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Advice needed: How to run away from your gpa


limnousine

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HELLO y'all: I need your advice: 

 

I will apply for the first time to M.Sc. Hydrology programs for a Fall 2016 start! 

 

I graduated in May2014 from a big, well-known state school with a B.Sc in physics and Minors in GIS. 

Since then, I've worked full time as a assistant in a biogeochemistry/river dynamics lab (May2014-current) 

Before joining the lab, I was a student research assistant (Jan2014-May2014)

 

Here is the catch: I have an undergraduate GPA of 2.77!! 

I know this will prevent my admission into top10 programs, so I am aiming for mid-tier programs? 

 

Here is what I've done to outrun my undergrad gpa: 

Spring: Took a graduate modelling class to show future decisions committees that I can hand graduate level work 

Now (summer): repeating undergrad math class that I did poorly in: Differential Eqns

Fall (upcoming): Take another grad level class for the same reason above

 

At this point, what else can I do?

- Focus exclusively on attaining highest possible GRE scores?

- Focus on presenting something at conferences like AGU or GSA? 

- Something else?

 

I'd especially appreciate any kind of input from those of you in graduate school who had applied from a position of disadvantage (like me!) 

 

THANK YOU, I've been silently stalking this forum for over a year, and you guys are awesome. 

 
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Note: I am not an earth science major, nor did I apply from a position of disadvantage (weird position but not a disadvantageous one).

 

That being said the best course of action if you are aiming for a PhD is to get a research-based MS in which you could potentially publish your work. Look for a funded/partially-funded program and also remember your MS doesn't have to come from a top 10 institute - quality of research matters more. Present your work at conferences (home institute or from at professional society meetings) and more than anything keep a high GPA (i.e. 3.7+)! This will prove to the PhD adcomms that you can handle graduate work at a sufficient level and will not struggle during your PhD coursework. 

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I think you will have a very hard time getting into even an unranked program, unfortunately.  Even the GPAs at mid-tier programs have above 3.0 (probably above 3.5). For example, the program where I did my masters (funded) accepted people into the program that weren't competitive enough to get funding in our program, and they have 3.8 GPAs ! While a lot of earth science programs are forgiving of GPA, your GPA is actually below the minimum for graduate school (not departmental, university wide) at most places! This means that for the department to accept you into the program, you will need someone on the admissions committee to appeal the graduate school in most places.  This is possible, but you have to give them something to really make it worth their while: your statement of research (or purpose) must be immaculate.

 

I say this as someone who has a low undergraduate GPA (3.05) (I was also a physics major) but had a great deal more research experience than you at the time of applying.

 

Think about what you can leverage: do you have strong skills in your desired field? What about professors, who are writing your letters, do they know anyone who might be interested in speaking with you? I think the key is getting the people you want to work with to want you as a graduate student so they can vouch for you on the admissions committee and then appeal to the graduate school. Of course graduate schools have their own process, but this seems like a common path. 

 

Your GRE should be as high as possible yes, but it won't make up for the fact that you have a below than required GPA.  It seems silly, but even the .23 increase in GPA would have made getting your app into a MS program a lot easier. 

 

You might get lucky and find funding, but I'd expect to pay for a MS program, even at an unranked school. 

 

Goodluck.

 

Edit: http://academia.stackexchange.com/questions/324/how-do-you-get-a-bad-transcript-past-ph-d-admissions

 

has good advice

Edited by GeoDUDE!
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If your MSc is terminal, you're doing the right thing.  Continue researching and absolutely present your work.   Nail your GRE.  The second grad class would be gravy, I think.  If you believe that the course will take away from your research/conference or test-prep time, skip it for now.  I would, however, retake Diff Eq.

Lastly, reach out to profs whose work interests you.  Introduce yourself...maybe even visit.  

Ask your recommenders if, given your interests, there are any programs they think you should look at (they probably have close colleagues/collaborators at those institutions and their recs might carry a little extra weight).

Good luck!  

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