I will be graduating in December with a double in Statistics and Economics and have thought of doing a masters program in the future. I do not want to go directly into grad school upon graduating because:

1) I am tired of school and want a break and
2) I want to make some real money

So anyways I love economics and really enjoy every class I have taken on the subject so that is what got me thinking of a masters in economics, plus I had to take ECG 561 (grad level econometrics) and I did really well in it. My concern with going that route is it will not be as productive in the real world whereas an MBA would. Anyone do either of these programs, how did you like them, and how did it help you in the real world?

Thanks

6/17/2008 3:12:01 PM

Are you interested in teaching economics?

[Edited on June 17, 2008 at 3:41 PM. Reason : .]

6/17/2008 3:41:43 PM

if i did i would only do so at the university level and i really do not want to go through what it takes to get a phd. basically i would rather work a job in the field.

6/17/2008 3:45:18 PM

^ You wouldn't need a PhD to teach at a community college or many four-year colleges. I think you answered my question, though--"No."

6/17/2008 4:07:47 PM

It really depends on the type of work you want to go into and the type of graduate program.

Last year when I was interviewing for jobs many of the interviewers in more analytical and quantitative fields valued MBA candidates much lower than someone with a masters in Economics or Financial Mathematics. They thought MBAs were more for people wanting a career change or just more managerial responsibilities. (work like economic forecasting, quantitative finance, etc)

And many graduate programs now have concentrations for both MBAs and Economics. So if you go into an MBA program that is specifically designed for the type of work you want, obviously that might make more sense than a general masters in Econ (and vice versa).

What type of work do you want to go into?...I think it's good to be planning ahead, but this is probably a question best answered once you start working for a bit and figure out more where you want to be.

6/17/2008 6:16:43 PM

I am not real sure what I ant to do but I am interested in something like capital markets or public finance or something along those lines. The only problem with those is right now it is a tough industry to get in with the market like it is and the troubles banks have had.

6/17/2008 10:19:52 PM

remember there are a LOT more people out there with MBA's vs MAC's or masters in econ

if u get a MAC u will come out ready for the cpa exam which = mo money

id go for econ if i were between MBA and econ

6/17/2008 10:24:52 PM

well i keep thinking about it and the more i do the more i realize i have no idea what i really want to do haha

i have been throwing the idea of a phd out there a lot more now but who knows...some more input would be appreciated

6/19/2008 12:31:47 AM

Quote :

"Last year when I was interviewing for jobs many of the interviewers in more analytical and quantitative fields valued MBA candidates much lower than someone with a masters in Economics or Financial Mathematics. "

Do economics if you're very good at networking, econometrics, sas, spss, and want/can get do a masters thesis or get the phd.

Either way you can't go wrong, it also sounds like you will get free money if you go econ because you did good in econ classes, gpa, gre, etc....

6/19/2008 2:41:39 AM

do you like general business or economics? that's really all you need to decide.

an mba in supply chain will have you making major money if you don't mind following it. many starting scm jobs with an ncsu mba start around $80,000 and are highly concentrated in houston (big oil companies).

i did my mba in supply chain and i'm heading up our marketing department at work now. i was never big on economics though, so it was a no brainer for me.

6/19/2008 3:46:43 PM

do masters in econ so you can go to princeton.

that was my childhood dream...

"this side of paradise"

6/20/2008 12:41:48 PM

my childhood dream was to go to harvard

6/20/2008 12:44:55 PM

after i saw legally blonde i didn't want to go to harvard anymore lol

6/20/2008 5:45:55 PM

i think everyone's dream should involve going to new jersey

6/20/2008 7:11:11 PM

Im actually doing a masters in econ right now. I just finished up my first year and this upcoming fall will be my final semester. I like the program a lot -- much better than undergrad. Applied micro/macro are worlds better than the undergrad versions. Writing for Econ (newmark) is a pretty good class as well. 561 was relatively easy, 562 is next semester so I cant speak for it but Ive heard its one of the, if not the, hardest class in the program.

