THINKING ABOUT GRAD SCHOOL IN ECONOMICS? Dr. Daniel Gordon // Dr. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Department of Economics THINKING ABOUT GRAD SCHOOL IN ECONOMICS? Dr. Daniel Gordon // Dr. Arvind Magesan // Dr. Jeffrey Church // Dr. Alex Whalley October 25, 2018 • 3:30pm to 4:45pm • SA 104

APPLYING TO GRADUATE SCHOOL IN ECONOMICS Dr. Daniel Gordon Undergraduate Honours Advisor

OUTLINE  Introduction  Applying to grad schools in Canada; Calgary  Applying to grad schools in the US  Job opportunities with an MA degree  Preparing your grad application  Graduate forum for discussion and questions

GRAD SCHOOL  Think carefully about grad school  Need a GPA of 3.00, preferably higher  Need good background in math and stats  Good grades in — Econ 557, 559, 497, 387, 389 — Math 211/213 and 249/265 and others (talk to us) — Stats 213 and others (talk to us)  Talk to us about additional courses that will HELP

GOING TO GRAD SCHOOL Costs and benefits  Opportunity cost  Financial cost  Commitment to the grad program, it is demanding  MA is an investment in human capital  Opens the doors to interesting careers in economics, business, government  Stats Can: BA earn $65k/yr and MA earn $75k/yr

MA / PhD  MA — Can be terminal and lead to employment — Preparation for further studies at the PhD level  PhD — Leads to research type positions — Teaching at college or university — Senior positions in policy/financial institutions

APPLICATION PROCESS Make sure to include everything that is asked for!  Transcripts  Letters of Recommendation (Maximum: 3)  CV  Statement of Purpose  GRE (if applying in US)*

LETTERS OF REFERENCE  You need strong letters of reference to support your application  Faculty Members in ECONOMICS to write letters  Provide information to your prof so that she can write a decent letter  Information that shows your abilities and potential — Unofficial Transcript — Statement of Purpose, Why do you want to go to grad school? — Resume — Old Papers

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE  Write about what interests you about economics  What are some of your research interests  At this point you are just laying out your interests on what you might do  Pay close attention to English and grammar!  Make it forward-looking: tie what you have done to what you want to do in grad school

STANDARDIZED TEST EXAMS  Plan early!  GRE should be taken a year in advance of applying to grad school — leaves room if you make a mistake  On GRE, quantitative and analytic section is the most important when applying to Economics departments

LETTER OF REFERENCE (WHO)  You want your letter writers to write strong letters  It would be best to get letters from profs in courses like Econ 557, 559, and other senior courses  Get to know your profs through your performance in classes or discussion after class, etc.  Adequate Lead Time Tell the prof deadlines for letters and check to see that letter has been sent

APPLICATION PROCESS (cont.)  Assess offers / Negotiate — Faculty member advice  Make a choice — Inform promptly those rejected — Accept only one offer

APPLYING to GRADUATE SCHOOL in ECONOMICS in CANADA and at UCALGARY Dr. Arvind Magesan Graduate Director

Applying to Graduate School Department of Economics Dr. Arvind Magesan

Why Go to Grad School?  An MA is an investment.  Many interesting careers in economics require, at minimum, an MA.  Greater earning power.  Networking, connections.  Explore your interests.  Stepping Stone/Preparation for PhD

About our Department  Innovative Programs and Specializations  Collegial Environment  Office Space  Highly Competitive Funding  Vibrant research environment  Two Departmental Seminar Series: External: Every Friday we have a visiting speaker visit the university and - present their current research Internal: Every Wednesday we have presentations on current research by - faculty and graduate students.  Excellent Placement Record

What do our Students do Our MA’s : https://econ.ucalgary.ca/view- graduateplacements-ma Interesting employment in both government and private sector. Placement in PhD programs. Our PhD’s: https://econ.ucalgary.ca/view- graduateplacements-phd Placements in academic depts., research institutes and private sector.

