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MA (Economics) from Delhi School of Economics
Contributor: Chanchal Gupta (2005-07 Batch)
Two years at DSE were great - attending classes, chit chatting in the famous DSE canteen, in front of tea stawl & of course the most important place “The Photocopy Shop” J
Time used to just pass like that during DSE, although we hoping that we had more time J
Coming on to the serious stuff, studies of course, academic program is great here. There is no attendance compulsion here but again there is no substitute to attending classes if you want to really understand the subject as faculty is just amazing here. There is a whole range of subjects to choose from like forecasting, game theory, public finance, advanced macro economics, social choice theory etc apart from a few compulsory courses that one need to undertake during first year. Thus students can chose courses as per their interest and aptitude.
Top corporate houses & MNCs have been visiting DSE campus since last 10 years with more than 90% of people getting placement offer on campus only. For students who want to pursue higher studies also, this is the best place to be in for the quality of subjects that it offers & taught by such an esteemed faculty.
Lastly the time spent in DSE would be cherished forever. Despite this being a tough place to be in it has its own charm too. And now, after 2 years of passing out from DSE I think I miss DSE canteen the most J….
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MS (Quantitative Economics) from Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi
Contributor: Kunal Swami (2010 - 2012 Batch)
Welcome to the world with a teacher student ratio of around 3:1. The best a student can think of. Of course this makes troubleful to bunk classes but you yourself will not like to do that. Its a small family, even the security guards get to know you by face from the second day of attendance.
This place is the best in India if you want to go for a Phd. As far as a corporate job is concerned the institution has the highest average package offered in the league of all other institutes of similar level. Its a far less competitive and far more offering world. The severe competition majorly ends with cracking the interview. The teachers are cooperative, and don't fail you unless you don't appear in class or you are too dumb (null set).
As far as fun part is concerned, hostel life is no doubt the best a student can expect from life. The two years I have spent at ISI is the most memorable time of my life.
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MA (Economics) from University of Hyderabad
Contributor: Alex Thomas (2007-09 Batch)
UoH is an excellent place for academics. The placements have not yet reached the levels of GIPE, MSE, etc because our department is primarily a research one, though with the growing demands of students, placements have started to increase.
Regarding the courses, the student can opt from various elective apart from the compulsory courses. Some of the compulsory courses are Classical Political Economy, Political Economy of Development (Marxian economics), General equilibrium etc. So, the student gets a feel of the different paradigms in economics and how their analysis functions. Apart from these, for the placement oriented student, the department offers about 3 or 4 elective papers in various aspects of econometrics. For the math lovers, we have optimization, game theory etc. Apart from these, recent courses like law and economics, environmental economics, health economics, new institutional economics are also present.
The faculty is pretty impressive. There are about 5 really good faculty. Some are really bad.
Another interesting opportunity is that of interdisciplinary courses- one student can take a maximum of 3 interdisciplinary courses from any other department. For instance, students of economics have taken up courses like indian economic history, philosophy of science, law, state and society, economic anthropology, diaspora studies, etc.
Also, the department lets to audit papers i.e. there is no compulsory attendance or exams, but you get to sit for the class and learn the subject.
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MA (Economics) from Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics
Contributor: Vardhan Koshal (2008-10 Batch)
Well like any other residential program, this one is likely to become the most memorable period of your life. The fact that a group of 70 odd students living together 24 hrs a day, discussing everything under the sun, will ensure that you not only complete Masters in Economics, but also in subject called Life, in general. The place is great, both weather-wise and academically.
Established in 1931, this Institute has been a historical academic and research center for Economics in India. The great economists like Dr. Kale, Dr. Rath, Dr. Dandekar were the nurturers of academic environment of the Institute in the past. Several current prominent economists have been associated with this place at some point of their journey of learning. Dr. Dhananjay Rao Gadgil library is one of the biggest in India and among the most exhaustive in South Asia with scholars visiting from several nationalities to refer journals and books, some of which are extinct now. The placements are great with most of the students securing placements from the campus itself in various corporate and research houses. Internships are good too. The students of 2008-10 have already secured internships at Gramin Bank, UNICEF, RBI, NCAER, IFPRI, Dept. of Public Enterprises etc. Few opt for higher studies and are successful in that as well.
The Institute boasts of highest number of electives for Economics course in India, 32 for 16 required for completion of degree. MA theses is compulsory in 2nd year providing a nice primer for research. Subjects like Transport Economics, Environment Economics, Law and Economics etc are rare to be found anywhere else in India. There is something about the course structure which makes it easy for easy-goers and exhaustive for those who like challenges. Four compulsory courses in Micro and Macro will test all the mathematics you always ignored while you could have. One compulsory and an optional in Econometrics goes a long way in pursuing the employers of ones knowledge base. The additional optional coursework in Statistical Softwares ensures every possible edge you can carve in these two years.
