Undergraduate Economist

Perspectives of an Economics student

MA Economics

I have been getting a lot of queries regarding various sample papers for IGIDR, ISI, JNU etc.

Here is the DSE Option A entrance exam paper of 2007.(Hat Tip to HE who does not want to be named)

DSE Option A 2007

Here are the sample papers of IGIDR and ISI [2005 and 2007].

1) ISI MSQE 2005 Sample Paper

2)IGIDR MSc Economics Sample Paper

3) ISI MSQE 2007 Sample Paper

A new website has started which gives information regrading the entrance tests conducted:

economicsentrance.com

This website gives details about the coaching for MA Economics it undertakes:

primeeducation.org

To purchase the past entrance question papers of JNU and DSE via Prime Education go here.

400 Responses to “MA Economics”

  1. chetana Says:

    AMAZING BLOG! maan gaye.
    now, please let me know how do you rate these books:
    Modern Microeconomics by A.KOUTSOYIANNIS, Macroeconomic Analysis by E.SHAPIRO and Mathematics For Economists by R.G.D ALLEN.
    i’m writing m.a entrance at various places but not very confident. hopefully this blog is going to help a lot!

  2. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Chetana,

    As far as i have heard, A.Koutsoyiannis is an excellent book. And i believe that Allen and Shapiro are excellent authors. As long as they give you a basic idea of economic theories and their mathematical models, they would do just fine.

  3. Nipun Malhotra Says:

    hi alex
    great site, very helpful
    I am currently doing my BBA
    however i have really started enjoying economics
    I want to do my MA from JNU
    plz guide me on preparing for JNU, and which books i should read
    i have very basic knowledge of eco
    thanks

  4. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Nipun,

    Go through the comments here. This will help you in gathering more information.

    Stimulate your interest by reading articles and news items relating to Economics. You need to have a strong base in Economics and also learn thoroughly the text books prescribed by the University of Delhi to gain entry into JNU.

  5. anshul babbar Says:

    hey bro nice webpage
    gud 2 c u helpin people
    all the best

  6. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Anshul,

    Thank you. :)

  7. sunny Says:

    In which colleges are u applying 4.

  8. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sunny,

    I am applying in JNU, DSE, IGIDR, GIPE, Univ of Hyd, Jamia Millia University and MSE.

  9. sunny Says:

    hi,
    Which reference book r u going 4 JNU.
    Any guidance 4 probab. book 4 both JNU, DSE.

  10. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sunny,

    The books i mainly refer are
    1) Intermediate Microeconomics- Hal Varian
    2) Macroeconomics- Dornbusch and Fischer
    3) Math-A C Chiang
    4) Statistics- Use Scahums series and Nagar and Das

  11. nidhi Says:

    hey which university is GIPE?

  12. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Nidhi,

    Gokhale Insitute of Politics and Economics.

  13. neha Says:

    hii evn i m preparin fr ma eco,cud u tell sum gud institutions

  14. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Neha,

    JNU, DSE, IGIDR, GIPE, Univ of Hyd, Jamia Millia University and MSE are all good.

    ISI offers a highly quantitative course called MSQE.

    All information will be given in their websites. You can find the links to them in the side bar of this blog.

  15. chetana Says:

    hi alex,
    i’d like to hear your opinion on would it b wise to sit for a year and prepare for m.a if i don’t get a good institute this year. or i should take admission ANYWHERE, which i’d really detest.basically, i want to knw if droping a yr reduces my chances of getting selected.

  16. nidhi Says:

    any idea about the maeco jmi entrance?

  17. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Chetana,

    If you detest doing something, i wouldn’t advise doing that. And if this is the first time you are taking up the test (With inadequate preparation), you can definitely give it a shot again if you don’t make it.

    Nidhi,

    They have not yet put up the admission notice. It will be put up here.

  18. chetana Says:

    thanks.

  19. ram Says:

    hi
    superb site
    i wanted to find out that how is jamia milia islamia for BA(Hons)Eco

    thanks

  20. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ram,

    I am not aware of BA(Hons) Econ especially in JMI. The Honours course by DU is good, i have heard.

  21. nidhi Says:

    the BA(H)COURSE at jmi is good but a lot will depend on ur hard work if u want good marks.It wont prepare u for dse and jnu and jmi itself is biased towards du students for the MA COURSE!

