Admissions decisions trickling in

I applied to 12 Economics programs, 8 PhDs, 2 MAs and Harvard's Master in International Development program. I have heard from 6 schools. I will be posting the outcome after all the decisions have come in.

However as decisions have been coming in I have also been thinking about what I would really like to do. 5 or just 2 more years of schooling? Needless to say forfeiting paid work to get an education is a bold but commendable thing to do. If I were to matriculate into a PhD program it would have to be one that enables me to merge my interests in finance and economics - much like the financial economics program at Booth or International Economics and Finance at the International Business School at Brandeis. Those who know me well know that I spent my final year at Hampshire college researching financial deepening in Africa. My stint at the IMF has also piqued my interest in macro-financial linkages especially in the aftermath of the Great Recession. There exists so much information about these and other topics that I believe can sustain my interest for 5 years.

On the other hand a Masters in Economics would make me more competitive in the job market but only as long as there is no PhD vying for the same position. I would have more flexibility than I currently do. Of course, not all MAs are created the same: NYU's is one of the best in the country in-terms of preparing economists for the job market. The Kennedy school's MPAID program needless to say, is very respectable. I work with an alum who sings praises all the time :)

You may be wondering how it is that I can blog during this tense period. Well, I have discovered that checking gradcafe.com incessantly for other students to post their admissions results is the worst thing to do while you wait for graduate programs to email you. I nearly collapsed when I saw that my dream school had already sent acceptance emails and I still had not gotten anything. Oops..

An email just popped up on my outlook...gotta check