Its all very interesting -- the questions is what the hell do you do with it. Im still not 100% on that though. Im glad I chose this route though because I do really enjoy it. I can see myself being miserable in an MBA program learning about communication, leadership, management, etc.

I figure the masters in econ will be good for analytic jobs and there are enough morons that consider it to be a business degree. Worst comes to worst, Ill be a highly paid hs teacher or teach at some shitty 4 year school.

6/20/2008 9:50:32 PM

^newmark is awesome. i hope you are reading his blog as well. just google his name if you aren't...it's gold.

6/20/2008 11:58:12 PM

^^ thanks for the info

I have pretty much decided I am going to try and get into states masters program for economics

My gpa isnt stellar (around 3.1) but I have had 2 internships at banks so I can get some good letters of recommendation from them and coming from the econ undergrad program at state should help. Also the fact that I got a B+ in ECG 561 last semester while taking 18 hours total should look pretty good.

6/21/2008 3:34:06 PM

Yeah, Newmarks Door is one of my favs. Lots of interesting links outside of strictly econ things.

I had a 3.3 undergrad and never even took the GREs to get in. I went to a pretty decent school and had internships but it didnt seem like they were concerned with my resume through the application process.

Coming from NCSU will really help. My undergrad was graph-crazy. Everything we did had graphs galore. NCSU seems to be more calc orientated. Wayyy less graphs. That took a little getting used to but it wasnt really a major issue. Applied Micro had the most calc but if you really busted your ass, you could probably memorize most of what you need (proofs).

I assume you took 561 with Wohlgenant -- maybe try and get him to be a reference for you. He is a really nice guy. Jokes arent the best but is super friendly when you talk to him outside of class.

[Edited on June 21, 2008 at 6:15 PM. Reason : im a moron]

6/21/2008 6:14:45 PM

^ Yeah I was definitely going to try and get Wohlgenant to be a reference. I figure if I have that, a degree in econ and stat from state, and two other good rec's then I should get in no problem. Any classes you liked or disliked?

6/28/2008 11:03:52 PM

Well most of the classes are core requirements (* = mandatory)

First semester Fall:
*applied micro (wessels was cool)
*stat 514 (reich kicked ass)
i took a sociology elective..and regretted it (i heard health econ was easy but boring/worthless)

Second Semester Spring
*applied macro (lapp was really smart, and i learned a lot, but the lectures were very boring)
*561 econometrics (wohlgenant was ok, bad jokes, but a nice guy)
*580 writing (newmark is the shit, youre basically guaranteed a B, no higher or lower)

Third Semester Fall
*562 econometrics, elective, elective

--And then you need a 10th class somewhere, either in the summer between semesters or during one of those 3. You will probably opt out of ecg561 and st514 so it wont matter

7/4/2008 2:56:36 PM

newmark.... kind of an odd guy

not kind of, more like really odd guy.

His classes were entertaining but I waited on him the week bfore classes started and his whole family just seemed a little off kilter

7/7/2008 4:19:57 PM

I've *HEARD* that the value of MBA's is very dependent upon the school that you get it from. for instance:

Kenan-Flagler : good
Fuqua : better
John F. Kennedy : awesome

Jenkins : *cough* ... well, not so much



that said, MBA's would be far more broadly applicable than a masters in econ. I would go with an MBA unless you really have some specific focal area that you can see yourself doing long-term.

7/8/2008 8:09:28 PM

I read on the site that the ave NCSU MBA pulls in 72 with a 10K bonus upon starting. Ive heard that the average econ salary is 65. Not sure on the average age/experience of the two groups. Im in the econ and havent had any firms offers yet so I cant speak on that 65 number -- but I came straight from undergrad so Im guessing itll be more like 55

9/26/2008 12:34:39 AM

Are you by any chance in Hyman's Public Finance class this semester? I noticed a lot of the same people from 561 are in there.

9/26/2008 12:47:05 AM