  22. ram Says:

    hi nidhi
    thanks
    so does that mean that faculty does not cover much syllabus in class at jmi

  23. nidhi Says:

    They do cover the syllabus its a protocol afterall but the course isnt apt for the MA paper a t jmi itself otherwise the faculty and syllabus is great .Seriousness of fellow students is a also an issue!

  24. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    hai Alex,

    Thanx a lot for this site……itz very very helpful for everyone whuz intrested in economics and related issues…… n’ a must watch site for those preparing 4 ma entrance…..
    Blogs wer superb…….thanx once again……
    all the best for all ma ntrance aspirants…..

    ajesh.

  25. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    hi Alex,
    wen DSE starts selling application forms??….. how many seats are der???….n wat about exam centers????
    Is Trivandrum a centre?????please give me more details…..
    ajesh.
    ajesh777@yahoo.co.in

  26. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ajesh,

    DSE usually gives out its application forms in May. I think there are around 150 seats in total.

    I do not think that there is a centre in Trivandrum.

  27. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    Alex,…
    Is der any exam center’ in Kerala……for DSE entrance..
    Cochin or somewhere else??
    ajesh.

  28. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ajesh,

    DSE conducts the test in DSE itself.

    The Entrance Exams for both M.A. and M.Phil will be held on Saturday, 24th June 2006 at the Delhi School of Economics. [DSE Hand Book 2006]

  29. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    Alex…,
    so….unlike JNU we want to write DSE entrane in Delhi rite????…..No other exam centers na????
    ajesh.

  30. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    hiii Alex….
    just read yor profile……u like malayalam movies,
    music etc…..n just like a malayalee……. :-) wer u got admission last year n wat doing now…..???dis website is very helpful for students like me….thanx a loot again :-)
    ajesh.
    ajesh777@yahoo.co.in

  31. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ajesh,

    Yes. JNU has got exam centres all over India unlike DSE. :)

    I finished my BA Economics in 2006. I am writing this year’s entrances for MA Economics.

  32. nidhi Says:

    Is the university of Hyderabad conducting an all india test?

  33. GVV Says:

    Chetana,
    Simple but comprehensive books for micro & macro.Refer them:
    1.’A Modern Guide to Macroeconomics: an Introduction to Competing Schools of Thought” by Brian Snowdown, Howard vane Peter Wynarczyck, Edward Elgar,UK,
    2.”Microeconomics: Theory and Applications”, by Robert Awh, Wiley, Newyork

  34. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    Alex,,
    What about Madras School of Economics……When compared to dept of Eco in Heyderabad Unv??????Watz your opinion about MSE?
    ajesh.
    ajesh777@yahoo.co.in

  35. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Nidhi,

    The Univ of Hyd forms are out. You can see them here.

    Ajesh,

    The choice is subjective as it depends on what topics one is interested in. I am not very interested in Environmental and financial economics, so i wont be trying in MSE.

  36. GVV Says:

    I believe that there is a bengali lobby in Indian economics.Take any book or journal ,a good number of articles will be by a Chatterjee,Mookherjee or Banerjee.

  37. GVV Says:

    Why there is no posting on Profs.Richard Musgrave and Milton Friedman?

  38. Alex M Thomas Says:

    GVV,

    There ‘might be’ in the future. Nothing in the pipeline as of now.

  39. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    GVV,
    Yup…..am also joining with you…..It seems der exists a strong bengali influence in journals n articles..Dnt know how dis aroused!!!!!..will expect a change on time being :-)

  40. sara Says:

    hi alex could u plz help me to find out the best college in which i can do o level and a level

  41. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sara,

    Best college in India or abroad? And ‘best’ college for what? And O level and A level means 10th and 12th standard??

  42. sara Says:

    hello alex, i m frm uae right now i am going to finish grade 9 and will be soon in grade 10 and as i am 18 yrs old should be finished plus 2
    but joined late to school and i wanted to know is there any college which gives us offer of o level or a level in 1 or 2 year

  43. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sara,

    I cannot help you in this regard as i have no idea about it. You could google various colleges and get information from their respective sites.

  44. sara Says:

    sorry forgot to mention tht one of my frnd need help. actually he is not geeting the sample paper of kerala board so could u plz help

  45. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sara,

    I have no idea about that and moreover i am not in kerala now.

  46. sukhdev Says:

    Hello sir, i hv completed my MBA, i m mmuch more interested too continue my study further so that, i m preparing for MA economics from pune university..can u recommend me good books for MA Eco I. i need good books for PUBLIC ECONOMY and INDIAN ECONOMIC POLICY.i shall be thankful to you if u reply soon…

  47. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sukhdev,

    I do not know books which are good for Indian Economics at the MA Level.

