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[quote=Anonymous]New professor here.  The previous professors have given good advice.

1)  It is a little strange for a parent to guide a Ph.D. applicant.  You need to be mature and interested enough to get information on your own.

2)  In economics (and probably many fields), there is a strong network/prestige factor in placement.  The top 5 programs easily place their good students in professorships.  The top 20-25 have strong academic placement.  But below that, it is much harder to get a tenure-track academic job at a good research department.   Instead, many students end up at teaching colleges, government, or industry.  Graduates of top Ph.D. programs get invited to conferences to advertise their research, and seems to publish good (but not great) work very quickly and easily.  It is important to be connected to the thought leaders and gatekeepers of your field.

3)  Every realistic applicant to selective Ph.D. programs has high scores and grades.  We compare applicants like an American with 95th percentile math and verbal to a Chinese guy with 99.9th percentile math and 50th percentile verbal (in English).  Some applicants already have Ph.D.'s in physics or statistics!  We look for hard courses (real analysis, not just calculus) and research experience.  For example, an applicant might have worked as a research assistant at a central bank.  We want letters with concrete explanation of research skills at a high level.  We do not want a bland letter from a prestigious professor who barely knows the student.[/quote]

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