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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!

TA89 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Dual Major in Economics/Mathematics from Top 10 liberal arts college. Transfer from a top public after one year, Summer Coursework at an ivy, top 15 national university, and another top public.
Undergrad GPA: 3.85 (Math: 3.90, Economics: 3.85)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q:780 V:570 AWA:6.0 (second attempt)
Math Courses: Calculus I (A+), Calculus II (B+), Calculus III (A), Linear Algebra (A), Differential Equations (A-), Introduction to Analysis (A), Analysis & Optimization (A), Probability (Fall 2011), Principles of Real Analysis I (Fall 2011)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Advanced Microeconomics I (A), Advanced Microeconomics II (A): The first semester course used MWG and covered consumer theory/producer theory/GE topics. The second semester course used half the class to cover Gibbons' Game Theory, and the second half covered Contract Theory using Bolton and Dewatripont, as well as Berkeley lecture notes. Both were Ph.D. level courses.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Principles of Microeconomics (A), Principles of Macroeconomics (A), Experimental Economics (B+), Intermediate Microeconomics (A-), Intermediate Macroeconomics (A-), Economics Statistics (A), Econometrics (A-), International Trade (A),
Other Courses: Not sure what to say here, but I took a year of Chinese (A/A), and a Philosophy Seminar/Tutorial double course (A-/A-)
Letters of Recommendation:
1. Adviser. TA'd his UG Advanced Microeconomics class. I will be doing my thesis under him and have spent this summer working on a research project for him.
2. Advanced Microeconomics I-II Professor. Took both my Ph.D. Micro classes and have discussed my graduate school plans with him.
3. Analysis Professor: I took intro Analysis and Principles of Real Analysis I with him.
All should have been very good.
Research Experience: Summer research project in Health Economics for adviser. Will continue this project as my senior thesis. The plan is to submit as a co-author.
Teaching Experience: TA'd undergraduate Advanced Microeconomics.
Research Interests: Micro Theory, International Trade, Applied Micro (very open)
SOP: I haven't written in yet, but will be good.
Concerns: Typical concerns of a liberal arts applicant. Not really sure what to think or expect.
Other: Again, not really sure what to put here. Unlikely it's relevant, but President of Model UN for two years, and lots of Model UN awards.
RESULTS:
Accepted: Duke Fuqua School of Business: Decision Sciences ($$$), Wisconsin ($$), Cornell ($$$), WUSTL ($$$), UT-Austin (?), LSE MsC Econ (-)
Waitlists: Michigan (high on WL, but withdrew), UCLA (rejected), Penn (rejected), UVA (withdrew)
Rejected: Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Stanford GSB, Chicago, Yale, Northwestern MEDS, Columbia, NYU, Caltech, UCSD, Duke Econ, Brown, LSE MsC EME
Attending: Duke Fuqua School of Business: Decision Sciences
What would you have done differently?
Nothing. I could not be happier with the way the process turned out. I am so fortunate to have been presented with so many great offers. Thanks TM for all the guidance along the way.

