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Experimental, Labor, Neuro, applied econometrics
SOP: Standard
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Uni Arizona, Uni Hawaii
Waitlists:
Rejections: MSU, Purdue, OSU, Pittsburgh, UCSC
What would you have done differently? I would have started the process earlier. Since I couldn't make any December deadlines I was constrained on the places I could apply to. I'm really happy with Arizona, it fits my interests really well.

ICECOLDECON 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Economics and B.S. Geography (did 2 undergrad degrees with minors in Math and History).....Econ dept ranked around 50 in US....large state school.
Undergrad GPA: 3.66
Type of Grad: M.A. in Economics from a program that offers a PhD, but its PhD program would be ranked near last in the U.S. Took some undergrad math courses during my time here
Grad GPA: 3.88ish I think
GRE: 1st Time (2006): 760 Q 520 V 5.5 AWA 2nd Time (2008) 780 Q 540 V 5.0 AWA
Courses taken in my last 2 years:
Math Economics A
Regulation/Antitrust A+
Bridge to Abstract Math A+
Law and Economics A
Economic Development A-
Economics of Health A
Econometrics I A-
Econometrics II B+
Econometrics III B+
Linear Algebra I A
Math Statistics B+ (School I took this at doesnt give A-'s)
Differential Equations A
Microeconomics I A+
Aggregate Economics B+
Intermediate Analysis I (Rudin ch 1-4) A
Elementary Abstract Algebra A
Economic Policy Analysis A
Urban Economics A
Intermediate Analysis II (Cross-Listed with Grad Real Analysis I) Sp 09
Letters 9of Recommendation: All from Economics professors who are not well-known for research but 2 of the 3 should be very enthusiastic. PhDs from Texas AM (2) and UC San Diego
Research Experience: Have papers Ive written.....Havent done anything with them.
Teaching Experience: TA for Principles of Microeconomics for 1 yr
Research Interests: Microeconomic Theory and IO
Concerns: Low Econometrics grades....think I can do better in PhD program....took Econometrics I and II before Lin Alg and Math Stat. Also, had an attendence related F for Lin Alg as an undergrad...had a complicated F in Calc III (was getting a B-/C+, but wanted to use my school's grade forgiveness, so I got the required F) hoping strong math grades in other classes make up for this
Applying to: Ohio State, Texas, Michigan State, Virginia, Arizona, and Oregon
Admits: Texas (Full TA), MSU (no $)
Rejects: OSU, UVA, UAZ
Withdrew App: Oregon
Attending: Texas
Some of the things I learned from the process:
(1) I think the main benefit of a US masters degree, for someone who already has a degree in economics, is to develop relationships with professors who will be able to write strong letters on your behalf. My masters program was particularly small and I took some of the less popular electives, so I wound up having classes with less than 5 students, which provide students with a good deal of interaction with faculty. Also, make use of seminar series and other social interaction opportunities given by the department. If you have smart questions or comments, its not a horrible idea to convey those, either after class or through email (just dont be obsessive about it and dont force it). Probably the single best asset a student can have is a well-written personalized letter of recommendation (esp if the professors have contacts at your school of choice) and these steps help to make that a reality.
(2) If you have messups in your academic record, particularly in math and economics, don't be afraid to talk about the reasons for the poor grades in your SOP. I talked about my poor math grades in 3-5 of my SOPs: Texas, MSU, and OSU and I went 2 out of 3 at those schools (not to mention, I was pretty close to getting in at OSU). Now other things could be at play, but at the very least, I don't think mentioning my poor math grades hurt me. Also, I would think by not mentioning reasons for poor grades, adcoms are likely to assume the worst.
(3) Try to write an economics paper or do some sort of research that you can talk about in a SOP. It doesn't have to be anything that you publish, or even the quality of an honor's thesis, it just helps out in showing that you have an interest in performing research. I wrote two papers in my classes for my masters program, and even though I never did anything with them, I was still able to talk about the research in my SOP. On a related note, make sure to mention that you have an interest in doing research (even if your ultimate goal is govt/consulting/teaching).
(4) Take a decent amount of economics electives. I know that profiles like 15 classes in math with intermediate micro/macro can gain admission to a good many econ programs and that PhD econ classes don't resemble (from a methodology/math standpoint) the stuff that is taught at PhD programs, but there are still reasons to think that this a good strategy: (i) As discussed in point (1), it is important to have good letters from econ professors, and by taking upper level econ electives, you improve your chances at this (ii) it is likely, that at some point, you will either teach or ta an undergrad econ class, and by exposing yourself to different teaching methodologies within the field, you may help your performance in one or both of these tasks (iii) you'll have something to say about what topics in economics interest you and why you are drawn to economics as a discipline.
(5) Take at least the std math load if possible: Calc I-III, Lin Alg, Math Stat and Prob (uses calculus), and Real Analysis. Whenever you are given the choice b/t an applied and a theoretical version of the same math course, take the more theoretical course (i.e. applied lin alg vs. lin alg). Depending on your background and goals, if you are deficient in math, consider taking courses as non-degree seeking undergrad.
(6) Use the profile and results section to try and get an idea of the range of schools that you should apply to.....professors who have been out of the game for a bit will tend to think that you can get into schools that are likely better than you can get into....try to apply to a good range of schools (targets, safeties, and possibly some reaches if you feel the need....I would say that if you have a good idea of proper targets, then the third category is least important, especially if you are cash-strapped).
(7) Become as informed about a dept as possible through the dept's website. It helps to read infro from dept newsletters and thoroughly familiarize yourself with the information posted about the grad program. Then use this information to your advantage when creating a SOP.....if for nothing else, this puts out a strong signal to the dept that you are very interested in their program (depts are looking for good students who won't reject their offers and this sends the I won't reject signal).

