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March 26, 2008
Masters Fellowship at GMU
Russell Roberts
Just wanted to let you know that there's a new full-time full-fellowship Masters program in economics here at George Mason University. The application deadline is April 18. Tuition is covered plus you get an annual stipend of $24,500. If you want to change your life and change the world, more info is here.
Posted by Russell Roberts in Education | Permalink
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Comments
Can an economically illiterate computer programmer apply for the job?
No? Hmmm. Assortative mating burns me again!
Posted by: Marcus | Mar 26, 2008 4:04:57 PM
Marcus,
Go for it. We'll teach you economics.
Posted by: Russ Roberts | Mar 26, 2008 4:22:17 PM
Also, on a side note along similar lines, The Koch Charitable Foundation Associate program deadline is April 1. You get to work with public policy groups and/or other non-profit organizations. I noticed the Mercatus Center is one possible option.
http://www.cgkfoundation.org/associate-program/
This may be a good way to get to Virginia and get settled in the community with a job prior to starting the MA program. You can work for a year before hitting fall 09 start.
Posted by: colson | Mar 26, 2008 4:35:12 PM
nono, sorry folks, nothing to see here, move along...this is all just a big joke, no fellowship to be had...
Posted by: shawn | Mar 26, 2008 4:36:55 PM
on a secondary note - I'm not affiliated with the Koch program or companies but thought it may serve other liberty-minded people out there to tie together two experiences into a unique experience.
Posted by: colson | Mar 26, 2008 4:37:48 PM
Grrr... Any chance this could done part-time through distance education? You can keep the stipend and the degree. I just want the education.
Posted by: cef | Mar 26, 2008 5:30:46 PM
Marcus,
I'd second Professor Roberts: you don't need to have much econ background to succeed in a graduate economics program. Seriously. What you need (in my experience) is motivation and interest, and to be pretty good at math.
Typically your first graduate year would be spent un-learning and re-learning basic undergraduate economics, except this time with lots of partial derivatives. I'd guess that whatever math you've learned as a programmer would put you way ahead of the pack of former econ majors.
That's what happened to me, anyway :-). I started in a PhD program a couple of years ago without any econ background to speak of, but with a degree in math and several years of experience as an actuary. It was a whole lot easier for me to learn the economics than it was for my classmates to learn the math.
Anyway, go for it, and good luck!
Mike B
Posted by: Blakeney | Mar 26, 2008 8:13:56 PM
Blakeney,
Unfortunately, what you say is true of most Ph.D programs--math is crucial to success and a background in economics isn't particularly important.
Fortunately, our Masters program doesn't have any formal math requirements that I know of.
Posted by: Russ Roberts | Mar 26, 2008 8:18:01 PM
Would that I could afford to live in Northern Virginia on $24.5k/yr. Rather, would that I could convince my wife that we could live in NoVa for $24.5k/year.
This program looks incredible (however, I'm not sure it beats the GMU LLM program).
Totally off-topic: Prof. Roberts, have you ever thought of adapting "The Invisible Heart" into a screenplay? A few of us old Koch Fellows have been kicking that idea around lately.
Posted by: Greg Newburn | Mar 26, 2008 8:47:03 PM
Drat! I was trying to scare all the other applicants off so I could apply myself :-)
Mike B
Posted by: Blakeney | Mar 26, 2008 8:51:55 PM
I am particularly interested in this program. But my undergraduate Economics professors are either unenthusiastic about GMU, or I have tapped them out for letters of recommendation.
I think my stats and background are good: 3.8 UGPA 3.8 GGPA, 650V, 780Q, 5.5AWA. Math through linear algebra and Calc II. But just having been mauled with a PhD application process in Political Science, I fear being rejected.
Maybe next year.
Posted by: Richard Pointer | Mar 26, 2008 10:16:55 PM
Is this program opened to foreign students?
Posted by: Mathieu Bedard | Mar 26, 2008 10:23:19 PM
Might this fellowship be offered next year?
I'm a bit out of the county at the moment.
Posted by: Jeff Holmes | Mar 27, 2008 6:55:21 AM
I'd apply if I weren't so ooooold.
Posted by: Martin Brock | Mar 27, 2008 7:01:06 AM
Seems to be a great program. When I was in grad school (PhD program), our stipends were nowhere near that high, so that seems like a great deal, particularly for a masters program. Plus, you'll be learning more interesting things than you'll find in Mas-Colell, Romer's Macro book, etc.
I am envious!
Posted by: wintercow20 | Mar 27, 2008 8:53:36 AM
It says that the program is for those with no plans for going into academia... what about those who aren't sure about whether or not they want to go on for a Ph.D. program in Economics or not? Currently debating between going into academia or, after a Master's program, going to law school to study antitrust law, but I don't know...
Would such a program be suited for one like myself?
Posted by: Michael Fisk | Mar 27, 2008 9:07:22 AM
Ah, to be young and without real responsibilities again...
Posted by: M. Hodak | Mar 27, 2008 10:43:51 AM
how about...somewhat young and avoiding real responsibilities? :)
Posted by: shawn | Mar 27, 2008 1:35:03 PM
$24,000 stipend? See?
Income inequality!!!!
Signed,
muirgeo
Posted by: Mesa Econoguy | Mar 28, 2008 12:28:23 AM
In all seriously, you need to study under Dr. Roberts.
He teaches many fun courses, such as “How to organize your life.”
Yes, Russ was and is correct, though I didn’t know it at the time.
Dr. Boudreaux makes a mighty fine gumbo, from what I hear….
Posted by: Mesa Econoguy | Mar 28, 2008 12:34:02 AM
«It says that the program is for those with no plans for going into academia... what about those who aren't sure about whether or not they want to go on for a Ph.D. program in Economics or not?»
I was wondering that myself. I might apply in a few years.
Posted by: pierson | Mar 28, 2008 4:58:17 AM
[semikidding]
What if I came and audited for a few years?
[/semikidding]
Russ (Dr. Roberts?), your dept. needs to put "GMU Econ Lectures Greatest Hits" on YouTube. I bet it would go viral in no time.
Posted by: Nathan Bowers | Mar 29, 2008 6:09:54 PM
Is this the same or a different fellowship than the one that had the March 15th deadline?
Posted by: Sameer Parekh | Mar 31, 2008 1:35:43 PM
What is up with changing the deadline from March 15th to April 18th? Was everyone who applied before the deadline unacceptable? Isn't that bad form? If you set a deadline, then you should select from the people who applied before the deadline, rather than extending the deadline and screwing over everyone who had the good sense to apply before the deadline. It's also awfully shady for you to not even mention that the deadline was extended from March 15th to April 18th. At least if you mentioned it you would be letting people know that maybe the April 18th deadline isn't a real deadline either and you won't respect the applicants who submit their applications in time for that second deadline either. A "new fellowship" my ass. This isn't a "new fellowship", this is the same fellowship that was posted about on MR a few months ago, with a different deadline. It's funny that Prof Roberts teaches a course "how to organize your life" when his Mercatus Center can't even get its act together enough to honor deadlines that they set!
Posted by: Economics Student | Apr 1, 2008 10:56:04 AM
Economics Student,
This is the first time I blogged on this. It is a new program. Not everyone here reads Marginal Revolution. Though I do encourage it.
I also encourage anyone who finds this program interesting to take advantage of the extension of the deadline.
Posted by: Russ Roberts | Apr 2, 2008 8:30:52 AM
viva extended deadline, btw.
Posted by: shawn | May 5, 2008 10:35:58 PM
JACKPOT!!!
Posted by: shawn | May 14, 2008 6:26:01 PM