mdecon 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BS Basic Medical Sciences (in the top medical school in our country [SE Asia])
Undergrad GPA: I'm not sure how to convert it but I graduated cum laude and the 2nd in our batch
Type of Postgrad: Doctor of Medicine (yes I'm a doctor)
Grad GPA: Again, not sure how to convert it but I'm in the top 250f my class
Type of Grad: MA Economics (top Econ department in our country, not strongly ranked in Asia though)
Grad GPA: Unsure how to convert it (maybe B+/A- level)
GRE: 160 V (around 600 in the old scheme based on a comparison of the percentiles), 164 Q (around 790 in the old scheme based on a comparison of the percentiles), 5.5 AW
TOEFL: 118/120
Math Courses: Calculus/Elementary Analysis I-III, Linear Algebra, Elementary Differential Equations, Elementary Statistics, Intro to Proving (all taken alongside by grad econ courses)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Microeconomic Analysis I-III, Macroeconomic Analysis I-III, Math Econ I-II, Econ Statistics, Econometrics I-II, Health, Labor, International I-II, Monetary, Environmental
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Elementary Macro, Math Econ, Introductory Econometrics
Other Courses: Lots of sciences (bio, chem, physics), medicine
Letters of Recommendation: PhD from Yale, PhD from Northwestern, PhD from Columbia and PhD from my university
Research Experience: Did some scientific research (unpublished) in physiology, pharmacology and biochemistry during med school, RA in the Asian Development Bank's Economics and Research Department
Teaching Experience: 2 sems TA (Intro to Econ, Intro to Micro), 2 1/2 years in the Health Sciences Program of the country's second-ranked university
Research Interests: Health, Health and Development, Behavioral, Experimental, Neuroeconomics
SOP: Addressed my not so stellar math grades, highlighted my unique background, discussed my potential strength in health, experimental and neuroeconomics research because of my MD
Concerns: Not so stellar math grades (only around ~B+), lack of economic research papers, admissions committees might see me as better off in a public health PhD or a health policy/health econ PhD rather than an econ PhD program
Other: Got awarded as an outstanding student in my country in 2008
Applying to: Many of the top 25 schools (especially those with Neuroeconomics labs like NYU, Duke, Berkeley, Stanford), some in the 30-60 like UCSB, UCR, USC, Georgetown, WUSTL, Claremont (because of their neuroecon program), some MPP programs in public policy schools (Princeton, Chicago), Harvard PhD Health Policy

lebatin 2012:
Institution: Washington University in St. Louis
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Full Tuition Scholarship with Fellowship (26K stipend)
Notification Date:2/15/2012
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Thank You.

lexeg 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ. Ph.D
Decision: Waiting Listed
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: not what i expected, still better than being rejected

conman 2012:
Institution: Boston College
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification Date: 3/17/2012
Notified Through: Mail
Posted to GC: No
Comments: Dated March 13

microtheory1227 2012:
Type of Undergrad: Dual-degree BS/BA in Accounting and Economics from flagship state school. Top 30 econ.
Undergrad GPA: 4.000/4.000
Type of Grad: Economics PhD program at a non-top-50 state school; will leave with MA
Grad GPA: 3.96/4.00
GRE: Q 800 V 630 AWA 5.0
Math Courses: Calculus I+II, Applied Prob+Stat I, Math for Economists I+II (Graduate)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Full micro and macro sequences; passed both PhD theory comps, including micro with honors; Econometrics I+II; 6 credits independent study
Econ Courses (undergrad): Intermediate Micro+Macro, Game Theory, IO, Development, Banking, Econometrics I+II
Other Courses: Lots of business courses
Letters of Recommendation: PhD Rochester (Micro Theory); PhD UToronto (Macro, Labor, Search); PhD CMU (Applied Micro, IO) - all graduate professors
Research Experience: Nothing formal beyond my own work
Teaching Experience: TA in accounting and game theory while undergrad
Research Interests: Behavioral Theory
SOP: Honest expression of my previous experience and research interests
Concerns: Got rejections all around from top schools in 2010, presumably because of inadequate mathematical background and ill-defined research interests.
Other: Had to "serve time" for two years in a relatively crappy program, but my concerns from two years ago are largely remedied. Got tremendous letters because I was a big fish in a lousy program. Also decided to put in applications very late and missed out on schools with December 15 deadline.
Applying to: Kellogg MECS, Cornell, Brown, Rochester, Wash U, Purdue
Results:
Accepted:Kellogg MECS ($$$), Rochester ($$)
Rejected:Brown, Cornell, Wash U (implicit - never heard back)
Other: Purdue (declined interview)
Attending:Kellogg MECS
What would you have done differently?
Not much I could do differently for this cycle, but I'm very pleased with my result. The program I am attending is arguably my best research fit of any program in the country. It would have been nice not to have missed the 12/15 deadline so I could have applied to places like CMU SDS, but I have no regrets ex post. As many other people have said, I suspect my LORs played a very significant role. In particular, I had a respected mathematical economist vouch for my quantitative abilities, which helped cover up my dearth of formal mathematics courses. Back in the 2010 cycle, I should have done pretty much everything differently. If I had known what I was doing, I would have double majored (or at least minored) in math and written an honors thesis. If I had done that, I suspect I could have gotten into a top 20 program back then. All's well that ends well, though.