tmdruie 2009:
So I can get on the shiny charts!
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Physics and Economics from a top 10 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.14/4.0
Type of Grad: One stats class
Grad GPA: 3.3
GRE: 790Q, 600V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Calc I-III(I took them in high school, I really dont remember and nor do my transcripts), Linear Algebra (B), Mathematical Probability and Statistics (B-, B), Real Analyst(A, at a different school then my undergrad), Stochastic Processes (B+, grad course, at a different school then my undergrad)
Econ Courses: AP Micro and Macro (A, in high school), European Economic History (B+), Law and Economics (B), Intermediate Price Theory (B), Intermediate Macro Theory (B), Econometrics (B), Contemporary British Economy (B), Industrial Revolution-Britain (A-), Econ of Multinational Corps (A-), Thesis (labor econ)
Other Courses: Physics, which I put in my math lists. Quantum Mechanics I, Partial Differential Equations (B+), etc. I only did the bare minimum for a liberal arts major
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ professors (my thesis advisor and the person who led my study abroad), 1 physics professor (thesis advisor), 1 economist who is my supervisor
Research Experience: RA for 2.5 years at a central bank
Teaching Experience: Tutored, graded and lab assisted for two years for physics in college
Research Interests: All over the place. Labor, policy, experimental, applied micro, development, etc.
SOP: Intro, I did physics I can do math!, I wrote a thesis in economic and liked doing research, Im working as an RA and like doing research, I took extra math and can write proofs, I was part of an econ paper reading group and like reading papers, interests (changed a bit depending on what the school had, and more policy oriented for ag econ schools). Also a few sentences about things I did that I removed or added depending on the school. The 500 word schools were hard, the 1000 word schools were easy. I also had a Personal History Statement about being a female doing math for the schools that wanted it.
Other: Applied for the NSF. I tried not to say anything to risky, and not say much about interest in policy to non policy/ ag econ schools. I like Aikido.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Boston University (waitlist for $), Michigan State(no $), University of Essex (ISER), Ohio State (Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics) ($-Fellowship), Indiana University ($-TA), Iowa State University ($-TA)
Waitlists: University of Minnesota
Rejections: MIT, Harvard (Econ and Political Economy and Government), Yale, Berkeley (Agricultural & Resource Economics), Northwestern, NYU, U Penn (Econ and Wharton), University of Wisconsin Madison (Econ and Agricultural and Applied Economics ), Columbia, Brown, Cornell, Caltech, University of British Columbia , Ohio State, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor (Econ and Public Policy and Economics), University of Maryland (Econ and Agricultural Economics), Boston College, Johns Hopkins, University of Minnesota (Applied Economics), University of California Davis (Econ and Agricultural Economics), Duke, University of Essex, Vanderbilt, Rutgers, Carnegie Mellon (Econ, Department of Social and Decision Sciences, Public Policy and Economics)
Pending: Toronto MA, Queens MA
What would you have done differently?
Gotten better grades in undergrad. When I really started understanding what the things I need to do for a PhD I think I did the best I could, took real analysis, applied for the NSF (if only to write a SoP for them), read papers etc. I probably could have gotten more research experience at my job (co-author), and I defiantly could have gotten better grades and taken more math as an undergrad. But over all Im happy.
Attending:
Boston University

