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ockam 2007:
hey, I just heard about this forum a couple weeks ago. wish I had know about it earlier, but I hope somebody else might find my info useful
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: large "top-ten" public research university w/ top 15ish econ dept
Undergrad GPA: 3.95 overall, 3.97 math
GRE: 800Q/610V/5.0
Math Courses: majored in math, with rigorous year-long sequences in analysis, stats, and abstract algebra. upper div electives included applied linear algebra and mathematical modeling. note to future applicants: the admissions director at princeton seemed to take very seriously the fact that i had taken the more rigorous math courses
Econ Courses: very few: intro to micro, mathematical econ, grad-level micro. After applying, some macro and behavioral (and said I would do so on application)
Other Courses: lots of philosophy including grad-level coursework in philosophy of science.
Letters of Recommendation: These were probably the strongest part of my application. One from a full professor each of: econ, math, phil departments. Math letter came from my real analysis prof who is also a college provost. Phil letter was from my honors thesis advisor. I took a grad course with the econ prof. I know all my letter writers quite well, so there were lots of very specific things they could say about me.
Research Experience: none in economics. Assisted research in epidemiology (with a sociologist) and genomics. Independent research in philosophy of science and sabermetrics.
Teaching Experience: tutor/TA for the computer science dept (java)
Research Interests: very broad. mostly micro and metrics, both theory and applied
SOP: 700 words, nothing fancy. described how my background in math and phil led me to economics. said my interests in econ were broad and described a couple specific topics that interest me. Used mostly the same statement at every school, changing just the last two sentences for each application
Other: Residential advisor, phil club president, and undergrad phil journal editor.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
full funding:
Princeton, Stanford, Chicago, UPenn, Columbia, Northwestern Wisc-Madison, UBC
no $: UCSD
Waitlists:
Yale, MIT
Rejections:
Harvard, Berkeley
What would you have done differently?
absolutely nothing.

anukriti 2007:
Type of Undergrad: Masters in Economics from the best economics department in my country...history of students being accepted to Top 10 universities every year.
Undergrad GPA: 69%. Ranked 3rd in my class.
GRE: 800Q, 570V, 4.5 W
Math Courses:
Undergrad Math: Linear Algebra , Differential Equations, Topology, Real Analysis, Statistics, Partial Differential Equations, Game Theory, Calculus
Econ Courses:
M.A.Econ: Microeconomic Theory, Advanced Macroeconomic Theory, Basic and advanced Econometrics, Public Economics, International Trade, Forecasting Methods and applications, Economics of Regulation, Applied Consumption Analysis, Comparative Development
Letters of Recommendation: All economics professors with Ph.D.'s from Yale, Cornell, Princeton. One of them working in a leading research institute in the US now.
Research Experience: One year research with an international research organization in DC.
Teaching Experience: Undergraduate Statistics for one year.
Research Interests: Development, Health, Education
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Columbia
Rochester
Maryland
Brown
Wisconsin
Waitlisted
NYU
Rejections:
Princeton
Harvard
MIT
Yale
Cornell
UPENN
What would you have done differently?
Nothing actually. I tried my best!
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Mobil 2007:
Profile:
GRE: 800Q/520V/3.5A
TOEFL: 263/300, 4.5/6.0
GPA: I don't know how to translate:
Undergraduate: 8.7/10
Master: 8.13/10
Classes:
Math:
Undergrad: Calculus I-II, Static Optimization, Lin Algebra, Int to Probability and Statistics.
Grad: Real Analysis, Dynamic Optimization, Probability and Statistics
Econ:
Lots of undergrad, core grad sequence in Micro, Macro and Econometrics
Electives: Money Theory, Development Economics, Advanced Theory
Type of Undergrad: International
Research Experience: Master's thesis
Teaching Experience: TA for two grad Macro
LORs: 5 LORs from professors who are based here in my home country. 3 are tenured professors (PhDs from Berkeley, Minnesota and UPenn) and two more junior (PhD from Chicago, PhD from a domestic university).
SoP & Interests: It was just about my academic history, research interests (emphasizing the field in which each university is best) and professors I could work with in each of the universities.
Other: International, Latin American, 25 yo.
Interests: Macroeconomics, Money Theory, Development Economics
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
(with funding):
NYU
Minnesota
Columbia
PennState
(no funding): Rochester
Rejections:
Princeton
UPenn
Northwestern
Yale
No answer at all: Toronto
What would you have done differently?
Nothing, I guess...

Econ07 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: International, Top in the country
Undergrad GPA: 9.3/10.0
Type of Grad: MSc
GRE: Q800, V550, A4.5
Math Courses:Undergrad: Calculus I-III, 2 semester Lin Algebra, Probability, Statistics, Real Analysis
Grad: Real Analysis II, Measure Theory, Statistics
Econ Courses: Lots of undergrad, core grad sequence in Micro, Macro and Econometrics
Electives: Contract Theory, Finance, Advanced Theory
Letters of Recommendation: All domestic based. Two tenured, two junior. All had PhDs from top 7.
Research Experience: MSc thesis in progress, Undergrad thesis
Research Interests: Theory, Public Finance
SOP: Discussed my background and interests
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Chicago(Ext fund), Columbia($), MIT($, not immediately), Northwestern (waiver, Ext fund), NYU($), Princeton($), Penn($), Yale (lots of $)
Rejections: Chicago GSB-Econ, Stanford GSB-Econ, Harvard, Berkeley, Stanford
What would you have done differently?
Not have applied for the Fulbright. Focused more on the GSBs, emphasizing theory or not have applied to those.
Advice: Relax. Focus on every aspect of the app (LORs, courses, research exp). Now, I believe this forum overemphasizes math (but, still, you should have Real Analysis). Having recomendants that are known by the Adcom seems to be important.

Big Tuna 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Highly ranked US public university with top 25 econ phd program. Majors in economics/philosophy, minor in math.
Undergrad GPA: 4.0
Type of Grad: No masters program; just 1 course while in undergrad.
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 800V/800Q/4.5AW
Math Courses: Calculus I, I, III, linear algebra, real analysis, mathematical modeling, ordinary differential equations, currently enrolled in numerical methods and complex variables.
Econ Courses: intro/intermediate micro/macro, stat for economists, undergrad econometrics, 3 thesis/independent study courses, a bunch of undergrad field courses, and PhD econometrics I.
Other Courses: Mostly a lot of philosophy.
Letters of Recommendation: Three from good people, all of whom have supervised an independent project I've done.
Research Experience: The aforementioned thesis projects, plus 2 years as a research assistant and one empirical paper submitted to a decent (though not top tier) journal. I received an undergraduate research grant from my school to do this paper.
Teaching Experience: Just tutoring.
Research Interests: Applied micro, public finance, maybe econometrics
SOP: I guess it was fine.
Other: I had one withdrawal (W) on my transcript because I dropped abstract algebra; the professor was more boring than anyone else I'd ever had.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: MIT, Stanford, Yale, UChicago, Northwestern, NYU, Columbia, Duke, UMaryland.
Waitlists: Harvard.
Rejections: None.
Pending: None.
What would you have done differently? Probably nothing. I guess Harvard might have let me in instead of waitlisting me if I'd taken more advanced math or gone to an Ivy, but that's hard to tell and I wouldn't have wanted to do too much more work as an undergrad than I actually did; you have to leave time to have some fun.

jcash 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: top ten U.S. liberal arts
Undergrad GPA: 3.95
Type of Grad: none.
GRE: 670V/800Q/6.0AW
Math Courses: real analysis(A+), differential equations (A+), math logic (A), linear algebra and multivariable calculus in high school
Econ Courses: core courses in micro and macro, math econ and econometrics, some electives
Other Courses: lots of random stuff
Letters of Recommendation: 2 good econ ones, but not from well-known professors. 1 from a more well-known professor, but who didn't know me as well. 1 really good one from a political science professor.
Research Experience: Undergrad thesis in philosophy of economics, empirical and theoretical term papers.
Teaching Experience: TA for intermediate macro.
Research Interests: Public finance, econometrics
SOP: talked about possible research interests and what I had worked on
Other: applying for a j.d.-ph.d. Also: I meant to apply to Berkeley, but found out after the fact that I had never finished submitting my online application...oh well...
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Yale, Princeton, Columbia
Waitlists: Harvard
Rejections: MIT
Assumed Rejections: NYU, Chicago
What would you have done differently? Taken a grad level math course

eqtisadi 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Econ,Philosophy,Politics from an Israeli university
Undergrad GPA: 94%
Type of Grad: Econ in the same university
Grad GPA: 96%
GRE: Q800, V450, A5.0
Math Courses: Calculus, (simple and calculus-based) Statistics, Linear algebra and advanced calculus, as well as two advanced logic courses by the department of philosophy (all 90+). I took Real Analysis too but I am not going to do the test. It was much more fun doing it without the pressure.
Econ Courses: All around: undergrad: intro to econ I & II, price theory I & II, macro I & II, development, econ history, intro to econometrics, honors students seminar. MA: micro, macro I & II, industrial organization, econometrics I-III, econ history. All 90+
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from a very known professor, 2 from professors who are pretty known in their respective fields and 1 from a pretty young professor
Research Experience: RA for the first professor mentioned above
Teaching Experience: quite a few econ courses for BA, but I don't think it mattered.
Research Interests: Too many. I have to narrow them down.
SOP: 500 words (or whatever was the limitation) about why I want to do research in economics and how I decided that.
Other: Nice set of teeth.
RESULTS:
Admitted: Berkeley, NYU, Yale, Columbia, Northwestern, Chicago, Stanford, Princeton
Waitlisted: Harvard
Rejected: MIT
What would I have done differently? Nothing. Maybe get an American citizenship and apply for the NSF, but seriously, I'm very very happy with the choices I have.

wcd123 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 25 American research University
Undergrad GPA: 3.97
Type of Grad: none
Grad GPA: none
GRE: 800/510/6.0
Math Courses: Calc I-III (A's), Linear Algebra (A), Probability and Statistics (A), Introduction to Math Reasoning (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), Econometrics (A), Game Theory (A), Math for Economists (A--graduate course), Public Economics (A), Health Economics (A), and a bunch more
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: 1 assistant prof that I RA for, 2 senior faculty that I was in class with. All 3 are actively publishing, and both senior faculty are well established in their fields
Research Experience: 1 year RA, Honors essay
Teaching Experience: Tutoring
Research Interests: Applied micro--more towards public/labor/health than IO, but I generally like empirical research and applied econometrics.
SOP: I thought it was pretty good. Don't know if it helped or not. Talked about why I like empirical work, some current research I'm working on, and tried to signal that I know what I'm getting into.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Yale (going there), Michigan, Columbia, Duke, Brown, Maryland, Wisconsin
Waitlists: Chicago
Rejections: MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Berkeley
Pending: none
What would you have done differently? Not much. I would have liked to have gotten in to Princeton or MIT, but I am extremely happy with my outcomes.

nash12 2008:
Undergrad: B.A. in Mathematics (2006) from a well known college/university in my country (South-East Asia). Grades: 84%
Graduate: M.A. in Economics from a well known school of economics in my country. It is a two year course and I only had the grades of the first year or two semesters when I applied. Grades for the first year: 70%
GRE: 800Q, 530V, 5.0AWA. TOEFL: 117/120
Math Courses: Since I'm a math undergrad so lots. Real Analysis, Basic Algebra, Topology, Ordinary Differential Equations, Partial Differential Equations, Probability and Statistics, Linear Algebra, Group Theory, Ring Theory, Mechanics, Multivariable Calculus, Numerical Analysis, Number Theory, etc.
Econ Courses: All Grad Level. On my transcript with grades when I applied- Microeconomic Theory, Macroeconomic Theory, Introductory Econometrics, Mathematical Economics and two more. On my transcript without grades when I applied- Topics in Economic Theory, Game Theory-I, Topics in Macroeconomic Theory and Econometric Methods.
Research Experience: Was a visiting research scholar in a European Institute during the summer of 2007. Wrote two papers there. Both were selected for decent conferences which I mentioned in my application. Sent one of the papers in all the applications.
LORs: One a well published and reasonably well known econ theory professor at University of Warwick. One econ professor in my grad school, phd from Princeton. Another econ associate professor in my grad school, phd from Yale. I think all of them were strong.
SOP: Talked about my interests- Micro and Game Theory. Talked about some of the papers that I've really liked. Also, about my motivation to do economic theory.
Teaching Experience: None.
Other: Male, 22 years old.
Results
Acceptances: NYU($), Columbia($), University of Chicago($), LSE MRes/PhD($), Cornell($), Brown($), Penn State($).
Waitlisted and finally Accepted: Yale($) and Princeton($).
Rejected: Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, UPenn and Stanford.
Attending: Princeton. Yuhoooo..
What would have I done differently? Nothing in particular. Well I don't really know if I would have ever made it to Harvard and MIT. None have made from my school in the past 10 years. As an aspiring economic theorist, Princeton was really my dream school and I'm over the moon to have got it.. My suggestion to all the future applicants, esp the International Students is guys dream big and work hard. Dreams do come true..

econphilomath 2008:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Economics from top institution in my country.
Type of Grad: M.A. in Economics from the same institution
GPA: Graduated 1st in my class, both programs.
GRE: 800Q, 730V, 4.5AWA
TOFEL: 118/120
Courses: Tons of econ, some math, no formal real analysis.
TA: Lots of undergrad macro courses and some graduate macro courses.
Teaching: I teach undergrad macro.
Research: Several published papers. All applied. (average to low/mediocre national and international journals)
RA: Current job is as an RA at Central Bank and lecturer at my university.
LORS: One senior, one semi-senior and one junior. I know them all really well (for over two years) and with all I have co-authored different research.
Interests: Macroeconomics, Labor and Development.
SOP: Tried to be serious, signal I know what I'm getting into. No BS, no talking about whats in my CV, no naming professors and not very long.
Schools: Shooting for the top 10 schools.
Other: Male, 27
RESULTS:
Attending: Yale ($$)
Acceptances: NorthWestern ($$), Columbia ($$), UMinn ($$), UPenn (), UChicago ()
Waitlists: Harvard and MIT. Later rejected.
Rejections: Princeton, Berkeley, Stanford, NYU.
What would you have done differently?
Applied earlier. Would not have stressed so much and spent less time on TM! The extra stuff on your CV doesn't make all that much of a difference. Past decent grades and GRE, basic math requirements, its all LORs. Its how you get the LORS that differs among applicants. Randomness that I was worried about was confirmed but its not that big once you know the underlying decision making structure.
Also I would have gone with more famous professors LORs who didn't know me as well, but who were willing to write beaming letters, instead of my junior professor/coauthor.
ALSO wait-lists suck. They do move around (not for me) but the wait is terrible.
Last Recommendation: Try as hard as you can to go to fly-outs. It can make a huge difference when you have to choose on the margin. Talk with professors and students as much as you can. It helped me a lot.
EDIT: See my buddy asianecon's next post. To avoid confusion, I recommend visiting (something usually done at fly-outs). However as asianecon suggests, it might be more informative to go on a regular day and sit in at classes talk with people etc as he has done and skip the marketing. Either way try and go get a feel for the program in person.

mysherona 2008:
My turn!
Type of Undergrad: Economics from Philippine university
Type of Grad: Mathematics from the same university (will not complete degree)
GPA: I can't convert it so it's useless
GRE: 800Q, 760V, 6.0AWA
TOEFL: 118/120
Courses: Typical in the programs I took; nothing special
Teaching: A year of intro calculus
Research: First prize for undergrad paper
RA: Small jobs here and there
LORS: Former econ profs
Interests: International, Monetary
SOP: Used the same thing for all the schools
Others: Male, 22
RESULTS:
Attending: Columbia ($)
Other acceptances: Northwestern ($), Duke ($), Georgetown ($), master's programs at Oxbridge, LSE and Toulouse ($)
Waitlists: Berkeley, Penn, Brown---all rejected me in the end
Rejections: the rest of the top 10 econ programs, UCLA, UCSD
Comments: I was very lucky so I'm happy with the way it turned out. If I could start over again I'd probably do my BA abroad.

anx1ous 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Econ & Int'l Affairs from top 10 U.S. public (with an 'unranked' econ dept.)
Undergrad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 800Q, 680V, 5.5 AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Linear Algebra, Diff Eqs, Stats I, grad Prob & Stats
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): the usual suspects
Other Courses: lots of poli sci/int'l affairs
Letters of Recommendation: all econ, 2 'unknown' (Berkeley ARE & Michigan State) and 1 'known' (MIT)...probably 2/3 were 'really' strong
Research Experience: in my 4th semester as an RA, worked on 2 projects that led (or rather, are leading) to a working paper & a senior thesis
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: applied micro--labor (specifically education) & development
SOP: standard?
Other: did a summer research program at a top 20 dept. (which I think was incredibly instrumental in my outcomes); tried to show that despite my weak math background I at least had some programming skills
Concerns: LACK OF MATH...everything else was ok, I think
What I would have done different: TAKEN MORE MATH, but I didn't know I wanted to do an econ PhD until 2nd semester junior year and was always drawn more to the social sciences than math (and had no idea they could be one and the same!)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Columbia ($), Maryland ($), Berkeley ARE ($), Texas ($), Vanderbilt ($), Georgetown (waitlisted w/ $), GW (no $)
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, NYU, Brown
ATTENDING: Columbia
What could I have done differently?
In terms of the application process: applied to 2-3 fewer lower ranked depts. and put that money/time/effort towards applying to a few more top 10 schools (probably just to cover my bases, as I have no reason to believe that I would've done any 'better'). Also: stayed away from TM/Gradcafe during admissions season!
In terms of preparation: again, done a math minor/double major (for admissions as much as self-preparation--I'm pretty worried now!), but you can only take this 'should've/would've/could've' question so far, since I simply didn't know until later that I wanted to pursue this path or what was required of me.
All in all, however, I am extremely happy with my outcomes. I obviously had zero expectations or I wouldn't have applied to such a wide-ranging group of schools.

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.

Dr. Who 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Big state school
Undergrad GPA: 3.2 BES
Type of Grad: MBA (2008) and MA Economics (anticipated 2009)
Grad GPA: 3.98 MBA, 3.97 MA
GRE: 770Q, 680V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Recent math GPA (3.78) all taken in my spare time while in MBA and summer. Calc I, II, III, Linear Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Grad Math Stats, Grad Real Analysis
Econ Courses (MA level): Micro, Math Econ, IO, Econometrics I & II, Macro, Environmental, some other electives, and finance courses
Econ Courses (undergrad): Macro and mirco only (took as prereq’s for the MA)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ from masters and 1 math
Research Interests: Labor and HR, IO, Business economics
SOP: probably adequate
Research Experience: GA for economic forecasting shop
Concerns: MBA to Econ, older than your average student, less math than some
Attending: WUSTL
Accepted: Missouri ($), CU-Boulder ($WL), Indiana (no $), WUSTL ($)
Waitlisted: WUSTL (with $ if accepted), Vanderbilt
Rejections: Northwestern, UMich, MSU
Never heard so assumed rejection: OSU and UIUC
What I would have done differently: I should have spent more time on my SOP. I think for someone like me, who is older, it could have made all the difference in the world, especially on funding decisions. It was a lot harder than I anticipated talking about myself and articulating my goals. Also, I don’t think I did a very good job matching myself up to programs strengths.
If you are in school, take a lighter load in the spring semester. Dealing with school decisions has been a HUGE time waster and I haven’t been able to concentrate for months.
I didn’t appropriately account for the economic downturn…My reaches were unattainable and seeing the decline, I should have added in a couple more safeties. Also, I should have taken more care with the safety choices. Out of the top 50 it gets a lot harder to get good info on the programs. For my interests I think KY and WY would have been solid.
Advice: For older candidates…don’t let people intimidate you into thinking there is a “ceiling” on how old you can be when you go back to get your PhD. You might not get into the top 5, but top 50 is achievable.
Find advisors that are familiar with the PhD process and what it takes to get in to a good school TODAY. My school does not grant PhD’s in business/econ and I found my advisors to be out of touch with the process. Hunt down the newer faculty and hit them up for advice.
I think the recent math background was crucial in my outcomes. Take the math. It’s never wasted.
When I returned to school, I had no idea I would end up following this path. If you are planning on a terminal masters, choose your graduate institution carefully. It will make things easier just in case you decide to continue your education.

knickerbocker 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Economics, Math, Applied Math, Top 7 econ program, Minor Japanese Language and Culture
Undergrad GPA: 3.94/4.0 PBK, Econ 4.0/4.0, Math 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q 790; V 620; AW 5.5
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Linear Algebra, Math Stats, Real Analysis I,II, Higher Level Math
Econ Courses: A lot
Other Courses: Mostly Japanese
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ full professors, no nobel prize winners, but know my work well
Research Experience: NONE
Teaching Experience: None.
Research Interests: Economic History, Macro
SOP: Sub par, I fear
Other: Good summer jobs the past three summers
Applying to: Columbia, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Penn, Berkeley, Stanford, Princeton, Chicago
Worried I didn't apply to any safeties. Low GRE. Reassurances greatly appreciated.

softsquirrel 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: France's top Grandes Ecoles(2 years in a top "Classe Princeton Reviewépa" if anyone knows it)
Undergrad GPA: 4.35/4.4, 1st out of 500 (Our school thinks its students merit a 10% bonus on GPA and that's why they add that, which made me some trouble as I always have to explain that)
Type of Grad: Same school(The system is weird in France, basically it's 2+3 years after high school and they deliver a somewhat Master-equivalent degree at the end)
Grad GPA: FALL
GRE: 800Q, 720V, 4.5AWA
TOEFL IBT: 115(27Speaking and 28Writing)
Math Courses: basically everything, almost like a math majoring student
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): baby micro+macro+corporate finance
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro, Macro, Econometrics, Development , Growth, Game Theory, Financial Economics etc.
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from a well-known French prof teaching economics in US top universities, 1 Oxford Phd (eco), 1 School prof(eco), another 1 schoolprof(math)
Research Experience: only one team-based research on auction theory
Teaching Experience: 2 years TA on maths for 2nd-year math students (the so-called "colle" in our argot)
Research Interests: macro+international
SOP: quitewell-written, I think
Applying to: Princeton, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Chicago, Stanford, NYU, UPenn, Columbia
Commnet: little research experience, but it's the problem for all candidates from French Grandes Ecoles

masterplan00 2009:
Institution: Columbia University
Program: Economics, PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: tuition+22k
Notification date: 03/02
Notified through: E-mail
Comments: Very happy!

Morxjez 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: University of Chicago
Undergrad GPA: 3.83
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: Q800 V540 W4.0
Math Courses: Analysis in Rn 1,2,3 , Abstract Algebra 1,2 , Numerical Analysis, Complex Analysis, Theory of ODE (involved use of complex variable) All A's except complex analysis (A-)
Stat Courses: Mathematical Statistics (A-), and mathematical probability (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro and Macro (all A's), International trade and finance (A-,A), Econometrics (intro and advance) (A, B+,A), Advanced Macro 1, 2 (A+,A+), Auction Theory (A), Game Theory (A), a graduate class in numerical methods in economics (A)
Other Courses: Computer Science (A,A)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Harvard, 1 Minnesota, 1 Princeton (They are all pretty strong)
Research Experience: 1 Year part time RA, 1 Summer RA at central bank in my country
Teaching Experience: TA for math and econ
Research Interests: Asset pricing and macro
SOP: normal with customized to each program
Other: I am currently a junior year student.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Chicago($), Northwestern (WL), UPenn ($$), Columbia($$), Minnesota ($$), Wisconsin($$), Boston U($$)
Waitlists: MIT
Rejections: Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Berkeley, UMich
Pending: nothing
What would you have done differently? I should not apply this year. I should instead work as an RA for a year or two and then apply. I think then I would have a clear shot at top 5 schools. But well, graduating in three years save me 50,000US worth of tuition fee and now I am happy with Penn, which is very good at Asset Pricing.

48chec 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics Latin American University
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: M.A. Economics Latin American University
Grad GPA: 3.5
GRE: 800Q 570V 3.0 AWA
Math Courses: Multivariate Calculus, Mathematical Statistics
Econ Courses: Game Theory, Grad Micro, Grad Micro, Grad Econometrics
Other Courses: Lots of History Courses
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Berkeley who teaches at my Uni, 1 Michigan who teaches at my Uni, 1 MIT who teaches at an Ivy League Uni.
Research Experience: R.A. since I was a third year undergrad. Last two years I was a full time instructor working on three papers.
Teaching Experience: I have been a full time instructor for the last two years. I have been teaching Probability and Econometrics.
Research Interests: Labor, information, applied econometrics.
SOP: Made emphasis on my love for academia and my teaching and research experience.
Other: Highest national grade on an economics exam.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCLA($), British Columbia
Waitlists: UPenn, Brown
Rejections: Stanford, Princeton, Berkeley, NorthWestern, Columbia, LSE, Michigan, Texas Austin.
Pending: None
What would you have done differently?
I would have taken more math courses. I would also have taken more care of my GPA. I wish I had realized that I wanted to be an academic earlier in my undergraduate studies.

freakout2010 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.Sc. Economics at Top10 South American university.
Undergrad GPA: 8.5/10 (Top 5%)
Type of Grad: MA Economics at Top10 South American university (not the same as undergrad).
Grad GPA: 9.6/10 (1st in class)
GRE: 800q/500v/3.0a
Math Courses (undergrad): Calculus I to III, Linear Algebra, Introductory Real Analysis.
Math Courses (grad): Real Analysis, Measure Theory.
Econ Courses (undergrad): a bunch of them!
Econ Courses (grad): Micro Theory I to IV (entire MWG), Macro Theory I to III, Econometrics, Microeconometrics, (New Dynamic) Public Finance, Corporate Finance, Mathematical Economics I and II (some chapters of Stokey&Lucas).
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: A total of 5 letters, all from MA professors. Strong letter from my advisor which I sent to all universities (rotated among the other recommenders). Two strong letters from micro theory guys (with PhD outside US but good recent publications); one good letter from a professor at top10 US university; and one fair letter from well-known general equilibrium guy.
Research Experience: My MA Dissertation.
Teaching Experience: TA for Microeconomic Theory I and II at the graduate level.
Research Interests: macroeconomics, mechanism design, economics of information.
SOP: pretty standard
Other: Ranked the first (out of 800 candidates) on a national selection process for economics MA in my country.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Princeton($$$), Yale($$$$), Northwestern($$), Columbia($$), UCLA(no $)
Waitlists: MIT (then rejected)
Rejections: Chicago Booth (Econ), Stanford GSB (EA&P), Berkeley, HBS (BusEc), Harvard.
What would you have done differently? Not applied for to many business schools. Also I think I should have studied more for the analytical section of the GRE. I am pretty sure my application was dropped off on some schools because of my weak score.

Fantiki 2010:
Type of undergrad:
1. B.Sc. Finance from the best business school in a mid-size European country. In terms of financial research output the school is usually ranked as Top 10 European/Top 100 worldwide
2. (concurrently) B.Sc. Systems Science from the best university in the same European country
Undergrad GPA: not obvious to translate, somewhere between 3.6 and 3.9, Top 5%
Type of Grad:
1. M.Sc. Finance, same business school as above
2. (concurrently) M.Sc. Computer Science, same university as above
Grad GPA: again hard to translate, I would say between 3.8-4.0, Top 5%
GRE: 800Q, 570V, 3.5AWA
Math Courses (undergrad): Introductory mathematics I (Calculus, Linear Algebra, Analytical Geometry) (B+/A-), Introductory mathematics II (Theory of continuity, Measures and Integrals) (A), Introductory mathematics III (Functional analysis, DE) (A), Introductory mathematics IV (PDE, IE), Introduction to optimization (A), Introduction to statistical inference (A), Time series analysis (B+/A-)
Math Courses (grad): stochastic processes (A), optimization theory (B), mathematical investment theory (B+/A-), game theory (A), decision making (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad): Introductory, Intermediate micro, Intermediate macro, International economics and finance, Money & Banking - A:s
Other Courses: Finance & Computer Science (theory courses may be relevant), LSE summer school (A)
Letters of Recommendation:
1. Finance full professor, thesis advisor, many A publications
2. Computer science full professor, thesis advisor, many A publications (in comp science)
3. Circulating weakly positive letters from semi-famous full professors in finance and economics
Research Experience:
1. B.Sc. thesis in finance
2. B.Sc. thesis in systems science
3. M.Sc. thesis in finance - on decision making under information asymmetries in finacial markets (game-theoretical model+empirical evidence)
4. M.Sc. thesis in computer science - empirical part (as a chapter in an article) accepted in a top general interest journal, but the publication is not related to economics/finance (biology), I am a coauthor, but there are many others
5. RA for the computer science professor
6. Research internship at an internationally well-known company, also 1 paper from there, but published in a professional journal
Teaching Experience: N/A
Research Interests: Information economics, financial economics (theory + empirical)
Statement of purpose: http://www.urch.com/forums/phd-economics/119180-post-your-statement-purpose-sop-here.html#post789723
Other: graduated in advance, some good awards (placed third nationwide in math competition, scholarship for publishing thesis etc.), strong technical skills (Assembler and similar hardcore stuff)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Columbia finance ($) -> accepted this offer, LBS finance ($), UNC-CH finance ($), UBC finance ($), LSE finance (external EU funding)
Rejections: Stanford finance, UCLA finance, Stern finance, Wharton finance, Haas finance, Kellogg finance, CMU finance, INSEAD finance, MIT economics, Penn economics (out of the waitlist)
What would you have done differently?
Probably not much, may be would establish better relationships with a couple of professors at my school. The application process to US universities is difficult for European applicants because information asymmetries are pretty large. I would recommend to establish good relationships with professors who have strong ties to schools you are applying (e.g. coauthoring, previous academic positions etc.). Also if you are coming from a less known educational system/school try to get short but informative course descriptions for the key courses as an attachment to your transcripts (e.g. course names like Math I-IV are not very helpful for admissions commiteas). I have received the feedback from some schools that these two things helped my case.
Overall I did much better than I expected.

nobigdeal 2010:
Type of Undergrad: B.F.A (!) dbl major in acting and economics (from one of the top acting programs, and a top (15) econ department.
Undergrad GPA: 3.85/4 over all, 3.9 econ; received the senior year econ dept. award.
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 650V, 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-II (AP). Only linear algebra (A) in undergrad. Since then, calc III (A), real analysis (A+), math stats (A+), probability (A)
Econ Courses (undergraduate): two intro classes plus micro, macro, international trade, labor, public, development, statistics, econometrics, thesis. All A's, except an A- in my first intro course.
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ professors (worked for one over a summer, co authored a paper with the other -- top marks in their classes), one economist at a fed (he does more academic research than policy work).
Research Experience: A senior thesis, which grew into a paper that was recently accepted into a top (sub)field journal. Over 2 years at a fed working pretty closely with an economist with who I coauthored a paper we submitted to an interdisciplinary policy journal.
Teaching Experience: Very little. Worked in a statistics lab in college where I gave a lesson on STATA.
Research Interests: Labor, behavioral
Statement of Purpose: Discussed my background and research experiences. Also wrote two paragraphs outlining my research interests in applied microeconomics, labor, and behavioral. So, fairly specific. Hardly addressed the school's strengths at all--only mentioned the school's name once, in the last paragraph.
Concerns: I have a B.F.A, and I didn't take much math in college.
Applying to: Harvard, MIT, Princeton, UC Berkeley, Columbia, Yale, Penn, Duke, Cornel, NYU, Brown, Northwestern, Stanford, U Chicago, U Michigan

Caroline_x 2010:
Institution: University of Michigan
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Admitted
Funding: Tuition Waiver + Health Coverage. 17.5K for the first year. 16K stipend guaranteed after first year, conditional on good standing.
Notification date: 02/28 (the attached letter was dated March 1st)
Notified through: Email with pdf attachment
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments: So Excited! Good luck to all TMers!

Policy_Enter 2010:
Institution: University of Rochester
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 3/1
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments: Well, zero application fee. The feeling is not good though!
Institution: Vanderbilt University
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 2/23
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments: No application fee. Thought I was going to make it.
Institution: Notre Dame
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 2/24
Notified through: I called the grad program director
Posted on GF: No
Comments: They pursued me to apply! The even offered me application fee waiver. Why did they have to do that?

papachara 2011:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. in Economics from unknown Latin-american university
Undergrad GPA: N/A (First place of graduating class)
Type of Grad: M.S. Economics from well-known Latin-american University
Grad GPA: Average: 9.66/10.00 (first of classs)
GRE: 800Q / 570V / 4.0AWA (1st try) 800Q / 600V / 4.0 AWA (2dn try)
Math Courses: Real Analysis I and II (A+), Measure Theory (A+), Topology (A), Convexity and Optimization (A), Dynamic Sistems (A-), Probability (A), Intro to Stochastic Processes.
Econ Courses (grad-level): Microeconomic Theory (A+), Game Theory (A), Macro I and II (A+), Mechanism Design (A), Political Economy, General Equilibrium, Macroeconometrics, Microeconometrics (A-)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro I and II, Macro I and II, IO, International Economics I and II, Growth, Development, Econometrics I and II, Topics in Micro Theory, Topics in Mathematical economics, Monetary, Econometrics I and II, Public Economics. Basically A's and A+'s
Other Courses: Agent-Based modelling
Letters of Recommendation: 1 prof from NYU, 1 from UCLA and 1 from Urbana-champaign (knows me very well and should be an excellent letter)
Research Experience: RA in political economy research for 3 years, thesis in political economy
Teaching Experience: TA in econometrics, microeconomics and computational economics
Research Interests: Micro theory, computational economics and development
SOP: Very short, only 400 words long. No names mentioned and very general ideas.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Princeton ($$$), Yale($$$), Northwestern MECS ($$$), Columbia($$), UPenn($$), BU($$)
Waitlists: None.
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Stanford GSB, Berkeley, .
Pending: NYU (I think this a reject).
What would you have done differently? Not much. Getting into top programs depends on the people writting your LORs, that is why I got into Princeton. Not much to be done about this. If I had really wanted to go to MIT or Harvard I would have had to chose another MA. Conclusion: Good grades and LORs are fundamental.

kipfilet 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Economics, top school in small European country
Undergrad GPA: 18/20, converted to 4.0/4.0, top of my class
Type of Grad: MPhil in Economics in progress (2 year Masters including 1st year PhD coursework)
Grad GPA: 19/20, converted to 4.0/4.0
GRE: Q800, V710, AWA 5.0
Math Courses: Calc I (already includes some intro real analysis and lots of proofs), Calc II (multivariate calc, topology, lots of optimisation), Linear Algebra, Math I (difference eqns, dynamic programming, discrete-time optimization), Math II (differential eqns, optimal control), Advanced Math (advanced topology and real analysis, measure theory, correspondence theory). All A's
Econ Courses (grad-level): Full Macro and Micro sequences, lots of random trimester courses (game theory I and II, time series, microeconometrics, energy economics, etc), all A's.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Lots of them. In my country, programs are not flexible at all. We spend 3 years being bombed with economics courses just about everything.
Other Courses: some Law, Finance and History courses. Two seminars on European Union institutions.
Letters of Recommendation: My thesis advisor and three assistant professors who know me well I guess (was a student and worked/working in projects with all of them).
Research Experience: Summer internship at a Ministry, applied macro research; lots of minor projects; macroeconometric paper with two colleagues; co-authoring an empirical paper; my MPhil thesis (in progress) is supposed to be one of the three papers one usually writes for a PhD.
Teaching Experience: twice TA (lecturer) for Multivariate Calc, twice TA (lecturer) for intermediate macro (all undergrad)
Research Interests: Macro: monetary economics, DSGE's, asset pricing. Also interested in behavioural.
SOP: Pretty standard, not customised at all. I actually sent the same SOP to ALL schools, only changing their name.
Concerns: Coming from a school that is virtually unknown in the US (and better known as a business school in Europe), no letter of recommendation from a senior professor.
Other: TOEFL 119, Erasmus in a well-known university in the Netherlands.
RESULTS
Acceptances: Minnesota ($$$), UPenn ($$$), LSE (), Oxford (MPhil, no ), Columbia ($$$), Chicago (no $), Northwestern (no$ 1st year), NYU($$$)
Waitlists: UCLA (rej), MIT (rej), Northwestern (acc), NYU (acc)
Rejections: Yale, Harvard, Berkeley, Stanford, Princeton, UCLA, MIT.
Attending: NYU
What would you have done differently?
Not much, I think. I regret not having asked a letter of recommendation from a well-known professor at my university whom I later discovered to be rather willing to write it (I had never worked for him). Not asking any senior prof for a letter of recommendation was a huge risk I took, and I only discovered the value of seniority much later (i.e. after having discovered TM). My 2nd year MPhil grades (1st year PhD courses) have been rather good so far, and my thesis is going really well (my apologies for not being very humble in this aspect), so I guess I could have a stronger profile if I decided to apply next year. Anyway, I'm not going to cry over it, as I'm already ecstatic with my outcome! This was an extremely long and stressful process, and I'm really glad that it has come to a happy ending. See you all in the job market!