snowyday 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA magna cum laude in Econ and History from top 30 US undergrad, top 30 econ dept
Undergrad GPA: 3.8
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800Q / 800V / 6.0 AWA
Math Courses: AP BC Calculus 5, AP Statistics 5, online courses in Linear Algebra and Multivariate Calculus, both As
Econ Courses: Honors Micro Theory A-, Honors Macro Theory A-, Econometrics B+, Game Theory A, Money Banking & Financial Markets A-, Capital Markets A-, Monetary Theory & Policy B+, Senior Thesis A
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: Thesis adviser (econ professor, not well known), director of economics honors program for undergraduates (economics professor), senior administrator at another University (PhD in social work)
Research Experience: Received thesis prize for best economics thesis senior year
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: Various, capital markets, Monetary Theory, Macro - subject to change
SOP: Discussed my current situation, and how I came to be seriously interested too late in my undergrad career to pursue more math
Other: Working for last two years in finance job.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Duke (tuition remission for 1st year), Brown (MA offer w/ no funding), Wisconsin (no funding 1st year), UCSB (waitlist for funding), BU (no funding 1st year)
Waitlists: Minnesota
Rejections: Yale, MIT, Berkeley, UCSD, Stanford, Caltech, WUSTL, UVA, Michigan
Pending:
What would you have done differently? No regrets, and am extremely pleased with my results all things considered. I had been thinking about applying to RA jobs to beef up the profile, but am not sure with offers from some top 20 schools if it would be worth another 2 years of my life. If I had been thinking of this possibility during my formative years in undergrad, I would definitely have taken more math, and probably some grad econ classes / pursued other research opportunities, but I didn't really become interested in econ until my junior year. Take heart all those with little formal math preparation! Some admissions committees will be willing to take a chance!
Attending: Duke (!!)

gemmy 2012:

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 50 undergrad, top 40 in Econ, top 30 in Math
Undergrad GPA: 3.84 (Econ 3.85, Math 3.85)
Type of Grad:
Grad GPA:
GRE: 670 V, 800 Q, 4.0 W
Math Courses: Cal I-III (A, A, A-), Differential Equations (B+), Linear Algebra (A-), Linear Analysis (A), Math Reasoning (Intro to Proof) (A-), Multivar Cal I-II (A, A), Real Analysis I (A), Discrete Modeling (A), Statistics (A), Prob Theory I-II (A, A), Stochastic Cal (A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro I (A-), Macro I (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): a lot
Other Courses: Computer Programming (Java)
Letters of Recommendation:
1. Grad Macro Prof: Ph.D from Harvard, very very well-known. I did well in the class, and he knows me well. The letter should be strong.
2. Econ Prof: Ph.D from Chicago, very well-known. I did well in his undergrad class and talked to him a lot about this whole process. Hi is really enthusiastic and supportive. The letter should be very strong.
3. Research Advisor: Assistant Prof, Ph.D from Harvard. I have been working with her for more than a year. She knows me very well. The letter should be strong.
4. Econ Prof: Ph.D from Columbia, well-known. I did well in his undergrad class, but he doesn't know me that well as compared to the other Profs.
Research Experience: RA'd for more than a year.
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: International Macro (Trade and Finance), Macro
SOP: Standard, about two pages long.
Concerns: I'm not sure how strong the letter from recommender 4 will be. No grad-level Math classes.
Other:
Applying to: Harvard, Chicago, Berkeley, Northwestern, UPenn, Columbia, Minnesota, NYU, Michigan, UCLA, UCSD, Wisconsin, Cornell, Brown, Duke, Maryland, BU, JHU, Penn State.

