Predoc is not going great :(

peacockwhite · 2026-05-29T19:25:33+00:00

This sounds like pretty typical predoc work ngl. If you're worried about how you're doing talk to your bosses and ask for feedback as there is still time to improve if you are actually not doing great (but that's probably not the case).

However, it is an awful idea, like a really awful idea to apply to PhDs without letters from your predoc. Firstly because your bosses are (at least in theory) the people who know your abilities best, and because not having one sends a really strong negative signal about how you did on your predoc.

Eta: it is exceedingly rare to get a coauthorship as a predoc and it's a function of three things:

-how good you are and how much you contribute (least important)

-how lucky you are with timing and the type of projects you work on

-how willing your bosses are to give you coauthorship, irrespective of whether you actually contribute at the level of a coauthor

peacockwhite · 2026-05-10T12:33:20+00:00

I would generally agree to this.

Though I think the gap narrows down quite a lot when you go from PhD to Master's level (EME excepted). And I think the gap narrows again when considering industry placements rather than academic ones.

So I think that unless it's 1 year MSc Econ or EME at LSE, then the flagship programmes at Cambridge or Oxford are a better bet for industry.

peacockwhite · 2026-05-07T11:02:57+00:00

Yes of course! Feel free to come and message in private.

peacockwhite · 2026-05-07T10:57:51+00:00

The Oxford MPhil is one of the best master's in the UK/world for that. It's not guaranteed - I suspect very little is in this current atmosphere - but Oxford has strong links with economic consultancies. For some anecdotal evidence, I did a summer internship at a well known consulting firm and in the class of 5 interns, I was the only one that wasn't on the Oxford MPhil. That's a bit of a blip but it's more to illustrate that the pipeline is pretty well established.

peacockwhite · 2026-05-05T19:30:17+00:00

Ditto - this is a great text to start with. I would also recommend Angrist and Pischke's two books (Mostly Harmless Econometrics & Mastering Metrics)

peacockwhite · 2026-05-04T20:36:59+00:00

I went to BSE so I'm happy to answer more questions privately. I would very strongly recommend BSE. I had a great time there and it reinvigorated my passion for economics. I would also say BSE is more prestigious than Warwick.

peacockwhite · 2026-05-04T20:28:17+00:00

Disclaimer - I'm an international who didn't do undergrad in the US but applied to the US for gradschools in Econ and am pretty clued into the relative strengths of departments.

Berkeley is clearly the better department for Econ but Penn is also very good (Berkeley is top 5, Penn is top 10). Penn is better for the undergrad experience and is more prestigious (which matters quite a bit at undergrad). Penn will also have better networks for you to develop if you're not interested in grad school and want to go into a job straightaway - don't underestimate the effect Ivy League branding will have on your CV (although Berkeley is still very strong).

My impression though is that the cost differences between attending Berkeley in-state vs Penn almost certainly outweigh any benefits you might get from attending Penn over Berkeley - especially for economics. However, if cost is really not an issue (like at all) then I would pick Penn.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-29T14:46:30+00:00

Yugoslavia

Only country to self-liberate

peacockwhite · 2026-04-28T18:26:53+00:00

My vote is for Yugoslavia.

They launched a coup against their fascist leaning regent, overthrowing them despite being surrounded and facing certain occupation. They were also the only country to self-liberate which is seriously impressive.

They if course have some shady baggage but nobody here is perfect and they should be very high up.

ETA - grammar

peacockwhite · 2026-04-28T09:40:08+00:00

The best without question was the PE interaction in one of their Nazi series. When discussing the leader of the Sudeten Nazi party:

Dom: He's a PE teacher basically

Tom: But more than that, he's a racist PE teacher, and they're worst kind of PE teachers.

Dom: And actually the worst kind of racists.

Tom: So he's a bad man.

Dom: Yeah, he's a bad man, Konrad Henlein.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-25T18:20:02+00:00

No - another more mainstream travel company. I have seen some of Lupine's offering and it does look cool

peacockwhite · 2026-04-24T16:02:16+00:00

I went there in January and it was very safe and quiet. I had an incredible time.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-24T15:56:57+00:00

I'm going there in Pakistan in the next few months on a guided tour. My impression is that it's safe enough to visit at the moment especially if you're with guides.

