Hello! I’m currently preparing to apply for Fall 2019, and I would really appreciate some advice!
Program: Most likely, Economics or Applied Economics MA. I’m looking for a program which will 1. prepare me for an Econ PhD (at least a T100 program, I don’t need to work at a top-tier research institution) by making up for deficiencies in my undergrad experience and 2. Prepare me for a good policy focused job if I decide I’m not cut out for the PhD route after my Masters.
Schools Applying To: I’ll apply to the best schools I think I have a shot at. Something like the Duke MA is likely beyond my reach, but I’m looking strongly at the University of Minnesota MS in Applied Economics and similar programs.
Interests: I have some wide ranging interests, but urban and labor economics are particularly interesting to me
Undergrad Institution: No name liberal arts college (unfortunately)
Undergraduate GPA: 3.72
Undergraduate Major: Economics, Computer Information Systems
GRE: 170 V, 164 Q, 4.5 AWA (will take again if necessary, which I suspect it might be)
Quantitative Courses: Outside of the standard Econ courses (intermediate micro/macro and a basic statistics course, all of which were A’s or A-'s I believe), I also took econometrics and Calculus 1 and got an A in those. I know that’s inadequate, so I’m preparing for grad school by taking more math courses at the local U (University of Minnesota). Specifically, I plan on at least finishing the calc sequence and taking linear algebra, but hopefully I can do more than just that. I’m assuming I’ll get A’s or A-'s in those, because, well, I kind of have to.
Work Experience: 1 1/2 years as an Application Developer at a financial services company, and around half a year as a Business Intelligence Specialist at the same company (my current position). Probably not too helpful for my application, as it’s mostly reporting and pretty basic work with financial sales data, not any super interesting analysis or research.
Age: 24
Letters of Recommendation: Here’s where it gets dicey. I have 1, maaaaaybe 2 undergrad econ professors who I can get to write for me, but I didn’t really do much in the way of research in undergrad so they won’t be able to speak to that. I tutored for stats and for intro Econ courses, so one of the professors can mention that, but that’s about it (other than just saying I was a bright student). For my third letter, I’ll likely have to rely on a former manager, or a third professor who may or may not remember me well. And honestly, even the Econ professors who I’m counting on might not have that much to say (after all, I’ve been out of their class for a few years, and I don’t know how well they’ll remember me).
Concerns:
- Lack of research experience. This is probably my biggest weakness, and I have no idea how to remedy it. I'm not in undergrad anymore, I can't easily ask a professor for an RA job, and I also have responsibilities now (I'm getting married soon) which make it much more difficult to immediately upend and move across the country if that's what it takes. Not sure if my goals are achievable if I can't overcome this problem.
- Shabby letters of recommendation. Not much I can do about this, as it's tied to the first problem with research experience. Maybe if I'm lucky I'll hit it off with a professor at the U through these math courses who can write a letter as well, but I don't know that I can count on that
Any advice would be appreciated! I know I’m in kind of a rough spot, but I’m willing to make sacrifices if necessary to make this happen, and I don’t necessarily have to get into a top tier Masters program either, as long as it can still accomplish my goals. I still have a year to get ready to apply, so hopefully there’s hope for me.