  48. sunit Says:

    Indeed a praiseworthy effort

  49. neha Says:

    hi…
    i am currently givin my final yr exams…b.com(hons)….i have around three weeks left for th JNU entrance….so if u could tell me wat books to refer to…i had macro eco as a subject and have done indian eco also…could u pllllssss tell me how to go abt it now…i reallly want to get thruuu!!!

  50. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Neha,

    The books i mainly refer are
    1) Intermediate Microeconomics- Hal Varian
    2) Macroeconomics- Dornbusch and Fischer
    3) Math-A C Chiang
    4) Statistics- Use Scahums series and Nagar and Das

    Work out the previous question papers too. It is crucial.

  51. abhishek nawab bhati Says:

    i want to know if u guyies have any idea about Msc. operational research , DU

  52. chetana Says:

    hey alex !
    long time ….. exms were on . nywy, how ws the igidr test? belated “all the best”. cudn’t appear due to soe reasons. tell me how different was the real question paper from the sample ppr. in any case, from as much as i hv gathered, u’ll get through. my net connection giving some trouble. hope to b more regular here. this site has been damn helpful. thanks!

  53. chetana Says:

    and GVV, thnks for those titles.

  54. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Abhishek,

    I do not have any idea about the course.

    Chetana,

    IGIDR test was not bad, not very good either. The IGIDR paper can be found here.

  55. andaleeb Says:

    alex
    please tell me if these books are good for DSE entrance
    microeconomic theory—H L Ahuja
    matehematics for economists–mehta and madnani
    macroeconomics—H L Ahuja

  56. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Andaleeb,

    I suggest you learn from the following books.

    1) Intermediate Microeconomics- Hal Varian
    2) Macroeconomics- Dornbusch and Fischer
    3) Math-A C Chiang

    I have seen Ahuja’s Microeconomics and Varian is much better than that. The other 2 books, i do not know. If you are able to solve the questions asked in the DSE entrance exams, then the books you are referring is enough.

  57. ashok Says:

    i applied for UNI OF HYD and OSMANIA UNI. is UNI OF HYD (is it comparable with JNU, MSE, IGIDR???) good? any tips for entrance?

  58. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ashok,

    The quantity and quality of research is more in JNU and IGIDR in comparison to Univ of Hyd; but that does not mean that the Univ. is not good. There are a good number of academic activities and research taking place in Univ of Hyd too. I do not know about Osmania Univ.

    Entrance tips: Get your concepts absolutely clear. [Use a good text like Varian for Microeconomics] Work out previous question papers.

  59. sunny Says:

    when will the gipe form come out.plz inform me.

  60. Sana Says:

    Hi Alex,
    I’m pursuing B.Tech, right now in 3rd year.I want to do M.A in Economics but since I’m not familiar with the basics of economics,can u suggest me books which will be helpful in this regard.
    Besides as u have mentioned earlier the reference books for applying to universities like DSE,JNU etc..will those books only be necessary and sufficient for preparation for the entrances??

  61. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sunny,

    The GIPE form has not come out yet. It should, by the end of this month.

    Sana,

    Those books which have been mentioned earlier are necessary because they provide the concepts in a really good manner. For any competitive exam, nothing can be sufficient. But, what is necessary is a good grasp over the basics of the subject and try to work out the previous years question papers.

    Varian for Micro, Dornbusch for Macro and Chiang for Mathematical Economics will enable you to get a clear idea of the subject. And if you find that certain topics are not clear to you. Refer other text books and try to do the concept which are not clear from there. Work out questions in the back of the book. Read EPW and magazines which talk about the subject. The various books which i think are good are given on the bottom right hand side of this blog.

  62. navneet Says:

    Hi alex

    can you suggest me some books for preparing for objective questions DSE entrance. Please tell me which topics in statistics should i stress on.

  63. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Navneet,

    All questions in DSE are objective and one can solve them only with a good knowledge of the basics. [A conceptual base is necessary but one needs to be really thorough with the topics]

    Statistics:Probability, Probability Distributions, Mathematical Expectations.

  64. sunny Says:

    hi alex,
    how was jnuee. how was the paper of sis(world economy). How much u attempted in economics paper of SSS. How would u rate it in compare to previous years.

  65. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sunny,

    I did not take the SIS paper. The SSS paper was okay. I attempted everything. But comparitively, this time, the paper covered more of topics.

