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LoS 2011:
PROFILE
Type of Undergrad: Best school of business in Poland (but an American citizen)
Undergrad GPA: 3.37/4.0 in conversion, though it's not that simple
Type of Grad: Master's at the same school, exchange semester in Tilburg
Grad GPA: 3.30/4.0 at home school, 7.8/10 at UvT
GRE: 800Q, 610V, 4.5AW
Math Courses: Multiple courses in calculus, mathematical analysis, linear algebra, probability, statistics - though some dispersion in grades
Econ Courses (grad-level): advanced macroeconomics (comparable to US grad courses), bayesian econometrics, field econ classes (labor, public sector, development, institutional)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): multiple intermediate courses in micro and macro, mathematical economics, game theory.
Other Courses: lots of econometrics (did major both in grad and undergrad), retirement and life cycle economics at Tilburg
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Polish profs, 2 phds, one phd from Tilburg
Research Experience: bachelor's thesis, RAed for over 1 year at a large Embassy
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: empirical work, econometrics both at micro and macro level, also development and environment
SOP: standard I think, maybe a little chaotic but revealing passion and interests
Concerns: no outstanding or internationally renowned LORs, dispersion in grades, maybe too wide research interests
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Tinbergen ($$), EUI Florence ($$), Minnesota (TA, from waitlist), Tilburg, QEM
Waitlists: Minnesota (admitted April 11th)
Rejections: Columbia, NYU, Northwestern, Maryland, RA positions at FRB and JPAL
What would you have done differently?
As you can easily notice, I cracked practically everything in Europe, but I was pretty unsuccessful in the US. I think what I lacked was one strong letter of recommendation from somebody in a good standing on the other side of the ocean.

petecheese 2011:
Type of Undergrad: BA in Business Finance. Top Univ in middle east
Undergrad GPA: 82/100 (3.4/4.0)
Type of Grad: M.A. in Economics from same university
Grad GPA: 91/100 (4.0/4.0)
GRE: 780Q 470V 4.0AW
Math Courses: Calc 1 (AP), Calc 2 (AP), Calc 3 (98/100), Linear Algebra (87/100), ODE (83/100), Econ Stats (80/100)
Econ Courses: Intermediate micro (87), Intermediate macro (99), Econometrics (80). Lots of grad courses (Micro, Macro, econometrics, monetary, etc...) Almost all 90+
Other Courses: A lot of finance courses (although lost interest in finance as field of study but had them from Ugrad)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from professor and chair, PHD York (Really good letter), 1 from assistant prof, PHD Princeton (Very enthusiastic), 1 from assistant professor PHD Toulouse (standard), 1 from visiting professor (Should be good)
Research Experience: RA for about a year. Recent conference presentation in Poland (awaiting scientific board for publication in conference proceedings)
Teaching Experience: GA/TA for 2 years (undergrad and grad econometrics)
Research Interests: Development, Applied micro (empirical mostly), and applied econometrics
Concerns: Low Ugrad GPA, No proof based math courses, semi unknown school
RESULTS:
Attending: Texas A&M (TAMU)
Acceptances: Iowa State, Virginia Tech, BGSE (UPF), Tinbergen, Uconn
Rejections: UIUC, PSU, Wisconsin-madison, Rice, Toronto (doctoral Stream), Tilburg, Arizona, BC, UNC (initially wait listed)
Comments:
Honestly, i was really happy with my results and quite surprised. I had a weak-average Undergrad performance to make up, and come from a relatively unknown Middle Eastern school.
I think what did it for me was LORS. I cannot emphasize how important LORs are, and how important it is to build good relations with professors (RA, TA, visit office hours and talk about research, etc...).
Also for some smaller programs (specifically Vtech if anyone is ever interested in that school ), i think what got me in was my SOP. Very tailored to their school. I think people underestimate the role of the SOP. Outside of the top 10, i think it can be a very useful tool and should be taken seriously (ofcourse this does not apply to all schools outside the top10, but for some of the smaller programs, "fit" is very important.
In the end, Thank GOD this whole process is done, and i am more than happy to attend TAMU , although the location i am not so ecstatic about :P.

llama 2011:
Institution: Barcelona GSE
Program: Masters in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Partial tuition waiver
Notification date: 01/17/2011
Notified through: email
Posted on GF: ???
Comments: They want an anwser to their admission offer within a month.

dobrin 2011:
Institution:Carlos 3 de Madrid
Program: Economic Analysis MSc
Funding:YES
Notification date:Feb 17
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Well, not bad

smurfo 2011:
Institution: Tinbergen
Program: M.Phil Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Yes
Notification date: 2 March 2011
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Ik hou van Nederland!

