09 Jun 2020

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Economics, PhD (F20)

Other via POST on 09 Jun 2020

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TPB. Application to any Econ / Appl. Econ / Ag. Econ PhD program is a stressful process by itself. Several different platforms, way too much time gone into filling forms and wiriting essays, and a lot of money may be spent in the process. Further stress may come if you have close friends and/or colleagues getting admitted, and you somehow feel "left behind"... But still, you shouldn't decline on your aspiration! Not everyone wants to purposely get themselves into such a rigorous deal as a PhD, so you have won a big first step by setting up your mind to go for it. Now, based on my experience (I have scores quite similar to yours, and got admitted this year--but was rejected last year) I could only give you these recommendations: [1] Choose well the universities you are willing to apply: Sometimes we wish for admission to a "dream school," but you might as well wonder whether it is a good fit for you aspirations as a future researcher. Beyond your interests, look for a place where you will receive attention and time from your professors, and where you are likely to receive funding. A PhD is essentially work and demands a lot of time and effort; you should be awarded for it. [2] Despite many others differ from me about this, and without trying to be repetitive, you should really prioritize the programs you are going to apply. From the first pool of programs you chose, make sure you have five of them where most of your effort will go to. It's better to make solid applications for a limited number programs were you see real odds of both getting admitted and growing as a researcher. This will help you to dedicate enough time to prepare your essays and make a robust case of what you can wait from each program, and on what can you bring there. [3] Try and evaluate the real quality of you recommendation letters. Make sure that those recommending you can provide both a good and thorough description of you abilities. It takes more than a "big name" for a recommendation letter--it's better to have someone who can give insights on your potential based on detailed knowledge of your work, instead of someone who is known as a good researcher but that may give a mediocre letter (at the eyes of an admission committee). [4] Build new abilities in the meantime, and make an effort to improve your profile based on your rejections. There is a lot of randomness in admission, but you can learn from those getting admitted or ending their first year in those universities where you are planning to (re)apply. Check their CVs when possible, and see what can you improve in your formation to increase you chances of getting admitted. It's though and takes time, but you end up improving yourself in any case. [5] Make the best to not to compare yourself to others. This is discouraging in many cases, and it's unfair with yourself. Your process is yours only, and you should not measure your achievements as relative to others since they are most likely not comparable to you. [6] Finally, do your best to make your applications early and at the same time whenever possible. After that, just disconnect from it and take a vacation. We focus so much on the admission process, that we leave aside many things that are truly important, and start to stress unnecessarily way before results start to come out. At the end of the day it's worth remembering that the PhD will be roughly 5~6 period, so it's not a matter only of education but also a life changing decision. Don't rush it. I know these are not quite ortodox suggestions, but I found them to be helpful for me. Hopefully this will help you to keep going for it, and hopefully getting the expected result.

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