applicant12 2012:
Type of undergrad: BS Economics, Finance, Math minor from a mid-sized state university (not flagship), has a well-regarded international business program, econ dept is in the college of art & sciences and has sent some people to some top 20 schools and several people to programs ranked below 20
Undergrad GPA: 3.96/4.00; ranked 1st in both Econ and Finance (my advisers told me this), but rank is not published on transcript
Type of Grad: MA Econ, same school, started Spring 2012
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 770Q 330V 4.0AWA
Math courses: Cal 1-3, Discrete math, Math stats I, II, Linear Algebra (all A's); Real Analysis (A-); ODE (Spring 2012)
Econ courses (all undergrad): Intro micro-macro, Intermediate Micro-Macro, Intro to Econometrics, Money Banking, Game theory, International Economics (all A's); Applied Econometrics (A-)
Other courses: a bunch of business courses for the Finance major
LORs: should all be good to strong
1) Econometrics prof (PhD Illinois) - I did an independent research with her and presented it at the school's undergrad research symposium; working as an RA for her right now
2) Applied econometrics professor (PhD Arizona)
3) International econ prof (PhD Iowa State). Took a class with him and he likes me.
Research exp: presented a research at the school's Undergrad Research Symposium, 1 semester of RA by the time of application, a few papers in classes
Teaching exp: taught short courses on many topics related to computers (MS Office, Web-page building, Photoshop, etc.) at the place where I work
Research Interest: Macro, Monetary, public finance, international finance
SOP: standard. Didn't mention professors' names or anything too particular
Concerns: from a not-so-well-known school, no grad courses yet, low GRE, no ODE
Other: won some university-wide and departmental scholarships; can't attend any school without funding
Applying to: Michigan, Cornell, Maryland, BU, BC, WUSTL, Vanderbilt, Toronto DSMA

kmoney 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 40 US School.
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: -
GRE: Q-161, V-151
Math Courses: A little of everything (double degree in math and econ)
Econ Courses (grad-level): -
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): advanced micro and macro, finance & investment, econometrics, international, game theory, etc.
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: three econ profs - all with PhDs from Berkeley and current research being published
Research Experience: Micro-finance research in India
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: Economics Development
SOP:
Concerns: Low GPA and GRE
Other:
Applied to: UCLA, Michigan, BC, BU, UNC, Georgetown, GW, Virginia Tech, Clemson

econphdhopeful2 2012:
Institution: Vanderbilt
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: na
Notification date: 2/10/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Expected but still a bummer, plenty more to go I suppose

jzir11 2012:
Institution: Washington University in St. Louis
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification Date:2/15/2012
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Let the rejections begin!

troy43 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ
Decision: Rejection
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012 (16:30 EST)
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: no
Comments: First official notification. Not what I expected but plenty more to go

shifeixuxu 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ
Decision: Rejection
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Disappointed. Yet life still goes on...

EconBeach 2012:
Profile.

kaworu 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ
Decision: Waiting Listed
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: Yes
Comments: Anyone knows how many WL they offered this year? Also, is it a little weird to receive a WL so early?

andeanalpaca 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ. Ph.D
Decision: Waiting Listed
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments:

lexeg 2012:
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Econ. Ph.D
Decision: Waiting Listed
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2012
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: not what i expected, still better than being rejected

econtp 2012:
Institution: Vanderbilt
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: $21,200
Notification date: 02/10
Notified through: Email
Comment: My first admit with quite generous funding!
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Waitlisted
Funding: Waitlisted
Notification date: 02/16
Notified through: Email
Institution: UCSB
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 02/23
Notified through: Email to check website
Comment: Quite surprised..
Institution: Stanford GSB
Program: EAP PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 02/23
Notified through: Email to check website
Institution: UT Austin
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: If I want, I have to contact them ASAP.
Notification date: 02/23
Notified through: Email
Comment: Hm.. I prefer Vandy to UT since my interest is Macro