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The costs of applying to an econ PhD are INSANE. It would have been difficult for me if I hadn’t been working full time when applying. See Anna’s thread/responses for suggestions to reduce costs. A few of my thoughts below: https://twitter.com/annastansbury/status/1295767043669712896
We often hear the argument that profs must spend time reading apps & their time has value. This is true, but doesn’t apply to all app costs.
Example: GRE. It costs $27 PER SCHOOL to send official GRE scores. Many apply to 15-20 schools. That’s $405-540 on sending scores alone!!
Example: GRE. It costs $27 PER SCHOOL to send official GRE scores. Many apply to 15-20 schools. That’s $405-540 on sending scores alone!!
On top of $205 to take the test (per time) + prep costs. There are good arguments for dropping the GRE, but even if we keep it, why couldn’t schools accept unofficial score reports during the app stage? If official report is required when you enroll, no incentive to lie
Bottom line: applying to grad school is prohibitively expensive for many people. We know this intersects with race & class (who can just ask their parents to pay for apps??) and the profession should address it and lower costs to entry.
PS: Money comes up again as a major issue during visits for accepted student days. These are often funded by schools BUT done as reimbursements, so you’re stuck with the costs up front. I’m not an international student, but assume barriers are even higher there
To those who say use credit cards: many of my reimbursements took >1 billing cycle, and this also isn’t a solution that everyone can access equally
