In the first section of this advice area we briefly discussed the fact that any international students for whom English is not a native language will need to present proof of proficiency as part of their Master’s course application. Proficiency tests measure the student’s level of language comprehension and capability with the aim of offering a standardized rubric for calculating whether the individual is prepared for postgraduate study in the UK.

In a post on Top Apps for Economists, we noted that the word “app” was becoming integrated into our daily lives. I’d say it’s achieved a solid place in contemporary vocabulary. Yet, while you may not think twice about using an app to check a train schedule, buy a movie ticket or peruse Facebook, you still might not be aware of the plethora of great academic and professional apps available as well.

Many people who are already years or decades into their careers find themselves wanting to build upon their skillsets and expand their professional qualifications. Perhaps they want to make a career change, feel stuck in a mid-level position but lack the qualifications necessary for advancement, or perhaps they are just interested in gaining new knowledge but don’t have the time or means to head back to school. In the past, people in such situations could enroll in evening or weekend courses at community centers or continuing education departments at local universities.

Last year, we offered you a list of 10 finance conferences worth attending in 2013. Now, with summer just around the corner and conference season already underway, we want to make sure you know which conferences to register for ASAP and which to have on your radar for the coming months. With finance such a hot topic across the world right now, we’ve expanded our list to 15, while limiting the time frame to the summer months. Towards the end of the summer we’ll post another list for fall and winter conferences.

While everyone knows how important a good spot in the major rankings lists can be for recruiting top-notch students, another type of ranking is gaining in momentum that deserves widespread recognition as well. In the digital era we find ourselves in, it’s only appropriate that cyber rankings be given weight within a school’s overall reputation. To do well on this scale means more than just having a flashy website, however; it means creating a user-friendly, active and interactive online presence for your institution, while retaining staff who publish widely and share their work and ideas with the public via online platforms.

Most Master’s courses at universities in the UK do not require specific entrance exams, apart from language proficiency exams for anyone who does not speak English as a native language. For an explanation of which English proficiency exams are generally accepted, take a look at the first question in this section.

With application season largely behind us, it’s now time for students to make final decisions about where they will be heading this coming fall. For those in the lucky position of having been accepted to multiple universities, the question now is how to compare programs in order to make a final selection. Most people rely on rankings at some point in the application process, but do rankings really offer the nuance necessary to know if a program is a good fit? And without comprehensive lists comparing Master’s programs in particular, how useful are rankings at all?

Last year, we posted an article titled “Internships in Economics – Lessons from an Economist,” which offered useful advice about the importance of internships and how to find what you’re looking for. Now, as spring is flying by and summer is just around the corner, we know that many of you are in the process of finding a summer internship. In this post, we’ll highlight a few specific internships and delve into the many great places to intern for anyone interested in economics and finance.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

Last year, we conducted a global survey of nearly 800 academics, asking questions about budget cuts at their respective institutions for fiscal year 2013, and their expectations for 2014. We wanted to get a sense of the climate around the world in terms of who is still being affected by the economic downturn, and to what extent, in order to better grasp the daily reality for both employers and job seekers.

The Erasmus Mundus program is a well-known cooperation program between European universities and the rest of the world. Through partnerships, projects, funding and joint programs, it gives students around the globe the opportunity to access high-quality education, while also encouraging student mobility.

Many believe that once one decides to follow an academic career path there is no way out. Working at a university is not only said to bring you respect and stability, but also a gradually increasing income. How high the latter might get obviously depends on many factors, such as your qualifications and the institution you graduated from, as well as the country where you are teaching.

While we of course hope you find our own blog to be a great and engaging resource, we recognize that there are copious noteworthy blogs out there focusing specifically on the world of finance. For this post, we’ve gathered a list of 50 Finance related blogs for you to peruse.

This blog post is the third in a series of entries highlighting top think tanks around the globe. Last week we posted a list of top institutes in Europe, and yesterday we offered you a list of think tanks in the United States. Today we’ll focus on the Spanish-speaking world, with a list of top think tanks and research institutes in Spain and Latin America.

Following up on last week’s list of Top Think Tanks and Social Science Research Institutes in Europe, this post is dedicated to top institutions in the United States. Although the U.S. is home to hundreds of research institutes, focusing on a vast array of disciplines and issues, there is a certain degree of consensus regarding which are the most respected. In the list below, we chose to highlight top think tanks working in the broad areas of politics, economics and international relations.

Whether you’re looking for a summer internship, your first postgraduate job or a change in career, gaining experience in a think tank or research institute is always a good way to go. While some think tanks engage in highly specialized research on specific topics, many span a broad range of issues, particularly in the fields of politics, economics and international relations. We’ve decided to dedicate three distinct blog posts to top think tanks around the world, beginning with this list of European institutions. Keep an eye out for upcoming posts on U.S. and Latin American institutions.

While it was the UMP, France’s conservative opposition party, that won the majority of votes in Sunday’s first round of town hall elections in France, the far-right Front National also made decisive gains, particularly in areas that used to be bastions of the left wing. The ongoing difficulties in the French economy are often cited as one of the key reasons for this redrawing of the political landscape and the losses for the ruling Socialist Party.

While plenty of people both within and outside of academia hold strong opinions regarding which institutions have the best political science departments, there are some schools that stand at the top of everyone’s list. Whether you agree or disagree with rankings, the reality is that they matter for students and professionals alike. As of 2013, 20% of political science professors in the United States earned their PhDs at one of four institutions (note that there are nearly 3,000 universities in the U.S.), which happen to hold the top four spots in U.S. News and World Report Rankings.