The intermediate economics and econometrics courses offered by the department may be low math (no calculus), moderate math (single variable calculus), or high math (multivariable calculus and/or linear algebra). A pre-PhD economics major may prefer a department with more math built into the economics courses, in addition to taking more advanced math courses.
Considering that econ PhD programs take a ton of non-econ majors, really, getting the maths skills is all that matters.
UChicago recommended to its Econ undergraduate students that if they wanted a PhD from there, they should major in math. Math ability is much more important than an Econ background.
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That is not entirely true.
I attend Yale, so I have authority to speak on matterā¦Not all people who go to such schools will be āthe best there isā that is propaganda. Normal people go here all the time.
There are MANY kids who graduate here, then go work for white shoe firms and Goldman Sachsā¦not exactly groundbreaking innovation.
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However, its own economics courses are relatively math-heavy, so whether pre-PhD-in-economics students major in economics (non-business) or math, they can at least get a taste of economics with math.
I agree that peers may include high achievers, future leaders etc, but also agree with @OneofOne that the student population at Harvard et al is fairly diverse, and increasingly so. If top schools were as portrayed in your post, my kids would have hated them. Everyone finds ātheir peopleā and it may not be a wealthy, well-connected person headed to Goldman Sachs. It may be an artist or philosophy major or writer or whatever, from a modest background but enough authenticity and/or talent to have gotten in. And when these friends graduate, they may not work for the money but for some continued āpassion.ā
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UChicago may be the only place where someone that has only the requirements for an Econ degree may be eligible for some PhD programs.
Iām just saying it is not two dimensional. I know that from experience. Iām not caricaturing them. There are authentic, good people here. But theyāre not the best in the world.
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Just to clarify, my post was agreeing with yours. PMāed you
These were ārareā in that there were few students selected for each position each summer.
For the European Commission position about 6-8 would apply and 2 would be selected each summer. For the BoE position, Iām uncertain as to how many applied each year with 1 - 2 selected.
However, there were many similar programs offered. Before the plague years (suspended for the pandemic) Yale, for example, would have special (funded! with Yale arranged housing provided) opportunities in major international cities around the world including Paris, Brussels, London, Tel Aviv, etc. While only two of the positions in Brussels were at the EC, there were also positions at the ICC, and other very special programs.
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At the two highest ranked Econ Phd programs (MIT, Harvard), the following has been necessary - but certainly not always sufficient:
Outstanding econ background + advanced math including Real Analysis or higher with near perfect grades in both subjects.
Near perfect GRE scores.
Extremely laudatory LORs from professors known to and respected by the admissions committees.
2 years post grad RA experience at a Central Bank or top level Econ program.
UChicago has always been very quant, and will take math majors with less of an econ background, but while a top 10 program itās not in the same league as the two in Cambridge.
Economics PhD programs in general want to see a strong math and statistics background.
Here is a recommendation from one economics department to undergraduates who want to prepare for PhD study in economics:
I am an MIT grad, and my two children go to Harvard and UChicago, so I have no favoritism bias here. But I will repeat what the Harvard professor who is responsible for recruiting junior economics professors has told me: Harvard usually wins recruiting battles against every college exceptā¦ the University of Chicago. Apparently these freshly minted economics PhDs see something that US News does not.
Ranking of PhD programs is very different from undergrad. Things that matters most to applicants are research fit, and placement track record. The things that matter most to junior faculty can be very, very different. The best PhD program from a student perspective can be a very unappealing place for junior faculty, and vice versa.
To original question, in addition to harder workload, I would add the fact that Harvard students ācompā for clubs and activities, so you may have to already be proficient in an area to belong. Ditto some classes. If you want to try something like, say, photography for the first time, it may be hard to get into a class because there are many who are talented and already accomplished. Not true for everything but it is an issue for some areas of study or ECās. Also students need to be comfortable with extraordinary peers: it can be hard on self-esteem.
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Very very few. And I cannot think of an example outside of AFVS or TDM. And even then, it is only a few courses impacted.
Good to know. The students I know were interested in the areas you cited 
Also my info on that may be dated. I know the music dept. has made changes in recent years so that access is increased for those whose backgrounds donāt include conservatory prep and so on.
It varies. My son has lots of interests across a broad range of subjects. When my son was deciding between Harvard and Yale we spent a lot of time at Visitas and Buldog Days going to different departments to try and suss out how difficult it would be for a non-major/concentrator to get into upper level seminar classes in departments outside his major. Seemed like Harvard was more restrictive with departments having stricter rules and preferences for their majors and upper level students. For example, a senior concentrator would have priority, followed by a junior concentrator, etc.
Yale seemed much more flexible (with the exception of a very few programs like DS) with it coming down to: Talk to the prof, and as long as the professor OKs itā¦
That ended up being the deciding factor.
While true in theory, I never saw an issue in reality, with the exceptions I already mentioned, and with the possible exception if a specific required course for the concentration. e.g. gov 94. And even then, one can usually find a section of the course, if not their preferred section
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The difference between T20 and regional universities is the quality and location of first job opportunities.