  66. vijaykumar Says:

    I would like to know about the M.A. courses in colleges in Chennai apart from MSE.Which colleges would you rate among the best? I am also writing MSE entrance. Is it possible to get question papers of previous years?

  67. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Vijaykumar,

    Apart from MSE, in Chennai, i think that MCC is good and so is Presidency. Madras University has a masters programme in MA Econometrics (I do not know about the quality of the programme).

    As far as i know, the previous papers of MSE are not available.

  68. debi prasad Says:

    hi,
    can you solve the general equilibrium problems of dse 2006?

  69. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Debi,

    Not yet. The concept of competitive equilibrium is not yet clear to me.

  70. Ajesh.A.T Says:

    Hiii….Alex,
    wen JNU entrance results goin 2 out??????

  71. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Ajesh,

    In the prospectus, it is written that they will publish it within July 13th.

  72. sunny Says:

    have fill up the form of jmi.

  73. abc Says:

    hi i wanna ask u abt good coaching classes for enterance preparation ma eco. plz plz…… reply as soon as possible

  74. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Abc,

    http://www.economicsentrance.com have started their classes for this year’s DSE already. The coaching classes are excellent.

  75. abc Says:

    thanks for this info yaar but i’ll b eligible nxt yr n moreover i dnt wan crash courses rather i m interstd in coaching along wid my final year to keep my concepts fresh bt i havnt found any gud one yet plzzzzzzz…… help me out dude (AS SOON AS POSSIBLE)

  76. xyz Says:

    but in ecoent.more emphasize is given on basics ny idea abt naresh sir classes n keshav puram m confusd which one2go2

  77. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Abc,

    I think it is best you do the learning by yourself. Do Varian and there is a workbook by him which can be used along with the text. I do not know about Prof. Naresh’s class.

    Xyz,

    I have been to Economicsentrance and i have found them to be excellent. If the basics are strong, one can tackle any problem which comes.

  78. AAM Says:

    Hello,,
    GREAT SITE…
    Can anybody….please tell me what will come in the Admission test of BA(HONS.)ECO Jamia Millia Islamia…
    Any Sample Papers…

  79. Alex M Thomas Says:

    AAM,

    To my knowledge, sample papers are not available. The questions are like those which come for DSE entrance.

  80. satya Says:

    hi guys am satya here..
    1st thax to ALEX …4 hosting a great site…..4 economics student…
    am currently a DSE student…here giving u people some Suggestion ….not get prepared 4 DSE entrance only ..side by side study well undergrade mathematics also…bcoz Unfortunately DSE is not a place for those people who r weak in mathematics..Give more focus also on econometrics and satistics..

  81. Vibhu Tewary Says:

    I have qualified for the integrated MA programme in IIT Madras. I am interested in doing Economics course. I was wondering if you have any idea about how the course is compared to other economic courses in India……How do you rate this course and faculty? What are the prospects after completing this course?

  82. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Vibhu,
    The Integrated programme conducted by IIT Madras is a very good one. The faculty is good too. You can mail me at alexmthomas@gmail.com and i can give you email id’s of two students who are doing this course, if you are interested.

  83. Vibhu Tewary Says:

    Thanks a lot. I am writing to you separately.

  84. Amol Says:

    Hi Alex,

    I’m Amol, BCOM,MCA and into MMS final (Master of Mgmt Science, Systems).
    I’m very much interested in Economics as a carrier option. I’m currently working with SAS, an analyitics based BI solution provider. Im basically into J2EE and technology area.

    Can you please guide me as to how an MA in Economics can help me in combining the career prospects with IT. What solutions can be rendered using IT as a base and Economics as a domain?
    Are there any specific industries/examples you can point me to? Could you share your email address with me so that I can write more?

  85. harsha Says:

    can anyone plz guide me as to hw are the M.A Economics course run by bombay school of economics n by punjab university.plz guide.

  86. Ram Says:

    They are okay but not good as DSE and others

  87. Akshay Botre Says:

    any chance of getting hold of GIPE entrence exam sample paper?

  88. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Akshay,

    Not to my knowledge.

  89. Sunita Says:

    Hi alex,
    I’m really confused about how to go about doing Economics…due to some horrible decision making I am currently in Physics. Could u please tell me if it is feasible for me to study for the DSE MA entrance OPTION A without any undergraduate training in Economics? Can it be done by self-study? I find OPTION B to be very Math (Hons.) oriented.
    Thanks..and I am so grateful for your site…it’s VERY helpful. Keep it up.