DreamFactory 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BBA (minor Econ), International applicant, not top but one of the best schools in my country.
Undergrad GPA: 3.83/4.00 after rescale, summa cum laude (within 2&#37; of the graduates, but the transcripts doesn't offer the rank anymore)
Type of Grad: Same school, MA econ - major:Economic theory (expected aug. 2009)
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0 after rescale
GRE: 800Q, 670V, 4.0AWA
Math/Stat Courses:
Calculus I (B+),II (A), Intro to Probability (A+), Differential Equations I (B+), Linear Algebra I (Aced all exams, A+), II (A+), Analysis I (A+), II(A+), Topology I (A+), Stochastic Processes (A+), grad Real Analysis I (A)
Econ Courses: undergraduate - Principles I (A+),II (A), Biz Econ (A), Monetary (A), Financial (B+), Micro (A+), Macro (A), Metrics (B+)/ graduate - Micro I (A+) II (A), Macro I (A), II (A+), Metrics I (A+), Financial Economics (A), Micro Seminar (A+), Public Sector Economics II (A+)
Other Courses: Bunch in biz. especially in finance (mostly A's or A+'s in finance)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ (both micro), 2 biz (both finance), 1 math (analysis 1,2, topology 1), all very strong but not so famous
Research Experience: RA for 2 semesters (participated in a project), 1 working paper, conference participation etc.
Teaching Experience: grad Micro I (MWG) - 2 semesters
Research Interests: Behavioral Finance/Economics/Experimental, Market Microstructure, various topics in Micro Theory......actually almost everything in Finance and Economics since most of them are interesting (I'll choose them after I get to know more)
SOP: no idea how it look like to the adcoms.
Other: External fellowship.(5 years of tuition+health+18k)
RESULTS:
Acceptances/Attending: U of Chicago (Econ, very late admission!)
Waitlists: none
Rejections: 4 econ (actually I was rejected from Chicago econ in March) - Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Columbia
17 finance - Booth, Kellogg, Wharton, Stanford GSB, Sloan, Stern, Haas, Fuqua, Tepper, Simon, Anderson, UIUC, OSU, UMinn-TC, Eli Broad, Wisc-Madison, Johnson
Pending: LSE MSc Finance and Economics (Applied after all those dings)
What would you have done differently?
I would've concentrated more on my SOPs. Should've had different major in my undergrad (changing major is not allowed in my alma mater, and Biz major had toooooooo many required courses back then). Also, I should have gone for exchange student in the U.S. when young...get some LORs from famous faculties there...BUT I DON'T CARE ex-post, I got into one of my favorite school!

papertherapy 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small American liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.75/4.00
Type of grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 780Q/630V/4.5 AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I (A), Calculus II (B+), Calculus III (B+), Ordinary and Partial Differential Equations (B), Statistics I (A-), Complex Variables (B+), Topology (IP), Linear Algebra (IP)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Advanced Micro, Advanced Macro, Econometrics, Game Theory, International Trade and Development, International Finance, Public Finance, Experimental Economics
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ. professors, all undergrad
Research Experience: some data analysis and sorting, regression analysis project, Senior Thesis
Teaching Experience: Tutoringg
Research Interests: Game Theory, Econometrics, Trade and Development
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UVA (No $), Indiana ($$), Pittsburgh ($$), West Virginia ($$), Lehigh ($)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Penn State, Carnegie Mellon, Ohio State
Pending: None
What would you have done differently? Nothing,
Attending: Pittsburgh

tomal1134 2010:
Institution: ASU
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 19K + Tuition + Health insurance
Notification date: 02/23 (Admitted on 02/10)
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments: Happy!!
Institution: OSU
Program: AEDE PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding: -50(for Application)-17(TOEFL score)-20(GRE score)-30(DHL)+Cost of effort+ Disutil from frustration.
Notification date: 01/29
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on grad cafe: No
Comments:

wouldliketoknowit 2010:
Institution: UT-Austin
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: None, because they think I'll have better offers, but they'll make me an offer if I want one.
Notification date: 3/11/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
in: penn state, ohio state, rochester, wash. st.louis

Mellow13 2011:
Type of Undergrad: Top university in the Middle East
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: MA Econ
Grad GPA: 3.88
GRE: 770Q 530V 5AW
Math Courses: calculus (I,II,III), linear algebra, ODE, Stat
Econ Courses (grad): Econometrics, Macro, Price Theory, etc....
Econ Courses (u/g): Too many
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Princeton (very personal), 1 UCSB (also personal), 1 from Chairman of department (good)
Research Experience: 2 conference presentations (also in conference proceedings), RA for 3 teachers, Undergrad and MA theses
Teaching Experience: Graduate assistant (TA) for intermediate macro, taught intro to macro at local university
Research Interests: Development, Labor, Growth
Concerns: low undergrad GPA and GRE
Applying to: MA: BGSE, Queen's, Tillburg, Tinbergen, PhD: UCSB, USC, UT Austin, Duke, OSU, UW-Seattle, UVA, Georgetown, Syracuse, UC Irvine, McGill, ASU

kekecib 2011:
Institution: Rice
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: NA
Notification date: Feb 13
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Terrible news for me. 1st decision I got. It was one of my safeties. I do know what is wrong with my profile according to their ad. committee's view.
Institution: UIUC
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: NA
Notification date: Feb 17
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Comments: I started to freak out. I am wondering what will happen to the rest of my applications. This one did hurt and made me pretty sad.
In: None Out: Rice, UIUC Waiting: 19 Econ PhD

Abibler 2011:
Institution: Oregon, Michigan State
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Waiting to hear from Oregon, not likely from MSU unless more funds become available
Notification Date: Oregon - January, MSU 3/8
Posted on GF:
Comments: Oregon grants admission on a rolling basis and decides on funding in March and April according to the website. No funding yet, still waiting to hear from 8 schools
Institution: Rice, Ohio State, Georgetown, Penn State
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification Date: End of February, beginning of March
Posted on GF:
Comments: Nothing too surprising, only need funding from one school

Pho 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A in Economics (major), Maths & East Asian Studies (minors) from top 20 LA college
Undergrad GPA: 3.8/4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 790Q (91%), 580V (79%), 4.0 AWA (wanted to retake the GRE but did not have time to study)
Math Courses: Calc II-III (A,A), Linear Algebra (A), Intro. to Prob. and Stats. (A-), Real Analysis (A-), ODE (A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): N/A
Math Courses (grad-level): Mathematical Statistics
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): The usual, mostly A, a few A-
Other Courses: Many
Letters of Recommendation: PhD OSU (very strong), PhD Michigan (strong), 2 Math Professors (strong, strong), 1 PhD MIT (work supervisor)
Research Experience: Senior research project
Teaching Experience: TA/tutor for Intro to Stats & Probability, Metrics, and Intermediate Macro
Research Interests: Monetary as of now, might change later
SOP: Decent, I think. I tried to tailor for each school (specific research topics of the faculty that I am interested in working with, but not mentioning names, research centers...)
Other: I studied abroad for a year in London. Have been working for 2 years at an economic consulting firm. As an undergrad, I never thought I would want to pursue a PhD, so I filled my summers and work study assignments with banking and consulting gigs in the private sector.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: MA: Duke ($$), Oxford MPhil (???) PhD: WUSTL ($$$), JHU (off the waitlist - tuition waiver, but no 1st year stipend)
Waitlists: PhD: JHU (later off the waitlist), MA: Columbia Statistics
Rejections: Chicago, Princeton, Stanford, NYU, Columbia, Northwestern, Georgetown, Maryland, OSU
Pending:
Attending: Duke for Masters
What would you have done differently?
- Once I realized that I wanted to do a PhD, I should have actively sought out for RA positions, instead of staying in the private sector (even though the visa issue might complicate this).
- Took more Math classes in undergrad. Maths never hurts, regardless of what direction/sector I would go later. Also, majoring in Maths would give me extra OPT months, hence solving the visa issue.
- Took Econ classes with more professors (I took more than half of my classes with the PhD OSU professors), so that I didn't have such a hard time asking for recs.
Anyway, happy that I got such choices and I am excited to head to Duke!

lessgiraffe 2012:
Institution: Vanderbilt
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N.A.
Notification Date: 2/10/2012
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Comments: -

bertthepuppy 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 50 private university by US News
Undergrad GPA: 3.61
Type of Grad: a couple semesters of non-degree courses, medium-sized, well-ranked state school
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 790/500/5.5
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Lin Alg, Real Analysis, 3 semesters of Stats
Econ Courses: Int Micro & Macro, Money and Banking, Public Finance, Int'l Trade, Int'l Finance, Thesis Course, Econometrics...
Other Courses: many policy-related analytical courses
Letters of Recommendation: solid, all knew me very well one Yale, one Johns Hopkins, one Berkeley, and one Northeastern (but ironically, probably the most well-known)
Research Experience: RA in undergrad and currently RA for one of my letter writers
Teaching Experience: TA for Econ for Public Affairs and Macro
Research Interests: Labor, Applied micro
SOP: well-tailored to each school, and given emphasis on my drive, with comparisons to running the two marathons I did
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wisconsin (short list for $), Texas (wait list for $), UNC-CH($), Ohio State (no $), Iowa ($), Colorado (?), Illinois ($), Cornell (no $), Vanderbilt ($), Kentucky ($)
Waitlists: Georgetown (then given fellowship)
Rejections: Duke, Michigan, MarylandWhat would you have done differently? I wish I would have realized that April 15th seems like this magical day when everything will be done. However, this is not always the case, especially if you are near the middle of the pack at some good programs. Even though I've been formulating preferences for months, I feel like they have all changed within the past week. I'll probably go to Wisconsin if I get off the wait list for $, otherwise I think I will go to Texas, perhaps unfunded. Ask me tomorrow and I will change my mind again.