FromTheHip 2011:
Well, time to throw out my profile, which I suspect will make my results a source of hope for many with mediocre undergraduate GPAs.
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BS in a science field at a highly-ranked U.S. university
Undergrad GPA: 3.34/4
Type of Grad: Part time classes at a top-5 econ program
Grad GPA: 4.0/4
GRE: 800Q, 700V, 4.5AW
Math Courses: Linear Algebra (A), Multivariable Calculus (A), Vector Analysis (B), Differential Equations (A-), Real Analysis (B+)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Two semesters of core micro (A/A), both grades near the top of the class
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intro Micro (A-), Intro Macro (A-), Intermediate micro (A-), Intermediate Macro (A-), Two term theoretical econometrics course (B/B+)
Other Courses: A lot of very quantitative science courses.
Letters of Recommendation: All three were economists with tenure at a top-5 econ program and PhDs from top programs. One was a professor from my core micro who talked about my coursework, while another was my long-time boss (see below). The third worked as my advisor on an independent project.
Research Experience: Two years as an RA and an independent research project (still ongoing).
Research Interests: Resource/environmental, development, game theory, IO. Statement focused on resource, game theory, and development.
SOP: Fairly long. I’ve spent some time outside of undergrad and was not an econ major, so I spent a bit of time explaining how I’d come to be interested in economics and putting my non-economics accomplishments into context.
Other experience: Several years work experience before starting my economics career
Concerns: Non-economics background, low undergraduate grades
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Cornell (no $), Georgetown ($), Iowa State ($),LSE ($), Penn State ($), Rochester ($), UC-Davis ($), UC-San Diego ($), UC-Santa Barbara (no $), University of British Columbia ($), University of Colorado ($), UPenn (initially wl for $, then $), University of Wisconsin ($), Yale ($).
Rejections: Berkeley ARE, Brown, Caltech, Chicago, Chicago Booth, Duke, Harvard, Minnesota, NYU, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, University of Maryland, University of Michigan
Waitlists: BU (withdrew), Columbia (withdrew), MIT (eventually rejected)
Withdrawn: University of Wyoming
Attending: Yale
What would you have done differently? Gotten better undergraduate grades and started as an economist sooner.
Other Comments: Given where I was coming in, I’m pretty ecstatic about my results. There was a lot of variance in my admits, and I’m grateful to all the programs which were willing to take a chance on me.

bassmantin 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Accounting/Finance at a Big 10 school
Undergrad GPA: 3.97
Type of Grad: M.B.A. Accounting/Finance
Grad GPA: 3.91
GRE: 800Q, 700V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Calculus I, II, II, Linear Algebra, Intro to Advanced Math (all A) After submission of application: Differential Equations, Real Analysis (all A expected)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Econometrics, lots of grad level business school classes that overlap somewhat: managerial econ, real options, valuation, corporate finance, international monetary systems and hedging (all A) after submission: History of Economic Thought, Monetary Theory (all A expected)
Other Courses: Lots of business
Letters of Recommendation: Accounting professor, math instructor, former employer
Research Experience: N/A
Teaching Experience: two semesters intro to managerial accounting
Research Interests: macro/monetary
SOP: addressed my somewhat unique situation
Concerns: no econ prof letter of recommendation, not too much math before submitting app
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Vanderbilt, Indiana, Michigan State, Purdue, Iowa State, George Mason, Missouri
Waitlists: WUSTL (eventually accepted), Minnesota (withdrew)
Rejections: Chicago, Northwestern, Michigan, Wisconsin, Notre Dame
Attending: WUSTL
What would you have done differently? Take more math. Get letter of recommendation from economists. Get a mentor to guide me through the process.

HealthEconGirl 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Econ from top-30 U.S. university
Undergrad GPA: 3.76 / 4.0, magna cum laude
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q800, V720, AW5.5
Math Courses: Calc I&II (AP), Multivariable Calc (A), Diff Equ (A), Intro to Proofs (A), Upper-level Probability Theory (A), Lin Alg (A), Intro to Analysis (A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): None
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Regular econ major courses (mostly A's, one B+ and one B), IO (B+), African Development (A-), Econ Reforms and Corruption (A-), Pol Econ of Growth, Redistribution and Poverty (A-), Intermediate Econometrics (A), Senior thesis seminar (A)
Letters of Recommendation: Senior thesis advisor (Columbia Ph.D.), one Assoc Prof (Foreign Ph.D.), one Epidemiologist (Berkeley Ph.D.), one former supervisor
Research Experience: Senior thesis, RA for epidemiologist since August 2010, Paid Internship where I basically do standard RA work (data cleaning, analysis) since June 2010
Teaching Experience: none really, but LORs talked about my potential for teaching
Research Interests: economics of global health, specifically HIV and sexual behavior in developing countries
SOP: Highlighted my senior thesis, significant time working in a developing country, and well defined research interests; customized to each school
Concerns: While I have extensive work experience that is relevant, it's not the standard econ RA work; no graduate econ classes despite being in a research univ.
RESULTS:
Attending: UCSD
Acceptances: UCSD ($), UBC ($$$)
Waitlists: U Mich (Withdrawn), UCLA (Withdrawn)
Withdrawn: BU, U Toronto
Rejections: UC Berkeley, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, NYU, Harvard, MIT, Brown, Cornell, Northwestern, Duke, UPenn, UMD College Park, NSF (Honorable Mention)
Comments:
Overall, I am very pleased with this result. Even though I had a lot of rejections (and that was hard), you only need one good admit, and I am extremely excited about UCSD. I applied to all of the top ten on the advice of my undergrad advisor, but I knew that cracking the top ten was a long shot.
The best thing I did was apply for the NSF GRFP. The application process, and particularly the process of developing a research proposal, really helped me crystallize my objectives and research interests, and I believe the experience made my SOPs that much stronger.
Taking my choice of undergrad institution, GPA, GRE, and work experience as given, there isn't much I would have done differently. However, writing the SOPs took me much, much longer than I expected. If I could do it again, I would start drafting SOPs over the summer.
A note about my LORs: a lot of people say that LORs from non-economists are useless. But I decided to go with an letter of recommendation from an epidemiologist who is extremely well know both within and outside her field, knows me really well, has a good sense for my research ability, and wrote me a glowing recommendation. I believe that if they are relevant to your research interests, LORs from disciplines that are close to econ, such as math, poli sci, or epidemiology, can be acceptable, and may even be preferable to letters from econ profs who barely know you.
I'm so glad the waiting is over!

LUDuckling 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 30 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 4.0 Economics/Maths/International Relations
GRE: Q 800 V 730 AW 4.0
Math Courses: Calculus, Linear Algebra, ODE, Probability, Math Stat, Real Analysis
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro, Macro, Econometrics, IO, Economic Thought, Development, Money Banking
Letters of Recommendation:professor of grad micro class; econ prof; math thesis advisor - all mentioned my originality & ability to abstract from real world happenings. One talked about I am "one of the most impressive students during his 40+ years of teaching at Harvard & xx university."
Research Experience: RIPS student industrial math research@IPAM; RA; math thesis in game theory
Teaching Experience: TA math & econ for 2 years
Research Interests: micro, behavioral, not really set
Other Experience: Co-founded a company and initiated an int'l summer school; various volunteering experiences, mainly has to do with (re)building houses for poor people(write about in diversity statement)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Yale, Columbia, NYU, UCB, Chicago, etc.
Waitlists: MIT, UCLA, CMU
Rejections: Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Brown, Caltech, etc.
What would you have done differently?
Applying straight from a non-top liberal arts college and with no significant grad course work/ research job, I am very content with my result. I think I really put everything I could reach together. I have no regrets.

eds 2011:
PROFILE
Type of Undergrad: South Italian University. Graduate in 2004.Major in Economics
Undergrad GPA: 110/110 cum laude (say equivalent to 4 )
Type of Grad: MSc in economics form a top 5 UK department in 2007,
Grad GPA: Master 90+%,
GRE: 800Q, 590V, 3.0AWA. I will be retaking it next month. Do not consider this result when evaluating my profile.
Math Courses: (UG)General Mathematics, Financial Mathematics, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis Multivariable Analysis(should be calculus) , Statistics I and I. ‐ All equivalent to A's or A+.
Math Courses: (Master): introductory to math and stats 90%+
Econ Courses (masters-level): Micro, Macro, monetary economics ,international monetary economics, Econometrics ,Trade theory All 90%+
Econ Courses (PhD level) About 13 course in macro fields with famous profs at PhD level. All passed with As
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro and Macro Theory, Labor, International economics, monetary economics, Industrial econ. Development economics, economic history, History of economic thought theory, econometrics, Public economics, Regional Economics, Applied economics, Economic Policy‐ All equivalent to A's or A+
Other Courses: Summer school at UPF
Letters of Recommendation: ) 1 stellar letters from a NYU PhD undergraduate thesis supervisor well connected 2) Form a guy with PhD Michigan well known in his field. I got A in his graduate course. I am now looking for the third letter.
Research Experience: A working paper in progress with one of my a letter of recommendation writers and we are talking to start working on a paper with my second letter of recommendation writer. Not sure If I will have something concrete by December 2010 . I won special merit from the evaluation committee for the quality of my u/g thesis work, presentation skills and academic performance. I also won the prize for the best u/g thesis for that year. My MSc thesis was marked (90%+) as the best among MSc students in my year. Visitor Researcher at a well know institute .Visitor Scholar at a top 20 US department (research only) for fall 2009. I have served as a visitor scholar at the research division of the ECB
Teaching Experience: TA for intro to micro (In the USA) and for Monetary economics
Research Interests: Monetary economics , International macro, .
SOP: Should be strong.
Concerns: AGE!!!! I am, currently 33. I will been turned 34 and a half by fall 2011 .. I need to get new letters of recommendation from people I currently work with . I cannot ask for a letter from my MSc because of other personal reasons nor from the US department.
Other: Applying for the usual fellowships.
Applying to: In many programs. In the US and Europe. Suggestions are welcome !

caledonian2011 2011:
Type of Undergrad: BS from a large Asian Uni (ranked in top 60 in econphd.net), majored in Economics and Applied Mathematics
Undergrad GPA: 3.82 (top undergraduate)
Type of Grad: MS in Economics from a top European uni
Grad GPA: Highest honors, ranked top 5 graduates of about 80 people in cohort
GRE: 800Q, 600V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Linear algebra I (B), Linear algebra II (A-), Calc (B+), Multivariate Calc (B+), Diff Eq (B-), Mathematical Stats (A+), Probability (A+), Numerical Computation (B-), Real Analysis I (A), Real Analysis II (A-), Complex Analysis (A-)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro I, II, II (All A+) .. (intermediate micro is micro II), Macro I, II, III (All A), Econometrics I, II, III (all A+), International econ (A+), Game Theory (A+), IO (A+), Monetary Econ (A-), Financial Econ (B+), Math econ (A+), Health econ (B+)
Econ Courses (grad-level): PhD micro (A-), Phd macro (A), PhD Econometrics (A), Game Theory (A+), price theory (B+), master IO (A), PhD IO (B+), Empirical IO (A-), dynamic optimization (A+), Mircoeconometrics (A+)
Other Courses: None relevant
Letters of Recommendation: 1 master thesis supervisor, 1 undergrad thesis supervisor, 1 from master program... None of them is famous, but all letters should be good or very good
Research Experience: Undergrad Honors thesis (grade A-) and Master thesis (grade A, and currently polishing under my sup to send for publication), and some term papers
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Theoretical and empirical IO, applied microeconometrics
SOP: explained reasons for doing PhD, career goal, and talk (at a rather shallow level) about research interest... did not mention any names of professors
Concerns: Some poor math grades (but math dept in undergrad uni is very stringent in grades), no 800Q (but not retaking), letter of recommendation from not famous people, lack of RA experience
Applying to: (I only have "sufficient money" to apply to around 10 schools). Looking to apply to 4 top 10s (probably MIT, Stanford, Yale, NU) , 4 top 20s (probably Columbia, NYU, UPenn, UCSD)... and 2 "safeties": UIUC and Penn State
Others:I posted my profile on a seperate thread to ask for comments but I didn't get many. If anybody has any advice or comment, please PM me. I will appreciate it very much!

skysky 2011:
Type of Undergrad: A hopefully well-known school in Asia. One-semester visiting student experience in a top econ dept in U.S.
Undergrad GPA: 90+/100
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800 Q / 720 V / 4.5 W
Math Courses: Mathematical Analysis, Linear Algebra, Probability theory, Mathematical Statistics, Real Analysis, Stochastic Process, Mathematical Modelling, all with decent scores. Abstract Algebra, Differential Equations, finished after application. Complex Analysis, in progress.
Econ Courses (grad-level): PhD-level Micro.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Regular courses like intermediate micro/macro, econometrics, game theory etc.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 from Berkeley professors. 2 from my home institution.
Research Experience: One semester RA in the US school.
Teaching Experience: none.
Research Interests: No idea, really.
SOP: Just so-so. Not in a good mood when writing this stuff, so did not put much effort in it. Emphasized my interest in math, though. Wierd, but that was all in my mind then.
Applying to: MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Chicago, Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Northwestern, Upenn, Columbia, NYU, UCSD

Irrational 2011:
Institution: Barcelona GSE
Program: MSc in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Partial tuition waiver (9,000 €)
Notification date: 01/24/2011
Notified through: e-mail
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Decision until 23/02/2011, which is very early. Still, it's my first admit, so I am kind of happy :-)

onetime 2011:
Institution: UPenn
Program: Phd in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: No
Institution: Yale
Program: Phd in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/16/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: No

coffeefanatic 2011:
Throwing my results so far into the mix...
Institution: Wharton
Program: PhD in Applied Economics
Decision: Interview
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/15/2011
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Who knows how many they interviewed...
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/16/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Unsurprising.
Institution: Stanford GSB
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/18/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Super long-shot/terrible match for my research interests, anyway.
Institution: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: university-wide fellowship
Notification date: 02/21/2011
Notified through: Email from department
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Nice.
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: graduate school fellowship
Notification date: 02/22/2011
Notified through: Email to check website, follow-up email from department
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Very nice.
Institution: Penn
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: Yes
Comment: Ouch.

svarog 2011:
Institution: Columbia
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Full
Notification date: 3/8/2011
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC : no
Comments: Thank you Lord!

oikomaniac 2011:
I am a new member. My results below (all funded offers):
Institution: Stanford GSB
Program: PhD in Finance
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Northwestern
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Harvard
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Maryland
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: MIT
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Chicago
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes

Marketforlemmas 2011:
Finally want to stop lurking and make some posts:
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Wait Listed
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Really hoping this one works out
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Excited
Institution: UCSD
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Would love to live there, but don't know about funding.
Institution: Maryland
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Ok!
Institution: MIT
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Wait Listed
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Hope to win the NSF.... I hear that will help me out?
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Sooooooooooo happy.
Institution: Northwestern
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Bad day.
Institution: Berkeley
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Ok, not for me.
Institution: Princeton
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Oh well.
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Comments: Yay!

ifUT 2011:
Institution: University of British Columbia
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 4 years funding guaranteed, including first year
Notification date: 3/15/11
Notified through: e-mail
Posted on GradCafe: not yet
Comments: Cannot be happier!!!

OutOfGame 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 10 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.96
Type of Grad: Part-time student at a top 5
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: Q800/ V580/ AWA 5.5
Math Courses: Calc, Modeling, Linear Algebra, Intro to Proofs, Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, Measure Theory, Functional Analysis, Topology, Abstract Algebra, Combinatorics, Number Theory, Probability, Stats, Stochastic Processes, Math Problem Solving
Econ Courses: Principles, Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Finance, Game Theory, Accounting, Econometrics, PhD Econometrics
Other Courses: Intro to CS, Data Structure, Algorithms, Data Mining
Letters of Recommendation: 3 research supervisor (top young professors in econ / finance), 1 PhD Metrics professor (department chair at top 5), 1 undergrad professor (took 3 classes with, and TAed for).
Research Experience: ~2 years full time RA at top 5
Teaching Experience: TA for intermediate macro
Research Interests: using empirical methods to answer macro / finance questions; IO
SOP: professors say it's very good
Other: rejected by all top 10 schools two years ago
RESULTS:
Attending: MIT
Acceptances: MIT, Harvard, Stanford GSB, Stanford, Princeton, Yale, Berkeley, Chicago, NWU, Columbia, NYU, Booth (finance / joint), Sloan (finance)
Waitlists: Penn, Wharton (finance), Michigan
Rejections: None
Never heard back after interview: Stern (finance)

revilo 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top Australasian University, BA/BE(Hons) in Economics and Engineering Science (Operations Research)
Undergrad GPA: 7.8/9 on my university’s scale (about 3.8 on US scale)
Type of Grad: Same university, BA(Hons) in Economics, MA in Economics
Grad GPA: 8.25/9 on my university’s scale (about 3.88 on US scale)
GRE: V 164, Q 167, AWA 5 (on third attempt...)
Math Courses: Engineering Maths 1-3, Real Analysis 1-2, Measure Theory, Functional Analysis
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro Theory 1-2, Macro, Econometrics, Energy Economics
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro, Macro, Econometrics, Trade, Game theory, Environmental, Financial Economics
Other Courses: 4 Grad operations research courses, 3 grad statistics course (inc time series and probability theory), Some other engineering stuff
Letters of Recommendation: Emeritus Professor at Northwestern, Head of Department, Thesis Supervisor
Research Experience: 1.5 years of RA work on electricity markets for two different professors includes co-authoring two papers. One summer of RA work on nutrient trading schemes. Honours Dissertation on climate change IAM modelling.
Teaching Experience: Two semesters introductory micro, Three semesters introductory macro, One semester introductory programming for engineers
Research Interests: Applied Micro, IO
SOP: full of typos!
Concerns: a smattering of crappy grades
Other: Semester on exchange to Hong Kong
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UChicago (attending), Columbia, UC Berkeley ARE, U British Columbia, U Toronto
Rejections: Stanford, Yale, Northwestern, NYU, Penn, Michigan, Duke, Maryland

econsd 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BSc in Economics with a Business Minor
Undergrad GPA: 3.731
Type of Grad: MSc in Economics from same school
Grad GPA: 4.00
GRE: First try: 740Q,410V,4.5AWA Second try: 158Q,152V,4.0AWA
Math Courses: Intro to Prob and Stats (Calc Based) (A), Cal 1-3 (B,B,A), Differential Equations (B), Elementary Logic and Sets (Intro to Proofs) (A), Matrix Algebra (A), Linear Algebra (B), Real Analysis (A), Statistics 2 (A)
Grad Econ Courses: Marketing Research (A), International Econ (A), Industrial Organization (A), History of Econ Thought (A), Labor Econ (A), Advanced Micro (A), Research Methods (A), Time Series Econometrics(A), Advanced Macro (A), Econometrics (A)
Econ Courses: Principles of Micro (A), Principles of Macro (A), Marketing (A), Money and Banking (B), Inter Micro (A), Inter Macro (A), Public Finance (A), Math Econ (A), Stats II (Econ Department) (B)
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: Grad advisor and 2 from Grad professors. All are from top 50 schools or very close but are not well known in researching or publications. I believe all were very strong.
Research Experience: Graduate Thesis, Co-Author with a professor ( Published ), class: Research Methodology in Applied Econ, Conference Presentation w/ thesis advisor
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: Health Economics/Applied Micro
SOP: I spent a lot of time on this because of setbacks in my profile and modified it for each school
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UK($), UGA($), FL St. ($), CO(-), NCSU(?), OR(?), Kansas($), WA St($), IUPUI($), OR St.(?), MO(-)
Waitlists:
Rejections: WI-Madison, Duke, VA, Vandy, MSU, AZ, UNC Chapel Hill, Purdue
Pending: 1
Attending: Emory ($)
What would you have done differently? The weaknesses, in my opinion, in my application were my GRE score and my undergraduate/MSc university. I wouldn't have transferred based on friends, relationships, and a co-authorship. The only thing I would have done differently is study more for the GRE instead of taking its impact so lightly. If you would have told me I had a choice between 12 acceptances at the beginning of the cycle I wouldn't have believed it. I'm thrilled with my results and very excited to attend Emory. Thanks for everyone who was there to talk it out in tiny chat for the past few months and good luck with your programs.

george 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Double major: Math/Econ from a top 50 us.
Undergrad GPA: 3.95 (4.0 Math/Econ)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q: 170 V: 166 AWA: 4.5
Math Courses: Calc I-III high school, Real Analysis 1-2 (A), Linear Algebra 1-2 (A), Abstract Algebra 1-2 (A), (A), Combinatorics (A), Number Theory (A), Topology (A), Graph Theory (A), Algebraic Topology grad (A), Combinatorics grad (A), Functional Analysis grad (A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): MicroTheory 1-3 (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro(A), Macro (A), Principles Micro (A), Principles Macro (A), Labor Economics (A), Crime Economics (A), Game Theory (A), International Econ (A), Research seminar (A), Econometrics (A).
Other Courses: Symbolic Logic (A).
Letters of Recommendation: 2 that are very well known, and 1 that is brilliant, all very strong.
Research Experience: Did research in both math and econ
Teaching Experience: TA for a math course
Research Interests: Micro, applied micro, risk
SOP: awesome.
Concerns: Strength of undergrad institution
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Brown, Penn off wl, Chicago off wl, UCSD, Columbia.
WL: Chicago, Duke, Penn
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, Berkeley, Princeton
What would you have done differently?
I got brought in and told the reasons for my poor results at one of the schools, and he said it was all institution. All you have to do though is take a couple years off and ra with someone famous, if youre in this position but I want to head straight to grad school plus new york is pretty swanky.
Attending: Columbia

roadvirusss 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 5 Liberal Arts College
Majors: BA Math, BA Economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.94/4
GRE: 800Q, 610 V, 6.0 AW
Math Courses: Linear Algebra (A-), Vector Calculus (A), Cryptography (A-), Combinatorics (A), Intro to Analysis (A), Differential Equations (A), Real Analysis I (A-), Real Analysis II (A), Probability Theory (A), Statistical Theory (A), Complex Analysis (A), Abstract Algebra I (A), Operations Research (A), Topology (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intro Macro (A-), Intro Micro (A), Empirical Methods (A), Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), International (A), Energy Economics (A), Econometrics (A), Game Theory (A), Advanced Micro (A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Econometrics I (A-)
Research Experience: Departmental honors for theses in both majors; Math thesis will be published. Did econ and math research during undergrad summers.
Research Interests: Applied Micro, IO
SOP: Spent no time on fluff; focused on a particular project.
Letters of recommendation: Four active Harvard PhD economists.
Concerns: Did poorly when I applied two years ago (Profiles and Results 2010).
Work Experience: Two years working as an RA at a top 5.
Results:
Accepted: Princeton, Northwestern, Chicago Booth, Columbia, UCLA, UCSD, Wisconsin, Duke
Waitlists (all declined): Penn (vh), NYU, Michigan
Rejected: Wharton (Interviewed), Yale, Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, Stanford, GSB, Chicago, Stern, HBS, Cornell
Never Heard from: UW
Attending: Princeton
What would you have done differently?
Nothing. I was very well informed about the process this time around. I'm definitely happy with my results, and in the end the decision between Princeton and Northwestern was a tough one. It was odd that the only Top 7 I got into was the one worst in IO even though my SOP was spent entirely on an IO topic. My decision to take two years off was in the end vindicated, even though I largely slacked off during this time and at one point almost gave up on the PhD route. I can't help but be an advocate of the liberal arts college -> RA -> PhD route, as the improvement in rec letters alone earned me a jump from the top 25 to the top 5.

EconBeach 2012:
Profile.

molamiu 2012:
Type of Undergrad:Double major (Econ & Stats) - Top 20ish US univ
Undergrad GPA: 4.0
Type of Grad: Msc in Stats
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 800Q, 800V, 4.0
Math Courses: A couple of Calculus courses, DiffEq, Matrix Algebra, lots of Prob & Stats courses (undergrad & grad level),
Letters of Recommendation: 1 very well-known Econ Prof (Senior Honors Thesis advisor), 1 Stats Prof (Master advisor), 1 supervisor from work - should all be strong
Teaching Experience: 3.5 years of TAship
Research Interests: macroeconomics, monetary
SOP: Should be strong - spent quite sometime
Concerns: No real analysis, 5 year-gap between college and Phd
Applying to: Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Columbia, NYU, CMU, Brown, INSEAD

LUDuckling 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Well-respected liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.99 Economics/Maths
GRE: 730/800/4.0
Math Courses: Calculus, Linear Algebra, ODE, Probability, Math Stat, Real Analysis
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro, Macro, Econometrics, IO, Economic Thought, Development, Money Banking
Letters of Recommendation:professor of grad micro class; econ prof; math thesis advisor
Research Experience:REU; RA; math thesis
Teaching Experience: TA math & econ for 2 years
Research Interests: micro, behavioral, not really set
Applying to: H, HBS, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, Stanford GSB, MIT, Columbia, NYU, JHU, UMD, Brown, UCLA, CIT, Cornell, CMU, Berkeley, NW, Chicago

sba 2012:
Institution: Caltech
Program: Social Sciences PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: fee waiver +28k $ stipend
Notification date: 1/29/2012
Notified through: email, then phone
Posted on GC: no
Comments:

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 ^_^.

chengchengjia 2012:
Institution: University of Wisconsin - Madison
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Waiting for first year funding, TA or RA in 2-4 years
Notification date: 2/22/2012
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Comments: This one makes me feel better after Yale's rejection...

7ien 2012:
Institution: Queen's
Program: MA Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: n/a
Notification date: 4/2/12
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Same thing with waitlist.

Nalfien 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: SUNY University Center
Undergrad GPA: Econ (4.0)/Math (3.8) overall 3.84
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: None
GRE: 800/590/5.5
Math Courses: Multi Variable Calc A- , Diff Eqs A, Real Analysis A, Measure Theory A, Linear Algebra I B+ &II A, Computational A, Typical Math Major,
Econ Courses: Grad Micro, Metrics. undegrad Math Stats, Metrics, Money and Banking, Computational, Interm Micro and Macro. A's
Other Courses: Honors College
Letters of Recommendation: 3 strong ones. One very very strong one. I really think the biggest reason I got in where I got in is because one of my recommenders put his neck out for me and called people to tell them about me.
Research Experience: Year long honors thesis senior year.
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Labor, Development
SOP: Pretty nice... I think, didn't hear anything bad about it. two pages.
Other: Used to go to departmental research seminars since sophmore year, got my face seen and showed an interest in research.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Stanford ($)Yale ($)UCLA ($)UVa ($)UNC ($)..... no money: UCSDU,Mich
Waitlists:
UPenn,NWU,NYU
Rejections:
Princeton,Berkeley,Columbia,Duke
What you would have done differently: I would have applied to less places. But there is no way I would have imagined I would have made out how i did. Very very fortunate.

applying07 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Large Private
Undergrad GPA: 3.81 (Econ: 3.9, Math: 4.0)
GRE: 800Q, 560 V, 6.0A
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Lin Alg, Prob Theory
Econ Courses: Principles, Intermediate Theories, Stats, Intl. Econ, Econ Thought, Environmental Econ, Econometrics, Intl. Econ Relations, Senior Thesis
Other Courses: A bunch of other International Studies class (poli sci, sociology, etc.)
Letters of Recommendation: Associate Prof. (Ph.D. MIT) thesis advisor and teacher, Assistant Prof (Ph.D. BC) Econometrics Teacher, Associate Math Prof. Lin Alg Teacher
Research Experience: Senior Thesis, summer of consulting as an RA
Teaching Experience: Tutoring
Research Interests: Trade and Development
SOP: Probably nothing too special, described career goals, why wanted to study econ and bits about each school
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Duke
Michigan State
Boston College
UNC-CH
Colorado
Rejections:
MIT
Northwestern
Brown
UMich
Columbia
What would you have done differently? Maybe waited a year and taken more math or worked doing a research job to fill in those gaps. Pretty happy with how turned out though

kartelite 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Graduated Top 20 liberal arts college, after 2 years at Top 30 University
Undergrad GPA: 3.79 both schools
Type of Grad: Top 50, MS in Applied Mathematics
Grad GPA: 4.00 (at time of application)
GRE: 800Q, 640V, 5.5AWA
Math Courses:
Undergrad Math: Linear Algebra (A), Multivariable Calc (A-), Applied Stats (A), Probability (A), Operations Research (B+), Foundations of Mathematics (A-), Combinatorics (A), Number Theory (A), Abstract Algebra I/II (A/A), Real Analysis I/II (A/A-), Graph Theory (A), ODE's (A)
Grad Math: Abstract Algebra (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Cryptography (A+), Functional Analysis (IP), Probability (IP), Combinatorics Seminar (IP)
Econ Courses:
Undergrad Econ: Intermediate Micro Theory (A-), Intermediate Macro Theory (A), Econometrics (A-), Int. Trade (A), Int. Finance (A), Econ Stats (A), Comparative Economics (B), Game Theory (A), Experimental Econ (A), Money and Banking (B), Mathematical Econ (A)
Grad Econ: Phd-level Econometrics (IP)
Letters of Recommendation: All math professors, 2 from undergrad (real analysis prof + adviser), 1 from grad (thesis adviser/probability prof)
Research Experience: Summer REU program in mathematics, research assistant for a couple summers
Teaching Experience: Calculus 2/pre-algebra/geometry instructor, Linear Algebra TA
Research Interests: Decision theory, perhaps financial or international econ
SOP: Yes
Other: Cross country captain, NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipient, lots of sports awards; one publication from REU program, hoping to get thesis published in good journal; applied for NSF
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Virginia ($19,000)
Duke ($17,000)
UNC ($14,400)
UCSD (none)
Rejections:
Princeton
Kellogg MEDS
Columbia
Cornell
What would you have done differently?
Gotten recommendation from econ professor, sent master's thesis to someone at programs, applied to Stanford

econchick06 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Large, not highly ranked public university
Major: Economics Minor: Mathematics
Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.96, Econ: 3.98, Math: 3.85
GRE: 780 Q, 600 V, 5.0 A
Math Courses: Calc I through III, Diff Equations (A+), Discrete Math (A+), Foundations of Math (Intro to Proofs) (A-), Matrix Algebra (A+), Linear Algebra (A), Probability (A), Advanced Calc (A, only A in the class)
Econ Courses: Undergrad:
Int Micro (A+), Int Macro (A), IO (A+), Urban/Regional (A+), Public Choice (A+), Math Econ (A), Econometrics (A+), Development Econ (A), International Economics (A), Money and Banking (A+)
Grad (taken as an undergrad):
Macroeconomic Theory (A), Mathematical Economics I (A-)
Other Courses: Intro Stats I and II (A+, A+), Intro to Comp Statistical Packags (SAS) (A+)
Letters of Recommendation:3 econ profs- 1 who I RA'd for and co-authored w/, 1 from grad macro prof, 1 from department chair.
Research Experience: RA for 1 year for one of my professors/TA this
Two sort-of publications (co-authored with professor,1 empirical paper in non-peer reviewed journal, and one study funded by a think tank)
Completed a thesis-type paper (we don't have a formal thesis program), will be submitting for publication shortly (and I did submit this paper to the schools I applied to as evidence of my research aptitude)
Teaching Experience: TA one semester
Research Interests: mostly applied micro
SOP: talked about my experiences with and passion for research, first para was tailored to each school
Other: founded economics club
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
full funding:
Chicago (Will be attending )
Rochester
Duke
University of Maryland
University of Virginia
Johns Hopkins
no funding:
UCLA
University of Pennsylvania (accepted off waitlist)
Waitlists:
Stanford
Rejections:
Harvard, Berkeley, UCSD, Michigan, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, NYU, Northwestern, MIT
What would you have done differently?
Hmm.. I think it turned out pretty well, I probably applied to too many schools but I am happy with the outcome and wouldn't really change anything. At least I don't have any "what ifs"!