  90. akshay botre Says:

    too bad…but i found the site very informative…keep it up :)

  91. Ram Says:

    Yes you can Sunitha, Physics isnt really a bad option 15% of Economists come from Physics after Economics and Maths.

    Opt A is better for you. And you can study yourself its not a great task

  92. Aditya J Panse Says:

    Hey, can any1 give me info abt paper structure etc of GIPE (Gokhale Inst, Pune) Entrance Test?

    btw, GIPE xam is preponed by 1 day. It is now on 8th instead of 9th July. visit GIPE website

  93. Sunita Says:

    Thanks for the encouragement Ram…
    Could anyone tell me if I would be losing out on a lot if I don’t do Economics at the undergraduate level? Would my basics be poor or do we go over them again when you do an MA?

  94. Ram Says:

    @Sunita,

    Again, 40% Economists never took Economics at their Undergraduate level, ofcourse many Economics Nobel Laurets also

  95. Sunita Says:

    Wow Ram…sorry but are you humouring me with those 15 % and 40 % statistics…or are they actually true? Very heartening if the latter. Thanks a lot. Are you sitting for an entrance exam? Studying Economics further?

  96. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Sunita,
    First of all, advanced studies in Economics requires people who are good in Mathematics. In fact, like Ram said in the US, the Phd selectors prefer candidates from Math and Physics backgrouds than economics as the former courses are considered to be very rigorous in nature.

    And to learn economics, self study will do. But there might be conceptual doubts which you have, that need to be clarified by someone who has learnt the subject. But, i believe that if you have the passion, you will grasp the subject easily.

    The option B is very math oriented but i assume that those from math or physics background should be able to do well. But if you think not, then you could take up option A. The books required for preparation is mentioned in the DSE website. You can go <a href=”http://economicsentrance.com/” rel=”nofollow”>here</a> to get more info about the DSE entrance.

  97. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Aditya,
    GIPE asks questions on Micro, Macro, Analytical Reasoning (GRE Barrons should suffice) and math and stats.

    And Schaums series for Micro and Micro will do.

    Go here to find more details.

  98. Sunita Says:

    Dear Alex,
    Thanks for the advice. I think I will continue with studying undergraduate Physics then…with renewed vigour if I see it leading to an MA in Economics. It is quite frustrating to see how flexible the US is…unfortunately in India the undergraduate Physics course is very specialised and discourages one from pursuing any other interests simultaneously :( Keep up the good site! Tc

  99. Ram Says:

    @Sunitha,

    I feel education in US isnot so flexble. I want to go for Economics PhD after Engineering, here we have lot of chances to get into Economics, MA Economics, later MPhil through entrance test. But at US they judge your application with Reco letters and you UG Grads, so 100% I cant get into top 50 Schools, or I need to take expensive 1 year MA Economics courses offered by a few universities, that too look for UG Maths or Maths oriented Graduates.

    But UK is some what flexible by offering PG Diploma Courses, but its bit expensive. But India provides you right path since they recruit students through entrance tests. that a best option to show the proof that you are eligible to study your course of choice.

    And my statistics are not a joke, they are real figures derived from various sources, mostly from US and UK Economic programs.

  100. rupali Says:

    Best of luck for u people who r writing DSE entrance………………..

  101. ashok Says:

    congrats alex u got selected for UOH.

  102. Ram Says:

    Congrats Alex

  103. akshay botre Says:

    UOH??

  104. Ram Says:

    University of Hyderabad (Alias Central University)

  105. akshay botre Says:

    hmmmm…damn good…keep it up alex

  106. Joseph Says:

    I am a +2 student with CBSE Syllabus taken Commerce + Maths stream and will be completing my +2 course in March 2008. Please guide me with some good undergraduate /professional courses in Kerala or Tamilnadu.

  107. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Joseph,

    If you want to know about the colleges offering an undergrad in Economics, let me know.

    The other subjects, i don’t know.

    What are your long term goals, if any?

  108. manaswi Says:

    hey am a tyba economics majors (hons)student from bombay.thinking of applyin in gipe.can sme1 helpme with wat to prepare n how to go about(books to refer etc).also if can get hold of sme previous question papers.can u suggest any other institute good 4 postgrads eco courses particularly finance.plz plz help

  109. Alex M Thomas Says:

    Manaswi,
    You can go here [Orkut community] and find the details regarding how to go about the preparation.
    IFMR, Chennai is good for Finance.
    You must be applying next year, right?

  110. VIJAY KR THAKUR Says: