Preparing for grad school

FAQ for graduate school applications

I suggest that first you check out the website of multiple PhD programs. Read about first year requirements, classes offered etc. In general, there is little variation among schools. Next, read their admission pages and follow their tips.

Below, I pasted the link for NYU, which I think has a FAQ section applicable to most schools, so you will be in good shape if you follow those tips. I also included a link to our admission page below, it is useful to see some school specific information.

You should be realistic in your school choices. If you are dedicated to apply to a PhD program, apply to multiple schools. Check out the ranking of econ departments and pick your target schools accordingly. 

ECON PhD information at NYU and UH

https://as.nyu.edu/departments/econ/graduate/phd/faqs.html

https://www.uh.edu/class/economics/graduate/faqs/

Advice on what an undergraduate research paper should look like

The good news is that you don't need to invent what an undergraduate research paper should look like. Check out examples!

There are several journals which specifically publish research works by undergraduate students. This selection will give you an understanding of the depth and complexity of a typical undergraduate research paper in economics. 

The American Economic Association lists these undergraduate journals with other useful resources for undergraduates (scroll down, middle of the page):

https://www.aeaweb.org/resources/students/undergrad-research

The links will lead you to the journal website where you can find the issues. For example, you can find all issues of Berkeley Economic Review here:

https://econreview.berkeley.edu/editions/

Before you decide to invest a lot of time in your own research project, learn more about RA positions or other undergrad research opportunities. I rarely advise undergraduate students on their own projects and I don't supervise any student before they take my class "Introduction to Economic Research". I will also discourage you from starting your own project without the right background. This is not necessary for applying to graduate school if you have other research experience. Doing your own research takes away valuable time from taking math classes and getting good grades in your classes - which are necessary for applying. 

More questions?

• Make an appointment with me here or ask other econ professors about research opportunities.

• Take my class, which has a 3-week RA portion, and where you will learn more about graduate work in economics.

Advice on how to talk to a professor / advisors about your research

• Before you decide to have a meeting about your research, read the above point about "what is undergraduate research." 

• Be prepared for the meeting.

• Before you send the email for an appointment, think about why you want to get the appointment.

• In the e-mail, be as specific as you can. For example, you would like to continue your research xy and you would like to get advice on how to find a dataset to do xy.

• Prepare supporting documents. For example, if you would like to get advice on a new data, summarize your research, write down the regression equation you would like to estimate / explain how you would like to use the data.

• Send all this material with the first email, or at least two days before your meeting.

• Never show up and just say “I would like to do research” or “I would like to apply for SURF”.

• Be on time. If you cannot make an appointment, cancel in advance. Professors have a busy schedule and sometimes scheduling a 30 minute appointment is a challenge.

• Professors may have different requests, they may ask you to send a meeting summary afterwards or prepare some materials before the next meeting happens etc. Follow the instructions.

Read more on this:

How to talk to your professor (UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN, Economics Department)

How to email a professor regarding research (University of California, Santa Cruz)

The Do’s and Don’ts of contacting professors about research (Ohio State University)

How to ask a professor for a recommendation letter 

[These are from https://gsb-faculty.stanford.edu/susan-athey/professional-advice/ ] 

Check the link for more on this.

• Don't request a reference from a professor if you were frequently tardy or absent from the class or did not receive a good grade.

• Ideally, choose someone who you've spoken to outside of the classroom—e.g., during office hours, or worked for as an RA, or someone who supervised your project etc.

• Respect people's schedules—if possible, request a reference letter several weeks in advance

• Provide your resume

• Include your personal statement

• Request a meeting

• Even if you already have a positive relationship with your professor, it's important to be tactful when asking for a recommendation. You need to keep in mind that professors teach a great number of students.

• You can help them to accomplish this by supplying some of this detail when you make your request. 

• Prepare a summary document that lists each course you took with the professor and references any papers or projects that you successfully completed. Include the grade for individual projects as well as the overall grade for the course.

Advice on your personal statement 

[These are from https://gsb-faculty.stanford.edu/susan-athey/professional-advice/ ] 

Check the link for more on this.

• It’s very important to write an essay saying what kinds of areas of economics you’re interested in, what questions you think are interesting, what papers you’ve read that you liked etc. Be as specific as possible. It may be helpful to discuss your thesis or research assistant work.

• Its not necessary to have a specific thesis proposal, and odds are if you try to pretend you have one when you really don’t you’ll come off as sounding naive which is a bad thing. 

• Mostly schools just read these to see what field you’re interested in and to get a sense whether you have any idea what you’re getting yourself into. You should therefore try to talk intelligently about your topic of interest to show that you understand something about what research in that field would be like.

Now let me add the obvious 

• Your personal statement should be about 1-2 pages, not a paragraph, and not 10 pages.

• Don’t start your letter by saying that economics has been your dream since you were five years old. (Btw, “since high school” is no better).

• Don’t start your letter with cliches like economics can change the world or similar.

• Your personal statement should reflect that you completed college, i.e. it should not read like a high school essay.

• You also need to demonstrate that you prepared for grad school during your college years, e.g., mention classes / projects you found important and based on those what is it that you are mostly interested in.

• This should include elements which demonstrate that you know what is a PhD program, and you are committed to it.

RA after college 

[These are from https://raguide.github.io ]

Check the link for more on this.

It is increasingly common in economics for people to work as a research assistant (RA) for a year or two after getting a bachelor’s or master’s degree, but before beginning a PhD program.

• Academic RAships are typically based at universities.

• Federal government RAships (in the U.S.) are generally at one of the 13 Federal Reserve locations, which are scattered across the country in major cities, or for agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or Treasury Department, which tend to be in D.C. Some state and local governments may also have RAs.

• NGO office-based RAships focused on development work, such as those at the World Bank or J-PAL, can take you anywhere in the world. These positions are often based at the NGO’s headquarters or at a university, but can also involve frequent travel “to the field” in the country your work is focused on.

• Think tanks, like the Brookings Institution and RAND, are another kind of non-profit that take on RAs. Many think tanks in the U.S. are based in Washington, DC.

Check the website for more on 

• Prior experience

https://raguide.github.io/reqs/experience

• Coursework

https://raguide.github.io/reqs/courses

• Technical skills

https://raguide.github.io/reqs/tech

• Here is a list of Undergraduate research opportunities

• This is a Coding example which tests whether you have enough coding skills to start working as an RA

Some resources to learn more about the economics PhD job market and careers 

• American Economic Association - A GUIDE AND ADVICE FOR ECONOMISTS ON THE U.S. JUNIOR ACADEMIC JOB MARKET 

• Stefan Staubli’s website. He is a professor at the University of Calgary and has an extensive collection of useful information on this topic.