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.

peterB 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top public univeristy, excellent econ dept.
Undergrad GPA: 3.1; 3.95 continuing ed. program
Type of Grad:
Grad GPA:
GRE: math 780 verbal 780
Math Courses: stat and probability, real analysis, calc II and III, linear algebra
Econ Courses: inter'l trade, monetary econ., 20th century econ. history, development economics, history of development economics, econometrics
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ people and one poli sci prof, no big names. Two of them knew me very well, and this must have helped a lot.
Research Experience: summer RA
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests: development, IO, applied micro
SOP: explained the circumstances for my low GPA, other than that pretty standard
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UT, BU, Davis, UCLA, Riverside, Penn State
Waitlists:
Rejections: lots, NYU, Columbia, Stanford, Berkeley ARE, UCSD, U Mich, Cornell
What would you have done differently? If I had more time and money, I would have taken a grad-level micro course. Overall I feel really lucky to be in at UCLA; anyone else headed there?

macrotime 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Third world country (unknown to most)
Undergrad GPA: 76/100 (math 90/100)
Type of Grad: Third world country (well known top program)
Grad GPA: 6/7
GRE: 780Q/500V/4.5A
Math Courses: Calculus, Linear algebra, ODE, Dynamic prog., optimization, probability, econometrics
Econ Courses: micro, macro, just as many courses an econ major should take
Letters of Recommendation: 1 (MIT), 2 (NYU), 1 (Duke), 1 (UCLA) all of them really strong. 4 of them publish or have published in top journals, one less known.
Research Experience: 2 years as an RA in a well known research institute, 2 years working in an interntional organization but in a more policy oriented position
Teaching Experience: TA ecometrics grad level, TA international macroeconomics, instructor undergard macro, TA while undergrad macro, an intro courses to economics
Research Interests: Macro, econometrics
SOP: Honest, just described my research interests
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Duke ($$)
Georgetown (no $$)
Rochester ($$)
Waitlists:
NYU
Rejections:
MIT
Harvard
Northwestern
Columbia
BU
What would you have done differently?
First, I would have resaerched more the universities I wanted to apply. Probably, that would have led me to apply to other set of universities. I would have worked less, and I would have taken more math classes.

grahamcoxon 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Economics from top university in my country (who has always placed students in top US PhDs)
Undergrad GPA: Econ 28.73 / 30 (= 3.83 / 4.0 ); Overall 28.27 / 30 ( = 3.77 / 4.0 )
Type of Grad: 2 years long MSc in Economics from the same university
Grad GPA: Econ 28.73 / 30 (= 3.83 / 4.0 ); Overall 28.73 / 30 (= 3.83 / 4.0 )
GRE: 790 Q, 520 V, 4.0 A
Math Courses:
Undergraduate: Mathematics (29/30; one year long course), Statistics and Probability (30/30), Econometrics (30/30)
Graduate: Multivariate Analysis (30/30), Microeconometrics (28/30)
Econ Courses:
Undergraduate: Industrial History (30/30); Microeconomics (27/30); Industrial Organization (30/30); Macroeconomics (29/30); Organization Theory (28/30); International Trade (29/30); Innovation and Industrial Dynamics (27/30); Economic Policy (28/30); Technology and Economic Development (28/30); International Monetary Economics (30 cum laude / 30)
Graduate:International Trade (30/30); Industiral Organization (29/30); Theory of the Firm and Corporate Governance (27/30); Business History (30/30); Economics of Innovation (29/30); Labour Economics (27/30); Public Economics (29/30).
Other Courses: Undergraduate: German Language, International Financial Markets, Innovation Management, … ; Graduate: Knowledge and Innovation Management, Comparative Politics, Spanish Language, …
Letters of Recommendation: associate econ professor and MSc thesis advisor (PhD UCLA); full econ professor and teacher of graduate labour econ (PhD NYU); associate econ professor and RA supervisor (PhD Northwestern); at least two of them are very very strong letters from people who know me well; two letter-writers are well-known economists and all publish on top economics journals.
Research Experience: Honors MSc thesis; started to work on co-authored paper with my MSc thesis advisor (I don’t mention it in my application but he probably talked about it in his letter of recommendation); 3 months RA at Dept of Quantitative Methods of my undergrad/grad university; 1 year RA at CHILD (Center for Household, Income, Labour and Demographic Economics);
Teaching Experience: 1 semester of Multivariate Analysis (graduate)
Research Interests: Political Economy, Behavioral Economics, Microeconomic Theory
SOP: nothing special, talked about reasons to pursue graduate studies in economics, research experience, research interests and future plans; used almost the same text for all universities; 2 pages research proposal outline added for European programs who asked for it (LSE, UCL, Oxford, UPF)
Other: international applicant; TOEFL: 107/120; no application for external funding; honor roll student in both years of MSc; submitted everywhere MSc thesis as writing sample; at least other 10 (very very strong) students applied this same year for almost the same US top programs from my university (in this sense, this was a strong year for applicants from my country/university)
RESULTS:
Admitted : Caltech (w/ funding), BU (w/out funding), LSE MSc (w/out funding), Oxford MPhil (w/out funding)
Waitlisted: Yale (not admitted in the end)
Rejected: UCSD, Columbia, Berkeley, MIT, Princeton, Northwestern, Stanford, NYU, Chicago, Harvard, LSE MRes/PhD, UPenn, Oxford Dphil, Stokcholm School of Economics, Stockholm U
Never got an answer : UPF, UCL
What would you have done differently? I would say the standard “taken more math classes” or try the alternative version “taken more graduate econ theory classes”, but since I decided to try the path of an Econ PhD less than 12 months ago (when I had already taken all classes needed to graduate) this wasn’t an option. Maybe I should have applied to a more diverse set of schools (no European at all; some Business School or some lower-ranked school with programs/faculty in line with my interests like Stanford GSB, Northwestern MEDS, Rochester or Carnegie Mellon), because I acted clearly as a risk-loving individual (I didn’t overestimated my profile, though…I know my chances at top15 schools were thin, but just wanted to come all the way to the U.S. only if it was really worth). Anyway, in this case, it worked.

phdphd 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Business Administration
Undergrad GPA: 7.5/10
Type of Grad: MSc Business Administration
Grad GPA: -
GRE: 790Q / 580V / 3.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III / Operations Research I-II / Stats I-II / Linear Algebra / Advanced Probability (Grad)
Econ Courses: Econometrics I, II, IV (Grad), Stochastic Economics I-II (Grad) (kind of asset pricing courses, devoted specially to derivative pricing).
Other Courses: Micro I, Macro I, Mathematical Analysis - First year PhD courses, I didn't have the grades at the time of the application
Letters of Recommendation: One supposed to be strong, finance PhD from Stanford GSB; the other two good ones I think (PhD North Carolina, local)
Research Experience: Two papers presented at a National Conference in Finance, MSc dissertation thesis.
Teaching Experience: TA for the MBA courses in my university.
Research Interests: Finance, applied micro, political economy.
SOP: I did the following: first I explained my interest in finance, second why pursuing a PhD in economics and not in business, third I mentioned three professors that I would like to work with at the university that I was applying.
Other: Male, 26, Latin America.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
University of Southern California ($)
UNC ($)
Minnesota (no $)
Penn State (no $)
Boston University (no $)
UC Davis (no $)
Waitlists:
Cornell (I suppose) - rejected in the end
Rejections:
MIT
Princeton
Stanford
Chicago
Columbia
Northwestern
UCLA - Anderson
Rochester
Maryland
Wisconsin
Caltech
Going to: University of Southern California
What would you have done differently?
First of all, a good MSc in economics, not only because it would increase my chances of being admitted at better places but to feel more comfortable with the courses in the first year; second, I should have participated more in this forum, I remember that I asked for the evaluation of profile stuff but only this. I should have gathered more information about the places that I would fit better with the TM's; I'm happy with the school that I'm going to but a little bit frustrated being rejected in all the top 15 schools. What I mean is that the idea of applying to a lot schools can hurt a lot. Now I have kind of mixed feelings about all of this: should I wait one more year, finish the PhD core couses sequence in my program right now and apply again? Or this is just a dream? I don't know...

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

chappl 2007:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: small university in Switzerland, 215th on econphd.net
Undergrad GPA: not easy to compute
Type of Grad: same as undergrad
Grad GPA: 5.73/6
GRE: 800Q, 610V, 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-III, LinAlgebra, Mathematical econ (undergrad), Mathematical methods in finance (undergrad), Math and Statistics (MA-level), Stochastic Processes (MA-level)
Econ Courses (MA-level): Adv. Macro I-II, Adv. Micro, Game theory, Public econ, Empirical Macro, Experimental econ, Econometrics (general), Time Series econometrics, Microeconometrics, Applied Econometrics, Theory of Finance I-II
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Macro I-IV, Micro I-IV, 3 Development econ courses, Labor, Trade, Monetary, Public, 2 metrics courses
Other Courses: lots of undergrad management and law courses (compulsory in my school)
Letters of Recommendation: 3 professors (1 Princeton PhD, 1 Swiss PhD, 1 German PhD), 1 head of research dept at central bank; all probably very positive
Research Experience: 1 year RA at central bank
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: modern macro, international finance
SOP: stated my background and research interests
Other: I have no BA, only an MA, as a consequence of the transition of my school to the Bologna system. My MA transcript only contains grades for MA courses, translation of undergrad level transcripts all sent as individual sheets of paper. This might have confused some adcoms.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Michigan (no $), Wisconsin (no $), Maryland ($), Rochester ($), JHU ($), BU ($), Virginia ($), UBC ($)
Waitlists: NYU, ultimately rejected
Rejections: Princeton, Yale, Penn, Northwestern, Columbia, Duke, Toronto
What would you have done differently? I would have taken advanced math classes, like real analysis, topology, etc. As my school had no math dept, I would have had to take these at another school. I shouldn't have applied to my supposedly safety school (MA & PhD): Toronto; and should have applied to 2 more top 10 schools instead

Chicunomics 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Honours bachelor's degree at a big international university (econphd.net top 100)
Undergrad GPA: 89/100-ish, 1st of 149
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q 700V 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Advanced streams of first year linear algebra, calculus, also core undergrad probability, statistics subjects (As in subjects completed so far). For semester before I start: vector analysis, real & complex analysis.
Econ Courses: up to grad level micro, macro, econometrics, auction theory, search theory, industrial organization (all As)
Other Courses: Nothing any adcom would care about.
Letters of Recommendation: 2 full professors, quite senior and relatively well known, 1 junior academic (honours thesis advisor) -- all economics.
Research Experience: Thesis prize; theoretical IO paper (to be submitted to Information Economics and Policy soon co-authored with advisor), co-author on another paper to be submitted to Journal of Labour Economics soon. RA since 2004 - both empirical and theoretical stuff.
Teaching Experience: TA in intro Micro and Macro, advanced undergrad IO and micro.
Research Interests: IO and micro theory.
SOP: Nothing special, just discussed my interests and research.
RESULTS:
Attending: Northwestern University
Acceptances: Northwestern ($$), NYU ($$), Wisconsin ($$), MIT (No $), UCLA (No $)
Waitlists: Yale ($$), Pennsylvania (No $), Princeton ($$)
Rejections: Stanford GSB (EAP), Columbia, Maryland, Harvard, Stanford Economics, Berkeley
What would you have done differently? Nothing really. I did the best I could. I can't help but feel that with another year's math preparation, I would have gotten admits to a better selection of schools. However, NWU was a really high personal preference, so it was worth cutting the math short a year!

Internationalstudent08 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: top U.S. school
Undergrad GPA: 3.7+
GRE: 800q, 670v, 4.5w (yeah, me knows how to writing)
Math Courses: Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, Groups and Topology (intro proofs), Mathematical Probability. In my senior fall I took optimization and now in the spring I take analysis.
Econ Courses: many...
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from econ profs (1 of them is famous, the other is well-known)
Research Experience: 2 summers
Teaching Experience: I have some. does it count anyway???
Research Interests: Macro, Pol. Economy, Public stuff.
SOP: I bet they don't read it
Other: International student, good at foosball.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Waitlists:
Rejections: Northwestern, Columbia, Duke, Stanford, Brown, Berkeley
Pending: Princeton, Chicago, NYU, UCSD,
What would you have done differently? I could write an essay about this, but I'll do it at the end

Fatrapa 2008:
Type of Undergrad: None (French system of Grandes Ecoles)
Type of Grad: Business School + Paris School of Economics
Grad GPA: 1st / 60
GRE: 800/610/4.0
Math Courses: french system
Econ Courses: 3 "undergrad", 20 grad
Other Courses: business
Letters of Recommendation: 3 well-know economists, 2 less-well-known but who know me well
Research Experience: Master thesis
Teaching Experience: TA
Research Interests: Political decision (Roemer, etc.) / political economy
SOP: spoke about my research
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Chicago
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Columbia, NYU (99%), Harvard (99%)
Pending:
What would you have done differently? I would have described my math credentials more precisely. This is an advice for all French future applicants: explain how the system works and how good you are in maths in your letter.

Elly 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small liberal arts college (women's college)
Undergrad GPA: 3.91
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 720V/790Q/5.0A
Math Courses: Math Major: Linear, Advanced Linear, Multivariate, Differential Equations, Probability and Statistics, Real Analysis, Abstract Algebra I and II, Grad Analysis and Topology
Econ Courses: Econ Major: Micro, Macro, Int'l Trade, Int'l Finance, Econometrics.. etc.
Other Courses: Intermediate Programming
Letters of Recommendation: all strong- one from my math advisor, one from my econ advisor (who I also did research with and TA'd for), one from a respected economist at a top department at which I took classes
Research Experience: Summer REU in Game Theory, Senior Thesis
Teaching Experience: TA'd for Calculus, Linear Algebra, Intro to Econ, Macro, MBA Micro Theory, MBA Statistics and Econometrics
Research Interests: Development, Micro Theory
SOP: I took it seriously but it wasn't too long
[B] Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: MIT($), NYU(off of waitlist), UCLA ($), LSE (MRes/PhD Track 1, $), Toronto (Research MA, $), NSF
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Berkeley, Princeton, Stanford, Columbia, Brown
What would you have done differently? Nothing! I will be attending MIT.

yayflipflops 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.6/4
GRE: 770Q 710V 5.0W
Math Courses: Calculus I,II,III, Algebra I & II, Analysis I & II
Letters of Recommendation: economics professor, math professor, and staff economists at Fed. should be strong.
Research Experience: Undergrad Thesis and research assistantship.
Research Interests: financial economics
SOP: I invested a lot of time in it.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Hopkins ($), Wisconsin, Cornell
Rejections: Berkeley, Columbia, Yale, Michigan, Maryland, UCLA
What would you have done differently?
Try to do some presentations, publish during RA-ship.

raamar 2008:
Type of Undergrad: International Solid University (Not in EconPhD Ranking)
Undergrad GPA: 3.76/4.00 in Business Administration
Type of Grad: International Another Solid University (Still Not in EconPhD Ranking)
Grad GPA: 3.53/4.00 Economics
GRE: Q 800/ V 370 / AWA 4.0
TOEFL: 111/120
Completed Math Courses: Not plenty
Completed Econ Courses: Micro, macro, metrics and many others (mostly solid, Grad Level)
Letters of Recommendation: Good Recommendations from some known professors of grad. school
Research Experience: Ongoing Master Thesis, (an international paper, but not at the time of application), RA
Teaching Experience: TA for 2 semesters of grad and undergrad macros
Research Interests: Macro mainly
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Maryland ($$), Pittsburgh ($$), Virginia ($ waitlist), Carlos III de Madrid ($$), Pompeu Fabra (No $)
Waitlists:
Rejections: Berkeley, Columbia, Minnesota, Michigan
Pending: WUSTL, UNC, Georgetown, Penn State
Attending : Maryland
What would you have done differently? Could have gone for more and better publications

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.

crutchboy3 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 20 Private University
Undergrad GPA: 3.81
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q/600V/5 A
Math Courses: Honors Calculus I-IV (A's), Honors Linear Algebra I,II (B+,A-), Intro to Probability (A), Honors Algebra III (A), Honors Analysis I (A-), Graduate Topology (A-), Graduate Optimization (A), Measure Theory (B), Functional Analysis (B+), Galois Theory (B+), Number Theory (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro/Macro (A), Game Theory (A), Econometrics (A), Graduate Econ Prob and Stats (A), Grad Micro I (A),
Letters of Recommendation: Two professors that had taken several classes from and had done research with, One that had just taken classes from, all econ
Research Experience: Math REU, Summer REU to begin work on thesis project, Honors thesis, 2 years of RA
Teaching Experience: Some tutoring
Research Interests: Micro theory, game theory
SOP: Nothing Special
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Northwestern ($)(Attending), NYU ($), Duke ($), UIUC ($), Caltech($), Chicago (Tuition Waiver + Health), Wisconsin (No $), Penn (No $)
Waitlists: Penn (Eventually Accepted, no $)
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, Princeton

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

mamama 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Engineering-best university in my country
Undergrad GPA: 3.31/4.00
Grad GPA: 3.7/4.00 same university economics department
GRE: 800q, 400v, 3.5w
Math Courses: Calculus I,II linear algebra, differential eq. real analysis
Econ Courses: master courses and many micro courses
Letters of Recommendation: from economics department/ applied to some without master thesis advisors letter of recommendation
Research Experience: 2 years, a published article in native language and 2 ongoing
Teaching Experience: TA for a couple semesters in UG and G
Research Interests: micro,io
SOP: standard
RESULTS:
Attending: Austin
Acceptances: Austin ($$), Boston College ($$), Duke ($$), Rochester ($$), Rutgers ($$), UIUC ($$),Pompeu Fabra($$), Tinbergen ($$), Tilburg($$), Wisconsin Madison
Rejects: Upenn,Nyu,Columbia,NW
What would you have done differently? have chose another university for master

Chess is life 2008:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Public University BA
Undergrad GPA: 3.94/ 4.0 Math/ Economics
Type of Grad: Public University MA
Grad GPA: 4.0/ 4.0 Economics
GRE: 670 V 800 M 5.0 Writing (I took it when I was 19 to get a job at Kaplan and it worked!)
Math Courses: Topology, Real Analysis, Linear Algebra, Calculus 1-3, Differential Equations, Probability and Statistics, Numerical Analysis, Econ Courses: International Economics I and II (MA), Math for Economists (MA and PhD), Microeconomics (MA and PhD), Urban Economics (MA), Econometrics (MA and PhD), Health Economics (MA), Macroeconomics (MA), Intro. to Econometrics, Statistical Methods, Intermediate Micro and Macro, Industrial Organization (Best Class ever), Seminar in economics, Money and Banking, several independent studies,
Other Courses: Physics 1 and 2 (I seriously considered majoring in it). Computer science 1.Letters of Recommendation: Math and Economics professors. I did research with the economics professors.
Research Experience: A lot. Washington, DC think tank work for almost a year now, mainly immigration and trade issues. However, I am currently doing research on state policies that effect economic growth and presented at the CATO Institute on microcredit. I also have done research on child abuse, social capital, fed policy and housing prices, a senior thesis on NAFTA's effects on Mexico, municipal government efficiency (Global Perspective), and the fed challenge (Rutgers won our district).
Teaching Experience: Tutor for my University 2 years and tutor/teacher for Kaplan test and prep.
Research Interests: Probably Microeconomics, most likely something very game theoretical. This is subject to change given that I have yet to take a PhD level economics course in Macroeconomics.
SOP: General but adapted to each university I applied to.
Other: I think being affiliated with the CATO Institute (libertarian think tank) hurt me. Also, Rutgers has a tendency of sending students to programs and watching them promptly fail the qualifier. This couldn’t have helped me.[/font]
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Rochester (24k Fellowship), Duke (17k fellowship), Washington University, St. Louis (TA/ RA 20k), Rutgers (30k Presidential Fellowship), Michigan (Nada), UCLA (Nada), Wisconsin (Nada), Georgetown (Wait-list for funding), UCSD (TA and after a complicated formula 7k), Cornell (Nada)
Waitlists: Minnesota, NYU (High whatever that means), MIT (later rejected)
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Chicago, Columbia, UPenn, Brown, Stanford, Berkeley, Northwestern,
Pending: Nothing
Concerns: My letter writers are not very well-known
What would you have done differently?
Maybe take more math? I really don’t know what else I could have done. I think I will regret not taking more computer science courses.

lamahe 2008:
Type of Undergrad: International, top in my country but probably not known outside Central Europe.
Undergrad GPA: 1.24 (1-4 scale, with 1 being best)
Type of Grad: MA in Economics, top place in Eastern-Central Europe.
Grad GPA: 3.88
GRE: Q800/V590/AWA4.5
Math Courses: Linear Algebra I-II, Mathematical statistics I-III, Real Analysis I-IV, Complex Analysis, Differential Equations, Dynamic Optimization
Econ Courses: Standard Micro, Macro, and Econometrics sequences at MA level.
Letters of Recommendation: From 4 professors; PhDs from Chicago, Minnesota and WUSTL, and 1 who graduated from a local university. Worked as a TA for all of them.
Research Experience: Worked for 2 years at Institute of Economic Research in my country, but I think that it is actually not worth mentioning. Useless in the longer perspective.
Teaching Experience: TA for Macroeconomics I-II
Research Interests: Macroeconomics, Public economics.
SOP: Indicated my research interest and the reason why I want to leave my current program.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UPenn ($), Minnesota ($), WUSTL ($)
Rejections: Columbia, NWU
What would you have done differently:
Maybe applied to a couple more places, but it would not change my decision where to go anyway.

elcapitano 2008:
GRE: 800Q 720V 4.5AW(doh) (2nd Attempt)
Undergrad: Good but not brilliant research university
High 1st Class Degree
All Maths and Econ Courses 1st in 12 of 14 including all the maths courses.
Graduated 2nd in class.
Math: All that I was allowed to take
SOP: Probably weak
Experience: Two years in government
Interests: Growth, Development, Trade
Applied: Brown, Columbia, Harvard, Oxford (MPhil), NYU, UBC (MA)
Results: Accepted - UBC ($$), Oxford ($?)
Rejected - Brown, Columbia, Harvard, NYU
What would you have done differently?
I would've realised that UK undergrad and some work experience is not sufficient to get into a top US program. Having realised this I also would've applied to Cambridge for their MPhil and probably LSE and not bothered applying for US programs this time round. However, i'm still pretty happy.

ImProcrastinating 2009:
Profile:
Type of Undergrad: Top 25 with a top 40ish econ program. BA in econ.
Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.74, Econ: 3.8ish, Math: bad.
Type of Grad: Not highly ranked, top 100ish. MS in applied math.
Grad GPA (at application time...): 3.9
GRE: 790Q / 740V / 5.0 AWA.
Math Courses:
Undergrad: Calc III (B+), ODE (C- (Ouch...)), Real Analysis (A-), Linear Algebra (A).
Grad: Analysis (A-) (taken at the summer school of a top 10), Measure Theory (A-), Math Stats (A), ODE (A), Functional Analysis (A), General Topology (In progress at application time...)
Econ Courses:
Undergrad: Intro. Micro (A), Intro. Macro (A), Money and Banking (A), Economy of China (A-), Intro to Econ Stats (B+), Mathematical Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (B+), Econometrics (A), International Trade (A), Distinguished Majors Seminar (A), Independent Study (A)
Grad: PhD Micro I (A-), PhD Micro II (A), PhD Micro III (IP)
Letters of Recommendation:
1 from an undergraduate econ professor, not well known.
1 from a graduate math prof, very well known among mathematicians but I don't know if that counts...
1 from a graduate econ prof, very well known.
Research Experience: Summer at the Fed, senior thesis, 1 year + 1 summer as an RA for a professor, RAing at the IMF while applying.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Micro Theory, I/O, International Finance
Results:
Acceptances: NYU ($$$)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: A lot, Harvard, MIT, Chicago, Yale, Berkeley, Stanford, Columbia, and UPenn.
Pending: None.
What would you have done differently? If I could do it ALL over again, I'd probably go to an undergrad that was stronger in econ, take more math courses earlier on, and work as hard my first couple years in college as I did my last couple. But I was expecting to get rejected everywhere I applied this time around, so I'm ecstatic to be going to a dream school like NYU.

MorgieLilly 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A in Econ-Phil and Math. Ivy League, top 10ish in economics Uni.
Undergrad GPA: 3.85, summa cum laude.
GRE: 780Q, 510V, 3.0W
Math Courses (undergrad):
Cal I, Calc III, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis, Analysis and Optimization, Probability and Induction (P/F), Probability and Statistics, Advanced Logic, Independent Reading Course, (all As)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Micro-econometrics (A-)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro/Macro(A-,B+), Advanced Econometrics (B+), Advanced Macro (A), Economic History (A-), International (C, took abroad in Ghana.)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ, both well known. 1 math, well known in math. 1 philosophy, well known in the philosophy of science.
Research Experience: REU Intern in geophysics at Lamont Earth Observatory, summer 2007 (My paper was accepted to the 2008 ASLO Conference). Full-time economics RA this year.
Research Interests: Development, Economic History, Alternative Theories in Economics, Econometrics.
SOP: Talked about why I chose interdisciplinary study, my work abroad in Ghana and my experience this year as a research assistant. I stated that I expected to change my mind about my specialization anyway, so I didn't want to state a particular one.
Applied to: LSE, MIT, NYU, Harvard, UCSD, UC Berkeley, Chicago, Stanford, Columbia, UMich, Princeton, Yale
Rejected: Everywhere
Waitlisted/Accepted: Nada
What would you have done differently? I dunno. Feedback from my home institutions admissions committee (where I was also rejected) says that I should have taken more econ (at the expense of my philosophy and science courses) but I would not give that knowledge and my resulting world outlook up for an admit to this discipline, because I feel that this will inform my research abilities more so than having taken much more economics. I have to do a lot of thinking now about whether I belong in this discipline, seeing as the adcoms don't seem to think so. Today is sad.

ilikefreefood 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Econ major from a top 5-10 liberal arts college.
Undergrad GPA: 3.73/4, magna cum laude with distinction in major for senior thesis research.
Type of Grad: none
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800Q 640V 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc II-III (A,B+), Linear Algebra (Pass), Statistics (A), Mathematical Structures (A-), Real Analysis (B, taken as a non-degree student at a local school this Fall)
Econ Courses: Principles Micro/Macro (A-,A), Intermediate Micro (A) Intermediate Macro (B), Econometrics (B+), pre-thesis seminar (A-), Ag. & Food Econ. (A), Development Econ. (B+), Econ. of Inequality (A), Econ. of Water Policy (B+), British Econ. history (B+)
Other Courses: A pass/fail seminar on game theory, a Poli. Sci. course on agent-based computer modeling (A)
Letters of Recommendation: 3 ECON professors (liberal arts college profs but with Chicago/Stanford Ph.Ds), including my thesis adviser who has previously stated that my thesis was one of the best he's ever advised. Where possible, 1 VP at my Econ. consulting firm with whom I've worked extensively on econometric analyses.
Research Experience: ~3 years as an RA in a major Econ. consulting firm; I specialize in statistical and econometric analysis within my office.
Awards: Thesis award from state Economics association, thesis presentation award from state science association, college fellowship for (non-research) work in development related to microfinance.
Research Interests: Development, environmental/resource economics, urban economics, general applied micro.
SOP: Well-written but fairly standard; mentioned specifically my interest in development and applied micro fields.
Other Concerns: Didn't anticipate the B in analysis and received it after I had submitted applications; I don't think I have enough additional math coursework to make up for exercising a pass/fail option in linear algebra way back when.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Minnesota ARE ($$)
Waitlists: none
Rejections: Berkeley, Columbia, Harvard, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, MIT, NWU, Penn, Princeton, Stanford, Yale
Pending: Chicago, Cornell
What would you have done differently? Applied to Berkeley ARE and not Berkeley ECON when they made me pick just one; applied to more schools in the 20-30 range and not limited myself by the fact that I applied to 15 programs; discounted the advice of my former professors w.r.t. how far my school's reputation would get me; learned of and read the TestMagic forum earlier in the process.

LagrangeJames 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. econ, B.A. math, large state university, EconPhD top 60
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4.0
GRE: 800Q, 650V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc III (A+), Linear algebra (A+), Differential equations I, II (A-, A), Introductory probability theory (A, fall), Math modeling (A, fall)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Optimization theory (A-, fall), Econometrics II (spring)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): All of them, including two econometrics courses and game theory; A- in intermediate microeconomics, A's otherwise
Other Courses: Spanish minor
Letters of Recommendation: Four economics professors -- nobody famous, but I had collaborated on research projects (that I had initiated) with three of them
Research Experience: Two working papers co-authored with faculty
Teaching Experience: Teaching assistant for introductory microeconomics, spring
Research Interests: Growth and development, specifically microeconomic development
SOP: Used a standard template for all statements but tailored last couple paragraphs to specific program, mentioning examples of faculty research I was interested in (but did not mention any faculty by name)
Concerns: No real analysis, but optimization theory provided a good crash course
Applying to: Maryland, Brown, MIT, Harvard, Yale, UCSD, Berkeley, Minnesota, Michigan, NYU, Boston, Columbia, LSE (M.Sc.)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Yale (with funding), Michigan (no first-year funding), Boston (with funding), UCSD (with funding)
Waitlists: Minnesota
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Berkeley, Columbia, Maryland, Brown, NYU
Withdrawn: LSE
What would you have done differently?
If I had discovered this forum sooner, I probably would have taken more proof-based math courses, which most likely would have boosted my chances at top top schools. However, I think research experience, letters of recommendation from faculty involved in that research and a good "fit" (in terms of my research interests) -- factors that are often overlooked, including by myself -- helped my chances at several schools. Good luck, everyone.

Internationalstudent08 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top-5
Undergrad GPA: 3.7
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q800, V670, A4.5
Math Courses: Real Analysis, Optimization (As)
Econ Courses: Typical undergrad courses, intro+field courses
Letters of Recommendation: 3 good ones
Research Experience: 1 year RA (+2 summers as an undergrad)
Teaching Experience: Some tutoring
Research Interests: Mostly applied micro
SOP: Must have been good
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UChicago (waiting to hear about funding), UMaryland (18k), Penn State (25k)
Waitlists: Wharton AE
Rejections: MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Northwestern, Columbia, NYU, Brown
Total Score: 10-1-3
Pending: None
What would you have done differently?
I really didn't take advantage of my undergrad school as I should have. I should have started RAing earlier, and I should have taken graduate-level courses as an undergrad, instead of being a chicken. Also, I made some bad thesis-related choices hehe
However, since last year's admission cycle, I did everything that I could to improve my profile, and ended up working with some great people. I learned a lot- perhaps more than what I'm going to learn in grad school.
The only significant econ-phd-related mistake I made was to apply to all top-10 schools and almost none of the schools between 10 and 20 (except for UMaryland). I rejected most of the schools in that range based on location preferences. Since my profile was not clear-cut top10, I should have been more careful.
Anyway, I'm glad I made it!!!!!

icebear 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Econ (2006), large state university, poorly ranked economics department
Undergrad GPA: 3.89
Type of Grad: A few courses during my BA
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 750/570/4.5 (2006)
Math Courses: Calc 1 (A), Calc 2 (B+), Matrices and Linear Equations (A), Statistical Methods (A), Foundations of Quant Econ Analysis (graduate level math/econ course intended as a refresher for incoming PhD students) (A+)
Econ Courses: Micro Prin & Inter, Macro Prin & Inter, Econometrics, Independent Study x 2, Comparative Economic Systems, Recent Economic Thought (i.e. History of Academic Economics), Transformation of Central and Eastern European Countries, Privatization and Foreign Capital (B), Globalization - Social and Economic Aspects (B), Games and Decisions (B), Senior Seminar on Globalization and Trade, Political Economy I (graduate level) [Note: all A's except where noted, the 3 B's were received while studying abroad if that's worth anything].
Other Courses: Java Programming, Electrical Engineering courses for one year (A's, if these helpfully display math/computer competency...?)
Letters of Recommendation: PhDs from MIT, Cambridge, and Harvard. The first was my advisor in University, the latter two colleagues on a research project during 2007/2008 (see below).
Research Experience: Working at a European consultancy (China office) for about 18 months in 2007/2008, as a project manager for government funded economic development/trade research projects dealing with China. The job had me doing about 500usiness related tasks, 50% working with our PhD economists who did the modeling/analysis in a RA type of capacity.
Teaching Experience: ~1 year teaching English in China between my BA and the research listed above.
Research Interests: International trade, economic development in Asia (China/ASEAN), political economy in China
SOP: Talked about my strong interest in being involved in trade policy, emphasized my research experience and particular interest in each respective department (faculty, papers, topics, etc), and provided a few interesting research questions which I had brushed upon with previously and would like to continue working on as examples. Maybe a bit weak, should have sought more advice here.
Other: I decided to apply late last fall as my job was expressing an interest in fast tracking me along a management path and I knew research was more my goal. I knew my math was deficient and sought the advice of my LORs, whom all strongly encouraged me to apply to fewer, higher ranked schools with the explanation that my research experience should outweigh my deficiency in math and hiatus from formal education. This cut my plans of applying to 6-10 schools with a range of competitiveness to only 4 reach schools. Knew my GRE Q score was very low but was unable to retake once I had decided to "go for it" as China only has several mass-test dates per year and the next one wouldn't be available in time for that round of applications (definitely was not interested in the $1500+ option of flying home for a weekend to take the GRE )
RESULTS:
Acceptances: -
Waitlists: -
Rejections: Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Princeton
Pending: -
What would you have done differently?
I knew my math was deficient (both coursework and GRE) and a likely sticking point, but went for it due to encouragement from LORs. In the next 8-9 months I guess my goal is to rectify that situation as best as possible, although my circumstances make that a bit more complicated (will cover that and ask some questions in another thread).
Also, I should have included a few 'safer' options, as only top 10/20 doesn't seem realistic given my profile now that I've read a bit on TM over the past few weeks. More broadly, should have taken more math as an undergrad and perhaps considered transferring schools once I switched majors (my school was pretty good for engineering) - although my scholarship there would have made any transfer unlikely.

Swingkid 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: University of California, BA Econ & Applied Math, French Minor
Undergrad GPA: 3.85
Type of Grad: micro
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 800/700/6.0
Math Courses: Multi-var Calc, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Numerical Analysis, Probability
Econ Courses: Grad Micro, Intermediate Micro and Macro, Metrics, Applied Metrics, Corporate Finance, Game Theory, Contract Theory, Development
Other Courses: a lot of French
Letters of Recommendation: 3 letters, one of which was from a fecund researcher that I've worked with for two years. The other two are from my grad micro professor and my undergrad development professor; the former barely knows me, the latter I've spoken to about my research ideas.
Research Experience: Two years undergrad RA. Thesis (?)
Teaching Experience: Does dance count? =P
Research Interests: Development, Applied Micro
SOP: I don't think it was that special. In any case, it probably didn't carry much weight.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCLA, Yale, Berkeley, Brown
Waitlists: U Penn
Rejections: MIT, Columbia, Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, Northwestern, NYU
What would you have done differently?
I would have definitely submitted a better-prepared application for the NSF, since funding is kind of an issue for me. I found out about the fellowship a week before the deadline and decided to apply anyway. That said, I wouldn't have done much else differently, since I'm really ecstatic about my acceptances! :-)

scrobles 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Econ and Math, MIT
Undergrad GPA: 4.7/5.0 (equivalent to 3.7)
Type of Grad: none
GRE: 800Q/740V/5.5W
Math Courses: Calc 1&2, Linear Algebra, Probability, Statistics, Real Analysis, Intro to Discrete Math, Modern Algebra, Intro to Stochastic Modeling (Grad course). About half As and half Bs, with more As in the later years.
Econ Courses: Intro and Intermediate Micro and Macro, Econometrics, Education, Development, Behavioral, Public Policy, Environmental, Econ research class. Mostly As.
Other Courses: Chinese
Letters of Recommendation: 3 profs with PhDs from MIT. The first was my development teacher and I RA'd for her a couple of semesters. I worked for the second two doing field research for 2 years after graduating.
Research Experience: Working at a econ research NGO for 2 years after college. RA for a bit in college.
Teaching Experience: Tutoring probability course in university, and general tutoring stuff.
Research Interests: Development, Behavioral, applied micro
SOP: My experiences and my interests. Why I like econ.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCSD, UCLA, UC Davis ARE, Northwestern, Chicago, Duke, USC, Berkeley, Harvard, Stanford
Waitlists: nope
Rejections: MIT, Columbia, Brown
What would you have done differently?
My results were great, I think mostly because of my LORs so I think my after-college job really saved me. If I had to do it again, I would get As in key courses (mostly math) and do an economics thesis, but this is just theoretical since it wasn't necessary.

shubhamk 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B. Tech. from IIT Kanpur (Best Techno-Managerial school in India)
Undergrad GPA: 3.0/4
Type of Grad: MBA also from IIT Kanpur
Grad GPA: 3.2/4
GRE: 800Q, 660V, 4.0AWA
Math Courses: All quantitative courses for Electrical Engineering (Communication Systems specialization). That also means related courses on probability, calculus and Linear Algebra
Econ Courses (MBA-level): Micro, Macro and International business economics
Other Courses: 4 Sociology courses (during undergrad). 1 Development Economics course (during MBA)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 econ Prof (IIT Kanpur), 2 other Prof (IIT Kanpur)
Research Experience: 1 research case study was done for UNICEF while I was UN intern for 3 months in India itself. This was published for internal UN circulation. I have been working on development field for 3 years with small IIT Kanpur reports being published internally.
Research Interests: Development Economics, Labor Economics and Public Policy
Results
Will be attending: Penn State ($$, Economics)
Rejections: Wharton (Applied Economics), UCLA (Economics), Columbia GSB (Economics), Cornell (Applied Economics)
Pending: CMU Tepper (Econ and Public Policy), ERIM (Labor Econ)
What would you have done differently?
Nothing!!! I am happy that I am finally going to do research in Economics which is more important than many other parameters we try to judge our acceptances and rejections on.

Canuckonomist 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A (Hons.) Economics, Math Minor with Distinction, Queen's University
Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.75/4.0, Econ: 4.0/4.0, Math: 3.65/4.0
Type of Grad: M.A Economics, Queen's University
Grad GPA: 3.9/4.0
GRE: 790Q 530V 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I-III (A+/A+/B), Linear Algebra (B), Differential Equations (B), Probability (C), Abstract Algebra (B), Statistics (A+), Analysis I & II (B+/B), Stochastic Models in Operations Research (A+)
Econ Courses (MA/PhD-level): Micro (A-), Metrics (A), Money and the Macroeconomy (A), Mathematical Economics (A+), Finance Theory (A+) Continuous-Time Finance (A+), Risk Management (Audit), Cost-Benefit Analysis (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro (A), Macro (A+), Metrics I & II (A/B+), Finance (A+), History (B+), Corporate Finance (A),
Letters of Recommendation: 1 ANU, 1 JHU, 1 Harvard, 1 BU
Research Experience: R.A for three semesters. Co-authoured paper published in REE, 2008. Working paper with same author
Teaching Experience: UG Finance (fall), Tutor for department in mathematics for economists, Micro and stats.
Research Interests: Financial Economics, Micro, Credit
SOP: Working on it all summer
RESULTS:
Attending: University of Toronto ($$$)
Acceptances: Queen's University ($$), BU (no $)
Rejections: Chicago, NWU, Yale, Columbia, NYU, Rochester, Michigan, Minnesota
Pending: Cornell (will withdraw)
What would you have done differently? The only things I could have done differently would have been to start liking math before second year, and to know economics was the thing for me before second year. So really, outside of changing the fabric of my very being earlier in life, all the decisions on the equilibrium path were correct. Very happy to be attending UToronto. Would I be a true Canuckonomist if I didn't do a Ph.D in Canada? I like to think not.