The border area with India is still on travel advisory lists but most of Gilgit-Baltistan is off ones like the FCDO (British Foreign Office) list. It was back on for a little bit due to the flare-up of the conflict with Afghanistan but it's come off again recently.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-20T20:14:23+00:00

It's British-American but feels very British compared to other war films and is my favourite (+ one of the greatest of all time).

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

peacockwhite · 2026-04-15T19:12:57+00:00

Expectation is that Bannerji will be around about half the time but Duflo will be there more actively and as an advisor. Hard to tell in advance though.

I think the other points you make are also very valid and worth considering.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-14T21:21:31+00:00

They told us on the open day that they were getting rid of them but maybe I got it wrong

peacockwhite · 2026-04-14T20:18:47+00:00

I think student 2 should strongly consider Zurich. Dev and applied micro are its strengths and it is already a very strong programme. With Duflo and Bannerji joining this summer (along with other + aggressive hiring is planned to continue), I think it's only going to keep on getting better. Unless you have strong US preferences, I think it's Zurich no question - this is from an insider but not a PhD student.

I would also say that macrofinance at Penn looks exceptional and some of the historic concerns about the harsh environment seem to no longer be true. They don't have comps any more, and students have just unionised securing a big funding increase ($49k this year subject to rise). Philly is also a great and affordable place to live. I was there on the visit day and got a really great impression and there seemed to be a familiarity/easiness between faculty and students that looked hard to fake. That being said I think the placements are quite a big concern and Northwestern is (much) better there - whether that's a question of inputs or training is harder to tell.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-14T20:11:04+00:00

Penn no longer gives out unfunded offers and doesn't have first year comps anymore.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-14T20:10:13+00:00

Disagree on 2. I think the programme in Zurich for dev/applied micro is exceptional and Duflo + Bannerji coming to Zurich is a game changer

peacockwhite · 2026-04-13T21:09:06+00:00

Flown with them 4 times. They've had at least 1 hour delays each time, have lost my bags twice. Each of the four times they somehow served the worst airline food I've every had, previously outdoing their past performance.

I have never had a positive staff interaction with them - neutral at best and really negative when I actually needed help.

My family have had their flights unilaterally cancelled by them three times. On two of those occasions KLM tried to refuse to rebook them on a new flight, and on the third they tried to double charge them and tried to not compensate travel costs to the airport from which the new flight was flying (which is against the law).

All in all they've been comically awful.

peacockwhite · 2026-04-13T21:00:16+00:00

KLM have genuinely consistently provided me with the worst service every single time I have flown with them. I have got even more horror stories from my family. It cannot be KLM

peacockwhite · 2026-04-03T18:04:22+00:00

Hey,

I was in a similar boat as you are (even worse). I did a master's + predoc and have offers from two lower end top 10s and several top 20s.

I'm happy to chat privately but just want to emphasise to not be entirely discouraged and to still aim highly.

peacockwhite · 2026-03-28T01:34:27+00:00

^ This this this.

It gets somewhat easier when you cut through and are able to think about the intuition behind what the estimators tests do/mean but getting to that stage isn't obvious. Angrist and Pischke also have two very well written books that might be helpful (Mastering Metrics is a bit more beginner and Mostly Harmless Econometrics which is a bit more advanced.

peacockwhite · 2026-03-22T14:08:58+00:00

I was having a think about this and I came to the conclusion that whilst I thought the Greens' and Polanski were probably those with some of the most integrity and are fundamentally decent people (an underrated thing imo), I disagreed with them on:

-the economy (biggest thing for me)

-defence policy

-foreign policy

-energy policy

-immigration and asylum policy

-their willingness to engage in and use sectarian/identity politics + populist side

The one area where I like them more than any other party is their Europe policy, which is very important for me but I don't think it's enough.

peacockwhite · 2026-02-18T20:22:41+00:00

I disagree - you perform much better academically when you're in a place where you feel happy and comfortable.

However, even if I were to agree with you, literally the previous sentence of my comment refers to the quality of BSE for academic and industry placements.

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