MSc Economics SSE/Uva/Notts/ Bristol/ T

Hi, I'm an asian student and.. I can't decide where to go for my Masters!
I got an offer from Stockholm School of Economics and University of Amsterdam for their Msc Economics program and waiting to hear from Notts, Bristol and Tinbergen Institute.

My first choice was SSE but now that I've been doing more research on it, the rank for the school seems to fluctuate a lot on different websites. Also, I know that it is very reputable in Europe in the field of Finance but I'm not sure if its reputation applies in economics.
(note: I'm also planning to continue to Phd (maybe in the states) after finishing this program. )

So my questions are:
1) How reputable is SSE in economics (internationally)
2) Out of the five programs, which one would you recommend

Thank you

Firstly, sorry for such a late reply to your thread. I've been meaning to reply for some time now.

Now, what field do you want to focus on in economics? Is it finance, econometrics, macro, micro, development, labour, monetary, international, trade, etc.?

Second, do you definitely want to pursue a PhD in the US, and if so, which school? Or is pursuing one in Europe okay?

Out of the five you listed, I'd only consider SSE and Tinbergen.

Otherwise, you should also consider: ECARES, CEMFI, Carlos III Madrid, Paris School of Economics, Toulouse School of Economics, Tilburg and Pompeu Fabra University.

I would totally ignore Bristol and Nottingham. If you want to do your MSc in the UK, consider Essex. If your field is econometrics, consider Southampton (the academics there have strong links with Yale and UPenn, and have sent a number of students to the US for PhD programmes in econometrics).

Hello, thank you so much for answering
I want to focus more in development economics and/or behavioural economics. As of right now, I want to do my PhD in the US but if I really enjoy Europe during my masters then I might change mind. Would schools in the states recognised SSE?
If I end up going to SSE would it be better to stay for PhD in Europe?

Schools in the US will recognise any decent university in Europe, so yes they will recognise SSE.

Also, no it isn't necessarily better to stay in Europe if you attend SSE. You should do your PhD ultimately where you want to; wherever has the better academics and provides you with funding.

For development/behavioural, I don't know how good SSE is. I know ECARES, which is still open to applications, has decent academics in those areas, as well as environmental economics.

Do you have funding at SSE?

Irrespective, though, providing you do extremely well and immerse yourself at SSE, you will be able to get good references and apply for schools in the US.

I may have a different angle than ACS:

For dev/exp econ, Nott has strong MScs in both areas, Prof Kellerer is known. I like Nott's econ, it has strong PhD programme and is also feeder to other unis. Tinbergen and UVA are also known for their output and Dev Econ tracks, UVA works with Dev Institute in Amsterdam.

SSE: Dev Econ is actually one of SSE's weaker spots, otherwise it covers all major econ areas. Lund normally is the best Dev Econ course in Sweden.

Forget Bristol, totally unsuitable for dev/exp econ. It has only a narrow syllabus around econometrics, finance.

Hi,

Thank you for your reply, I just got my offer from Nott yesterday so I really appreciate your comment on it!

I also think SSE is weaker than Tinbergen in dev/experimental economics. So yea out of the five, Tinbergen would be my first choice.
However, it seems like Tinbergen’s program admission is more selective than other schools so I really don’t think I have much chance of getting in. but still keeping my fingers crossed.

When I was choosing schools to apply to, I thought that as long as the program has a good reputation and provide a decent amount of quantitative economics applying for PhD shouldn’t be much of a problem. So I felt like SSE would still be a good choice if I don’t get Tinbergen.
I am not sure if that is true. It was just something I had in mind.
Also since SSE offers the option of taking a semester of internship or going on an exchange program, I was thinking I could go to a university more known in the area of dev/ experimental economics.

I may have a different angle than ACS:

For dev/exp econ, Nott has strong MScs in both areas, Prof Kellerer is known. I like Nott's econ, it has strong PhD programme and is also feeder to other unis. Tinbergen and UVA are also known for their output and Dev Econ tracks, UVA works with Dev Institute in Amsterdam.

SSE: Dev Econ is actually one of SSE's weaker spots, otherwise it covers all major econ areas. Lund normally is the best Dev Econ course in Sweden.

Forget Bristol, totally unsuitable for dev/exp econ. It has only a narrow syllabus around econometrics, finance.

Nottingham is strong in the UK for experiential/behavioural economics, although it isn't very international. If you don't mind undertaking your PhD at Nottingham, then that is great, but not necessarily so if you're serious about going to the US.

To an extent, however, you are right - if your concern with your Masters is solely about getting you into a US PhD programme, then SSE or Tinbergen are your best bets (of your five originally listed). SSE may not be fantastic in behavioural/development, but it has top people in other fields, and notably Lars Ljungqvist for macro. Having a letter of recommendation from Lars, for example, to study a PhD in the US would do your application no end of good.

But as you say, the best situation for you is to get into Tinbergen because it is a great institute itself with a solid placement record.

Also consider applying to Barcelona GSE. It has a very strong reputation and is good at getting people into the US for PhD programmes.