But there are thorns for this rosy experience too. The faculties come and go quite frequently and the great names are rare to be found these days in faculty list. Sometimes the coverage of a wonderful on paper course leaves something to be desired. But then I guess, this problem is quite common these days at places like these. We keep hearing about the big expansion plans and they seems quite probable at this point of time too. But nothing can be guaranteed.
All said and done, I would recommend this Institute for anyone looking for a good learning experience and a nice corporate job thereafter.
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MA (Economics) from University of Hyderabad
Contributor: Shiv Hastawala (2015-17 Batch)
University of Hyderabad is a good place for M.A. Economics since the School of Economics is highly academics-oriented. In terms of economic theory, the student gets a variety of viewpoints coming from different schools of thought. Here, one can avail, if they wish to, the opportunity to debate and discuss the relevance of conceptual knowledge from disparate systems of theory to the Indian as well as the global economy. Apart from that, they also offer some statistical and applied courses for empirical knowledge. If you wish to write academic papers or arrange seminars/talks on pressing and relevant issues, the faculty members are supportive and pave the path for you.
Quality of professors: At the post-graduate level, most of the quality of any school is determined by how good the faculty members there are. There are around 5–6 current faculty members who are excellent scholars and know their job well. The year I left (2017), some new members were recruited, but most of the new ones were only okay.
Type of Economics: The School of Economics at UOH is unlike most economics schools, in that it largely professes heterodox economic theory. Now this is both a boon and a bane. A boon for those students who wish to develop a pluralist (in layman’s terms, neutral) approach to looking at economic issues, but a bane for those who are aiming at getting placed in corporates as analysts/researchers (because most applied courses from mainstream economics are either not taught here or are unfortunately not top-notch in terms of quality). However, the scholastic divide among faculty members often leads to interesting debates, which provides students with academic exposure.
Courses: Compulsory papers include Classical Political Economy (heterodox), Marxian Political Economy of Development (heterodox), Public Finance, Indian Economy post-Independence, etc. apart from the usual Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Econometrics, and Mathematical Optimization. Electives include Capital Theory (heterodox), Game Theory, New Institutional Economics, Development Economics (pluralist), Transport Economics, Time Series and Spectral Methods, etc. You can view an updated list here: http://economics.uohyd.ac.in/academic/ma.php
Placements: Not that students have not been placed in the private sector in the past, but that was mostly because of the efforts of those students themselves. Till 2017, there was just one MNC i.e. HSBC that recruited students from this school regularly, and a couple of startups like Quadratic Insights. This school focuses on theoretical debates and prepares you (in a way) to be an academician. Most alumni have been placed in research institutes/ government research organisations like RBI (Reserve Bank of India), NIRD (National Institute of Rural Development), CGG (Centre for Good Governance), the Ministry of Finance, etc. Other students go for A-Level degrees like MPhil and PhD. A bitter truth - no matter what the placement brochure claims, please know that the Students’ Placement Cell of the School (at least till the time I was there) faced several constraints. Most placements (including my own at the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow) were off-campus. However, the point of an MA programme is to make you employable, and the placements mentioned here (whether on-campus or off-campus) should be evidence enough to tell you that those who wish to extract the most from this school do that anyway. So, placements should not be a criterion for you to judge this, or any other school for that matter.
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MA (Economics) from Jawaharlal Nehru University
Contributor: Gunjan Satija (2005-07 Batch)
Honestly speaking, the two years at JNU were the best time of my life! First of all the fun part- lots of freedom, dhaba hang outs, long strolls and above all the beautiful campus…. All this made my experience mesmerizing. For those wondering about their M.A., this is just a sub-set of the entire package, and a good one indeed!
Coming to padai, JNU gives you one of the most chilled out environment to study. Its faculty is its USP with graduates/phd from Cambridge, Oxford, MIT and what not. The best part about them is that, they not only teach quite comprehensively but also give you tons of freedom to pursue your way of studying. By this I mean firstly there is no attendance issue, secondly there is a grading system and finally they won’t expect you to mug up and write in exams. For that matter, they would be glad if you can refute some of the existing economic theories and come up with your own logical arguments. Also, if you want to pursue further studies or carry out some research then will be of a great support!
The course structure for M.A. is quite ok, though not too mathematical. It’s more inclined towards theories while practical application receives less importance here.
However, if you really want to score well then you have to be self-motivated… as there would be nobody to push you with regular tests or assignments. Also, since there is no compulsion to attend classes you might end up missing some good lectures, so keep that in mind.
The most important thing which everyone looks forward to is placements- from 2007 onwards JNU has been visited by some good companies. This bunch includes companies like McKinsey, GE, Grail Research, Absolute Data, etc. totaling around 25-30 and more good ones have been added in 2008. The placement cell is quite active and more and more companies are coming back to our campus. These firms are mainly into analytics, research (both economic and marketing), writing, and similar stuff…
Over all, this institute serves you a bouquet of offerings, of which some have exceptional standards while others are on their way to build the same. My experience at JNU was exhilarating and hope the same for you J.
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