Sonaar 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics, minor in History from a Latin American University
Undergrad GPA: 4.3/5.0, ranked 2nd in cohort.
Type of Grad: M.A. Economics, same Uni as undergrad
Grad GPA: 4.4/5.0, ranked 7th in cohort.
GRE: 790Q, 500V, 4.0 AWA. Second time.
Math Courses: Calculus I, II and multivariate (A, B+, A), linear algebra (A), Math for economics (A), Math statistics I and II (both As), Econometrics I and II (both As)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Micro (A+), Macro (A), Econometrics (A), Growth theory (A), International Economics (A), etc. for M.A.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro I, II and III (A, B+, A); Macro I, II and III (A, B, A+), Fiscal and Monetary theory, Public Economics... lots of them, lots of As.
Letters of Recommendation: one from a pre-tenured economics professor, one from the senior economist of a IFI, other from an economist of another IFI. One from a prof of a Public Policy School.
Research Experience: lots, almost 7 years between an Latin American think tank, now at IFI.
Teaching Experience: tutor of linear algebra and other econ courses, TA and later main instructor.
Research Interests: Applied Microeconomics, Health economics, Development, Labor
SOP: Done, pretty good
Concerns: some weak grades and econ and math courses (I was young and stupid then), and no formal, more advanced math.
Other: M.A. thesis published at local refereed journal, presented at an international conference.
RESULTS:
Attending: Maryland ($)
Acceptances: Maryland ($)
Rejections: Michigan, Duke, Michigan St, UT Austin, Johns Hopkins, U British Columbia, Brown.
Pending: BU
What would you have done differently? A lot. besides the obvious (more math, better grades, apply to more safeties), I should have applied earlier. Too much RAship (7 years!) probably hurt my application. I was extremely lucky to get a funded offer.

elcapitano 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BSc Economics, University of Sussex
Undergrad GPA: ~3.9+
Type of Grad: MA Economics, UBC
Grad GPA: ~3.8+
GRE: 800Q, 720V, 4.5 AWA. Second time.
Math Courses: Not many, all (A's)
Econ Courses: A bunch, mostly (A's)
Letters of Recommendation: Will have been enthusiastic, although might not have the highest profile in the US.
Research Experience: fairly little, two years working in government, undergrad thesis.
Teaching Experience: TA for introductory courses.
Research Interests: Political Economy, Development (macro/institutions/policy), Trade, Economic History
SOP: Short, dull.
Concerns: Not much real math.
RESULTS:
Attending: LSE (MRes/PhD) ($$$)
Acceptances: LSE (MRes/PhD)
Withdrawals: Cambridge, Oxford, Cornell
Rejections: Columbia, Brown.
What would you have done differently? Not too much, LSE was one of my two target schools. Could possibly applied to more of the top ten, however given the funding and location offered there are only perhaps 5-6 schools that I might have taken ahead, and my chances at these were probably infintessimal. I think British undergrad certainly helped applications to British schools and probably hinders in the US.

veryshuai 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Nicely ranked midwest LA
Undergrad GPA: 3.62
Type of Grad:Econ
Grad GPA: ~85/100
GRE: 800/700/4.5
Math Courses: Calc 1-3 (A,A,A-), Stats (A), Real Analysis (A)
Econ Courses: Grad series Macro, Micro, and Econometrics and some other stuff...A's except Micro 1 (B) and Time Series (B) (no pluses or minuses in our program)
Other Courses: Nothing that should matter
Letters of Recommendation: UCLA (thesis advisor), Brown, U Mich
Research Experience: RA for a semester, Master's Thesis
Teaching Experience: Nope
Research Interests: Development, Applied Macro Theory, not sure...goal to work in the research dept. of international organization
SOP: Spent a lot of time on it, but who knows...
Other: Fulbright fellowship and some other money awards...
RESULTS:
Acceptances:Penn State ($$),BU (no$), UW Madison(no$)
Waitlists: none
Rejections:Michigan, Minnesota, Brown, Harvard, U Chicago, NYU, Columbia, UPenn, Berkeley, UCLA,
Pending:Georgetown
What would you have done differently? Applied to a few more mid-ranked schools...it would be nice to have another funded option or two. Having said that, I am glad that I got firm rejections from all the top 20's, so that I don't have to wonder "What if?"

Ecolocomex 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics top LATAM university
Undergrad GPA: 3.78
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: None
GRE: 740Q, 410V 3.5 AWA
Math Courses: Throughout then whole BA studies, never knew about real analysis. Lots of Statistics.
Econ Courses: Advanced Micro, Advanced Micro, Monetary Policy, Industrial Organization, International Trade, Public Sector Economics, Econometrics
Other Courses: Environmental economics, financial markets, etc.
Letters of Recommendation: Professors of economics who also happen to be directors of the graduate school I attended.
Research Experience: Issues in international trade and industrial organization at the construction sector firm.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: International Economics, Monetary Policy, Financial markets
SOP: Application of economics in public policy issues.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UBC MA (no$), McGill MA ($)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Yale Phd, LSE MA, Columbia Phd, Harvard Phd, UT Austin Phd.
Pending: UofT
What would you have done differently?
I’d have improved my GRE, and done more research. Perhaps that’s the way the cookie crumbles, and I’m rather into applied economics than a PhD. Perhaps I needed to improve my knowledge of economics through a MA program first, and then decide over MBA or PhD.

treblekicker 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ (Honors I think) and Math Double Major; U.S. Private University ranked 35th overall by US News (the one that isn't a top 20 Econ School)
Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.65/4.0, Econ: 3.71/4.0, Math: 3.89/4.0 (at time of application)
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 790Q 590V 4.0AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I-III (B+/A/A), Linear Algebra (A), ODE (A), Probability (A), Math Stats (A), UG Analysis (A-), Complex Variables (A), Topology (took in the fall, B, did not submit the grade), PhD Analysis (W), Abstract Algebra (currently taking), Intro to Proof Writing (currently taking)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A-), Money and Banking (A-), Labor (B+), Antitrust and Regulation (A), International Trade (A-), Econ Stats I & II (B, A), Metrics (A), PhD Micro (took in the fall, A, did not submit)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 PSU, 1 Duke, 1 UNC; All three knew me very well, two I have had significant research experience with; I am sure all were strong.
Research Experience: Independent Study on Nonparametric Statistics; Senior Thesis on Monetary Policy; Research Assistant for Health Econ.
Teaching Experience: n/a
Research Interests: Metrics Theory
SOP: nothing special
RESULTS:
Attending: University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (Fellowship)
Acceptances: UNC
Rejections: Stanford, Princeton, NWU, Yale, Penn, Columbia, UCSD, Duke, Berkeley
Waitlist: PSU (will withdraw)
What would you have done differently? I knew I wanted to do a PhD early enough that I could have transferred to a Top 15 department. However, I would never in a million years regret staying at my current school. I love my professors and have made some fantastic friends and memories.
I would not have taken the course load that I did in the past fall. I would have taken Financial Calculus and PDEs instead of Topology and PhD Analysis. That way, I would have better grades in the fall (and no W) and I could have gotten the chance to submit my PhD Micro A. That probably would have gotten me into at least one school that I got rejected from, but whatever.

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.

jeeves0923 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Math, B.A. Economics (Both Honors), Virginia Tech
Undergrad GPA: 3.90
Type of Grad: M.S. Math, Virginia Tech
Grad GPA: 3.90
GRE: 800Q, 610V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses(undergrad): through Real Analysis I & II.
Math Courses(PhD): Abstract Algebra, Stochastic Processes, Measure Theory, Matrix Theory
Econ Courses: Lots of electives + PhD Micro, Metrics, Labor.
Other Courses: Half an engineering degree, history minor.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 Econ Profs (didn't end up using the math prof). All extremely good (at least that's what a couple adcoms told me)
Research Experience: A couple of papers, 4 semesters of econ research, one math theory paper, a bunch of presentations
Teaching Experience:Quite a lot- Calculus, Vector Geometry, Writing Coach, Micro Econ Theory, and some tutoring
Research Interests: Micro Theory, Political Economy, IO... maybe some other applied micro
SOP: I think it was too long, and I would have done a bit differently (see the link below)
Other: I fly airplanes and cook, but not at the same time
RESULTS:
Attending: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Accepted: NSF, MIT($$), Kellogg (MEcS) ($$), UChicago ($$), Minnesota($$), Duke ($$), Michigan(no $), Berkeley Law School
Wait List: Princeton, not eventually admitted
Rejections: Stanford GSB, Yale, NYU, Columbia, Penn, Harvard, Berkeley
What would you have done differently? http://www.urch.com/forums/phd-econo...te-school.html (And What A Strange Ride It's Been- Advice if you Come from an Unknown State School) I did better than I expected
Nothing too drastic. I'm so happy!

funkychinamen 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 10 Econ program, transfer from top 40 Econ program, Econ major
Undergrad GPA: 3.892 /4.000
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 780Q 480V 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I, Calc II, Calc III, Vector Calc, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Probability Theory, Linear Algebra - proof-based, Intro to Proofs, Real Analysis, Math Stats (Spring)
Econ Courses: Intermed Micro, Intermed Macro, Topics in Macro, Analysis of Econ Data, I.O., International Micro, International Macro, Labor, Intro to Mathematical Econ, Game Theory, Econometrics, Grad Micro I, Applied Econometrics (Spring)
Letters of Recommendation: One from an associate professor in the Ag Econ department who I researched with, one from an assistant professor at Business School who I researched with, one from professor who taught grad course
Research Experience: One year with an associate professor in the Ag Econ department, One semester with assistant professor in Business school, senior thesis in progress
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: I.O., Micro Theory, Labor
SOP: Looked back at it the other day. I HOPE they didn’t read it.
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
USC Marshall ($), Duke ($), Northwestern ($), UCSD (No $), Texas (No $), Boston U (No $)
Waitlists:
UPenn (rejected), Caltech (rejected)
Rejections:
Yale, Princeton, Berkeley, Stanford, Columbia, MIT, Minnesota, Maryland, UCLA Anderson, Harvard, Michigan, NYU, Cornell, Brown
What would you have done differently?
I would have studied harder for the GRE, finished a major in applied math, and applied to UCLA econ.
(Not-so) Fun Facts:
-Not accepted to any Ivy League school (UPenn waitlist)
-Not accepted to any school that used the Embark system (Caltech waitlist)
Attending: Northwestern!

Nebuchadrezzar 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: european, gpa scale
Undergrad GPA: 3.8/4.0
Type of Grad: european masters
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800 q, 440 verbal, 4.0 awa
Math Courses: calculus 1, 2, 3, diff eq, real analysis 1 2, topology, lin alg
Econ Courses: int mic, int mac, labor, game theory, io, phd micro 1 2, phd macro 1,2 , phd metrics 1, 2, optimization
Other Courses: -
Letters of Recommendation: 3 from home inst, at least 2 of them should be good
Research Experience: term paper, honors thesis
Teaching Experience: ta in several courses
Research Interests: micro-macro theory, game theory
SOP: standard sop summarizing my profle
Other: -
RESULTS:
Acceptances: rochester($), wisconsin(no $), michigan($)
Waitlists: wustl
Rejections: harvard, mit, chicago, nw, upenn, nyu, columbia, stanford, berkeley, caltech, cornell, yale, princeton...!!
Pending: -
going to: university of michigan
What would you have done differently?
i could study more in masters and send my transcript and get a letter of recommendation from there maybe. i don't know if that would help with the top 10. but i am happy to go to michigan!

Fig01123 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Big state school; not sure how it's ranked in econ--probably mid-tier;
Undergrad GPA: 3.9
Type of Grad: Top 10 private. It's top 5 in econ, but I did my M.A. in East Asian History.
Grad GPA: 3.94
GRE: 800Q/660V 5.0
Math Courses: Calc I-III (multivariable), Linear algebra, stats and Fortran (not a math class, I know, but several apps asked for programming classes) in undergrad (all As). Since this was more than 13 years ago, I've also been taking "brush up" math this past year-- Linear Algebra I, II, multivariable calc, diff eqs, and currently auditing real analysis
Econ Courses: intro to micro, intro to macro, intermediate micro, international trade, public economics, economics of Japan, labor economics seminar, advanced micro seminar (which I took at a second-rate state school, so was a joke) grad level micro class. All A/A+, except the grad level class, which I took pass/fail, and econ of Japan (B+)
Other Courses: I only minored in econ in undergrad, but I started out in engineering, so I have 1.5 years worth of math/science classes--mostly As except 1 class.
Letters of Recommendation: I would've gotten excellent recs from my ugrad profesors, but I lost touch w/ all of them, so I asked my grad thesis advisor (non-econ), my current boss (econ, but no PhD), and a math professor for a class I was taking in the fall to brush up on math.
Research Experience: I do some economic research at work, but it's more like compiling data, so essentially no.
Teaching Experience: tutored math subjects and have taught English abroad.
Research Interests: originally environment, but now that it looks like I'm headed to LSE, I think I will try to do this from a development standpoint.
SOP: standard.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: GMU (no $), and LSE Ms Econ 1 year (no $)
Waitlists:
Rejections: pretty much everywhere I applied! I won't list them all, but think of the schools in the top 20 or so--Berkeley, Yale, Michigan, NW, NYU, Columbia, etc.
Pending: BU. I still haven't heard from them!!
What would you have done differently? First, I did not discover this board until after I applied, which was my first mistake. Clearly, being out of school for over 10 years (well, undergrad), I've been out of the loop.
Second, I waited too long. I had top grades in econ and math (often the highest in the class and had 100 avg in several of the classes), so had I applied straight out of undergrad, I think I would've gotten much stronger recs. But this renewed interest in econ is mostly due to my past few jobs, so I didn't anticipate that I'd be applying to grad school. Again. I think they really penalize you for age--and it makes sense, b/c I've forgotten a lot of my math, etc. It doesn't matter if you got top grades 10-12 years ago, if you can't remember how to run regressions now.
Third, I also didn't take my undergrad classes w/ the assumption that I'd do an econ grad degree, so my classes were very micro-heavy. If I had any inkling that I'd apply to econ grad programs, I would've taken a lot more math. In fact, I probably would've majored in math.
Fourth, related to #3-- I think my LoRs hurt me. I didn't have any strong ones from econ professors. I'm sure my work and my advisor LoRs were strong enough, but one is not econ, and the other is econ, but not well known. I probably should've asked some of my undergrad profs, but I lost touch w/ all of them, so I felt uncomfortable asking.
Fifth, I wish I had planned and coordinated this much better. Between taking classes and studying for GREs, I underestimated how much time that would take up--especially the classes. I spent a lot of time focusing on classes, b/c I knew I had to get As. As a result, the first "free" time I had to even think of apps was early Nov-- by which time it was too late to apply for NSF. Really stupid planning on my part.
Finally, I already said this, but I wish I had discovered this board sooner. I selected the schools I applied to based on what several econ profs I interact w/ at work suggested. One is even on ADCOM for our school, so I thought his assessments would be accurate. He told me to apply to top 15 schools, so I did. I think he overestimated my abilities, b/c as I noted above, I got rejected everywhere. And after looking through people's profiles, I realized that contrary to what these profs said, I really had no chance in the top 10 schools. I should've applied to various levels of schools. Anyway, it's too late for me to learn from my own stupid mistakes, but I hope someone else will.

zshfryoh1 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Math and Econ (double major), large public college in Northeast
Undergrad GPA: 3.78
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 770Q/630V/5.5A
Math Courses (Undergrad level): Calc I&II (A, A-), Multivar Calc (B+), Lin Alg (B+), Intro to Prob and Stats (B-), ODEs (C), PDEs (A-)
Math Courses (Grad - Masters level): Non-Measure Prob Theory (C-/A on retake), Numerical Analysis I&II - Proof based (B, A-), Stochastic Methods in Operations Research (A-)
Econ Courses (Undergrad level): Intro Macro (A), Intro Micro (A+), Mathematical Intermediate Micro (A+), Mathematical Intermediate Macro (A-), Money and Banking (A-), Investment Analysis (B+), Financial Markets (A+), Independent Study & Research Paper on Real Options (A), Computational Finance (A+)
Econ Courses (PhD level): Econometrics I (B-)
Other Courses: Algorithmic Programming I (A+), Algorithmic and OOP II (A+), Full Science Honors Research sequence including three research presentations (all A or A+)
Letters of Recommendation: One excellent from a Econ Prof who is fairly well known. One excellent from an Econ Asst Prof that I RA'd and TA'd for. One Excellent from CS prof I took for Computational Finance.
Research Experience: A lot.Three years as an RA for a prof doing research into financial markets, and as part of this research I am in the process of developing a new method of programming simulations of financial markets for market microstructure research. Currently working in paper explaining new method, which I hope to submit to journals before September. Project for the Independent Study course on an application of Real Options to labor bargaining in sports. Will be submitted to a journal in May or June. Honor's thesis on applications of real options to natural resource and agricultural investment.
Teaching Experience: One Semester as TA for Intermediate Micro. Subbed multiple times for professor in Options and Futures class
Research Interests: Financial Econ (specifically Market Microstructure and Real Options Analysis), Micro Theory, Mathematical and Computational Methods, secondary interests in everything but monetary macro.
SOP: Decent and pretty standard. Customized it for each grad school and explained some extenuating circumstances.
Other: Full time student (35+ hours per week) at a school for the advanced study of Talmudic Law, simultaneous with my college schedule. Six student seminar presentations of original research in Talmudic Law. Five publications of original research in Talmudic Law. Two semester of extenuating circumstances (taking care of ill grandmother). Applied for NSF, did not receive.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: A number math/stats/FE masters programs
Waitlists: UPenn
Rejections: NYU, NYU Stern Econ, NYU Stern Finance, Columbia, Columbia GSB, Wharton Applied Econ, Wharton Finance
Pending: None
Attending: MA Stat, same as UG
What would you have done differently? Nothing really. All my profs told me that with 20 more points on my GREQ I would have an excellent shot at 15-30 range schools and a chance at top 15's. However, my plan from the start was to only apply to a few top 15 programs, and if as expected I didn't get in, to go for a math/stat/FE masters and re-apply next year. I did not have the time to study to re-take the GRE anyway. Getting the UPenn WL this year is a good sign for next year's apps. Anyway, I will now have a chance to study for and re-take the GRE, take grad real analysis, a couple more PhD level econ classes and a few more stat classes. It is a one year MA with very flexible electives. I also hope to have two papers submitted to journals for publication as well as at least one conference presentation before application season next fall.

postgradecon 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BSc in Economics and Mathematics from a well-known but not so good in economics university in Canada.
Undergrad GPA: converts to about 3.85/4
Type of Grad: LSE
Grad GPA: not yet known
GRE: 780Q/530V/4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I-II-III (A/A+'s), Linear Algebra I-II (A+'s), Real Analysis I (A+), Differential Equations (A+), Logic and Set Theory (Proofs) (B), Sampling (B+), Prob and Stats (A+), History of Logic (A).
Graduate: none
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro and Macro (A+'s), Advanced Macro (A), Advanced Micro (B+, level of grad Varian), Econometrics (A+), Labour (A), Cost-Benefit (A), Math econ (A), Development (B, abroad), Industrial Organisation I-II (A-, A)
Graduate Econ Courses: Before my masters: Time series econometrics (A), Institutional economics and China's development (A+, with a mini-thesis). Masters: econometrics, micro, macro, political economics (no grades yet).
Other Courses: A bunch of biochemistry classes before switching to econ (grades between A- and A+). Some philosophy classes as extra electives (A+ in all).
Letters of Recommendation: 3 from my undergrad, all really enthusiastic (PhDs from Princeton, Queen's and from a German university). One I wrote a mini-thesis with during a graduate class. A fourth was from my graduate program, didn't know me well, was in the beginning of the first year. I sent a different combination of 3 letters to different schools (deadlines were not at the same time and got the fourth a bit later, more on this below).
Research Experience: 2 years as research assistant in a well-respected small Canadian think tank, focusing on productivity and other welfare issues.
Teaching Experience: none.
Research Interests: Political economy, microeconomics, development.
SOP: Talked mostly about my interest in economics, my research interests, and why the school would be a good fit.. pretty standard and not that good.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UBC PhD ($$), UPF Masters ($), LSE (no $)
Waitlists: none
Rejections: Caltech, MIT, NYU, Columbia
Pending: none
Attending: UBC (did not want to do a second master's degree before re-applying next year and UPF did not recognize my masters as good enough for their PhD).
What would you have done differently?
As mentioned earlier, I have sent different sets of letters to different schools. Instead, I would have sent the 3 letters from undergrad to all schools and not bother to send a not-so-good letter from my grad teacher. At first I thought it was important, but thinking back I think this might have ruined my chances at most US schools. I was accepted at all schools that didn't receive that letter.Also, I would have applied to much more schools, but I decided late and did not have much time to think about it.
In the end, I am satisfied since UBC is well-respected in its country and on par with a lot of top30 schools in the US.

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% 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!

Mobius Strip 2009:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Mathematics and Economics from a top 10-15 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.87/4.0
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 570V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Linear Alg, Modern Alg, Adv Modern Alg, Real Analysis, Game Theory (in Math Dept), Topology, Chaos Theory. Received department honors in Math.
Econ Courses: Basically all of them, 4.0 GPA, Thesis (A), Department Honors, Brownell Prize for Distinction in the Study of Political Economy
Other Courses: NA
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from Federal Reserve, 1 Math from Undergrad
Research Experience: RA for 3 years at FRB in DC. Co-authored published paper on racial discrimination in credit markets.
Teaching Experience: NA
Research Interests: Labor (Education), Real Estate, Financial Markets
SOP: Talked about my volunteer activities in tough, urban schools and how it shaped my interests in research in education. Transition to work at the Fed regarding discrimination in the credit markets. Final, throw-away paragraph naming some profs at schools who I'd be interested in working with.
Other: Crushed by NSF
RESULTS:
Acceptances: U Michigan (off waitlist, after 0-14 start)
Waitlists: NA
Rejections: MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Berkeley, Princeton, Chicago, Chicago Booth, Northwestern, Wharton, U Penn, NYU, Columbia, Duke
Pending: NA
Outside Fellowship: Received a $20k fellowship from undergrad college to supplement lack of funding from UM
What would you have done differently?
After receiving NSF results and reading Jeeves's posts, spelling out the broader impacts to make it easier to checklist. I scored fairly well on intellectual merit, but only average on the broader impacts.
Other than that, it's hard to say. I had nearly a 3.9 GPA with a Math and Econ double major, 3 years at the Federal Reserve, a published paper, and a presented working paper. I did spend 3 years in the private sector at a major bank, which probably hurt my admissions results, but gave me a broader personal, real-world experience that I do not regret taking.
Attending: U Michigan - Ann Arbor

ecuaecon 2009:
Type of Undergrad: international student with a a degree from a local university
Type of Grad: MS econ from a mid-size private american university
Undergrad GPA: 3.6/4
Graduate GPA: econ 3.6, econ + math 3.4
GRE: 770Q, 470V, 4.0 AW
Math Courses: Calculus I, II, III. Statistisc I, II. Linear Algebra. Math for econ (undergrad and grad). Advanced Calculus (Analysis). Not so great grades
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro (A-) and econometrics (A)
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ profs (graduated at UT, Brown, Cornell), I think these will be good recommendations.
Research Experience: RA for a professor, RA local central bank, master's thesis
Teaching Experience: instructor (econometrics)
Research Interests: Institituions, Econ history, behavioral econ
Concerns: I don't have a 800-gre, not so great grades for math courses
Applying to: Caltech, Michigan, Maryland, WUSTL, Barcelona School of Econ, Warwick, Oxford, European University Institute, Queen's, British Columbia, Toronto.

tobleronic 2009:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Economics and Math, One of the "New Ivy Leagues"
Undergrad GPA: 3.87, 3.92 Math/Econ
GRE: Q 800; V 490; AW 4.5
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis I, Theory of Numbers, Transformations and Geometries, Combinatorics, Statistics
Econ Courses: Intro, Intermediate Macro/Micro, Labor, Financial Econ, Advanced Micro Theory, Metrics, Honors Thesis, Math for Econ (MA and PhD), Micro (MA), Micro I and II (PhD)
Letters of Recommendation: 3 Econ Professors (a part time) and 1 math professor
Research Experience: None
Teaching Experience: None.
Research Interests: Labor , Micro
Applying to: Columbia, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Penn, Berkeley, Stanford, Princeton, NYU, NW, Duke

DesperateEconomist 2009:
It's time to do this:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Bachelor in Business Administration, prestigious institution in Latin America.
Undergrad GPA: 7.6/10
Type of Grad: Master in Economics, same institution than undergrad.
Grad GPA: 8/10
GRE: 800Q, 490V, 4.0AWA
TOEFL: 104 (30R, 30L, 20S, 24W)
Math Courses: Mathematics I, II, Linear Algebra, Metric Spaces, Statistics I, II, III, Mathematical Economics (grad).
Econ Courses (Masters): Macro I, II, Micro I, II, Metrics, Time Series and others not so relevant.
Econ Courses (undergrad): Macro, Micro, no Metrics.
Other Courses: Several other courses, but with small or no relevance for admission purposes.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors (1 Chicago PhD, 1 UCLA PhD, 1 Cornell PhD), and I believe that all of them are solid.
Research Experience: RA for two econ professors and currently working on my master's thesis. I also presented a paper in an economics meeting in my country.
Teaching Experience: TA for two graduate courses (Macro and Time Series) and 1 undergrad course (Statistics).
Research Interests: Macro and IO.
SOP: The usual stuff: I put a brief description of my profile and talked about my preferences and why I think I would succeed in their program.
Concerns: Low score on the speaking section of the TOEFL. Maybe my math background is not as strong as desired by some schools. At least a few low grades that could hurt me.
Applying to: Berkeley, Boston College, BU, Cornell, Columbia, Maryland, MSU, Minnesota, Northwestern, NYU, UT Austin, UCLA, UPenn, Washington St. Louis, Yale.

SF_Haole 2009:
I've been pretty nervous about my chances, and rightly so thus far: 1 admit, 1 waitlist, 3 official rejections and 4 schools that haven't rejected me but appear to have admitted everyone already.
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Stanford
GPA: 3.7
Major: Physics (BS), International Relations (BA)
Type of Grad: Stanford
GPA: 3.9
Major: International Policy Studies (MA)
GRE: 800Q, 690V, 6.0 writing
Math Courses: Multivariate Calculus: Differential (A) & Integral (A), Linear Algebra: Basic (A) & Advanced (A), Honors Diff Eqns w/proofs (B). Also a ****-ton of physics classes.
Econ Courses (undergrad): Basic micro/macro (A) intermediate micro (B+,A-) intermediate macro(B+), economic history (A), env. econ(A), public policy analysis(A+), stats for econ(A-), metrics(B+).
Econ Courses (grad): None, but I took grad-level courses in international macro (A-), and development (A) through my masters program and the political science dept's Ph.D-level game theory class (A).
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from fairly famous econ professors. I do research for one of them and took a class from the other (and worked for his colleague). 1 from a very famous political scientist (has his own wikipedia article) who taught my game theory class. Kinda nervous about the polisci rec but my options were limited.
Research Experience: lots of physics research; worked as an RA for the RBI (Indian Central Bank) for 1 summer; currently work in applied econ & policy analysis for one of my recommenders (past 2 years).
Teaching Experience: 1 year as a TA for intro to economics.
Research Interests: econometrics, development
SOP: Decent, I might have explained my research more but I built off my NSF essay, which had a separate previous research essay.
Applying to: 21 schools, including the top 10 overall, top 10 econometrics, and top 10 in development. Also UW-Seattle

italos 2009:
In this thread please post only your results.For further comments please refer to other threads in the forum
Institution:
Program:
Decision:
Funding:
Notification date:
Notified through:
Comments:

leguan 2009:
Institution: UPF
Program: MSc
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Full Tuition Waiver & TA
Notification date: February 5
Notified through: E-Mail
Comments: Tons of luck, mostly with my recommenders.
And thanks to Italos for this thread.

jnaecker 2009:
Institution: Caltech
Program: Social Science Ph.D.
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 28k plus tuition and fees
Notification date: Feb 5, 4 pm PST
Notified through: Email
Comments:
Institution: UCLA
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Tuition and fees totaling 10,000 in year 1, plus eligible for department supplementary fellowship. Tuition, fees, and living expenses in years 2-4.
Notification date: 2/10/09, 1 pm PST
Notified through: email
Notes: 2 for 2!

mike_banana 2009:
Institution: Duke U
Program: Economics Ph.D
Decision: Rejected
Funding: no
Notification date: 02/17/2009
Notified through: Email
Comments: check the status on "applyyourself" website. There is a notification letter.

canadaaplly 2009:
Institution: Duke
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: Feb 18
Notified through: Email
Comments: Who do they think they are?

filroz 2009:
Institution: Berkeley
Program: Economics, PhD
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 03/02
Notified through: E-Mail
Comments: no

confusedgrad 2009:
Institution: Duke University
Program: Economics, PhD
Decision: Accepted
Notification date: 03/02
Notified through: E-mail
Funding: Will be informed by the department
Comments: Will decline soon.
_ _ _ _ SIG _ _ _ _
In: Minnesota (fellowship), UCLA (no 1st year funding), Boston College (TA), Duke($?), CEMFI (10K)
Out: Yale
Pending: Many many....

Econ_TCC 2009:
Institution: Northwestern
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Waitlisted
Notification date: 2/26
Notified through: E-mail from Mercedes
Comments: Really hope to get funding!
Institution: U Penn
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: High on waitlist
Notification date: 3/4
Notified through: E-mail
Comments: -
Institution: WUSTL
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 18,000, possibly 30,000
Notification date: 3/5
Notified through: E-mail
Comments: -
Institution: NYU
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Waitlisted
Funding: ?
Notification date: 3/5
Notified through: E-mail
Comments:-
Institution: Columbia, UCLA, Princeton, Yale, Berkeley
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding: yeah, right!
Notification date:
Notified through: E-mail
Comments:

saucyapples 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 10 liberal arts college, majored in Math and Econ (class of 2008)
Undergrad GPA: 3.69
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 630V, 5.5AW
Math Courses: The usual , plus some high level statistics classes. Mostly As, some B's.
Econ Courses: 12 or so, mostly A's and some A-'s.
Other Courses: Some random classes, several about law since when I got to college I wanted to be a lawyer. A's and B's.
Letters of Recommendation: Only from people who know me well and (I think) like me. Two from econ professors with PhD's from top-5 places and one from a reasonably famous math prof.
Research Experience: Undergrad thesis (won an award), RAed for two summers including once abroad, and did field research in Latin America for almost two years after graduation
Teaching Experience: TAed and tutored a couple of math and econ courses. I've also tutored at an underachieving elementary school near my house (which is remarkably similar to tutoring underachieving college students, actually)
Research Interests: Development, IO, Game Theory, Education
SOP: Had it vetted by various economists, they said that it was fine. I wrote about three pages and then for each school only kept the 1-1.5 pages that were most relevant to that program. I'm not really sure how much it matters
Concerns: Had no idea what my LORs actually said.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: HBS($$$, pretty sure that I'm going to take it), Harvard ($$), Cal($$), Michigan ($), BU($), Maryland()
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Duke, Yale, Northwestern, Stanford GSB, Columbia, NYU, Stanford, MIT
What would you have done differently? I got into my dream school, so I'm ecstatic.

tommyg28 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top UK BA econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.85(ish) equivalent
Type of Grad: MA econ, same uni
Grad GPA: 3.9
GRE: 800Q, 720V, 5.5AW
Math Courses: The usual (real analysis I, II, Topology, functional analysis, linear algebra, ODE I, II, advanced statistics and probability theory, etc.) Mostly As, one A-
Econ Courses: Many: Micro I-IV; Macro I-IV; Econometrics I, II; Economic theory; IO, etc. All As, some A+
Other Courses: None, econ all the way
Letters of Recommendation: From people who knew me well, but alas, few people know them. Nice letters though.
Research Experience: Undergrad thesis and Grad dissertation - they were OK.
Teaching Experience: Coached various sports, but pretty sure this counts for squat
Research Interests: Everything. Probably IO, stock-flow macro dynamics and labour if I had to narrow it down.
SOP: Bland
Concerns: Interpretation of UK grades
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Duke ($$), U Washington-Seattle ($), Georgetown ($$)
Waitlists: UCLA
Rejections: A lot: MIT, Princeton, Stanford, NYU, Columbia, Michigan, Yale, Penn, etc.
What would you have done differently? it's been said many times before, but I didn't pay sufficient heed: LORs matter! Unless you have Slightlyconfused's profile you need to get well-known profs to write decent enough LORs. I'm a little disappointed with my outcome. My faculty is pretty weak at the mo, so I don't think I could've done much better. But I should've done my MA elsewhere to get access to better letter of recommendation writers. Shucks.

dale_albo 2010:
Type of Undergrad: Economics, Top South American University.
Undergrad GPA: 6.02/7 (Highest in my Class)
Type of Grad: MSc, Economics, Top South American University.
Grad GPA: 6.5/7 (Highest in my Class)
GRE/TOEFL: 790Q/780V/5.5AWA. 120 TOEFL.
Math Courses: Calculus I-III, Algebra, Probability and Statistics, Inference, Mathematics for Economists (Linear Algebra, some Dynamic Optimization), Advanced Calculus (Should be Real Analysis I), Real Analysis. All A's, except for Calculus I.
Econ Courses (u/g): Intro Micro, Intro Macro, Micro I-II, Macro I-II, Industrial Organization, International Economics, Econometrics. All equivalent to A's or A+
Grad courses: Macro Theory I, Micro Theory I-II, Econometric Theory I-II-III. In my university, I is a joint M.Sc. and Ph.D. course, while the others are Ph.D. courses. Also, Industrial Organization, Public Economics, Enviromental Economics. All equivalent to A's or A+, except for IO, B+.
Letters of Recommendation: All strong, I believe/hope. I moved them around according to the program, but the summary is 2 MIT, 2 Chicago,1 Harvard, 1 UCLA, 1 Georgetown.
Research Experience: Honors thesis, won the poster contest in the annual meeting of my country's economic society. A co-authored working paper, with a classmate, that I have presented a few times and has been submitted for publication. Also, a couple of other co-authored working papers, including one with a professor from my university. Also, a year and a half of being a research assistant for that professor.
Teaching Experience: Been a TA since 2nd year of undergrad for a bunch of courses. Of note, TA for a core Ph.D. econometrics course and for a graduate enviromental economics course. Also, have been teaching Introduction to Economics for a year.
Research Interests: IO, mostly empirical work.
Statement of Purpose: The usual, I talk about my research, what I have done and what I want to do.
Concerns:
No published or in the pipeline research. Just submitted one working paper to a journal, but I haven't heard back from them so I decided not to mention that I had submitted it.
Applying to: Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Chicago, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, UPenn, Northwestern, UCLA, Yale.
RESULTS:
Will Attend: MIT.
Acceptances: Chicago, Northwestern ($?), UPenn ($$), UCLA. All declined.
Waitlists: Yale, declined.
Rejections: Harvard, Columbia, Princeton, Berkeley, Stanford, NYU.
What would you have done differently? Wouldve tried harder to get published last year. Still, I got into my top choice, which is all that matters.

