<p>Hi,
I graduated from NYU last year majored in Mathematics and Economics. My major GPA is 3.1(is a joint major in Econ/Math) and overall gpa was horrible 3.0 but have 680/760/4.0 on GRE. I am now back in my home country working in family business. Hate working with my family and considering going back US for MA in Economics. I also have 3 repeated courses(even got F on stats in my freshman year) Will I have any chance for getting into top 20 schools for MA in Economics?</p>
<p>Thank you,</p>
<p>No idea about “top 20” schools, but I got into several top programs in my specialty (natural resources) with a 3.0 GPA and 800v/540q/5.0 GRE, so I would think you might have a shot.</p>
<p>Top 20 is unlikely. </p>
<p>GPA: 3.0-3.1 is a minimum range for most schools, and the vast majority of such students have something else big going for them (like an amazing research experience or LOR’s) or else have significant mitigating circumstances (like major illness). Since you have not mentioned such, it would seem that your GPA would almost immediately make you uncompetitive at those schools.</p>
<p>GRE: Good scores, but not great for your field. Econ departments are not going to care too much about your V & AW scores, and your 760Q is actually in the low to average range for top 20 schools. Plus, GRE is the least valued part of your application - even if your scores were perfect it would not really help you all that much. The only real effect that GRE’s have is negative, in the instance that your scores are unacceptably low.</p>
<p>Repeated Courses / F’s: Depends on the courses and when you took them, as well as their relevance to your intended research area. If they were early non-major courses they probably will not care. If they were senior-level econ classes, you are probably in trouble. It also depends a bit on what the second set of grades were - if you got an A they might forgive the earlier lapse, but if you just scraped by with a C you are probably sunk.</p>
<p>So it doesn’t look good, but you can never really tell until you apply - some people get in despite a seemingly weak app, while others are rejected over minutia. If your interests and background really suit a particular professor he or she might ignore the rest, provided you beat any departmental requirements.</p>