UserNam 2011:
Institution: Tinbergen
Program: M.Phil Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Yes
Notification date: 2 March 2011
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comment: Finally!!! My first admit after several implicit rejections. Almost started crying! I will get a beer now

EnvEcon 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Economics and Business in a top economics university in Europe
Undergrad GPA: We have a different grading system, I would say "good" but not "excellent"
Type of Grad: Economics in the same university
Grad GPA: Again, comparison is difficult; I went way better than my undergrad (especially for math and stat classes) but still not at the top.
GRE: 770Q, 630V, 3.5AW
Math Courses: Basic math&stat + dynamic optimization and inferential statistics
Econ Courses: Basic undergrad courses + lot of grad courses, mainly applied econ (labour, development, energy, international econ, applied macro, behavioural economics) and solid econometric background
Other Courses: Some history and law classes, especially during undergrad
Research Experience: About one year RA in a well known European energy research center within an economics faculty.
Letters of Recommendation: All during my RA period: one from my supervisor, one from the head of the research group (very well known in the energy field), one from a Phd now in the US. As far as I know, all of them are very good and detailed.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Applied micro in general, environmental, development, behavioural
SOP: I put a lot of weight on my RA job and my graduate studies. I specified my research interests and career goals but I didn't mentioned any professor in particular with which I wanted to work.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Maryland Econ (waitlist for $), Maryland AgEcon ($), Purdue AgEcon ($), Wyoming Econ ($), Madrid Carlos III ($)
Waitlists:
Rejections: UCB AgEcon, UCSB, UBC, Tinbergen, Cornell AEM
Pending: Stockholm School of Economics
Attending: Maryland AgEcon
What would you have done differently?
1) I feel that I have been ruled out from some programs due to my GRE quant score, just a bit below 90%.
2) Applied to more places, perhaps some more Econ programs.
3) Did an undergraduate in economics. It would have been way more painful, but I would have been much more prepared for the graduate program (and got better grades).
4) For the econ programs only, doing some more theoretical macro/micro stuff could help, but who knows.
5) Prepare applications carefully from the beginning! Actually, for me it was a learning-by-doing process: for UCSB application (the first I sent), for instance, I didn't include syllabus of econ and math classes.
Other considerations
1) I feel that here people overestimate GRE and grades and underestimate the weight AdComs give to how much overall a candidate fit into the program. Maryland AgEcon was an excellent fit for me (given my interests and research experience) and that put me above other candidates with better grades/GRE.
2) LORs are incredibly useful, one of the few things of an application which can show what is your research potential. Being a RA opened many doors, too.
3) Networking with faculty researchers is fundamental, especially if you are lucky enough to be a RA; in the application process, many people see Professors only as LORs writers, but first of all they are experienced people from which you can learn how to properly do research even after your admission. Starting a Phd with a network of young and senior researchers is a tremendous advantage.

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

3yellowroses 2011:
I'm an international applicant that has been lurking around. Time to disclose my results:
Accepted:
Institution: American University
Program: Phd Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: will be notified mid march.
Notification date: 9 March 2011
Notified through: e-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments:
Waitlisted:
Institution: Tilburg University
Program: Research Master, Economics
Decision: Waitlisted. will hear from them in mid april
Funding: there's a chance to get a TA if admitted
Notification date: 14 March 2011
Notified through: e-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments:
Institution: Cambridge University
Program: DPhil Economics
Decision: Waitlisted. will hear from them in mid april
Funding: haven't heard a word
Notification date: 10 Feb 2011
Notified through: e-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments:
Rejections: NYU, Columbia, Berkeley, MIT, Brown, Maryland, Tinbergen, Oxford.
Haven't heard of: Umass, Cornell, WUSTL, Michigan State, Paris School of Economics, Bonn GSE, LSE (Econ & Phil Msc)