triple_sec 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: MA in Econ in a small country in Eastern Europe; univ is among the best in the country but has little, if any, international renown
Undergrad GPA: 4.92/5.00, 1st out of 182
Type of Grad: MPhil Econ at another, English-speaking, univ in the same country
Grad GPA: 3.94/4.00
GRE: 800Q, 660V, 4.0AWA (Nov 2007); 800Q, 630V, 4.0AWA (Nov 2009)
TOEFL: 112/120 (30R, 27S, 27L, 28W)
Math Courses: Calculus (actually, it was more like real analysis; 5/5), Linear Algebra, Linear Programming, Multivariate Analysis (4/5, the last three went under the same course), Probability Theory (5/5), Operations Research (5/5), Advanced Math (A, actually Measure Theory)
Econ Courses: Micro (A,A,A), Macro (A,A), Metrics (A,A,A-,5/5), Monetary Theory (5/5), Recursive Macro (5/5), Time Series Analysis (A,5/5), Intl Macro (5/5), Game Theory (5/5), Public Econ (A), Behavioral (A), Metrics Intro (5/5), Public Econ (5/5), Labor (5/5,4/5), IO (5/5), Micro (5/5,5/5), Macro (5/5,5/5), Corporate Finance (5/5)
Other Courses: Statistics minor, plus some Political Science, Accounting, Law (the first two years of my undergrad were rather a joint social sciences—business—econ program before specialization to econ)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ professors (1 MIT PhD, 1 Harvard PhD), 1 math prof; I guess they were solid
Research Experience: MA thesis (mainly a survey but contains also a standalone RBC model) plus a preliminary project for a series of research seminars
Teaching Experience: a lot, TA for 7 courses altogether (4 math, 1 grad macro, 1 undergrad micro, 1 undergrad macro) and much, much tutoring
Research Interests: econ of information, mechanism design, macro
SOP: Enthusiastic as it should be, emphasizes eagerness for research
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Yale, Berkeley, NYU, Northwestern, Duke (declined)
Waitlists: Princeton, UPenn (asked them to take me off)
Rejections: MIT, MIT Operations Research, Harvard, Chicago, Columbia, Stanford
What would you have done differently? I don't know. What could I have done differently to get into my absolute, unsurpassable dream school, MIT? Probably nothing. I have to come to terms with the fact that either I'm not *that* good or this year has been unusually competitive (or both). Anyways, I'm extremely delighted with my actual offers—I would be a moron if I weren't, of course.

dreck 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics (summa cum laude), BA in Math (summa cum laude), large state school, not well known for economics
Undergrad GPA: 4.00/4.00
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 790Q, 630V, 5.5 AW
Math Courses: Multivariate Calc, Linear Algebra, Diff. Eq., Abstract Linear Algebra, Numeric Analysis, Set Theory & Proofs, (Analysis and Topology not reflected in the application)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Macro/Micro, Game Theory, Labor Economics, Discrimination Seminar, Colloquium on Poverty, Two Undergraduate Econometrics courses, PhD-level Econometrics, PhD-level Micro
I made an A in each of these. My school does not use +/-.
Other Courses: A lot of psychology,
Letters of Recommendation: Three professors at my school. Did research and classes with one, taught with the other, just class with the third. None are famous, but two are reasonably well-known in their field. One is the department chair.
Research Experience: Two Honors Theses, one term paper in econometrics. Wasn't able to secure a publication before application season.
Teaching Experience: TA for two years, Intro to Micro and Intermediate Micro
Research Interests: Applied Micro, Micro Theory, Development
SOP: Pretty standard, just outlined my progress through an undergraduate degree and my research interests
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Michigan (no $(?)), Illinois Urbana-Champaign ($$), Texas at Austin ($$ if I wanted it)
Waitlists: Princeton ($$ if admitted)
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, NYU, Columbia, Duke, Northwestern, Berkeley
Pending: LSE (applied later)
What would you have done differently?
Started math classes sooner. Considered more seriously a Masters program abroad. I also wish that I had discovered these forums earlier! So much good advice...
If I could go even further back, I would have attended a undergraduate institution with a stronger economics program. That said, I'm still happy. I'm leaning toward Michigan, but keeping my fingers crossed for Princeton.

askua 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. (honours)-Econ and Math, large Canadian University
Undergrad GPA: Overall: 3.85, excluding first year: 4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 780Q 580V 6.0AWA
Math Courses (undergrad-level): Calc 1-4, Math stats 1-2, analysis 1-2, linear 1-2, analysis for econ, math for econ 1-2 (if this counts?); All A's or A+
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro 1-4, macro 1-4, econometrics 1-2, IO 1-2, international trade 1-2, money and banking; All A's or A+
Econ Courses (PhD-level): IO (A)
Other Courses: a few German courses
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ profs (1 Berkeley, 1 Minnesota, 1 Toronto) ... all taught me one or more courses.
Research Experience: Barely any ... just one paper for the grad IO.
Teaching Experience: tutor for 4 years
Research Interests: applied micro (health, IO)
statement of purpose: Preparation, goals, research interests
Concerns: reputation of undergrad
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UC Davis (no first year funding), UW Madison (no first year funding), UBC (PhD, $$) Toronto MA (doctoral stream, $$)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Yale, Columbia, Michigan, Berkeley, Stanford, UCSD
Pending: None
What would you have done differently? I would have only gone to a different undergrad if I had known four years ago that I wanted to do a PhD in Economics. However, in retrospect, I might have tried to get more RA experience and done a double degree in Math and Econ rather than just a minor in math. Although I am pretty happy with my results given what type of a student I was in high school (not good). I am very lucky and not complaining. I think out of most of the top 20s, UBC and Madison are the best two fits for me so I think I was appropriately placed. Good luck to everyone in future cycles!

econslave 2010:
Type of Undergrad: BA in Economics from top 15 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.7ish
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q / 630V / 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Calculus I/II, Intro to Statistics, Probability Theory, Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, Discrete Math, Ordinary Differential Equations, Real Analysis (Note: Some grades were good, but most were not.)
Econ Courses (Undergraduate): A lot of basic field courses, but also econometrics and advanced theoretical econometrics
Econ Courses (Graduate): N/A
Letters of Recommendation: (1) RA-ed for 2.5 years; (2) RA-ed for, co-authored decent article with, advised for thesis, and took two courses with; (3) Took an advanced economics course with as an undergraduate and did very well in the class (Note: None of the letter-writers are well-known, but all went to top 10 PhD programs.)
Research Experience: 2.5 years RA for one professor, 1 year RA for another professor, undergraduate thesis (ranked best), summer RA at prestigious policy think-tanks, 1 year full-time RA position with top 10 school professor
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Behavioral/experimental, decision theory, micro theory, applied micro
Concerns: Lacking in math (not many classes and less-than-stellar grades). Didn’t graduate with any honors or anything.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCSD (TA $), Michigan (no $), Boston University (no $)
Waitlist: Minnesota
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Chicago, Princeton, Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Northwestern, Penn, Columbia, NYU, UCLA, Wisconsin, Caltech, Brown, Cornell, Duke, CMU, Maryland, Texas, PSU, Stanford GSB, Chicago Booth
What would you have done differently? Besides getting better grades as an undergraduate, not much. I applied to all of the top 20 and several others, and got into a few great schools. Perhaps I would’ve taken a different RA position, but it seems to have worked out anyway.

amber4e86 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Unranked small university in NY, but I am an Honors College student
Undergrad GPA: 3.8, 4.0 in Econ and Math
Type of Grad: BA, majors in Economics and International Studies. Minors in Spanish and Political Science
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 590/800/5.5
Math Courses: Calculus I and II, Linear Algebra, Intro to Statistics, Math Methods for Economists (Had not taken Linear and Calc II at the time of application)
Econ Courses: Micro I and II, Macro I and II, Environmental, Development, Systems of Political Economy, International Political Economy, Industrial Organization, Money and Banking
Other Courses: a lot of International Relations and Poli Sci, a lot of Spanish, Honors College liberal arts and social science seminars
Letters of Recommendation: three econ professors who teach at my school. Two of them know me very well so Im sure they wrote amazing recommendations. They are not well known and are all heterodox, so I got mostly into the schools that they graduated from + schools where people from my school and similar background got accepted last year
Research Experience: summer internship with an environmental research agency in Australia last summer
Teaching Experience: tutor in Econ for the past 3 years at my school, GRE math tutor, writing center tutor
Research Interests: development, international political economy, environmental
SOP: I wrote about development and why I think it is important to relate human rights to the eradication of poverty
Other: Im involved in my school's student government and Ive held exec board positions in 2 organizations, attending Model UN conferences in Mexico and in the US. I like to be very active and do things, rather than sit by myself and contemplate. I guess schools recognized that and sensed that I will be reluctant to do hardcore research because I am more interested in executive positions in government, rather than in a research university once I graduate.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: American ($$), UMass ($), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ($$), Fordham (2nd on waitlist for $$), George Washington (no $), Rutgers (no $)
Waitlists: none
Rejections: too many! NYU, BU, UCLA, UCSD, Cornell, CMU, UPenn, MIT and Columbia (for different programs, not econ)
Pending: Georgetown (that's a no, but I havent gotten the letter yet), CUNY (also probably a no or an unfunded offer)
Attending: I haven't been able to decide yet.
What would you have done differently?
If I had known earlier that I wanted to study Econ, I would have taken more math. I am taking the classes I should have had now and I know that I am really good at them, but there was no way for the adcoms to know that if they only saw my grade from Calc I. I also should have applied to International Political Economy PhD programs, rather than Economics PhDs, because I am much better prepared for those with numerous internships and publications at government organizations and NGOs. A reality check was very necessary, but unfortunately, I had nobody to turn to and had to figure it all out on my own. On the other hand, I got accepted to all of my safeties and to schools that match my research interests. If I didn't care about location and I had external funding, I would have been super-happy.

2pm 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.B.A, Econ concentration from large state university with no PhD program
Undergrad GPA: 4.0
Type of Grad: M.A. Econ, same school
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 790Q, 640V, 4.0AWA
Math Courses: Cal I (AP test), II (Community College), III, Intro to Proofs, Matrices and Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Real Analysis I
Econ Courses (master level): Macro, Micro, Metrics, International Finance, Health Econ, Time Series, Research Methods, Forecasting
Econ Courses (undergrad): Intermediate Macro, Micro, Metrics, Money & Banking, Math for Economist (same class with graduate level)
Other Courses: Mostly in business
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors , been told they are all strong
Research Experience: Honors undergrad thesis & master thesis. Nothing spectacular
Teaching Experience: Tutor in the Econ dept
Research Interests: Applied micro
Statement of purpose: Standard, did not customize
Concern: (somewhat) inadequate math background. Realized I wanted to do a Ph.D. in econ too late & tried to cram as much required math courses as possible while finishing my M.A.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UT Austin ($$) (attending), Houston ($$), Michigan State (no $), BU (no $), UVA (no info on $ yet)
Waitlists: BC, UW-M long waitlist -> rejection
Rejections: let me count the way…Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, Michigan, UCLA, UCSD, UMN, Duke, PSU, Maryland, WUSTL
Pending: Ohio State (the earliest deadline, still nothing yet. Oh the irony!)
What would you have done differently? Hard to say, since I know beforehand there will be lots of noise in my results anyway. Probably take more math and get 800Q in GRE? Perhaps spend more time on my SOP, although I don’t feel comfortable discussing my research goals & ideas in details since I don’t even know which field I am interested in at the time of the application process. One thing I won’t regret is not transferring. I have made some fantastic friends and built tremendous relationship w/ the faculty at my current university. Overall, I’m extremely happy. 2 years ago when I decided to go for a Ph.D. in economics I didn’t think I could even make it to a mid-rank program, so UT is definitely a step up from my expectations.

shadowprice 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 10 undergrad; top 15 graduate econ program
Undergrad GPA: 3.46
Type of Grad: some master-level classes
Grad GPA:
GRE: 780 (1st time 690 - yikes!), 620, 5.0
Math Courses: Calc 1-3, Linear Algebra, Analysis and Optimization, Real Analysis 1-3, Probability, Statistical Inference, Stochastic Processes, Sample Surveys
Econ Courses (PhD-level):
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Development, Public, Poverty and Inequality, International Monetary Theory, Intro to Econometrics, Microeconometrics, Advanced Micro
Letters of Recommendation: 1 U Chicago - took class, very strong; 1 U Chicago - RA for three years at regional Fed; 1 UCLA - RA for one year in undergrad
Research Experience: 5 years - 2 in undergrad , 3 years at a regional Fed. Extensive programming, coauthoring 2 papers (although not at the time of applying)
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Applied micro - public and IO.
Statement of purpose: 2 pages double-spaced (~650 words). Did not tailor to schools.
Concerns: Very low undergrad GPA with a few B's and B+'s in important classes
Other:
RESULTS:
Attending: University of Wisconsin ($$)
Acceptances: University of Wisconsin ($$), Boston University (none), Boston College ($$), Johns Hopkins (tuition - off of waitlist), UC-Davis (none), University of Pittsburgh ($$), University of Washington (could have if wanted), University of Colorado ($$), Georgetown (wl funding)
Waitlists: Carnegie Mellon (econ)
Rejections: Columbia, NYU, Brown, Chicago Booth, Michigan, Maryland
What would you have done differently?
Definitely do better as an undergrad. I went to a prestigious university that typically sends students to MIT (and NSF), so I feel like I let an amazing opportunity slip by. That being said, I am ecstatic with my admits and think that Wisconsin is a great fit for my interests. I know for a fact that one of my letters played a HUGE role in getting funding, so for anyone who does not have a stellar GPA - if you forge a great relationship with your professors, your chances of landing a top 20 admission are completely possible. Good luck all future classes!

in_limbo 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ and Math from a top U.S public with a good Econ PhD program
Undergrad GPA: 3.7
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 640V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses(undergrad): Calculus(I-III), Linear Algebra, Diff eq, Discrete, Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Chaotic Dynamical systems, Probability, Topology
Math Courses(grad): Analysis, Measure Theory
Econ Courses(undergrad): standard, including Econometrics and Advanced Macro
Econ Courses (grad): Quant Methods, Macro I and II.
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Econ, 1 Math. Did some good RA work for one of them
Research Experience: RA for about a year and currently doing an honors thesis
Teaching Experience: Principles, Intermediate Micro
Research Interests: Macro theory and public finance
statement of purpose: pretty standard
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Minnesota($$), LSE-EME(no$)
Waitlists: UCLA (Withdrawn)
Rejections: MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Berkeley, Stanford, Columbia, Penn, NYU, Northwestern
Attending: Minnesota
What would you have done differently?
I am extremely happy with my outcome. Minnesota was always a top choice for me given my research interests and I probably would have chosen to go there over most of the other schools I applied to. That being said, in retrospect it was probably a good idea to apply to some safeties given the tough admissions season. Also, my grades in some classes weren't stellar which is probably why I was rejected at many of the other top places. My advice to those applying in the future is to really concentrate on getting As in important math classes. The margin for error is minimal and the difference between a B+ and an A is larger than you might think. I think its also extremely helpful to have a good idea of what you might want to study as you can then apply to schools that may not be top 5 overall by have fantastic programs in your chosen field. However, the most important part of your application are your recommendation letters and these can very often make up for other parts that are lacking.

Springsteen 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.Sc. Management, European university
Undergrad GPA: 17/20 - ranked 2nd out of 116
Type of Grad: M.Sc. Economics, same university
Undergrad GPA: 17/20
GRE: 800Q, 410V, 3.5AWA
Math Courses(undergrad): Mathematics I, Mathematics II, Mathematics III, Statistics I, Statistics II (covers linear algebra, calculus, ODE, probability theory, etc...)
Econ Courses(undergrad): Microeconomics I, Macroeconomics I, Microeconomics II, Econometrics
Math Courses(grad): Advanced Mathematics (covers topology and optimization theory)
Econ Courses(grad): Microeconomic Theory, Advanced Macroeconomics, Advanced Econometrics, IO, Regulation, International Money and Finance, Game Theory, Information and Uncertainty, Microeconometrics
Other Courses: Some Management courses that I hated
Letters of Recommendation: 1 senior econ (phd MIT), 1 senior econ (phd Chicago), 1 junior econ (phd MIT)
Research Experience: graduate thesis (completing)
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Micro theory: Game Theory, Contract theory, Mechanism Design, Auctions
SOP: standard
Concerns: Low AWA,
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: NW (waitlisted for first year funding), UPenn (waitlisted for first year funding)
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Chicago, Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, UW-M, UMichigan, LSE, Cornell
Comments: I am extremely happy with this outcome!! But, since I have been rejected at 13 universities out of 15, and many universities ranked lower than NW rejected me, I guess I was lucky to ge in NW!
What would you have done differently? Take real analysis (although it was not offered at my university...), RA to get stronger LORs
Attending: Northwestern University!

MorgieLilly 2010:
Type of Undergrad: B.A in Economics-Philosophy and Mathematics from top 10 undergrad with a top 15 econ department.
Undergrad GPA: 3.85
GRE: 780Q, 640V, 4.0W
Math Courses (undergrad):Cal I, Calc III, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis, Probability and Statistics, Advanced Logic, (all As)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Micro-econometrics (A-), Graduate Macroeconomics (A-)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro/Macro(A-,B+), Advanced Econometrics (B+), Advanced Macro (A), Game Theory (A-), Economic History (A-), International (C, took abroad in Ghana)
Letters of Recommendation:
Economics. Well Known. My boss.
Economics. Well Known. Professor. (I wrote an empirical research paper for his course.)
Philosophy of Science. Professor. (I took two classes with him. I wrote a paper that I presented at a philosophy conference. He advised me on a documentary that I made as a senior.)
Mathematics. Professor. (Adviser for my senior research project.)
Geophysics. Researcher. (Adviser for my REU research project. )
Research Experience: REU Intern in geophysics at Lamont Earth Observatory, summer 2007 (My paper was accepted to the 2008 ASLO Conference). I also published a paper in the philosophy of science when I was a sophomore, but I'm not so proud now of what I said and the journal was not a big deal at all. Full-time economics RA since July 2008 for one of my letter writers. I've made a bunch of documentaries and I included one in my application.
Research Interests: Development, Growth Theory, Economic History.
Statement of Purpose: Talked about my background, why I chose to pursue interdisciplinary undergraduate study. Talked about my experiences abroad in Ghana, my research experience at Lamont and as an RA and my motivation for studying development and poverty issues.
Applied to: MIT, NYU, Harvard, UC Berkeley, Columbia, UMich, Princeton, Yale, UCLA, UC Davis, BU, Duke, Brown, Northwestern, U Penn
Admitted: BU(wl/$), UCLA(wl/$), UC Davis($$), Michigan($$/Regents Fellowship), Brown(wl/$)
Rejected: MIT, NYU, Harvard, UC Berkeley, Columbia, Princeton, Yale, Duke, Northwestern, U Penn
Attending: Brown(no first year funding, 19.5K+health+tuition years 2-5)
What I would have done differently: I don't think I would have gone to any other school over Brown. I would have considered MIT, Yale or Harvard. But honestly, I couldn't be happier. The debt will be worth it. I know it.

dauntilus 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA in econ & math at top 10 econ dept
Undergrad GPA: 3.88
Type of Grad:
Grad GPA: 4
GRE: 800q, 660v, 5w
Math Courses: Linear algebra (A), Real Analysis (A), Abstract Algebra (A), Numerical Analysis (A), Complex Analysis (A-), Probability (A)
Econ Courses: Undergrad: Intermediate Micro, Macro (A, A), Game Theory (A), Financial Econ (A), Metrics (A)
Grad: Micro (A), Game Theory (A), Psych in Econ (A)
Letters of Recommendation: 3 great letters from good economics faculty with a record of putting students into top schools. 2 knew me very well, 1 not as well.
Research Experience: 2 years RA experience for 1 professor, no publications
Research Interests: Applied micro, Behavioral econ
SOP: More or less polished, minor changes for each school. I found 1 small typo in 1 school's SOP after submitting.
RESULTS:
Attending: MIT
Acceptances: Berkeley, Yale, Chicago, MIT, Caltech, UCSD, Cornell (no funding), NYU Stern Waitlists: NYU
Rejections: HBS, UPenn, Columbia, NYU, MIT GSB, Harvard, Princeton, Northwestern, Stanford, Brown
What would you have done differently? I would have started taking grad classes my third year- I thought they would be harder than they are.

wobuffet 2010:
Profile
Type of Undergrad: top 15-ish US national university, econ PhD program is top 20-30
Undergrad GPA: 4.00 (easier to attain than at other schools)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 790V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Honors Multivariable Calculus (pass/fail option); Essential Stats; Honors Linear Algebra; Statistical Inference I; Abstract Algebra; Probabilistic Models; Real Analysis (single-variable)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Macro; Intermediate Micro; a bunch of field courses (Int'l Finance; Public Econ; Econ Growth; Health Econ; Econ Analysis of Institutions; Econ and Psychology; Theory of Econ Growth; Labor Economics); Econometrics I; Econometrics II; Game Theory; grad core Micro I (mandatory pass/fail); grad core Micro II (mandatory pass/fail); grad applied econometric methods course (graded, in progress when I applied); grad class on economic theories of inequality (graded, in progress when I applied)
Other Courses: two intro comp sci classes
Letters of Recommendation: one reasonably well-known prof I RA'd for, took 2 classes with (1 undergrad, 1 grad), and planned to write a thesis under; one somewhat less-known prof I had an undergrad class with and planned to TA for; one well-known prof I took two grad-level courses with (including Micro II, in which I internally got an A); and another well-known prof I RA'd for for a year or so. [I mixed and matched somewhat for schools that only accepted 3 LORs]
Research Experience: RA'd for 2 semesters + 2 summers (under 2 diff profs)
Publications: Nah.
Teaching Experience: none at time of application, although I was planning to in the spring
Research Interests: applied micro (especially public and labor)
Statement of purpose: Tried to be honest; it probably ended up sort of dry.
Comments: Going in, I had basically no idea how most of my letters were going to turn out; I was only reasonably confident about one of them.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Berkeley ($$, attending), Stanford ($$$), Yale ($$$$), UMich (no $), Chicago (waitlisted for $), Northwestern ($$), NYU ($$$)
Waitlists: MIT (eventually rejected), Princeton (eventually rejected)
Rejections: Harvard, UPenn, Columbia
What would you have done differently? On the margin, I guess having done some research on my own would have done the most good, or perhaps getting to know a few professors better. (But ex post, I wouldn't change a thing! In particular, attending a well-regarded private research university for my undergraduate studies definitely worked out well for me.)

dsdoodle 2010:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Econ/B.A. Math from large state/30ish ranked Econ PhD program in US
Undergrad GPA: 3.72/4
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 760Q, 500V, 6.0AWA
Math Courses: Calc I, II, III, Multivariate Calc I, II, Linear algebra, Differential equations, Math reasoning, Linear analysis, Real analysis (I, II), Linear optimization, discrete modeling (avg gpa 3.71, upper level classes 3.9)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Micro I, II (B) (skipped undergrad version of micro theory and first micro class since Freshman year... which is somewhat of an excuse for the poor grade)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Monetary (2 classes), Econometrics, Biological resources, International trade, International macro, Applied econometrics.. all As
Letters of Recommendation: My honors thesis adviser (Harvard PhD), prof whom I am RAing for right now (Harvard PhD), prof whom I took two monetary classes from who thinks I'm one of his best student in the last few years (Rochester PhD), prof whom I took an applied econometric class and will be RAing for starting in January (Yale PhD)
Research Experience: Summer internship at non-profit economic research organization, Honors thesis that won an award, RAing with a professor in macro - did work on two papers and coauthoring on a third, RA'd for two professors in labor, editing a macroeconomics textbook for a new edition
Teaching Experience: Grader for econometrics and international trade classes
Research Interests: Environmental, monetary, macro
Statement of purpose: Discussed how I'm taking a year off to do research, made a slight mention of my lower GRE score but high math grades
Concerns: Too much competition!! And maybe the fact that I didn't do well in my grad level micro classes.
Other: Thy will be done.
Applying to: Stanford, Berkeley, Northwestern, Columbia, NYU, Wisconsin, Michigan, Texas, Minnesota, UCSD, UC-Irvine, Washington, WUSTL, Hong Kong University, Boston College, Virginia
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Hong Kong University, UC-Irvine, Texas-Austin, Minnesota (off the long waitlist)
Rejections: Everywhere else (was withdrawn at UW because I work there and the DGS found out I got a better offer and thus withdrew me..oh well)
Attending: University of Minnesota (TA-ship funding)
What would you have done differently?
Section in bold is my updated response after getting an offer from Minnesota on 4/20.
Wow! I am so, so thankful and am so blessed to have a chance to go to my first choice school. I think what made a huge impact was getting the top professor at my school to send a quick note about me to the department and Minnesota. Why do I think this? Because the DGS actually responded and thanked him for recommending me! It's amazing... so if you are in a similar situation as I am where you are on a long waitlist, there are things you can do to get a shot at the incoming class. These things are (these are things that I did):
1) Have a few professors vouch for you. In my case, I had a lot more stuff going on with research after I've applied... and the professors I was working for could send in a note about what I'm doing now or have done for them. Let them know about the waitlist situation and see if they can email or call the department on your behalf. Anything for them to look at your profile again is good.
2) Visit the school. They probably won't pay for your visit, but going there is helpful to first see whether this is the place you want to go and to show that your interest is more than just talk. Obviously anyone can say a school is their first choice school but not everyone will back that up with the money and time it takes to make a visit.
3) Keep in close contact with the school. Don't overdo this... I wouldn't send one email everyday but keep the contact going. I sent two emails that were not responded to asking about the waitlist, but I sent one today (the 20th, so it was after the deadline) and I think it made the DGS look at my application one more time - because he mentioned that he looked at my application again and their situation this year and decided to make me an offer.
4) Pray! I don't presume everyone to believe in the Christian God as I do, so this may not apply to you. But from the beginning, I've prayed that God will send me where I can be best used. Honestly, the morning I got the email accepting me to the program, I thought to myself that everything so far has seemed like God is calling me to Minnesota... from my interests, things I was doing in my RAships, talks with current students, and so on... everything pointed to UMN. Like I said, I trusted that God will bring me where He wanted me to be... and whether that's Texas or Minnesota, I was completely at peace with it. In fact, my interest in Minnesota started out with the reason that there's a pastor, whom I respect very much, who had a church very close to the UMN campus. But I can't stress the importance of prayer and can't fully comprehend God's grace in all of this.
I'm not positive about this, but I may have jumped over some people on the short waitlist (or maybe they all already got offers to come, who knows?). Regardless... I'm very happy to have a chance to get my PhD at Minnesota. Please PM me if you are in a similar situation and need some help.
Now below is the stuff I wrote before I got into UMN... which I'm going to keep here since there are still some good (I hope) information in there.
I am pretty pleased with the results. I think my GRE score and a low grad micro score probably kept me out of most places, as people in the forum said. I don't think a GRE score of 760 will mean you are automatically out, but because there are many others with the exact same grades and research experience (and even better) than you, you really don't want to have a disadvantage in anything. So I guess I may have tried to do better on the GRE (I did, but got the same score) and probably either not take grad micro or know that it was a bad idea to take grad micro when the last micro class you had was 3 years ago in freshman year.
I also may have looked into applying to more target schools instead of reaches.
My first choice was Minnesota, so I am grateful to have been waitlisted and I actually went to visit and had a few professors contact the department to vouch for me. Texas is a great place as well so I am blessed to have that as my "backup", when having it as a first choice would have been more than exciting.
I would also want to repeat what my professor said about applying for econ phd programs - that it's a random process and the only way to increase your chances is to increase the number of trials. Apply to more schools! If you are thinking about applying to less schools to save like 500-1000 dollars, then think about this: $1000 is nothing compared to getting full funding from a school for 5 years. You really, really don't want to miss out on a school that might have given you full funding just because you wanted to save $100. I would recommend everyone to apply to at least 12 programs - 2 reaches, 8 targets, 2 safeties... but it's probably better to apply to 4 reaches, 8 targets, and 4 safeties.
Don't be shocked if a safety school rejects you. It happens.. and in my case those schools were probably very borderline safety schools.
And the most important advice: There's still time to network with professors. It goes a long way if you have good connections with the professors at your school. They are willing to help those they know and think is capable. So look for research opportunities and attend departmental events!
In the end, God provided me with a great place to go and a great experience visiting schools... I'm very happy with the results.

Le_Walrus 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Engineering, top three university in a small, but well known Latin American country
Undergrad GPA: 5.2/7
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 570V, 3.5AWA
TOEFL: 109/120
Math Courses: Advanced Calculus, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Numerical Analysis, Complex Analysis, Optimal Control Theory, Probability and Statistics, Operations Research I and II
Econ Courses: Micro and Macro Theory
Other Courses: Lots of Engineering courses.
Letters of Recommendation: 1 econ professors, 1 math professor, 1 computer programming professor
Research Experience: Research assistant in several economics projects, undergraduate thesis in macro involving dynamic programming
Teaching Experience: TA of computer programming, Micro theory and Dynamic Macroeconomics
Research Interests: Macro theory, growth
SOP: The usual, maybe a little different because of my engineering background
Other: My grades may seem low, but in fact they are really high, and my recommenders avail that.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Rochester ($)
Waitlists: JHU
Rejections: Princeton, Berkeley, Northwestern, Minnesota, Columbia, UPenn, Brown, Duke, UCSD, WUSTL, Maryland, Vanderbilt, Pittsburgh, Indiana
Pending: Texas, UWO
What would you have done differently?
It was an somewhat expected outcome, coming from an relatively unknown university with an engineering background. My advice to other people with similar background? Get a masters degree. And start talking to people who know people...

48chec 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Economics Latin American University
Undergrad GPA: 3.5
Type of Grad: M.A. Economics Latin American University
Grad GPA: 3.5
GRE: 800Q 570V 3.0 AWA
Math Courses: Multivariate Calculus, Mathematical Statistics
Econ Courses: Game Theory, Grad Micro, Grad Micro, Grad Econometrics
Other Courses: Lots of History Courses
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Berkeley who teaches at my Uni, 1 Michigan who teaches at my Uni, 1 MIT who teaches at an Ivy League Uni.
Research Experience: R.A. since I was a third year undergrad. Last two years I was a full time instructor working on three papers.
Teaching Experience: I have been a full time instructor for the last two years. I have been teaching Probability and Econometrics.
Research Interests: Labor, information, applied econometrics.
SOP: Made emphasis on my love for academia and my teaching and research experience.
Other: Highest national grade on an economics exam.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCLA($), British Columbia
Waitlists: UPenn, Brown
Rejections: Stanford, Princeton, Berkeley, NorthWestern, Columbia, LSE, Michigan, Texas Austin.
Pending: None
What would you have done differently?
I would have taken more math courses. I would also have taken more care of my GPA. I wish I had realized that I wanted to be an academic earlier in my undergraduate studies.

PerfectMarkets 2010:
Profile
Type of Undergrad: BS in Econ, minor in math at MIT
Undergrad GPA: 4.7/5.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q, 790V, 5.5AW
Math Courses (+/- grades aren't recorded): Multivariable Calculus (Pass) Probability/Statistics (B); Differential Equations (B); Linear Algebra (B); Advanced Statistics (A); Real Analysis (A); Discrete Applied Math (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Macro (B); Intermediate Micro(A) ; a bunch of field courses (all A's); Econometrics (A); Economics Research/ Paper writing (A); Game Theory(B); grad labor (A);
Other Courses: Some computer science classes, some finance
Letters of Recommendation: 1 senior lecturer who had worked on a project with me, 1 senior prof who I RA's for back in freshman year, 1 senior prof who I took grad labor with, 1 senior prof who I took two classes with.
Research Experience: RA'd for freshman summer and 2 semesters in junior year
Publications: None.
Teaching Experience: None.
Research Interests: Applied micro and central bank policy
Statement of purpose: Uninteresting, talked about how I like applied micro and was good at Stata. Didn't really mention the macro interest at all.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Northwestern ($$) (Attending), Cornell ($$$), NSF fellowship
Waitlists: MIT (eventually rejected, got so close)
Rejections: Harvard, Columbia, Yale, Stanford, Berkeley, Chicago, Michigan, NYU, Princeton
What would you have done differently? Ouch, lots of rejections. I would have done better on my math classes, and moved the order I took them around. I should have taken analysis earlier and linear algebra later to free up my schedule. I could maybe have taken some of the intro grad sequence, but I feel like I would've just gotten a B against the grad students here and it would just look worse, so hard to say. My recommenders were very well known, and I think the letters should have been solid, if not completely glowing. I don't know if this helped or hurt me; certainly they have been very supportive throughout this process, but maybe I would have been better off working with a junior faculty and getting a very effusive review. I pinned a lot of hope on the NSF award, but it didn't reverse any decisions, even though it got me much closer to getting off the MIT waitlist. So, the NSF isn't magical. Though money is nice. I also spent two summers working in consulting, which was bad in terms of apps but good in making me realize that I wanted to apply to grad school. I have to chalk up my results to an insanely competitive year and spotty math grades in important classes.