tmdruie 2009:
So I can get on the shiny charts!
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Physics and Economics from a top 10 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.14/4.0
Type of Grad: One stats class
Grad GPA: 3.3
GRE: 790Q, 600V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Calc I-III(I took them in high school, I really dont remember and nor do my transcripts), Linear Algebra (B), Mathematical Probability and Statistics (B-, B), Real Analyst(A, at a different school then my undergrad), Stochastic Processes (B+, grad course, at a different school then my undergrad)
Econ Courses: AP Micro and Macro (A, in high school), European Economic History (B+), Law and Economics (B), Intermediate Price Theory (B), Intermediate Macro Theory (B), Econometrics (B), Contemporary British Economy (B), Industrial Revolution-Britain (A-), Econ of Multinational Corps (A-), Thesis (labor econ)
Other Courses: Physics, which I put in my math lists. Quantum Mechanics I, Partial Differential Equations (B+), etc. I only did the bare minimum for a liberal arts major
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ professors (my thesis advisor and the person who led my study abroad), 1 physics professor (thesis advisor), 1 economist who is my supervisor
Research Experience: RA for 2.5 years at a central bank
Teaching Experience: Tutored, graded and lab assisted for two years for physics in college
Research Interests: All over the place. Labor, policy, experimental, applied micro, development, etc.
SOP: Intro, I did physics I can do math!, I wrote a thesis in economic and liked doing research, Im working as an RA and like doing research, I took extra math and can write proofs, I was part of an econ paper reading group and like reading papers, interests (changed a bit depending on what the school had, and more policy oriented for ag econ schools). Also a few sentences about things I did that I removed or added depending on the school. The 500 word schools were hard, the 1000 word schools were easy. I also had a Personal History Statement about being a female doing math for the schools that wanted it.
Other: Applied for the NSF. I tried not to say anything to risky, and not say much about interest in policy to non policy/ ag econ schools. I like Aikido.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Boston University (waitlist for $), Michigan State(no $), University of Essex (ISER), Ohio State (Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics) ($-Fellowship), Indiana University ($-TA), Iowa State University ($-TA)
Waitlists: University of Minnesota
Rejections: MIT, Harvard (Econ and Political Economy and Government), Yale, Berkeley (Agricultural & Resource Economics), Northwestern, NYU, U Penn (Econ and Wharton), University of Wisconsin Madison (Econ and Agricultural and Applied Economics ), Columbia, Brown, Cornell, Caltech, University of British Columbia , Ohio State, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor (Econ and Public Policy and Economics), University of Maryland (Econ and Agricultural Economics), Boston College, Johns Hopkins, University of Minnesota (Applied Economics), University of California Davis (Econ and Agricultural Economics), Duke, University of Essex, Vanderbilt, Rutgers, Carnegie Mellon (Econ, Department of Social and Decision Sciences, Public Policy and Economics)
Pending: Toronto MA, Queens MA
What would you have done differently?
Gotten better grades in undergrad. When I really started understanding what the things I need to do for a PhD I think I did the best I could, took real analysis, applied for the NSF (if only to write a SoP for them), read papers etc. I probably could have gotten more research experience at my job (co-author), and I defiantly could have gotten better grades and taken more math as an undergrad. But over all Im happy.
Attending:
Boston University

econm 2011:
PROFILE: econm
Type of Undergrad: Double major math (top 20) economics (top 30)
Undergrad GPA: 3
GRE: 800, 590, 4.5
Math Courses: all of them
Econ Courses: intermediates + urban, international, game theory, policy, development
Other Courses: year of bio & chem, 2 CS courses (matlab, java, C++, some unix), Thermal Physics & Statistical Mechanics
Letters of Recommendation: 1 semi-famous, 1 young rising star, 1 visiting, 1 emeritus
Research Experience: None
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Varied
SOP: Bad, just really not good
Other: Rejected by Oregon, accepted by MSU for a difference in ranking of about 30
RESULTS:
Acceptances: MSU ($$), Illinois (MS)
Waitlists: OSU (rejected on 14th after emailing), Purdue (withdrew)
Rejections: Virginia, Washington, Penn St, Oregon, BC, Cornell AEM, Iowa St
Attending: Michigan State University
What would you have done differently?
1) Taken less math
2) Taken math in the right order
3) Drank more milk
4) Not applied to Iowa St, Cornell AEM, Penn State, BC
5) Applied to UC Davis, UBC, Toronto, Texas, UNC