Programs  Master of Arts (Course-based)  Master of Arts (Thesis-based)  Doctor of Philosophy

Where Should I Apply? This is a big decision - DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!! Rankings on-line – You will find that the top four schools in Canada are: 1. UofT and UBC 2. Queen’s and Western Most rankings look at research output as primary criteria. The most cited these days is the Tilburg rankings: https://econtop.uvt.nl/rankinglist.php UofT is 17 th in the world, UBC is 51 st in the world. Only Cdn schools in top 100. More “overall” ranking is done by QS: https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university- subject-rankings/2018/economics-econometrics UofT at 22 in world, UBC at 27 in world

Major Canadian Schools for Econ Grad  Going from West to East: UVic UBC SFU Calgary Alberta Western McMaster Waterloo UofT Queen’s Carleton/Ottawa McGill UMontreal Laval

How to decide As an MA applicant, there are many things to consider: 1. Course/program offering 2. Placement 3. The MA experience 4. Funding 5. Location The big “high - ranked” school experience is not for everyone. Again: DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH

Canada vs. US Graduate Schools • Most of the best schools of Economics are in the US • Tuition fees in the US vary widely, but are overall among the highest in the world. Options for financial aid • US schools require GRE exams. • Reasons for going to US: branding, career options, interests. • A higher ranked Canadian university may be a better option over a B-listed US university in terms of finances, branding, and career options.

Application Packages Most applications require:  Transcript  Letters of Recommendation (Maximum: 3)  CV  Statement of Purpose  GRE (if applying in US)

Transcript  Mathematical background is very important.  Taking difficult courses is as important as good grades. - Not all grades are created equal. TAKE Math 403 if you can.  Make sure you highlight the course name and content (not just the number).  Take at least one course with a serious term paper.

Letters of Recommendation  Should have up to three.  Ideally, should be from Professors that have a good professional reputation.  Letters should add to what is in your transcript.  Letters should demonstrate your creativity, writing skills, and drive. - Work as an RA or write a good term paper.  Ask the letter writer at least a month in advance for the letter and provide clear instructions.

CV  Importance of employment and extracurricular activities depends on what program you are applying to.  Economics departments care about research- related experience.  If applying to law school, employment and extracurricular carry more weight.  If you took time off school or studied part time, show what you did instead.

Statement of Purpose  Pay really close attention to English and grammar!  Make it forward-looking: tie what you have done to what you want to do in grad school.  Don’t worry about being able to commit to what you say you’re going to do.  Not as important as your transcript or Letters.

Standardized Test Exams  Plan early!  GRE should be taken a year in advance of applying to grad school – leaves room if you make a mistake.  On GRE, quantitative and analytic section is the most important when applying to Economics departments.

FUNDING  Department Recommended Scholarships — Department of Economics Alumni Graduate Scholarship — Economics Society of Calgary Graduate Scholarship — Frank Mink Economics Graduate Scholarship — John M. Dalgarno Memorial Scholarship — Stephen G. Peitchinis Memorial Graduate Recruitment Scholarship  Open Scholarship Competition The deadline is February 1.

SSHRC  SSHRC Master's funding (CGS-M) is valued at $17,500.  Must be a Canadian (citizen or PR).  Deadline for entire application (including references and transcripts) – December 1.  http://grad.ucalgary.ca/awards/tricouncil

Additional Benefits of SSHRC Application  Applicants to the CGS-M are automatically considered for the Province of Alberta Queen Elizabeth II (QE2) scholarships – annual value of $10,800.  Any student winning a CGS-M or a QE2 will also be given two terms of TA by the Economics department - approximate value $17,000 for their Master's program.

Faculty Participation in Scholarships  If you would like a faculty mentor to go over your research proposal (a good idea!), please email the department econgrad@ucalgary.ca and we will happily arrange one for you.

Thank you for coming ! We hope to see you in the Fall Semester! Questions? Contact: anmagesa@ucalgary.ca or econgrad@ucalgary.ca

GRADUATE SCHOOL in ECONOMICS THE BENEFITS Dr. Jeffrey Church Undergraduate Director

Graduate School in Economics: The Benefits Jeffrey Church 
 Professor and Undergraduate Director Department of Economics Graduate School in Economics: WHY, HOW, and WHERE! October 25, 2018