TeaMania 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 25 liberal arts college but the econs department is at least top 10 among LACs. BS in Econs, Physics and Maths
Undergrad GPA: 3.96/4.00
Type of Grad:-
Grad GPA:-
GRE: 800Q 720V 4.0AWA
Math Courses: Linear Algebra, Multivariable calculus, Intro to Abstraction, Real Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Maths Method for Physics, a few more senior year.(all As
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro , Intermediate Macro, Econometrics, Advanced Econometrics, Advanced Macro, Game Theory, International Finance, Labor Econs, (all As)
Other Courses: Physics Major, Japanese Minor
Letters of Recommendation: 3 Econs professors, of which two are well-known, at least by liberal arts college standard. One knows me very much, and said extremely good things about me. Another said something like " the best in the past 15 years". Not sure about the last one.
Research Experience: for a professor, since summer of sophomore year. Coauthor a paper. R&R at the time of application (I only said "submitted" in the applications, because I didn't know the distinction.) Now forthcoming at a top field journal.
Teaching Experience:None
Research Interests: Development, Labor
SOP: Standard and did not customize
RESULTS:
Acceptances: University of Maryland($$, off the waitlist), BU(no $)
Rejections: Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Cornell, Northwestern,Rochester, Princeton, Columbia, Brown, Upenn
Atttending: Maryland
What would you have done differently? I would have applied to more and a wider range of schools. I was ignorant of the process, and didn't spend enough time researching schools, partly because I was taking a lot of classes. I overestimated where I stood in the competition, because I underestimated the importance of grad classes and undergrad/letter of recommendation reputation. Nevertheless, I am glad to make it and will make the most out of my education at UMD. Hope my case will serve as a warning to top students from LACs: this game is very difficult to play, even after taking my warning into account.

icebear 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics, Colorado State University
Undergrad GPA: 3.89 (magna cum laude)
Type of Grad: courses during UG: Foundations of Quant Econ Analysis, Political Economy 1
Grad GPA: 4.0
GRE: 790/560/6.0 (2009), 750/570/4.5 (2006)
Math Courses: Calc 1 (A), Calc 2 (B+), Statistical Methods (A), Matrices and Linear Equations (A), Foundations of Quant Econ Analysis (8 week grad math-econ course which covered Simon & Blume) (A+)
Econ Courses: Micro Prin & Inter, Macro Prin & Inter, Econometrics, Independent Study x 2, Comparative Economic Systems, Recent Economic Thought (i.e. History of Academic Economics), Transformation of Central and Eastern European Countries, Privatization and Foreign Capital (B), Globalization - Social and Economic Aspects (B), Games and Decisions (B), Senior Seminar on Globalization and Trade, Political Economy I (graduate level) [Note: all A's except where noted].
Other Courses: Java Programming, freshman year of Electrical Engineering sequence (A's)
Letters of Recommendation: PhDs from MIT, Cambridge, Harvard, Kansas. 1 is a Lead Economist at a international organization, other three are professors; two recent and enthusiastic (regarding research), two enthusiastic but dated (regarding coursework, especially math ability).
Research Experience: Consulting in the private sector and international organizations for ~ 2.5 years, always in close collaboration/supervision with PhD economists.
Teaching Experience: ~1 year teaching English.
Research Interests: International (trade/finance/macro)
SOP: Standard, with a few lines on my grad econ-math course and how my working experience shaped my interests
Other: Intermediate level Chinese, strong experience/knowledge of Chinese development and trade policy, international trade policy, international organizations.
Knew my chances were almost zero at top 10s, but was strongly encouraged to apply to some anyway, given the relatively low costs of additional apps.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: CEMFI ($$), UBC MA ($), Barcelona GSE MSc, Toulouse M2, Carlos III MA ($$)
Waitlists: -
Rejections: Duke PhD, Columbia PhD, JHU PhD, Harvard PhD, UVa PhD, UCSD PhD, NSF GRFP
Pending: Georgetown PhD
Attending: CEMFI
What would you have done differently?
I probably should have taken grad micro/metrics following my grad math-econ course (as typical grad students did), as that signal would have been much stronger than Political Economy 1. More formal math, of course, but I didn't realize that in UG and have never found a schedule complimentary with my working hours since then (I've lived in non-English speaking countries since graduating, so math courses taught in English are pretty limited). Those two things would have done the most to improve my profile, although I wasn't too concerned about it at the time and am happy with how my UG and professional experience has been since then.
That said, I've had talks with my LORs and done some soul searching and am not exactly certain that sinking 5 years into a PhD is the best way to get me where I want to go. Academia is one interesting career path to me, but economic policy research (government, international orgs) or working in China again (in consulting or similar) also hold my interest, and for the later two a MA coupled with 3 more years of working experience and/or language training make more sense. I initially was set on UBC, unfunded, over UC3M, funded, for reputation issues and a better fit with regards to research interests (plus a bad feeling on UC3M's faculty responsiveness from my interactions with them and students), but had a last minute change...
...long after assuming CEMFI had implicitly rejected me I received a invitation to Madrid for an interview in early May to clear up some question marks in my profile (several years of professional experience and goals with pursuing the MA). Apparently I made a good impression, because I was admitted with the standard (?) CEMFI scholarship and stipend. CEMFI made a great impression on me also, with the faculty very warm, responsive and expressing a genuine interest in and support for my several competing career goals and providing clear examples of how CEMFI is well placed to get me there. I was really impressed with the detail they could provide on professional and academic placements relative to most other master's programs' vagueness at this question. So, the main take away is that it isn't over till its over and I'm very pleased to be moving to Madrid next fall!

asdfjkl 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics from a Public University, top 10 Economics Department
Undergrad GPA: 3.77 overall, 3.94 Economics GPA
Type of Grad: 1 second-year field sequence in the Economics Department
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: Q: 800, V:640, AWA:4.5
Math Courses: Analysis (B), Linear Algebra (Pass), Multivariable Calculus (A-)
Econ Courses: Advanced Micro (A), Advanced Macro (A+), Game Theory (A), Auction Theory (A-), Advanced Econometrics (A-), along with Econ History, International Monetary Economics, Research Economics (all As), also Psych and Econ, Behavioral Corporate Finance
Letters of Recommendation: 2 very strong letters from Professors from the Economics Department at my undergraduate university (with a history of sending undergraduates to top Economics departments), 1 from the Business School, 1 from the Federal Reserve Board
Research Experience: Summer RA/Intern at the Federal Reserve Board, RA for a Professor at the Business School and RA to another professor in the Economics Department at my university, also worked for a graduate student in the Economics Department
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interests: Applied Micro - beyond that Labor? IO? Development? Psych and Econ?
SOP: nothing special and I did not bother making it specific to the schools I applied to
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UMichigan (attending! no funding initially, $$$$$ at the end), Northwestern (waitlist for funding, ultimately would've received a tuition waiver), UCSD ($$), UCLA ($$)
Waitlists: UPenn Wharton - Applied Economics (would've been accepted to the program off the waitlist with $$)
Rejections: MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Berkeley, UPenn, NYU, Columbia, Yale, ChicagoWhat would you have done differently? A LOT more math. My letter writers had told me I had sufficient math to competitive at all schools; however I think that my lack of strong math background really hurt me on the margin. I think I may have gotten into better schools if I'd taken more math and done better, but I preferred to work on research projects for professors and graduate students throughout my undergrad - so I can't say I regret my decision for get more research experience at the expense of a stronger math background.

Mpianatra 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 20 econ program
Undergrad GPA: 3.56/4
Type of Grad: MS in same major/university
Grad GPA: none at time of application
GRE: 780/580/5.5
Math Courses: Calc I/II (A-), Real Analysis (in progress during app), Calc III (A+), Linear Algebra (A), Ord. Diff. Eq. (A) [last three courses taken as non-degree student at state school w/o econ phd]
Econ Courses: Intro Micro/Macro (A), Inter Micro (B+), Inter Macro (A), Labor Economics (B), Income Distribution (A), Developing Country Labor Markets (A-), Applied Econometrics (A-), Econ Dev't (A-), Public Finance (A-), Economic Data (B), Grad Micro Theory I (in progress), Grad Econ of Education (in progress)
Other Courses: Intro Stats (A-)
Letters of Recommendation: Thesis Adviser- known for a long time (pretty strong), Second Thesis Adviser-mostly knew from a course (positive but probably pretty generic), RA prof (also probably pretty generic)
Research Experience: Master's thesis but hadn't done much for it at time of application
Teaching Experience: Just short of teaching credential
Research Interests: Development, Political Economy, Labor
SOP: Nothing special. Run of the mill about why I like econ, why I was qualified, and why I liked the school.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: American ($?), BU (no $), CUNY (Fellowship), Fordham ($?), Colorado ($$$), UI-Chicago ($?), Washington (no $), Wisconsin ($$)
Waitlists: BC
Rejections: Columbia, Duke, Emory, Georgetown, George Washington, Minnesota, Michigan, NYU, Northwestern, UCLA, Maryland, UNC, Notre Dame, USC, Texas,
Attending: Wisconsin
What would you have done differently?
What I wouldn't have done differently was apply to so many schools. I had a lot of reach schools on my list and all it takes is one of them to accept you. Some rejections from very lowly-ranked schools with some acceptances from relatively high-ranked so it can be hard to predict. Obviously getting better grades would always help but I'm very satisfied with the overall results.

cluelessness 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Ivy league, major in economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4.0
GRE: 800Q/780V/5.0Writing
Math Courses: multivariable calculus, linear algebra, statistics, optimization, introductory real analysis, probability
Econ Courses: intro+intermediate+1semester of grad micro, intermediate macro, econometrics, law and econ, an applications course, public finance
Other Courses: a few in hard sciences, engineering, humanities
Letters of Recommendation: 3 professors from undergrad institution (took classes from them, one was my thesis advisor)
Research Experience: undergrad thesis and a junior year research project
Teaching Experience: none at college level (tutored a middle school kid though)
Research Interests: uncertain
SOP: was probably on the weak side
Other: I didn't apply directly from undergrad; spent some time working after graduation
RESULTS:
Acceptances: NYU, Berkeley
Rejections: Yale, Penn, Columbia, Harvard, Stanford, Northwestern, MIT
What would you have done differently?
I think stronger evidence of research potential would have helped (an RAship maybe). I also think my SOP was on the weak side.

hotfuss 2010:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: 4 year Honours degree in economics at a major Australian university
Undergrad GPA: First Class Honours (ranked first in Honours class)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q
Math Courses: First and second year advanced maths courses, differential calculus, integral calculus, discrete mathematics, first and second year linear algebra, vector calculus, PDEs
Econ Courses: Game Theory, Advanced Microeconomics, Advanced Macroeconomics, International Trade, Applied Economics, Industrial Organisation, Mathematical Economics
Other Courses: First year psychology
Letters of Recommendation: One Fellow of the Econometric Society and two other economics professors with US PhDs (these LORs knew me very well; two of these had marked my thesis, including one who was my adviser, and I had taken one course with one letter of recommendation and two courses with another letter of recommendation (coming first in everything (including thesis), except one course))
Research Experience: Honours thesis and one other game theory paper
Teaching Experience: TA for undergrad economics courses, including intermediate microeconomics
Research Interests: Microeconomic theory and its applications, behavioural economics
SOP: Standard
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Northwestern ($$), Wisconsin Madison ($$), Penn State ($$), Maryland (?), Oxford (MPhil in Economics), LSE (MSc in Economics (Research))
Waitlists: Boston
Rejections: Yale, Princeton, Stanford, UCSD and many other places
Attending: Northwestern
What would you have done differently? Not much. I think I should have applied earlier (I worked for a few years after my undergraduate degree) or done more maths courses at university. I would have also applied for a few business schools and a couple more top 10 places.

Amun Ra 2010:
Type of Undergrad: Economics, South Italian University.Graduate in 2004.Major in Economics
Undergrad GPA: 110/110,Cum Laude (average 28.90 out of 30)
GRE/TOEFL: 800Q/590V/3.5AWA.TOEFL waived
Math Courses: General Mathematics, Financial Mathematics, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis Multivariable Analysis(should be calculus) , Statistics I and I. ‐ All equivalent to A's or A+
Econ Courses (u/g): Micro and Macro Theory, Labour, International economics, monetary economics, Industrial econ. Development economics, economic history, History of economic thought theory, econometrics, Public economics, Regional Economics, Applied economics, Economic Policy‐ All equivalent to A's or A+
Grad courses: LOTs macro based at PhD level courses with very well know scholars all with A.I am currently in the first year of a top 20 US PhD program where I am taking the first year of micro/macro/metrics sequence.I am aiming to get transferred
Other Courses: Summer school at UPF.
Letters of Recommendation: Till now 1) stellar letters from a NYU PhD thesis supervisor and co-author well connected 2)A stellar letter from a guy with UChicago PhD whom I have been his TA for 3 years 3)Form a guy with PhD Michigan well know in his field. I got A in his graduate course and we will start co-authoring a parer together in late spring 2010.4) a standard if not excellent one form my u/g international economics prof with a PhD Michigan
Research Experience: I have written 3-4 working papers till now .One of them is co-authored with a letter of recommendation writer(see above)and I will start writing another one with another letter of recommendation writer(see above again). Another paper is co-authored with a Oxford prof and another one is single authored. Senior undergraduate thesis back in 2004 . I won special merit from the evaluation committee for the quality of thesis work, presentation skills and academic performance.II also won the prize for the best u/g thesis for that year. I have servred as a visitor scholar at the research division of one of the most important central bank of the world and as an economist in a reseach institute
Teaching Experience: 3 years TA for monetary economics and many other courses at my current institution
Research Interests: Monetary economics (mostly monetary policy),DSGE models ,Central Banking, Macroeconomics
Statement of Purpose: Strong .I talk about my papers
Other: Participant in several conferences including invitations from BIS, CEPR, ECB, and various national central Banks.Acquittance with many top economists in the field .
Concerns:
While this experience has been very enjoyable and satisfying, in discussing my research interests with faculty members at my current university I realized that our interests are mismatched. Therefore, I have decided to apply again knowing that I might start from the first year again
I am also having personal reasons I want to get out of here.
Applying to:Harvard , MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Chicago, Berkeley , Columbia, NYU,Upenn, Northwester,Minnesota,Maryland ,and 2-3 schools in Europe.

socialcapital 2010:
Type of Undergrad: International Economics from top-50 econ PhD
Undergrad GPA: 3.96/4.00
GRE: 800Q/730V/5.5
Math Courses: Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Proofs, Real Analysis (Got all As)
Econ Courses: Standard (Got all As)
Grad Courses: First-Year PhD Macro (Got an A)
LORs: Professor of Grad Macro Course, Professor who got me a job one summer, boss from that job (writing a paper with him), Math professor
Research Experience: Writing paper with summer boss
Teaching Experience: 5th semester as TA for intro econ course
Research Interests: Labor, IO, Econometrics, International Trade
SOP: Standard
Concerns: Low quality of econ program at my school makes my grades less impressive; unknown letter of recommendation writers
Applying to: Stanford, Berkeley, Northwestern, Harvard, MIT, Brown, Yale, Columbia, NYU, Princeton, Penn

Gecko 2010: Roll Call Fall 2010 
For all applicants gunning for the 2010 Fall admissions :D
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Econ from university in Southeast Asia
Undergrad GPA: 3.75/4
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 790Q, 500V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Real Analysis I and II, III (in progress) , Linear Algebra Math for Economists, Measure Theory (in progress), Mixture of A and B
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Micro (B+)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): IO, Development, Econometrics, Monetary, Labour, Information Economics Game Theory, Micro and Macro Theory- All A's and A+
Other Courses: Irrelevant.
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors (1 Princeton PhD, 1 Columbia PhD) 3rd one pending
Research Experience: Except for term papers and thesis, none.
Teaching Experience: Intermediate Micro, Introduction to statistical theory, developmental economics
Research Interests: Institutional economics and decisions making under uncertainty.
SOP: Standard format - refer to a thread by Italos.
Concerns: My math sucks.
Other: Praying awfully hard.
Applying to: MIT, Princeton, Yale, Northwestern, Stanford, Berkeley, Michigan, NYU, Columbia, Maryland, WUSTL, and others.

yougotaparabola 2010: PROFILE:
type of undergrad: B.A. Econ top 10 public university, no grad econ
undergrad GPA: 3.69/4, econ 3.95, math 3.74
type of grad: NA
grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 650V, 5.0AWA
math courses: Calc 3 (A-), ODE (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Probability Theory (B+), Real Analysis I (A), Game Theory (A-)(through the math department)
econ courses (undergrad-level): intermediate micro, advanced micro (economics of incentives), intermediate macro, advanced macro (international finance), econometrics, time series econometrics, mathematical economics (all A)
econ courses (grad-level): sadly, none.
other courses: Irrelevant.
letters of recommendation: 3 econ professors
research experience: Minimal.
teaching experience: None
research interests: The role of micro incentives in development.
statement of purpose: Pretty standard, nothing substantial.
other: on the bright side you really only need one admit.
concerns: Potentially weak recommendations, no idea how I stack up against the competition, no idea how my undergrad will be perceived,
applying to: Princeton, Yale, Northwestern, Stanford, Berkeley, Michigan, NYU, Columbia, Maryland, WUSTL, Rochester, UCLA, UVA, Duke, Wisconsin, BU, BC, etc....

lycinsg 2010: well, since everyone is doing this. here goes. kinda embarrassing
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Econ B.S from Top 30ish Econ department
Undergrad GPA: cum 3.78/4 Econ 3.78/4 Math 3.58/4 >.<
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 780Q, 500V, 4.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I,II,III, Multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, math reasoning, real analysis I, probability
Econ Courses (PhD-level): N/A undergrad equivalent
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): International trade, international macro, advanced micro, advanced macro, 2 econometrics, money. in progress: game theory, public finance
Other Courses: Not worth mentioning
Letters of Recommendation: 3 econ professors all fairly well know i guess
Research Experience: Nada. Term papers and honors thesis in progress
Teaching Experience: Nada.
Research Interests: International economics, trade
statement of purpose: The usual
Concerns: Weird grades. It oscillates a lot. I didn't bother to explain in my statement. bad decisions, got destroyed by flu or just plain evil teacher etc.
Other: Why so much supply so little demand for econ applicants? Makes me pale in comparison to others. Most schools turn to reach schools after seeing this forum
Applying to: Stanford (just for fun), Wharton applied economics (praying real real hard), Columbia, U Minn, NYU, Michigan, UCSD, Brown, Maryland, Penn State, UW

confusedgrad 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. in Economics (one of the best universities in the country but not known extremely all over the world. still, it is recognized at some schools).
Undergrad GPA: 3.98/4 - 1st rank among 145 students.
Type of Grad: M.S. in Economics from the same university.
Grad GPA: 3.95/4.0 - 2nd rank
GRE: Took it three times: Q:800, 800, 800, V:430, 350, 390, AWA: 5.5, 3.5, 4.5,
TOEFL: IBT:110 (R:29, L:29, S:24, W:28)
Math Courses: allmost no math. Calculus I and II, Linear Algebra, Mathematics for Economists, Mathematical Statistics I and II, Econometrics I and II, Econometric Theory I an II, Time Series Econometrics and only auditing RG Real Analysis this semester. All AAs (no grade for real anal.)
Econ Courses (PhD-level): Microeconomic Theory I and II, Macroeconomic Theory I and II,, International Macroconomics. All AA except for one BA.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): A lot of courses with straight AAs.
Letters of Recommendation: 4 econ professors (mostly 3 or only 2 of them were used). All from my university. They tried to write strong letters but none of them are knon actually.
Research Experience: Several years in Research department of the Central Bank. However, nothing published in good journals. Only some empirical work.
Teaching Experience: TAship at my ug university for the Statistics courses.
Research Interests: Macro including Int'l macro, monetary economics...
Statement of purpose: Not well tailored for each university. A standard one for all.
Concerns: 1. Almost no math. No advanced calculus, no differential equations, no real analysis. 2. letters from unknown profs and no special efforts from the referees, 3. not enough research experience, 4. age (i'll be 29) 5. that stupid visa issue.
Other: One positive concern: My employee might support 1st year expenditures so I can go with an unfonded offer for the first year.
Applying to: 3 types in US: 1) The ones I got accepted before: UMN, BC, BU, UCLA, UMD. 2) The ones I got rejected last year: Columbia, NYU, Northwestern, UCSD, 3) The ones I am applying for the first time (mostly dream school, just a fantasy): MIT, Berkeley, Harvard, Stanford, Chicago, Brown. Also some European schools in case the visa becomes a problem again: LSE, LBS, Oxford, TI, UPF, CEMFI, EUI. Seems like I am a professional applicant. I made 51 applications so far. (6 in 2003, 23 in 2009, 22 in 2010). God, so much money, so much effort. Best luck, everyone...

far 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. in Econ and Math, History minor from a large public university
Undergrad GPA: 3.71/4.0 Econ: 4.0/4.0 Math: 4.0/4.0
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800Q, 620V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: A lot
Econ Courses (PhD-level): None
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Econometrics, Economic Stats, Game Theory, IO, Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, International Macro, Principles
Other Courses: Intro to programming
Letters of Recommendation: 2 Econ professors (1 very well known senior the other a tenure track, both should be excellent) and 1 Math professor
Research Experience: Two years RA-ing for well known recommender, Econ REU internship (other econ recommender was my mentor)
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Industrial Organization, Game Theory, Environmental Economics
Statement of Purpose: General template modified for each school. Talked about my background and interests, reasons for applying, mentioned specific faulty members
Concerns: 3rd recommendation probably isn't that good.
Other: None
Applying to: Arizona, Berkeley, Columbia, Duke, Harvard, Maryland, Northwestern, Penn State, Stanford, UCLA, UCSB, UCSD, Yale

helloworld09 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. statistics, NE Asia
Undergrad GPA: approx 3.7/4, econ avg 3.9ish
GRE: 800Q, 7X0V, 5.0A
Math Courses: many statistics courses & enough math to fulfill requirements
Econ Courses: 7 incl micro, macro, metrics
Letters of Recommendation: among 2 econ professors and 3 statistics professors
Research Experience: nada
Teaching Experience: nope (some tutoring..)
Research Interests: open-economy macro, international, monetary.
statement of purpose: nothing too special.
Concerns: I have no research experience and have been working at a bulge-bracket IB for the last 3.5yrs, not too sure how adcoms would see that. UMN seems ok with that so i'm not as concerned as before..
Applying to: NWU, UPenn, Columbia, UMN (accepted!!), NYU, UCLA, Brown, Maryland, Rochester, BU, JHU, PSU, WUSTL, BC, UW-Seattle.

sjmm 2010: PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA math and econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4
Type of Grad: ND, gpa 3.9/4
GRE: 780Q, 610V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: calc 1+2, linear, vector, diffeq, pde, topology, real analysis 1+2, algebra 1+2, game theory
Econ Courses: micro, macro, international, development, econometrics, math econ
Other Courses: politics
Letters of Recommendation: 1 econ, 1 politics, 1 math
Research Experience: REU
Teaching Experience: TA throughout undergrad
Statement of Purpose: Standard
Concerns: total lack of research
Applying to: CSU, NCSU, Duke, Cornell, Columbia, JHU, Brown, Georgetown, Drexel, AU, UMD

jito32 2010:
Institution: Boston College
Program: Economics, PhD
Decision: Admit
Funding: Tuition + 16k
Notification date: 2-27-2010
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: No
Comments: w00t!

Churchill 2010:
Institution: Cornell
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding: -
Notification date: 02/10
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: No
Comments:
Institution: Duke
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 18k
Notification date: 02/22
Notified through: Email / Website
Posted on grad cafe: No
Comments:
Institution: Northwestern
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Waitlist
Notification date: 02/24
Notified through: Website
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments:
Institution: Minnesota
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Waitlist
Funding:
Notification date: 02/26
Notified through: Email
Posted on grad cafe: Yes
Comments:

Policy_Enter 2010:
Institution: University of Rochester
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 3/1
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments: Well, zero application fee. The feeling is not good though!
Institution: Vanderbilt University
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 2/23
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF: No
Comments: No application fee. Thought I was going to make it.
Institution: Notre Dame
Program: Ph.D. Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:
Notification date: 2/24
Notified through: I called the grad program director
Posted on GF: No
Comments: They pursued me to apply! The even offered me application fee waiver. Why did they have to do that?

OogieBoogieMan 2010:
Institution: Upenn
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: waitlisted (very high they say) for fellowship
Notification date: 03/02
Notified through: Phone (Email later)

Econ_PhD_hopeful 2010:
Institution: Maryland
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Waitlisted
Notification date: 03/04
Notified through: Email
Funding: "There is also some probability that we may be able to offer financial aid."
Comments: "there is some probability that we may be able to extend an offer of admission some time between now and April 15." Ouch, I was really hoping I would be admitted here

anonymous123 2010:
Institution: Columbia University
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 03/04/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GF: No
Comment: One of the PhD students at my current institution told me that Columbia economics has reduced the target size of its incoming class.

jenferlizbeth 2010:
Institution: Columbia University
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 03/04/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Comment: I had already counted them out anyway...
Institution: UC Irvine
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Yes! $$
Notification date: 2/26/2010
Notified through: unofficial e-mail from director Dale Poirier
Comment: Very happy
Institution: Yale University
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/18/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Comment: ah well.

littleboy555 2010:
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: na
Notification date: 03/04
Notified through: Email to check website

econgirl19 2010:
Institution: Rutgers
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: None
Notification date: 1/27/2010
Notified through: Email
Comments: Not going without funding.
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding:N/A
Notification date: 2/18/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Comments: Oh well.
Institution: Penn State
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Tuition + $24k stipend
Notification date: 2/22/2010
Notified through: Email
Comments: :-)
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Tuition + $18k stipend + $2k stipend for the summer
Notification date: 2/22/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Comments: Definitely high up on my list.
Institution: Johns Hopkins
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Tuition + $17k stipend
Notification date: 2/26/2010
Notified through: Email with attachment
Comments: Another good option.
Institution: University of Maryland
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Tuition + $18k stipend
Notification date: 3/3/2010
Notified through: Email
Comments: Excited!
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 3/4/2010
Notified through: Email to check website
Comments: I wasn't really planning on going there anyway….

kaisar 2010:
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD economics
Decision: reject
Notification date: 3/4/2010
Notified through: email to check website
Comments: does not come as a surprise

yes_no_maybe 2010:
Institution: USC
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 21k, 5 years
Notification date: 2/26/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC:Yes
Institution: Boston College
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Wait listed
Funding: Yes if out
Notification date: 3/1/2010
Notified through:E-mail
Posted on GC:No
Institution: UC Berkeley
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/3/2010
Notified through:E-mail
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Maryland, College Park
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 18k, 4-5 years
Notification date: 3/3/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/5/2010
Notified through: E-mail to check the website
Posted on GC: No
Institution: Brown
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Wait listed
Funding: Yes if out
Notification date: 3/8/2010
Notified through:E-mail
Posted on GC:No
Institution: Princeton
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/9/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Institution: MIT
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/11/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/12/2010
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Institution: UPenn
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Notification date: 3/13/2010
Notified through: E-mail to check the website
Posted on GC: No

yichen426 2010:
Institution: Michigan
Program:Phd Economics
Decision: REJ
Funding:
Notification date: 03/03
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: Yes
Comments:
Institution: Maryland
Program:Phd Economics
Decision: Waitlist
Funding: Economics
Notification date: 03/04
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: Yes
Comments:
Institution: Columbia
Program:Phd Economics
Decision: REJ
Funding: Economics
Notification date: 03/04
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: Yes
Comments: Sad!! Uppertown Manhatten is so cute....
Institution: Chicago
Program:Phd Economics
Decision: REJ
Funding: Economics
Notification date: 03/05
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: Yes
Comments: Sad!! Got my heart broken by UChicago and Columbia, esp. considering NYC and Chicago have the best pizza of america...!
Institution: Maryland
Program:Phd Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Economics
Notification date: 03/15
Notified through: Email
Posted on GF: Yes
Comments: (@,@) (>,<) (!,!) Suburb of DC!

econpeace 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Double Math / Econ major - Top 15 for Econ.
Undergrad GPA: 3.75 Cumulative, 3.8 in Econ, 3.72 in Math.
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800q / 710v / 5 awa
Math Courses: LOWER DIV: Calc (A/A-). UPPER DIV: Analysis (A- avg), Algebra (A-), Ord Diff Eq (A-), Complex (B-), Probability, Stat Theory (A-)
Econ Courses: Micro/Macro (As), Honors Metrics (B+), Honors Game Theory (A), assorted econ electives (A/A-), Grad Micro (IP),
Letters of Recommendation: One from RA job, famous, should be strong, two from classes, hopefully of some value.
Research Experience: Senior Thesis and RA job (1 year during junior year and still at it currently).
Teaching Experience: None at College level
Research Interests: Labor
Concerns: Less than stellar math grades.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Maryland, BU, UCLA, Cornell
Waitlists: NU, Booth
Rejections: Princeton, Columbia, Penn, Michigan, Berkeley, NYU
Pending: -
What would you have done differently?
Worked harder in math class!!!

JRav 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Math, Economics; MA Math (haven't graduated yet) Top 15 US, Top 25 Economics
Undergrad GPA: 3.91/4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0
GRE: 800 Q, 620 V, 6 AW
Math Courses: Honors Multivariable Calculus (A+), Honors Linear Algebra (A-), Differential Equations (A), Complex Analysis (A), Honors Analysis I (A), Honors Analysis II (A-), Number Theory (A+), Topology (A), Abstract Algebra I (A+), Abstract Algebra II (A-), Differential Geometry (A-), Graduate Real Variables (A), Graduate Microlocal Analysis (A), Graduate Abstract Algebra (A), Graduate Partial Differential Equations (A), Graduate Algebraic Topology (A+), Graduate Complex Variables (in progress), Probability & Statistics (A+)
Econ Courses: Elements of Macro (A), Elements of Micro (A), Monetary Analysis (A+), Macro Theory (A), Financial Markets and Institutions (A), Econometrics (A+), Graduate Macro I (A), Graduate Micro Theory I (A+), Graduate Macro Theory II (in progress), Graduate Micro Theory II (in progress), Corporate Finance (in progress), Economic Forecasting (in progress), Senior Thesis (in progress)
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: Thesis adviser whom I had for two classes (Ph.D. from MIT, among top 1% most cited economists), Professor I had for graduate macro (Ph.D. from Northwestern, among top 7% most cited), Fairly well-known math professor I had for three grad math courses (Ph.D. from Princeton)
Research Experience: Senior Thesis (in progress)
Teaching Experience: Teaching Assistant for Calculus I and II
Research Interests: Macro, Monetary Economics, Finance (?)
SOP: Talked about my senior thesis, my coursework, and department macro seminars I attended. Threw in a paragraph for each school. Solid.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Princeton ($$$), Stanford ($$$)
Waitlists: MIT, Chicago (in with funding any other year they say), Michigan (same as Chicago)
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Berkeley, Brown
Pending:
What would you have done differently? I didn't take an economics course until I was a sophomore so I guess I would have started sooner, which would have allowed me to take more grad econ courses. I might have also pushed harder for a research opportunity. But I'm not complaining about Princeton vs. Stanford...

rthunder27 2011:
Type of Undergrad: BS in Electrical Engineering from Penn State, Math Minor
Undergrad GPA: 3.92 (1 B, assorted A-'s)
Type of Grad: MS in EE from Johns Hopkins, MA in Applied Econ from JHU in progress
Grad GPA: EE: 3.91, Econ: 3.95
GRE: 800Q, 630V, 4.5AW (08/10) / 770Q 650V 5.5AW (08/06)
Math Courses(undergrad): Calc, Multivariate Calc(A), Diff Eq(A), Matrices(A), Linear Programming(A), Game Theory(A), Stats(A), Numerical Computation(A-), Discrete Math-proof based(A)
Math/other Courses(grad)- My emphasis in EE was signal processing, which is pretty much all advanced calculus. Neural Networks (A), Intelligent Algorithms (A), Probability (B), Math of Finance (A), Control Systems (A), Digital Signal Processing(A), Advanced Signal Processing(A), Multidimensional Signal Processing (A), Wavelet Signal Processing (A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro (A), Macro (A-), Statistics(A) Econometrics (A+), Game Theory in Economics (A+), Financial Economics (A+), Microeconometrics (A). Macroeconometrics, Macro Forecasting, International Finance
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro(A)
Letters of Recommendation: Strong letters I hope, but from weak recommenders. Undergraduate Thesis adviser (Math Phd, PSU I think), current supervisor (non-academic), and Grad School professor (UVA Econ Phd).
Research Experience: Undergrad Honors thesis on game theory/agent based modeling. Presented preliminary results from an unfinished game theory/behavioral paper on wagering Behavior in "Jeopardy!" at the Stony Brook Game Theory Conference. My current work is at a research lab, but it's not econ focused.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Game Theory, Behavioral Economics/Finance, Discrete Micro
SOP: Strong maybe? I explained my research interests, the road I took in discovering them, and I describe the type of ideas that I have and how to test them.
Concerns: My letter of recommendation could be stronger, but that's a result of access. No RA, for which I am kicking myself, because I could have taken it as an elective in my EE MS program. No clue how adcoms view EE/signal processing (which is very much proof based calc at times)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Stanford GSB Finance ($$$$), UCSD($), uArizona
Waitlists: Columbia (asked to be removed), Kellogg MEDS (implicit, later rejected)
Rejections: Princeton, NYU, Wharton, Booth, Berkeley, UCLA, CMU
What would you have done differently? Geesh, well, for starters, I would have realized my interest in economics earlier than 22 months ago (May 2009). I also regret some of my school choices, I probably should have applied MIT/Sloan instead of UCLA and I definitely should have applied for NSF, since I had a pretty good idea for a proposal, but I didn't learn about it in time. The late interest in economics really made it difficult to get good LORs while working full-time.
In reverse chronological order, I would have taken RA when I had the chance (Spring 2009), taken more than one econ course in my undergrad (2003-2007), potentially taken a different major entirely, and applied back in high school to more schools than just the PSU honors program (2002). But maybe I shouldn't have done anything differently; I got into a top 5 program about which I am very excited, and can lead to a wide variety of future opportunities. And I doubt I would have gotten in if I had a more traditional background. So although I sometimes feel I've wasted the past four years of my life, I did earn 2 masters in that time while saving up enough money to finance an extravagant (by grad student standards) lifestyle for the next 4-5 years, which is something at least.

Elliephant 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: business (Canadian school, econ dept. ranked >100 worldwide)
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4.0 or 3.98/4.0, depending on conversion scheme
Type of Grad: none
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q800, V790, AWA 6.0
Math Courses: calc I-III, linear algebra I-II, applied stats, real analysis I-II (all A or higher)
Econ Courses (grad-level): none
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): intro micro, intro macro, international econ, advanced micro, advanced macro, metrics (all A+); supply-side macro (B+); did a term in China's top econ department (roughly speaking, >85 = A): international trade (90), information econ (91), Chinese development (93), urban and regional econ (98); applied metrics and forecasting (spring); managerial econ (spring)
Other Courses: none relevant
Letters of Recommendation: micro prof (reasonably well-known in IO and a past department chair); research supervisor in Beijing (used to be tenured at UNC, well-connected in health policy); UG director at b-school
Research Experience: summer fellow at an econ think tank in Beijing, one RAship at my home school, two conference presentations of my sole-authored papers
Teaching Experience: TAed micro and business statistics
Research Interests: still fluid; currently economics of human capital (education, health), transition economies, other applied micro
SOP: standard
Concerns: credibility of LORs; insufficient math background; low visibility of UG econ department
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wharton health, Kellogg MECS, Penn, UMich, Toronto MA, Queen's MA, UBC MA
Waitlists: none
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Berkeley, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, NYU (implicit)
What would you have done differently? If I had known in high school that I wanted this, I would have gone to a better UG school and done a double major in math and econ. However, given my constraints, I'm very happy with my results, and it's entirely possible that I would not have ended up with equally good offers if I'd had the option of slacking off in UG (by being in a better department, say). I'll write up a detailed "lessons learned" thread for applicants from low-ranked UG departments, non-quantitative majors, and internationals without a master's in the next couple of weeks.

econchef 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Small Liberal Arts University, Atlantic Canada (Honors Econ, Minor Math)
Undergrad GPA: 3.95 (4.0 Econ) (4.0 Math) (Converted) (top graduate in Econ)
Type of Grad: MA Econ, Queen's University
Grad GPA: 4.0 (Converted) (top graduate)
GRE: 800Q 570V 5.5AW
Math Courses: calculus (I,II,III), linear algebra, ODE, Discrete, Intro Stats, History of Math, Intro to Game Theory (All A or higher)
Econ Courses (grad): Micro, Macro , Econometrics, Resource, Applied Econometrics, Research Problems and Methodology, Empirical Micro (All 90%+)
Econ Courses (u/g): Adv Micro, Adv Macro, Uncertainty and Strategy (Adv Micro II), Econometrics (full-year), All intermediates and Intros, a bunch field courses (All A or Higher)
Letters of Recommendation: All positive, 2 full professors (1 resource econ, very well established; 1 applied time series), 1 associate professor (gaining a big rep in time series), I supplement with three other profs who know me well at universities where they have contacts.
Research Experience: master's essay, summer research paper in u/g, Internship at Inter-American Development Bank (Poverty Research / HH Exp'd Surveys), 3 applied metrics courses in Grad, very strong STATA programming skills and LATEX knowledge
Teaching Experience: Taught tutorials for principles (Micro and Macro) for 2 years in u/g; environmental econ and principles macro at Queen's
Research Interests: Econometrics, Labor, Education
Concerns: Could have taken more math; Small unknown undergrad
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Berkeley ($$$), Princeton ($$$), BU ($$), U Toronto ($$$), Queen's ($$$), Chicago (3rd year)
Waitlists: MIT, U Penn, U Mich
Rejections: Harvard, Northwestern, Stanford, NYU, Yale, Columbia
What would you have done differently? Well if I had a time machine, I would have gone back to the start of first year and convinced myself not to take any political science courses in second year and instead replace them all with math courses. I also might have convinced myself that I should have taken more math in fourth year instead of taking basic sciences for med school (I applied and got in but decided to continue with econ grad school). The only other thing I might have changed regarding my record with said time machine would have been to write my MA essay on a time series theory topic as opposed to one in applied micro but I'll be honest these wouldn't be the first things I would do with a time machine. Perhaps with those changes I might have had a better shot at Harvard but there's always some noise in the dgp so who knows. Overall, I'm very excited by my results and can't wait to visit my top two offers.

burkaru 2011:
Type of Undergrad: Computer Science
Undergrad GPA: 3.33
Type of Grad: Economics
Grad GPA: 3.4 (when applied, now 3.6)
GRE: Q 800, V 340, AW 3.0
Math Courses:
undergrad: Calculus (C), Linear Algebra (C), Probability Theory (C), Discrete Math (C), Methods of Optimization (C), Advanced probability (A), Advanced statistics (A), Stochastic processes (A), Applied probability theory (A), Advanced discrete math (A), Differential eq's (B), Eq's of math physics (B), Introductory calculus of approximations (C), Advanced calculus of approximations (B), Game theory (A), Econometrics (A), Methods of univariate statistical analysis (A)
grad: probability (B), statistics (A-), econometrics (1 B, 2 B-, 3 B+, 4 B-), math for economists (1 B, 2 B+), game theory (A)
Econ Courses:
undergrad: Economics (A), Macromodels (1 A, 2 A)
grad: Macroeconomics (1 A-, 2 B, 3 A-, 4 B+, 5 A-, 6 A-), Microeconomics (1 B-, 2 A-, 3 A, 4 A, 5 A), Financial markets (B+), Derivatives (A-), World Economic History (A+)
Other Courses: a lot of computer science stuff (grades A and B), sociology (A), history (A), philosophy (B)
Letters of Recommendation: from 2 scientific advisors (good?), strong from economic history professor, one from professor in microeconomics (probably weak?)
Research Experience: no
Teaching Experience: no when applied (yes right now)
Research Interests: macro, political science
SOP: why I love economics, my strong side, research interests, current research
Other: TOEFL 91, IELTS 7.5
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCLA, BU, Wisconsin-Madison
Rejections: UPenn, Columbia, NYU, Brown, Cornell
What would you have done differently? instead of professor in microeconomics asked about recommendation well-known professor in political science

Segan 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Large Canadian University, not very well known for economics
Undergrad GPA: 4.0
Type of Grad: NA
Grad GPA: NA
GRE: 800 Q/570 V/5.0 AW
Math Courses: Calculus, Linear Algebra, Probability/Stats for Economists, Mathematical Economics I and II (all A+)
Econ Courses: Econometrics I (grad); Intro to econometrics; Microeconomics I, II, and III; Macroeconomics I, II, and III; Environmental Economics, Economic Growth, Cost-Benefit Analysis (all A+).
Other Courses: 2 geomatics courses (1 in geostatistics), a minor in political science
Letters of Recommendation: 1 full professor, 1 assistant professor, and 1 associate professor. The full professor is a star in the department, but I doubt any will have major name recognition.
Research Experience: At the time of my application, this was a concern. I have 2 interesting research experiences in the private and public sectors related to policy, but had not worked on a strictly economics related project. Since applying, I have taken a directed research job with a professor at our department.
Teaching Experience: NA
Research Interests: Environmental economics, developmental economics
SOP: Elaborated on the contents of the mathematical economics courses I took, particularly because mathematical economics II covers the basics of real analysis and forces us to write some basic proofs.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Brown ($$), Maryland AREC ($$), UBC MA ($$), LSE MA, Cambridge MA
Waitlists: MIT
Rejections: Berkeley AREC, Columbia, Stanford
Pending: Queen's MA
What would you have done differently?
Definitely more math, and would have chosen my undergraduate institution more carefully. I am currently unsure about whether I should spend a year to upgrade math courses and take an MA in Canada, or to take what are good options at Brown/Maryland.

wheretogo1 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Big 10 School - top 50 undergrad
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4.0
GRE: 800Q/550V/4.5Writing
Math Courses: multivariable calculus, linear algebra, probability theory, real analysis (2 semesters), abstract algebra, topology
Econ Courses: intermediate micro, intermediate macro, econometrics, game theory, labor, international
Other Courses: java programming
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from institution (one advised me during research paper), 1 from current boss (who is a professor at a top 5 program)
Research Experience: junior year research project, 3 years at a public policy thinktank
Teaching Experience: tutored calculus at college.... does that count?
Research Interests: applied micro, labor, public econ, but open to anything really
SOP: Not great, not terrible
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Maryland, Virginia, Texas
Rejections: Berkeley, Yale, nwestern, columbia, mich, wisconsin, cornell, carnegie mellon, penn state, illinois, duke, UCSD
Wait lists: BU, Uwashington, Upenn, Minnesota
What would you have done differently?
Build closer relations with economics faculty at my undergrad institution. My rec letters were not as strong as others.

Integral 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Math & Econ, top-30 US undergrad
Undergrad GPA: 3.7 overall; 3.5 in math; 4.0 in econ, or near enough
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 790Q 640V 5.5AWA
Math Courses: Calc I-II-III, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Probability, Advanced Calculus, Real Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Topology
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro, Intermediate Macro, Econometrics, lots of field courses, PhD Micro I
Other Courses: nothing special; a few programming classes
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from thesis advisor; 1 from honors director & RA supervisor; 1 from a course instructor. All quite good, I think. Two of the three are reasonably well-known.
Research Experience: Honors thesis (money/macro), RA for one summer (trade), RA for a private research firm for one summer
Teaching Experience: Six semesters of teaching Intro Micro, Intro Macro, and Intro Stats.
Research Interests: Social Choice Theory, Mechanism Design, Monetary Economics, Macroeconometrics, Nonparametric Econometrics (it's a weird combo, I admit)
SOP: Nothing special.
Other: Some schools got my grades for Micro I, Algebra, and Topology; others didn't. I took those three in the fall.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Iowa State ($$), UC-Davis, Boston College ($$)
Waitlists: Wisconsin-Madison
Rejections: Columbia, NYU, NWU, Penn, Brown, Duke, WUSTL, Penn State, Carnegie-Mellon
Attending: Boston College
What would you have done differently?
Two things stand out:
1) Gotten better grades in math. I had B's in several key math courses which I'm sure torpedoed my chances at more than one school. On the other hand, I am fortunate enough to have a control: a friend of mine, at the same institution, who had a far better math record than me, was rejected across the board at the top 10. So who knows?
2) Taken the GRE earlier and gotten an 800Q. I doubt it would have made much of a difference, but I think the GRE cutoff is near 800, if not exactly 800, at the very top. At the very least, getting an 800Q would have put off one dimension of uncertainty.
In terms of undergrad institution and letters, I did about as well as I possibly could have. I started teaching very early; while that didn't affect admissions one iota, teaching was one of the things that opened doors for me in the department and got me the letters of rec I needed. I did all the research I could within the constraints that I had.
It's been a wild ride; I have no true regrets about any of it. I'm incredibly excited to join BC in the fall.

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.

spaceship earth 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Double major in Business Economics & Environmental Studies; Top 10 public, top 40 econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.88
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 780Q 640V 4.5AW
Math Courses: calc series (A+/A), diff equations (A)
Econ Courses: intro micro (A+), intro macro (A-), Micro I (A), Micro II (A), Macro (A+), Nat Resource Econ (A), Env Econ (A+), Data Analysis (A)
Other Courses: lots of ecology & environ science for my environ studies major; relevant because of my research interests, but no substitute for more math/stats/econ
Letters of Recommendation: 1 tenured prof known for resource econ, 1 tenured prof who i performed research under (also known in env/resource econ), 1 recent phd in env econ who was probably unknown but was close to me (TA'd several of my econ classes & guided me through admissions process, now teaches at another unranked school)
Research Experience: employed about 9 months doing econ research part time; also got course credit another time for doing not very technical research related to role of competitive social pressures in mitigating climate change
Teaching Experience: nothing formal; just tutoring on & off for a while
Research Interests: Resource Econ, Environmental Econ, Sustainable Development, Energy Econ/Policy, etc
SOP: Talked about why I wanted to be a economist studying environmental issues. Emphasized extra-curriculars & research.
Other: Was president of an undergrad campus org. Also, I've been working at a global financial services firm since undergrad and I got a CPA license. It probably would have been relevant if I wanted an MBA, but I'm thinking it was no use in this PhD application
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UC Davis ARE ($), UC Santa Barbara (wl$), U Maryland AREc ($)
Waitlists: None.
Rejections: Stanford, UC Berkeley ARE, Columbia, NYU, Yale, Cornell AEM, UC San Diego
Pending: None.
What would you have done differently? No regrets; I was appropriately placed given my research interests. I reached high and the results were similar to my expectations. Also, you only need 1 good admit. That said, if I knew I was going to get a PhD earlier on here's what I would change (in no order):
1) Take the GRE earlier, so I could retake for an 800Q (I took it in Nov, just weeks before the app deadlines; I'm confident i could have gotten an 800Q since I did on several practice exams)
2) Get a straight "econ" major instead of a "business econ" major (this would mean more math/econ/stats/econometrics instead of more finance/accounting)
3) Get a job post-undergrad that is a better stepping stone to PhD (ie: research job, econ thinktank, econ analyst, certain consulting positions) instead of a job that is a stepping stone to an MBA (ie: finance, accounting, certain banking positions)
4) Realize the importance of LORs earlier and connect with more professors who have connections at top institutions (& do more research under them)
5) Regarding top straight econ depts, I also think I was out competed by alot of people w/ masters degrees. It might have served me well to get a masters to bulk up on econ/math/stats/etc.

goose88 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top 15 undergrad, Top 30 Econ PhD
Undergrad GPA: 3.5/3.76 for econ
Type of Grad:n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 800Q, 620V, 4AW
Math Courses: Calc(I-III: B+,B-,B-), Linear Algebra(B+), Intro to proofs(A-), Real Analysis(A), Lebesgue Integration (In progress with an A so far)
Econ Courses (grad-level):
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro and Macro, IO, Property Rights, Intro and Applied Econometrics, Game Theory etc. (all A-/A's except for one B)
Other Courses: MATLAB(in progress)
Letters of Recommendation: All econ PhDs...2 well Known professors (one Stanford and another from Rochester), and one ok recommendation (Stanford)
Research Experience: Award winning Honors thesis, summer fellowship
Teaching Experience: Teaching Assistant for a intro level macro class
Research Interests: Development econ, Applied Micro/IO
SOP: Good but didn't bother to customize it for each school...highlighted my diverse background
Concerns: Weak GPA and Math grades...I was not the best student for the first two years of my college career and my grades suffered...hopefully they can also see the radical change in my grades from B's to A's
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Northwestern($$), WUSTL($$), ASU($$), UWO-PhD stream MA($$)
Rejections: Brown, Duke, Georgetown, Michigan, NYU, Queens, Rochester, Stanford, U Minnesota, UC-Berkeley, UCLA, U Wisconsin, Yale
Withdrawn: Columbia, Purdue
Attending: Northwestern
What would you have done differently? So, so many things. I think I was ridiculously lucky given how marginal my profile looks (but I promise, I am not as bad as I look on paper)
i) I would have started out as an Econ major instead of waiting till junior year to switch out of the Business school (no offense to business majors but that place drained my soul and made me super lazy)
ii) I would have taken my Calculus classes seriously or at the very least attended them for more than the first week
iii) I would have taken some more stats classes than the basic courses such as Stochastic Processes or Probability Theory
iv) I would have done more research/get to know more professors but then again, this is tied to (i)

LameDuck 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BS Mathematics, Physics Minor @ state university
Undergrad GPA: 3.24/4.00 (3.8ish Math)
Type of Grad: First year of Mathematics MS @ same university
Grad GPA: 4.0/4.0
GRE: 800Q 700V 3.5AW
Math Courses: Around 20 -- Topology, Grad Analysis Sequence, Grad Algebra Sequence, a few Linear Algebra courses, DiffEQ, Stat Theory, Programming/Applied courses, etc.; mostly A's
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro (A+), Intermediate Macro (A+); both taken as a non-degree student after my BS
Other Courses: Programming (Java), Physics courses (Mechanics, Circuit Design, Math Modeling, etc.)
Letters of Recommendation: Good(great?) letters from 3 math professors who are somewhat known in the math world -- I really had no access to econ letters
Research Experience: Math research (Approximation Theory)
Teaching Experience: One year as a TA for Calc. III, and one year as an Algebra instructor while I was in the MS program
Research Interests: International Macro, Development, Game Theory -- admittedly, I'm not entirely certain which route I'll go.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Iowa($$), Boston U.(MA), Pitt(unfunded) <-- deferred from 2010
Waitlists: U. Washington - Seattle
Rejections: Columbia, Minnesota, UPenn, Boston U. (PhD), Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, Maryland, UWO, Wisconsin
What would you have done differently?
This year was my full-court shot at some high ranked programs; I already held a deferred offer from Pitt. In retrospect, I might not have applied to some of the places that weren't really a good fit for me -- live and learn.
If I had it all to do over again? Well, I'd be a less capricious youngster, perform better in the first years of my undergrad, and I'd realize an interest in economics earlier than a few years ago. That being said, I'm happy where I am, but I wouldn't recommend my circuitous route to anyone; the hope is that experience matters, no?
Given my lack of access to econ reference writers and my nontraditional background, I think I did alright for myself. The fact that I missed out on funding at Pitt this year gave me a scare, but I got into another program that I heavily targeted.

hzzhangyu 2011:
Type of Undergrad: B.A. Econ from a top-tier Chinese university; Exchange at a top-15 econ department in U.S.
Undergrad GPA: overall 91.3/100 (1/48, but the program includes people doing sociology and political science); Exchange GPA 4.0
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: V700 Q800 AW4
TOEFL: 119 (iBT)
Math Courses: Single Variable Calculus (90), Multivariate Calculus (92), Linear Algebra & Analytical Geometry (91), Probablity Theory & Math Stats (97) -- (mandates of my program, these four appear in transcripts as College Math for Social Sciences 1, 2, 3, 4: really bad course names which need explaining in the SOP) -- , Real Analysis (96, rank 1st), Stochastic Calculus(92).
Econ Courses (grad-level): Phd Micro I (A), Math Econ I (A). both at the exchange department and top in both classes.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): typical econ major requirement at home university (all but one are above 90/100); International Finance (A), Game Theory(A), Econometrics (A) at the exchange department, top in all three classes.
Other Courses: lots of typical mandates required in China.
Letters of Recommendation: all come from professors in the exchange department, two senior faculty from grad micro and undergrad international finance (both relatively well-known in their respective fields), one AP from grad math econ course (should be very enthusiastic).
Research Experience: Virtually none. Started to write a Honor Thesis only after applying.
Teaching Experience:No
Research Interests: Macro theory and behavioral macro. likely to change after 1st year.
SOP: talks about my love for math, however I have no solid research experience to write about.
Concerns: lack of research experience (also all three letters are supposed to talk about not much more than performance in class); bad names for math courses.
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances: MIT(wl for $ -> unfunded), Stanford($$$), Princeton($$$), Minn, UCLA, PSU
Waitlists: UPenn(-> rej), UMich
Rejections: Harvard, Chicago, Yale, Berkeley, Northwestern, NYU, Columbia, Duke.
Withdrawn: UCSD, Wisc.
What would you have done differently?
My lack of research experience partly results from some family reasons and an unexpected health incident; I guess I couldn't have done much differently.

chisquared 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BBM Quantitative Finance and BSc Economics. Small university in SE Asia.
Undergrad GPA: 3.92/4.00
Type of Grad: MSc Applicable Mathematics, LSE
Grad GPA: In Progress
GRE: 800Q, 660V, 5.0AW
Math Courses: Linear Algebra (A), Differential Equations (A-), Real Analysis (A-), Intermediate Mathematics for Economics (A+), Advanced Mathematics for Economics (A), Stochastic Calculus (A), Numerical Analysis (A), Probability Theory and Statistical Inference (A-), Continuous Time Optimization (Grad, IP), Probability and Measure (Grad, IP), Stochastic Analysis (Grad, IP)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Advanced Microeconomics (IP)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Microeconomics (A+), Intermediate Macroeconomics (A-), International Economics (A+), Economics of Financial Intermediation (A+), Applied Econometrics (A), Economic Development in Asia (A)
Other Courses: A lot of other business and finance courses. A few courses in psychology, sociology and political science.
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Stanford PhD, 1 Berkeley PhD, 1 Harvard PhD, 2 UPenn PhDs distributed over different schools. All supposedly good letters.
Research Experience: Undergraduate thesis in political economy (A-), a few research assistantships
Teaching Experience: A few terms as a teaching assistant
Research Interests: micro theory, game theory, financial economics, political economy
SOP: Standard
Concerns: Unknown undergrad institution. Limited (read: almost none) placement history. Unknown letter of recommendation credibility.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: LSE ($$$, initially on a waiting list for funding), Michigan (off the waiting list, $$), BU ($$, initially on a waiting list for first-year funding)
Rejections: Tons. Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Chicago, Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Northwestern (Kellogg MEDS), UPenn, Columbia, NYU, Caltech, UCSD (actually, I never heard from them. Should probably send them an angry email.), Chicago Booth, Stanford GSB, Wharton, Minnesota
Withdrawn:
Attending: LSE
What would you have done differently?
It's hard to say, really. A few ideas, though:
(i) Work harder on my senior thesis. Winning the senior thesis prize may have helped me sneak on to a few more waiting lists.
(ii) Write a more interesting SOP. It probably wouldn't help much, but it just might matter on the margin, and it's hard to say where I was or wasn't a marginal candidate exactly (at least, for the schools ranked just above where I was admitted. I'm only kidding myself by trying to claim I could have been a marginal candidate at Harvard/MIT.).
(iii) Done more undergrad field courses in econ. This would help me write a more interesting SOP, I guess, since it would give me more research ideas. This would mean that I'd have to drop one of my majors, or not do a senior thesis, though. I'm not sure I would be willing to do the former ex-ante, nor the latter ex-post.
(iv) Tried to go on exchange at the one top 10 department my undergrad had an exchange program with. Someone from my undergrad did this, and it seemed to have helped her out a lot this admissions season. That being said, that entails the same kind of tradeoffs that I mentioned in (iii), so I'm not sure I'd do this if I could do everything over again.
(v) Worked really hard on my MSc, graduate with distinction, and apply for admission in fall 2012 instead. I may still consider this, in fact.
(vi) Considered schools that I was applying to more carefully. While I don't think I'd have applied to fewer schools, there are some programs (PSU, CEMFI, Toulouse) I wish I applied to after all the deadlines were over but before the admissions results were released. While I wouldn't have gone to any of those aforementioned programs over any of the options I had, this may have been a wiser decision ex-ante (even if I may be out a few hundred dollars ex-post).

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.

JerseyBoy89 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Economics, B.A. Mathematics (Top ~10 Econ Dept / Top ~5 Math Dept)
Undergrad GPA: 3.85/4
GRE: 800Q/700v/5.0a
Math Courses: Linear Algebra, Multivariate Calculus, Intro Probability Theory, Mathematical Statistics, Stochastic Calculus, Numerical Analysis, Analysis I, Topology, Vector Analysis, Abstract Algebra (Overall, 3.85 GPA)
Econ Courses: Basic Microeconomics Course, Math for Economists, Micro Theory, Macro Theory, Global Macroeconomics, Econometrics, Adv. Macro and Finance, Adv. Micro Theory, Independent Study (Overall, 3.9 GPA)
Other Courses: Finance Courses (foundations financial markets, corporate finance), Business Core (don't wish to list these )
Letters of Recommendation: I received one recommendation from an extremely well known econ professor. Other two recs from well known econ academics that are very successful as well.
Research Experience: RA work sophomore and junior summers. Also worked on independent thesis project senior year.
Teaching Experience: None
Research Interests: Macro-Finance (consumption-based asset pricing, term structure models), Corporate Finance in macro setting, Monetary Economics, Business Cycles
SOP: My statement was pretty straightforward - I discussed my research interests and motivations, coursework, research experiences, and my broad fit with each program.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Carnegie Mellon ($$$), UMN ($), UPenn ($$), Wharton Finance ($$$), UCLA ($$ eventually)
Waitlists: Michigan, Princeton (eventually rej), Columbia Business
Rejections: Harvard, Yale, Chicago, Stanford, among others
Attending: Wharton
What would you have done differently? I am very very happy with my results and am really pumped to go to Wharton. That said, I think the one thing I should have considered is attending an MA program in econ (eg. Toronto, LSE) or an RA job at one of the regional Federal Reserve banks. Given my relatively strong recommendations, either one of these would have solidified my candidacy for a higher-ranked program (not that I didn't get into a great program already!). Looking back, coming from an undergraduate program, I also wouldn't mind some more economics training before I start a PhD program - it would certainly make me more economically mature as well. Nonetheless, I am very very happy with my results.

gkhn 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad:Econ (one of the top state universities in my country) and Math
Undergrad GPA:Econ CGPA:4/4, math CGPA:3.86/4
Type of Grad:n/a
Grad GPA:n/a
GRE:780Q 550V AWA(3.5)(rescore 3.0),First try was 760Q 530V 3.5 AWA
Math Courses:Calculus 1-2,Advanced Calc.1-2(all AA except Adv. calculus 1 CB) linear algebra 1-AA,Basic linear algebra AA,Differential equations AA, Real Analysis BA,point set topology(AA),Lebesgue Integral(AA)
Econ Courses (grad-level):n/a
Econ Courses (undergrad-level):Mathematical economics 1-2,intermediate macro,micro, Mathematical statistics for economist 1-2,Intro to Econometrics 1-2,International Trade courses(1-2),and other standard courses all AA
Other Courses:-
Letters of Recommendation:1 from stanford phd,1 from upenn phd,1 from university of manchester.
Research Experience:No experience.
Teaching Experience:TA-intermediate micro,and econometrics
Research Interests:Micro theory,Game theory,Mechanism design
SOP:ordinary.I described my research interests and some papers I appreciate.
Concerns:GRE score,and no research experience.
Other:
RESULTS:
Attending: Minnesota
Acceptances: Toulouse M2(ecomath)($$), UBC MA($$), CEMFI($$),
Waitlists: UCLA(rej), Uminnesota($$,eventually)
Rejections: Yale, MIT, Princeton, Columbia, NYU, Northwestern(on hold,rej afterwards), Upenn, JHU
Comments:
(i) I do not know which school got which GRE score as I rescored my AW, and ETS did not send my second scores to some places.(UCLA got my first try scores).In the nutshell, I can say that GRE destroyed me completely. First, my classmate with less stellar math grades, similar econ grades got into places where I was wait-listed. In such a case, it is important to make yourself known to DGS. After an inquiry regarding my rejection, UMN put me on short-list for admission(they said they had made a clerical mistake). Northwestern put my application on hold for a while although I was rejected eventually. So, GRE myth is true in some sense.
(ii) For internationals, having a master's degree is very important. This is what I heard from the ad-com member working at Top10 after his seminar.
(iii) Initially, my plan was to apply only top places and master programs in order to have a chance to strengthen my profile for the next cycle. However, this process turns out to be too long and stressful. For this reason, I avoided attending master program to improve my profile.

HealthEconGirl 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S. Econ from top-30 U.S. university
Undergrad GPA: 3.76 / 4.0, magna cum laude
Type of Grad: None
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q800, V720, AW5.5
Math Courses: Calc I&II (AP), Multivariable Calc (A), Diff Equ (A), Intro to Proofs (A), Upper-level Probability Theory (A), Lin Alg (A), Intro to Analysis (A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): None
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Regular econ major courses (mostly A's, one B+ and one B), IO (B+), African Development (A-), Econ Reforms and Corruption (A-), Pol Econ of Growth, Redistribution and Poverty (A-), Intermediate Econometrics (A), Senior thesis seminar (A)
Letters of Recommendation: Senior thesis advisor (Columbia Ph.D.), one Assoc Prof (Foreign Ph.D.), one Epidemiologist (Berkeley Ph.D.), one former supervisor
Research Experience: Senior thesis, RA for epidemiologist since August 2010, Paid Internship where I basically do standard RA work (data cleaning, analysis) since June 2010
Teaching Experience: none really, but LORs talked about my potential for teaching
Research Interests: economics of global health, specifically HIV and sexual behavior in developing countries
SOP: Highlighted my senior thesis, significant time working in a developing country, and well defined research interests; customized to each school
Concerns: While I have extensive work experience that is relevant, it's not the standard econ RA work; no graduate econ classes despite being in a research univ.
RESULTS:
Attending: UCSD
Acceptances: UCSD ($), UBC ($$$)
Waitlists: U Mich (Withdrawn), UCLA (Withdrawn)
Withdrawn: BU, U Toronto
Rejections: UC Berkeley, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, NYU, Harvard, MIT, Brown, Cornell, Northwestern, Duke, UPenn, UMD College Park, NSF (Honorable Mention)
Comments:
Overall, I am very pleased with this result. Even though I had a lot of rejections (and that was hard), you only need one good admit, and I am extremely excited about UCSD. I applied to all of the top ten on the advice of my undergrad advisor, but I knew that cracking the top ten was a long shot.
The best thing I did was apply for the NSF GRFP. The application process, and particularly the process of developing a research proposal, really helped me crystallize my objectives and research interests, and I believe the experience made my SOPs that much stronger.
Taking my choice of undergrad institution, GPA, GRE, and work experience as given, there isn't much I would have done differently. However, writing the SOPs took me much, much longer than I expected. If I could do it again, I would start drafting SOPs over the summer.
A note about my LORs: a lot of people say that LORs from non-economists are useless. But I decided to go with an letter of recommendation from an epidemiologist who is extremely well know both within and outside her field, knows me really well, has a good sense for my research ability, and wrote me a glowing recommendation. I believe that if they are relevant to your research interests, LORs from disciplines that are close to econ, such as math, poli sci, or epidemiology, can be acceptable, and may even be preferable to letters from econ profs who barely know you.
I'm so glad the waiting is over!

Economics Dude 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: B.S.B.A. Economics from Top 15 public, Top 50 Econ (considered public Ivy for whatever that's worth)
Undergrad GPA: 3.94/4 (Summa cum laude - Won Outstanding Scholar Award, sort of equivalent to Valedictorian)
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA:
GRE: 800Q/630V/4.5AWA (Not a native speaker of English)
Math Courses: Calc sequence, Sets and Logic (Intro to proofs), Diff Eq, Linear Algebra, Intro to Prob, Intro to Stats Theory, Regression Analysis, Advanced Calc, Modern Analysis (All A's, no A+ at my school, except for 1 B+ on the easiest class, Diff Eq.)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro Theory
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Usual stuff plus Empirical Research seminar (All A's)
Other Courses: AEA Summer Training Program: Econometrics, Micro Theory, Applied Micro, Research - 5 A's 2 A+'s and 1 A- (Only 3 professors gave A+'s - I missed one)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 director of AEASTP (Ph.D. Chicago), 1 professor (Ph.D. Chicago), 1 professor and current boss (Ph.D. Yale), 1 professor and current boss (Ph.D. Florida). Should all be strong. My office is on the same hallway as virtually all econ professors. I run into them every day and chat with them often (usually about random things besides econ, though).
Research Experience: RA'ed as an undergrad. Won a grant to conduct research as undergrad. Presented replication and extension of a paper at the AEASTP. Currently work as a Associate Research Economist at a research center in the university where I got my degree from.
Teaching Experience: TA'ed for almost 2 years for 1 introductory and 1 intermediate econ course.
Research Interests: Labor, Econometrics, Public Econ/Choice.
SOP: Long (about 2 pages).
RESULTS:
NSF Honorable Mention
Acceptances: Duke MA(some $),BU (no 1yr$), BC($$), UT-Austin ($$), Rochester($$$), UCSD($)
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Berkeley, NYU, Columbia, Cornell, Brown, and Michigan.
Attending: UCSD
What would you have done differently?
I guess I could have moved to the US for high school and gone to a better undergrad institution, but I was having too much fun in Brazil at the time. I guess I could also have had more math (isn't that almost always the case?) In any case, I will be attending one of my top choices, which also happens to be right by the ocean.. I couldn't ask for much more.

ggoofer 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Econ, Math at Non-HYP Ivy
Undergrad GPA: 3.89 overall, 3.94 Math, 3.97 Econ (out of 4)
GRE: 790 Q, 660 V, 4.5 AWA
Math Courses (undergrad level): Baby Linear Algebra (A+), Multivariable Calc (A), Honors Analysis (A), Linear Algebra (A-), Honors Algebra (A-), Topology (A), Stochastic Processes (A+)
Math Courses (grad level): Measure Theory (A+), Applied Functional Analysis (A), Algebra (A), Probability (A), Topics in Group Theory (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad level): Intermediate Micro (A), Intermediate Macro (A), Prob & Stat (A+), Intro to Econometrics (A+), Money and Banking (A-), Financial Economics (A+), Game Theory (A), Intertemporal Economics (A+), Trade (A+)
Econ Courses (grad level): Micro I (A), Micro II (A), Decision Theory II (A+), Contract Theory (in prog)
Other Courses: Stochastic Calculus for Finance (A-)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 econ, 1 math. I know these people well. Expecting strong letters.
Research Experience: Econ, none worth mentioning. Spent a summer working on finite group theory with a math prof here. Learned how much I hate group theory.
Teaching Experience: TAing is not allowed. I have done a lot of tutoring for the department since sophomore year.
Research Interests: Micro theory topics
SOP: Weak. Did not spend much time.
RESULTS:
Attending: Northwestern
Acceptances: Northwestern ($$$$), Berkeley ($$), Princeton ($$$), Yale ($$$$), UMN ($), Cornell ($$$)
Rejections: MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Penn, Chicago
What would you have done differently? Not much really. Very happy with my results. I should have spent more time on my SOP probably. Wish I could have gotten econ research in somehow, but it is borderline impossible to get anything that is not applied/data monkey work (and any theory stuff you do yourself e.g. for thesis most likely sucks). Also would have stopped taking undergrad econ courses a lot sooner. Most are a waste of time.

urray 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA, Major Economics, Minor Mathematics one of the top schools in Middle East
Undergrad GPA: 3.7/4
Type of Grad: MA Economics, same university
Grad GPA: 3.85 /4
GRE: 790Q, 600V, 4.5AW
TOEFL:116/120
Math Courses: UG Level: Calculus Sequence, Linear Algebra, Probability, Statistics, Discrete Mathematics
Grad Level: Real Analysis, Measure Theory, Stochastic Calculus, Abstract Algebra
Econ Courses (grad-level): Micro I-II (Taken at senior year in UG), Matching and Auction Theory (Taken at senior year in UG), Macro I-II, Metrics I-II, Advanced Topics in Macro Theory, Advanced Topics in Game Theory
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Way too many to list.
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Minnesota PhD, 1 Rochester PhD, 1 BU PhD, all should be very good,
Research Experience: Co-authoring a paper with one of the letter of recommendation writers, which had incredibly good feedback from a few conferences, going to submit it pretty soon.
Teaching Experience: 8 semester of TA for a variety of classes, (intro to Micro, intro to Game Theory, etc.) Instructed the math camp for incoming graduate students at our university.
Research Interests: Game Theory
SOP: Pretty standard, I actually forgot to change the phrase "university X" to the name of the university in a few cases
Concerns: My GPA in the first two-years in undergrad where I took the majority of the ug level math courses was lowish (around 3.4) Got a C+ plus from linear algebra as I had to skip an exam due to a medical condition(did not mention the reason in my sop), 790Q in GRE
RESULTS:
Acceptances: NYU, Kellogg Mecs, Minnesota, Michigan, Caltech, CMU, Boston U, Rochester, JHU, WL from WUSTL
Rejections: Yale, Brown, Columbia GSB
COMMENTS:
I decided to do a PhD only around my junior year or so, I wasn't even actually planning to study economics when I entered university. I did pretty stupid things in my first two years, I think my overall attendance was around %10 or so of the classes, entered some exams after night-outs without sleeping etc. On the other hand I took quite a bit of grad courses in my last two years as an undergraduate, as a result I had a chance focus on research on my masters. I actually came up with my own idea for the current paper we are writing pretty early in my masters. Then again due to a death in the family I couldn't get it published before the admission season started, hence didn't bother to apply to top 5. In retrospect, I think I should have given it a shot. And if I had the opportunity I would slap my younger self for my behavior in my first two-years.

philecon 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BS Business Economics, relatively unknown university in Southeast Asia
Undergrad GPA: no idea how to convert it, but I graduated magna cum laude (Rank: 7/150)
GRE: 800Q, 590V, 5.0AW
TOEFL:112/120
Math Courses: Calc I-III, Abstract Algebra, Linear Algebra, Real Analysis and Math Stats
Econ Courses: the standard Econ courses, nothing special
Letters of Recommendation: 1 Northwestern PhD, 1 Ohio State PhD, 1 PhD from my uni
Research Experience: undergrad thesis (won an award, forthcoming in local journal), RA for six months
Research Interests: Health Economics, Industrial Organization
SOP: Pretty standard
Concerns: I shifted from Accounting to Economics, and I took a leave for a year to take a break; first to apply as an undergrad from my school (never been done ever)
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Georgetown, LSE EME, BGSE MS Economics, CEMFI MSc Economics and Finance, PSU (from waitlist)
Waitlists: PSU (eventually admitted, but without funding), Michigan (rejected off the WL though)
Rejections: Northwestern, Columbia, Brown, Penn, Virginia, Stanford, Duke, Singapore Management
COMMENTS:
I wasn't an economics major when I entered college, and I left school for a year after sophomore year (since something happened to me) to evaluate myself, and the direction I was going. I accidentally stumbled upon economics, and I found out that I loved it. Like the previous poster, however, I decided to do a PhD only around my junior year, so I had to cram a lot of math during my last two years, plus take the economics classes. I knew it was a huge risk, applying with only an undergrad degree, as most students from my university had at least a year of graduate coursework before applying to even European masters. I am very pleased with my results, though, and I look forward to attending the program that I chose. The only things that I probably would've done differently are: (1) I would've probably majored in math when I first thought about it (since my Math average is significantly higher than my Business average), or that I would've done my undergrad in the US when I had the chance and (2) I would've probably applied to mainly masters programs.
I guess I'll be back again for Fall 2013 PhD admissions.

ryanmagic 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Rank 3 University in China (Fudan), B.A. of econonmics, with one semester exchange experience in UC Davis.
Undergrad GPA: 3.57 in Fudan, top 10%; 4.0 in UC Davis (courses with * below).
Type of Grad: N/A.
Grad GPA: N/A.
GRE: 800Q 540V 3.0 AWA, TOEFL 105.
Math Courses: Advanced Math (differential calculus, integrals, a little differential equations)(B&A-), Linear Algebra(B+), Probability Theory(A), Statistics(A-).
Econ Courses (grad-level): N/A.
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Political Economics(A), Micro(A), Macro(B+), International Trade(B+), History of Economic Thoughts(A), Econometrics(A+*), Macro Development(A*), Money and Banking(A+*), Financial Management(A-), Industrial Economics(A), Investment(B), Economic History of China(A), Accounting(B), Contemporary Chinese Economy(B+), Theory on Capital(C+).
Other Courses: C programming(A).
Letters of Recommendation: 2 from UC Davis, 1 from Fudan.
Research Experience: RA for a term, one independent project and one team project in progress.
Teaching Experience: Representative for a course.
Research Interests: Labor, Development, IO.
SOP: So so.
Other: Awarded the National Scholarship in China (for top 1tudents).
RESULTS:
Acceptances: BU MA, UC Davis ARE MS.
Waitlists:
Rejections: Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Northwestern, UPenn, Columbia, NYU, Cornell, Duke, CMU, Rochester, Maryland, Berkeley AREC, BU, JHU, UC Davis, Georgetown, U Colorado - Boulder, UC Davis ARE PhD.
Pending: Syracuse, Columbia QMSS.
What would you have done differently?
I would apply to Canadian master programs, Duke master and Tufts master.

huxleyms 2011:
Type of Undergrad: Economics + Applied Math, top15 econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.77/4.00
GRE: 800Q 620V 4.0AW
Math Courses: Calc(B+,A-,A+), Vector Calc (A+), Linear Algebra(A), Applied Linear Algebra(B), ODE(B+), PDE(B), Complex Analysis(B), Probability(B), Math Reasoning(A), Real Analysis(B+,A-), Numerical Analysis(A,A,A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Microeconomics(A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intro Environmental Economics(A, different uni), Intro Microeconomics (A+), Intro Macroeconomics(A), Intermediate Microeconomics (A,A-,B+), Intermediate Macroeconomics(A,A-), Enterprise Finance(A), Financial Markets(A), Econometrics(A,A), Economic Growth(A), Decisions Under Uncertainty(A+)
Other Courses: C/C++(A), Java(A-), honors sections(all A's)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 MIT PhD (took small classes, honors section), 1 Yale PhD (comp. econometrics project), 1 UCLA math PhD (ODE/LA tutor, took classes w/projects )
Research Experience: nothing formal, just independent work in honors sections
Teaching Experience: matlab tutor, mock trial captain?
Research Interests: everything
SOP: long
Concerns: Lots of B's in math, wondering how many an A in grad micro can outweigh, low AWA score. Lack of research experience.
Other: Expect high variance
Results:
Rejected: Chicago, Yale, UPenn, Columbia, NYU, Caltech, Brown, Cornell, Johns Hopkins
Accepted: UCSD, Carnegie Mellon, UTexas, UVA
Would do differently: I would have taken fewer math classes and tried to do more economic research. Also, I should have gotten better grades. Overall, I am very happy with my outcome.

noa 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Economics, specialized in Quantitative Econ (basically lots of Econometrics) from unranked European Univ
Undergrad GPA: 9.27/10 (top of 300+ class)
Type of Grad: One year Master in Economics from the same uni (taking it now)
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q 660V ?A
Math Courses: linear algebra, topology, calc and advance calc, real analysis, matrix algebra, linear and non-linear programming (all A+ save for linear algebra, A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): macroeconomics, microeconomics, quant methods, energy markets, labor markets, monetary markets
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro I-IV, Macro I-IV, game theory, tons of Econometrics and Statistics courses (mostly As, a couple of Bs)
Other Courses: Some applied econ courses, business courses, operations research
Letters of Recommendation: Should be quite good, from teacher whose PhD is from Harvard, UPenn, SUNY, CEMFI, Stanford, and whose Post-Doc was from Berkeley, Princeton,... (I think asking for approx. 10 LORS is a lot so I'm splitting the work a bit)
Research Experience: TA/RA Scholarship for a semester, I wasn't allowed to do much however, university system in Spain is not flexible at all...
Teaching Experience: High School Math and English tutor
Research Interests: Applied Econometrics, Macroeconomics, Micro Theory
SOP: Not finished yet, hopefully decent
Concerns: Adcoms not knowing my uni, not knowing how to interpret grades, etc. Also I'll be applying as a US student but I have more of a Int'l profile (I have dual citizenship)
Other: Any suggestions welcome!
Applying to: assorted top 20 and some safeties, also applying for several RA positions

thewhiterabbit 2011:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: MIT, SB Economics, SB Political Science, LSE study abroad (General Course)
Undergrad GPA: 4.8/5.0 overall and across both majors (converts directly to 3.8/4.0). All 1st class marks on exams at LSE (4.0/4.0).
Type of Grad: n/a
Grad GPA: n/a
GRE: 790Q 660V ?AWA
Math Courses: Statistics (AP), Single Variable Calculus (AP BC), Multivariable Calculus (P under P/no record - mandatory for first term), Principles of Econometrics (LSE advanced intro course, known in UK to be very hard, 1st/A), Differential Equations (credit by advanced standing, B), Linear Algebra (audited), Introduction to Analysis (pending, ~60hance A, 40hance B)
Econ Courses (grad-level): International Economics I (A), Politics and Economics (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate Micro (grad Varian, A), Game Theory (A), Intermediate Macro (B), Econ Research (A), Public Economics (LSE: 1st/A), Development (A), Principles of Micro (B), Principles of Macro (A)
Other Courses: Political Science degree, French concentration
Letters of Recommendation: 3 very recognizable names in my field. They all mentor the very top students regularly (since I'm at MIT) so it is somewhat hard for me to gauge strength of two of them. (I feel a little like a medium sized fish in a big pond)
Research Experience: Oodles: part time RA all through undergrad, full time RA since 2007. ~2 years field work. Speak Indonesian fluently. No journal publications. AAA+ Stata programmer. Best thesis award for political science thesis.
Teaching Experience: After school teacher for middle schoolers, test prep.
Research Interests: Development, behavioral, health
SOP: Have a lot of material to work with, will condense three NSF essays
Concerns: The obvious, math preparation. That I haven't had the chance to coauthor (just hasn't been an option) but some other people in RA jobs do. That I've been out of school longer than most people similar to me.
Other: I've done some cool work in technology innovation that is somewhat relevant to economics and which I wrote about for NSF. I'm really happy with my NSF app (and have been told by profs who are historically very honest with me that it was good).
Applying to:
Funding: NSF
Econ: MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, NYU, Chicago, LSE, Columbia, Brown, UCLA, Caltech, UCSD, Oxford, BU, UMD, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, UCL, Georgetown, BC
Other: Berkeley (ARE), Stanford (GSB), Chicago (GSB), Harvard (Public Policy), HSPH Economics

riskaverse 2011:
Type of Undergrad: B.Sc. Economics at Top10 South American university; B.A. International Relations (not the same university as Economics)
Undergrad GPA: 7.5/10 for Economics (Top 5%); 8.46/10 for International Relations
Type of Grad: M.A. Economics at Top10 South American university (not the same as undergrad).
Grad GPA: 7.98/10
GRE: 800Q/540V/4.0A (2nd try)
Math Courses (undergrad): Calculus I and II
Math Courses (grad): Real Analysis, Measure Theory, Linear Algebra (audit)
Econ Courses (undergrad): a lot of them
Econ Courses (grad): Micro Theory I to IV (entire MWG), Macro Theory I to III, Econometrics, Microeconometrics, Corporate Finance, Empirical Microeconomics, Mathematical Economics I and II (some chapters of Stokey&Lucas).
Other Courses: lots of them too because of International Relations
Letters of Recommendation: A total of 4 letters, all from my MA professors. I think all of them like me, but I'm pretty unsure about the strenght of the letters. Two of them are somewhat well known, specially in their fields. I sent the letter from my advisor to all universities and rotated among the other recommenders.
Research Experience: My MA Dissertation. I have some works from undergrad published (co-authored), but not in academic journals (they were mainly directed to policy makers in my country - only one of them written in English).
Teaching Experience: TA for Microeconomic Theory II and Statistics II at the graduate level; TA for International Finance and IO in MBA courses; TA for Micro and Trade for undergrads.
Research Interests: Microeconomics, Contract Theory, Corporate Finance
SOP: very honest. I liked it in the end.
Other: TOEFL 106, but a low grade in the speaking portion. Although I applied to all parts of the US, I have very strong personal reasons for wanting to be in the East Coast.
Concerns: my first GRE try was a disaster, the second try was in December 2010, which made me really afraid of my results getting to the universities very late. My profile seems sometimes a Frankstein for me and I'm really concerned about my letters of recommendation. I don't have the minimum score for the TOEFL speaking portion that many universities require. I'm not the strongest applicant from my country this year, which makes me very pessimist about my dream schools. Also, I worked some time before entering my MA, so I'm kind of older I think... well, lots of concerns!

Econ1012011 2011:
Type of Undergrad: Top 5 U.S. Liberal Arts College. Well-respected Econ Dept but some difficulty placing people into PhDs in recent years, perhaps b/c of lack of grad classes to take and failure to keep pace with big U.S. universities and foreign universities in their emphasis on math in undergrad econ curriculum.
Undergrad GPA: 3.9/4.0
Type of Grad: M.Sc., top ten European program. 1 year of coursework, no thesis, didn't do as much of the PhD core theory sequence as I should have.
Grad GPA: 8.4/10.
GRE: 800 Q / 800 V / 6.0 W (native English speaker)
Math Courses: Calc I and II (AP credit from high school), Calc III mini course (A, at my undergrad institution), Calc III (A-, taken after my B.A. at so-so university #1, not known for econ or math, approx. rank 50), Linear Algebra I (A, taken after my B.A. at so-so university #2, not known for math, approx. rank 80), Math for Econ (A-, post-B.A., masters-level but taken at so-so university #2), Intro to Sets and Proofs and Stuff (A, taken post-M.Sc. at so-so university #1), Ordinary Differential Equations (A-, post-M.Sc., so-so university #1), Real Analysis I (A-, post-M.Sc., so-so university #1; taken fall 2010, some schools didn't allow submission of fall grades), Mathematical Statistics (B+, post-M.Sc., graduate level, so-so university #1, ditto on fall grades.) In progress: Real Analysis II, Mathematical Statistics II.
Econ Courses (grad-level): Did masters in econ. Didn't do PhD-level micro (the Mas-Colell textbook), did mostly masters-level stuff. Did PhD macro, applied micro, applied econometrics, and six standard electives (e.g. labor, public).
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Full major, 3.9/4.0. Did the most advanced international econ, development econ, and econometrics. Didn't do the most advanced micro and macro theory. Econometrics grades somewhat erratic (Intro: A+. Intermediate: B. Advanced: A-.)
Other Courses: Basic Latex, Matlab, and Maple class during Spring 2011 so no grade on transcript.
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from masters who knows I wasn't the best student in the class (Princeton PhD), 1 from undergrad who adores me but didn't teach me any advanced stuff (MIT PhD), 1 former boss who is a PhD economist but not an academic (Columbia PhD).
Research Experience: One summer RA in college doing non-quant stuff, 2 years at a relatively well respected think tank (but it's not academia for sure), 3 years in research department at international organization (very applied, far from academia).
Teaching Experience: TA'ed intermediate micro and macro early in undergrad career, nothing since then.
Research Interests: international, macro labor, environment (not the most coherent storyline).
SOP: Pretty decent (this is a skill of U.S.-trained applicants, I think), but I may have expressed interest in too many different things. Was careful to mention that I know who is doing what in areas I was interested in within each department to show I was paying attention.
Concerns: Most are mentioned throughout up above. Main ones: 1. My math might look like an afterthought, and my grades are in the A- average range, not As. 2. I'm old. Too many years away from school hurts you. 3. I don't come across as focused on a coherent set of topics / tools. 4. I wasn't a rock star at my masters. Solid, but not a rock star, as I hadn't done the needed math yet when I entered that program.
Other: My list of schools is a bit odd, because I have geographic constraints (the result of being older). Also applied to a few law schools as back up, and got offer of full funding at a top school, so I have options if I don't get funding at an econ program.
Applying to: Already Rejected Yale. Still waiting (in geographic order) Harvard, MIT, Columbia, NYU, Princeton, U Penn, Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland, Georgetown, Duke, University of Michigan, University of Washington.

s1391470 2011:
Type of Undergrad: B.Sc. Comp Sci, B.Sc. Mathematics (Average Canadian Uni)
Undergrad GPA: 8.9/10 (Comp Sci), 8.7/10 (Math)
Type of Grad: MBA - Top Canadian Program, M.A. Econ (Average Canadian Uni)
Grad GPA: 3.8/4 (MBA), 4.25/4.33 (Econ).
Other Education: CFA
GRE: 800 Q / 720 V / 6.0 W (native English speaker)
Math Courses: Calc I, II, III (A), Real Analysis (A), ODE (A-), Probability (A), Stats (A), Complex Analysis (B+), Linear Algebra (A)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Macro, Micro, Econometrics, Finance, International Trade, Environment, Public Policy, Labour Economics,
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Micro, Macro
Other Courses: During MBA, Game Theory and Micro/Macro
Letters of Recommendation: 4 from M.A. econ. 2 Minnesota Grads, 1 Queens Grad, 1 Toronto Grad
Research Experience: Patent, Masters Thesis, R.A. in Econ and Comp. Sci
Teaching Experience: TA'ed bunch of courses
Work Experience: Nearly 10 years in a variety of roles in technology and finance
Research Interests: international trade and development
SOP: Pretty strong, I think.
Concerns: I have some pretty poor grades in upper level math courses (not listed) including several Cs. However, in my SoP I mentioned how I was working full time while completing this degree, and how my patent is directly related to my math degree (it is related to obfuscation/encryption and group theory).
Other: I'll be 35 when I start my PhD, so I'm a bit older than the average grad student.
Applying to: Columbia, NYU, U Penn, Minnesota, University of Michigan, Brown, Cornell, Wisconsin (Missed funding date), Cornell, Queen's, Toronto, Carnegie Mellon

illuminatus 2011:
Type of Undergrad: BSc in math from a regular less known Midwest university
Undergrad GPA: 3.95
Type of Grad: MA in Econ
Grad GPA: 3.95
GRE: 560V / 800Q / 4.0 awa
Math Courses: lots, grad level: RA, CA, differential geometry, optimization (1st course, so not too rigorous), categorical data analysis, Bayesian statistics.
Econ Courses (grad-level): econometrics, time series, microeconometrics, micro theory, macro theory, forecasting,
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): basic and intermediate theory and econometrics
Letters of Recommendation: 3 from econ ans 1 from a math less known professors. All of them are probably pretty good.
Research Experience: senior thesis, masters thesis
Teaching Experience: TA for 1.5 years
Research Interests: macro, development, econometrics
SOP: standard 1.5 pages.
Concerns: not a lot of experience in research and teaching. (partly concerned about low verbal and awa scores on GRE).
Other: I have a pretty high credit score.
Applying to: LSE MSc EME (2nd year), Oxford Mphil, Toulouse 2nd year ECOMATH, BGSE Masters in econ. PhD in econ: Minnesota - Twin Cities, Columbia, Northwestern, UMich, Wisconsin - Madison, U Washington, UCSD, U Toronto.

Exodus 2011:
Institution: Yale
Program: Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: yeah, right..
Notification date: Feb 16
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: nope
Comments: Nothing surprising... I never had a date with a supermodel either..
11 more to go!!

thirty 2011:
Institution: Yale
Program: Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: Feb 16
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: no
Comments: Started thinking about applying next year if I don't get any offer.

lostworld21 2011:
Institution: Yale
Program: Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: Obviously not
Notification date: Feb 17
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: nope
Comments: 8 more .. chances seem to have dwindled greatly!

kida 2011:
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: rejected
Funding: -
Notification date: 02/16/2011
Notified through: email to check site
Posted on GF: no
Comments: sad to start with rejection..
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: accepted
Funding: yes
Notification date: 02/22/2011
Notified through: email to check site (yesterday department also sent email with funding details)
Posted on GF: no
Comments: soooo happy
Institution: Northwestern
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: accepted
Funding: yes /edit: called them and apparently my first email with details on funding got lost... /
Notification date: 02/23/2011
Notified through: no notification, checked site after seeing post here
Posted on GF: no
Comments: yay!

growth 2011:
Institution: UPenn
Program: Phd in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: Website
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Expected result. I still don't know why I applied there in the first place.
Institution: LSE
Program: MSc Economics (research)
Decision: Accepted (conditional offer)
Funding: No
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Happy but I can't fulfill all the conditions. Have to negotiate with the admittion committee.

ahasuerus 2011:
Institution: University of Pennsylvania
Program: Ph.D. in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: n/a
Notification date: February 24, 2011
Notified through: website - I checked after seeing the rejections on this forum
Posted on GC: no

Pinkee 2011:
My apology for posting late too.
Institution: Penn State
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Full fellowship
Notification date: really early
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comment: One of the earliest decisions.
Institution: UC Berkeley
Program: PhD in ARE
Decision: Recommended for admission
Funding: Nominated for competition
Notification date: 02/04/2011
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comment: Email saying a more formal letter would follow, but haven't received it yet.
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/16/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: No
Comment: My top choice, perfect match for my research interests (development and political economy). I thought I had a shot, but got to know the sad result about a week before the official notification, so kinda prepared for it.
Institution: Stanford GSB
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/18/2011
Notified through: Email to check website
Posted on GC: No
Comment: Super long shot. I actually regret applying...
Institution: Penn - Wharton
Program: PhD in Applied Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 02/22/2011
Notified through: Email to check the website
Posted on GC: No
Comment: I think my research interests do not really match.
Institution: Penn
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: Waitlisted
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comment: One of my top choices. Hoping for the best.

econfin2011 2011:
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: n/a
Notification date: 02/16/2011
Notified through: email to check letter on the website
Posted on GC: no
Comment: First result. First rejection. This hurts!
Institution: UC Davis
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: to be decided before the end of march.
Notification date: 02/17/2011 (unofficial) and 02/28/2011 (official)
Notified through: unnoficial email (at first) and then email to check letter on the website
Posted on GC: no
Comment: First acceptance! Feels good not to be rejected...
Institution: Arizona State University
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 5-year Assistantship (TA/RA) + insurance
Notification date: 02/22/2011
Notified through: email
Posted on GC: no
Comment: My two safeties worked out. Hoping for a TOP 20 offer now...
Institution: U Penn
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: n/a
Notification date: 02/24/2011
Notified through: email to check letter on the website
Posted on GC: no
Comment:
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejected
Funding: n/a
Notification date: 02/28/2011
Notified through: email to check letter on the website
Posted on GC: no
Comment: Hurts so much! I really liked their department...
Waiting for more 14 results...

fexical 2011:
Institution: USC
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Accepted
Funding: 1 year fellowship, 4 year graduate assistanship
Notification date: 3/2/2011
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: No
Comments: Yay

Milo2010 2011:
Rejections:
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 2/16/11
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF:
Comments:
Institution: UPenn
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 2/24/11
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF:
Comments: A bit shaken, as this is the second reject.
Institution: UC Berkeley
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 3/2/11
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF:
Comments: As expected. Been told that we tend not to take our own undergrads.
Institution: Northwestern
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 3/4/11
Notified through: Checked the website.
Posted on GF:
Comments:
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 3/6/11
Notified through: Mail
Posted on GF:
Comments: The most painful reject thus far. I was hoping not to leave the Bay Area.
Institution: MIT
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Rejection
Funding: -
Notification date: 3/7/11
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF:
Comments: Very much expected. It was a long shot anyways.
Admits:
Institution: UCLA
Program: PhD Economics
Decision: Acceptance
Funding: No first year funding.
Notification date: 3/2/11
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GF:
Comments: Really not thrilled with the "no first-year funding" part.

marginalised 2011:
Institution: MIT
Program: Economics PhD
Decision: Rejected
Funding: N/A
Notification date: 3/7/2011
Notified through: Email
Posted on GC: No
Comments:

oikomaniac 2011:
I am a new member. My results below (all funded offers):
Institution: Stanford GSB
Program: PhD in Finance
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Yale
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Duke
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Northwestern
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Harvard
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Maryland
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: MIT
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Stanford
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Chicago
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes
Institution: Columbia
Program: PhD in Economics
Decision: Accepted
Notified through: E-mail
Posted on GC: yes

MathEcon12 2012:
Since it seems like the season is coming to an end for some TMers, and because last year's thread was also started on the second Saturday of March, I think it's a good time to get the annual Profile and Results Thread started.
I'll take a page out of Italos' playbook and quote asquare's post from the 2009 thread:
"This thread is meant to be a reference thread only. Please fill out the information below, but post any comments or questions in a separate thread. Other comments will be deleted from this thread. Note that you can only edit your posts for about one hour after you make them. This means that if you are still waiting on admissions decisions, you should wait to post your profile on this thread. Otherwise, your profile will be incomplete."
Without further ado,
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad:
Undergrad GPA:
Type of Grad:
Grad GPA:
GRE:
Math Courses:
Econ Courses:
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation:
Research Experience:
Teaching Experience:
Research Interests:
SOP:
Other:
RESULTS:
Acceptances:
Waitlists:
Rejections:
Pending:
What would you have done differently?

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.

Econfan 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Economics from a top 10 liberal arts college
Undergrad GPA: 3.53 (3.1 freshman year, 3.8 sophomore-senior years)
Type of Grad: Non-degree math coursework at a top 10 math department
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 790 Q, 670 V, 4.5 AW (New Scoring: 164 Q, 164 V)
Math Courses: Undergrad: Calc II electives (C+/B), Linear Algebra (B), Calc III (A), Diff Eq (A), Analysis (B), Bridge to Advanced Math (A-), Probability (B+) Grad: Probability (A-), Linear Algebra (B)
Econ Courses: Econ Principals (A-), Intro Macro (A), Intermediate Macro (A-), Econ Stats (A-), Intermediate Micro (A), Intro Econometrics (A), International Econ (A), Advanced Macro (A), Thesis (A-/A), Advanced Econometrics (A), Advanced Micro (W)
Letters of Recommendation: 2 economics professors from undergrad, one of whom I was very close with (RAed, TAed, thesis adviser); economics professor at a top 50 econ department who's active in research (top 50r something on IDEAS)
Research Experience: RA for two summers for a professor in college doing labor research; senior thesis; worked for 3 years at a top econ consulting firm after graduation
Teaching Experience: TAed for Intro Macro and Intro Econometrics during undergrad
Research Interests: IO, ???
SOP: Pretty standard; I didn't personalize it by department.
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wisconsin ($), UT-Austin ($)
Waitlists: UVA (withdrew)
Rejections: Penn, Northwestern, Duke, NYU, Columbia, Maryland, Brown, Michigan, Wharton (after interview), Cornell
Attending: Wisconsin!!
There were plenty of things I would have done differently (not withdrawing from advanced micro, not taking analysis while taking 5 classes, working 2 jobs, and interviewing for jobs senior year), but there is one thing I definitely wouldn't have done differently. I made the decision to take a consulting job over a job at the Fed after college, knowing that it wouldn't be as good for my application, because it felt like a better fit. It turned out to in fact be a great fit for me, and I've grown from the experience in a lot of ways that have made me better prepared for grad school. My advice from this is that you should definitely make sure you have everything you need to get into grad school (math, research, etc.), but you shouldn't base all of your decisions on getting into grad school, because it may be the thing you do that doesn't help your resume that may indirectly make you better a better student in grad school or a better researcher later in life.
Despite the painfulness of the process, I'm very happy with the end result. I can't say there weren't times when I wished I'd never heard of this forum (for example, when I was neurotically checking posts at 2 am), but I'm glad this great group of people was hear to take away some of the pain from the horror that is economics phd applications.

laca 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA Econ from top 10 US, top 5 econ
Undergrad GPA: 3.77/4.00
Type of Grad:
Grad GPA:
GRE: 800Q 690V 4.0AWA
Math Courses: Honors Calculus I-III (A,B-,A), Real Analysis I-III (A-,B+A-), Math Probability (A-), Stat Methods/Theory (A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Price Theory I (B), Social Interactions and Inequality (A)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate micro (A-,A), intermediate macro (A,A-), game theory (A-), IO (A), honors metrics I-II (B+, A), macro modeling (B+), reading/research (A,A)
Other Courses:
Letters of Recommendation: 1 econ, 1 finance, 1 accounting prof, all highly regarded in their field. I have RAd for at least a year for each, two of them have seen me in a classroom setting as well. Coauthored an unpublished working paper with two of them. They all reassured me that the letters would be strong.
Research Experience: 1 year undergrad RA, 1.5 year as full time researcher at highly ranked business school.
Teaching Experience: for a short while I tutored math to freshmen in college
Research Interests: applied micro
SOP: Nothing too exciting.
Concerns: Math grades could be stronger; GRE AWA could be better. Hoping that research experience and strong LORs will compensate for it.
Other: Some poli sci electives and required college core courses
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Chicago Booth finance ($$), Chicago ($), Stanford GSB political econ ($$), NYU Stern finance ($$), UCLA ($)
Waitlists:
Rejections: Berkeley, Brown, Columbia GSB finance and econ, Cornell, Harvard, Kellogg finance, MIT, NYU, Princeton, Stanford, Yale
Attending: Chicago Booth finance
What would you have done differently?
Overall, I am very happy with my results, although I was really not expecting the composition of the acceptances to be so tilted towards finance instead of econ - I originally applied with the expectation that I would end up at an econ program. I think that the take home point is that recommendations matter; having two biz school recs provided me with excellent results at other business schools, but possibly doomed my applications at econ departments. So in hindsight I should have added an additional econ recommender. I also wonder a bit if I somehow messed up my econ sop, despite the fact that I have much less familiarity with finance research topics.
However, I am quite excited to take a step outside of my comfort zone, and learn about a whole new field!

Blerg 2012:
Thanks, TM community for being such a valuable resource. I was a lurker, but I'll submit my results for posterity and such. All of the results below are what was put on my applications, i.e. the first 6 semesters of college.
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Flagship Public (Top 5 math, Top 10 econ)
Undergrad GPA: 3.63
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 800Q/680V/5AWA
Math Courses: Intro Bus. Stats (A-)/Calc III (B+)/Linear Algebra (B)/Discrete Math (A-)/Numerical Analysis (B)/Probability (A)/Intro to Analysis (B)/Linear Algebra (B+)/Stochastic Processes (A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro (A-)/Intermediate Macro (A)/Transition Economics (B-)/Mathematical Economics (A-)/Econometrics (A)/International Trade (A-)/Advanced Microeconomics (A)/Development (In Progress as of Fall)/International Monetary Econ (IP as of Fall)/Thesis (IP as of fall)
Other Courses: N/A
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from the guy who taught me mathematical economics/1 from a guy I was a RA for/ 1 from the guy who taught advanced micro, with whom I also wrote my thesis. All are well respected Microeconomists who are still publishing
Research Experience: Several semesters as RA for various profs, Was writing my thesis while applying
Teaching Experience: N/A
Research Interests: Development, Micro
SOP: Cookie cutter, nothing special at all
Other: I had been worried about that 1 really bad grade on an econ class, as well as my rather average grades in math classes
RESULTS:
Acceptances: UCSD (ATTENDING!) (full tuition, 25% TAship first year, 50% after), BU (Nothing first year, full tuition and ~18k TAship years 2-5)
Waitlists: UCLA (I asked to be removed)
Rejections: NYU, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Michigan, Penn, NW, Chicago, UCB, Columbia, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Cornell, Brown
Pending: N/A
What would you have done differently?
Let me count the ways...The main point would have just been doing better in classes. I don't know that I could have gotten A's in all of those classes, as the math department is very competitive and very bright, but I'm sure I could have bumped Bs up to B+s, etc. Writing a thesis was key, as I think it got my by far my best letter of rec. I also would have lowered my expectations, and applied to some lower ranked schools.
Regardless, I am ecstatic with my outcome. La Jolla is going to be glorious.

backtowork 2012:
Type of undergrad: BA in Econ and Math from non-HYP Ivy
Undergrad GPA: 3.94/4.00
GRE: 800Q/710V/5.0W
Math courses: honors calc (B), honors linear (A), honors ODE I and II (A, A), operations research (A), statistical inference (B), information theory (A), real analysis (A+), grad stochastic processes (A-)
Econ courses (all undergrad): intro (A), micro (A), macro (A), health (A), int'l (A), financial institutions (A), corp finance (A), honors econometrics (A), economic growth (A), theory of general equilibrium (A), public econ (A), Labor (1st-taken at an oxbridge), Political Econ (1st-taken at an oxbridge)
Other courses: mostly random poli-sci
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from my thesis adviser (not well known). 1 from my former boss as an intern at the Fed Board (pretty well known, but I only worked there for a couple months and he didn't know me all that well). 1 from my current boss at regional fed who is somewhat well known and knows me quite well.
Research Experience: thesis, a little RA work in UG, internship at the Fed BoG, currently an RA at a Fed Bank. No publications.
Teaching Experience: none
Research Interest: Macro, labor, IO, pretty much open to anything
SOP: eh
Other: elected phi beta kappa junior year, magna cum laude, honors;
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Penn (wl for funding, asked to be removed), UCLA ($$$), Princeton($$$)
Waitlists: Minnesota (asked to be removed)
Rejections: NYU, Harvard, HBS, MIT, Stanford, Stanford GSB, UC Berkeley, Yale, Northwestern, Chicago, Columbia,
Attending: Princeton!
What would you have done differently?
I would have decided during college that this is what I wanted to do and made an effort to work with some of the big name professors at my UG institution. I was very fortunate to get such favorable results without having done so. After going through the whole admissions process, it has become abundantly clear that it's all about the letters; not just what's in them, but also who writes them. Not that your letter writers have to be famous or anything, but they need to be well-connected. Looking at my admissions results, the process looks almost random (rejected from Columbia, accepted at Princeton?), but in fact my results were quite predictable; if one of my letter writers personally knew someone on the admissions committee, I was accepted. If they did not, I wasn't. Simple as that. So my advice to the next generation of applicants is the same that has been given all over this board: LETTERS ARE EVERYTHING! If I had followed that advice a little earlier, I might have cracked the Harvard/MIT barrier, but Im certainly not complaining!

chatlunatique 2012:
Type of undergrad: BA in Econ, minor in Math, from large public school in the midwest (top 60 econ)
Undergrad GPA: 3.85/4.00
GRE: 170 Q /160 V /6.0 AWA
Math courses: Multivariate calc (A), Vector calc (A), Diff EQ (A), Linear Algebra (A), Real Analysis (A+; taken at Ivy)
Econ courses: Econometrics I-II (A,A), Honors thesis (A), Financial econ (A), Trade (A), Development (A), Seminar in Monetary econ (A), Seminar in trade/devo (A), Statistical analysis (A), Intermediate Macro/Micro (A,C+), Intro Macro/Micro (A,A+)
Other courses: Some African studies, some French, others from across the humanities/social science spectrum
Letters of recommendation: 2 from professors who I have managed field research projects for in the past 2 years (I am co-authoring a paper with one; both are junior but fairly well known in their sub-fields and earned their PhDs from top programs). 1 from undergrad professor who I took two classes with and excelled.
Research experience: UG thesis; 6 months RA at a regional Fed; 2 years RA managing research projects in an African country; co-authoring paper with one of my current bosses.
Teaching experience: 2 semesters TA for Intro to Micro
Research interest: Development, IO, Personnel, Micro
SOP: Talked about my research interests and how they developed, and explained my grade trajectory.
Other: Phi Beta Kappa, Summa cum laude, econ departmental honors
RESULTS:
Acceptances: NSF ($$$$), HBS Bus-Ec ($$$$), Stanford ($$$$), LSE ($$$), Northwestern ($$$), UCSD ($$$), UCLA ($$$), Duke ($$), Michigan ($$), Maryland ($$)
Rejections: Harvard econ, MIT, Princeton, Yale, Stanford GSB, Chicago, Chicago GSB, Columbia, Columbia GSB, NYU, NYU Stern, Penn, Penn Wharton, UCL, Berkeley, Brown
Attending: HBS!
What would you have done differently?
Nothing? I’m thrilled with my acceptances, and managed to get into my top 2 choices, even with such high variance in outcomes. Above all else my results show that even with a shaky and unfocused first couple years of undergrad, it is possible to get into good programs. I did not take any math or serious econ courses until my fourth year of university, and ended up overcoming some poor early grades (including a C+ in intermediate micro) to finish strong in my last two years, and then go on to earn RA positions where I was able to work with top economists on research that fascinated me. Should be a fun few years ahead!

reddavies 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: BA/BS International Affairs and Economics, Math minor at top 50 U.S.
Undergrad GPA: 3.92
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: 168Q, 164V, 5.0AWA
Math Courses: Calc III (A), Linear Algebra (A), Intro to Proofs (A), Computing in Math (A), Math Finance (A), Real Analysis (A-), Math Stat I-II (A,A)
Econ Courses: Intermediate Micro (A), Game Theory (A), Economics of Crime (A), Money and Banking (A); Taken Abroad: Public (1st), Econometrics (1st), Dynamic Optimization (1st), International (1st), Advanced Macro (1st)
Other Courses: C/C++ (A), plus a bunch for my international affairs major that probably aren't relevant
Letters of Recommendation: two economics professors, one stat professors. Think they were okay.
Research Experience: one semester RA, the work wasn't very technical though
Teaching Experience: N/A
Research Interests: Applied Micro (education, crime, etc.)
SOP: okay, definitely could have been better
Other: Studied abroad for a year in the UK
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Duke ($$), Cornell ($$), UT Austin ($), Brown (no $)
Waitlists: Penn (eventually rejected off the list)
Rejections: NYU, Yale, Caltech, UCLA, Michigan, MIT, Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, Berkeley, UCSD, Northwestern
Attending: Duke!
What would you have done differently?
Hard to say. I'm really happy with my results. Personally, I wish I had dropped my international affairs major and done just econ and math, but I'm not sure that would have necessarily helped my profile. I went into the process thinking it was almost all about the math background you had, but I think more and more that your letters and research background count for a lot more. I think schools look at fit as well. The schools I got into seemed to fit me really well and a few that I thought I'd get into but didn't, turned out not to fit me all that well. Also, I wish I had been more active in finding research opportunities. My results might have been better if I took a year or two offer to work as an RA, but honestly I really want to move straight into the PhD and Duke is an amazing place with great placements so I'm really happy with how things turned out.

fina 2012:
PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad: Top Canadian School
Undergrad GPA: 4.25/4.33
Type of Grad: N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE: Q800/V770/AW5.0
Math Courses:Calculus I (A level), Calculus II (A+), Advanced Calculus I(aka honours vector calculus, A), Vector Calculus II(A), Matrix Algebra (A+), ODE (A+), RA I (A), Number Theory (A)
Econ Courses: Intro Micro&Macro (A level), Honours Intermediate Micro I&II (both A+), Honours Inter Macro I&II (A, A+), Maths for Econ (A+), Intro Econometrics (A), International Finance (A+), Environ Econ (A), Econ Transition (A-), Grad Econometrics (A+), Game Theory (A+), International Macro (A-), Trade Theory (A-), Market Structure [aka IO] (A+), Tax (A+)Other Courses: languages, literature classes, all A+
Letters of Recommendation: One from a young professor, one from well-known labour economist, one from well-know micro theorist, all know me well personally
Research Experience: Honours Thesis, senior research
Teaching Experience: tutor for intro and intermediate econ contracted by department; grader for maths
Research Interests: micro theory/IO/Policy
SOP: Standard
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Wisconsin($), UT Austin($), UCSD($), Minnesota($), Cornell($), Brown
Waitlists: Michigan, UPenn, CMU, NYU
Rejections: Yale, Princeton, Northwestern, Columbia
Pending: Toronto (what the hell....)
Attending: Wisconsin!!!

dbeef 2012:
Type of Undergrad: Top 10 US University, econ + math double major.
Undergrad GPA: 3.82 (3.83 econ, 3.58 math)
Type of Grad: 3 math field courses, and a masters/advanced undergrad micro theory course; additional econ field course at a top 10 program while working.
Grad GPA: 3.62
GRE: 163Q, 163V, 5.5AW
Math Courses: Random undergrad (calc, odes, etc... mostly As), Analysis (B), Algebra (B-), Probability theory (B+), Grad complex w/ some functional (A-), Other grad math (A,A-)
Econ Courses (grad-level): Labor (A), Micro(B-), Asset pricing (A-)
Econ Courses (undergrad-level): Intermediate micro and macro (A+,A+,A), metrics (A-), some other honors courses (As)
Other Courses: Some chem and physics + some businessy CS courses (As)
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from a well known econ professor I took a grad course with (top 1 0EAS ranking), 2 additional strong (hopefully?), detailed letters from fairly well known economists who observed me in a research setting (one regional fed economist and one thesis advisor), a 4th letter from a math professor I took grad courses from.
Research Experience: A ton. In econ: a few undergrad RAships (over 3.5 years), a solid undergrad honors paper, and 1.5 years as an RA at a regional Fed... a couple of published papers as a coauthor in decent field journals plus a few coauthored working papers, some policy papers, and a couple self-authored (under the guidance of my letter writers) working papers. Other: was part of a math/theoretical physics research team for a while and also did some material chemistry research as an undergrad.
Research Interests: Lots, but mainly labor, health, and theory.
SOP: Standard-ish with some sections individualized for each school.
Concerns: bad math grades and a marginal GRE score
Applying to: Chicago, Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, Penn, Wisconsin, Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, NSF
RESULTS:
Acceptances: Northwestern (wl $), Wisconsin ($$$$), Michigan ($$$$), NSF($$$$$), Penn (off wl post NSF)
Waitlists: Penn
Rejections: Chicago, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Berkeley, Columbia, NYU, Carnegie Mellon
Attending: Northwestern