HarmonyMisc

Don't give up! I had a GPA worse than yours and got in to my top choice (USC)! I was super honest--and I mean HONEST. In my essay, I touched BRIEFLY on why I did so bad in undergrad, and then talked about what I learned from that experience. People kept telling me, "If they want to know, they'll ask!" Well, sure enough, they did. They came back and wanted a one-page essay on what the cause of my bad grades were. ONLY THEN did I go into detail. I was honest, and I got straight to the point, like, "look, this is what happened, this is why, I wish it had gone down different, but it is what is and it won't happen again because I am a better person." I think too many people try to explain too much in their essays. Focus on the kind of person you are today and how those struggles ended up being a good thing because they made you passionate. Just my two cents....but that route worked for me, and like I said, my GPA was worse than yours!

I agree with what was said above. It varies, but at USC, I had seven papers due the first semester (taking two classes)--all in APA. I only did one APA paper in undergrad, so that was my biggest struggle. Length and content wise? I'd say 10-20 pages depending on the subject. Be prepared to give your stance on policy issues and have the backbone to stand behind it. Sometimes it's more about getting your view/opinion out there and backing it up more than anything else.

Woke up to my email! What a relief!! But I will be calling to confirm too! LOL Congrats!

LOL....yes.....trust me! I'm laughing at myself too! And, no, no new buttons. It's pretty sad that the humans can't keep up with the computers, isn't it? Haha!!!

So, last night I noticed that my application status changed from "currently in review-blah-blah-blah" to "congratulations on your acceptance!" Huh? Interesting...never received that golden email/letter. I already knew where to go for my statement of intent, so I go there. Log in with my ID and birthday (as it directs). My information comes right up....signed it, got an email confirmation that I signed it, and then got my login information for the schools email. I actually used the email this morning. While that is all good and dandy, I STILL have not got an official letter. On top that, I contacted my admissions advisor and was told "it's still being processed and I should receive a decision soon." REALLY? Anyone else out there going through this? Is it just system error? Or is it my never-ending luck? Thanks for reading my rant...

I see you applied to UNC--just to be clear--I applied to USC; although, I've read so many posts on multiple forums that schools do this. SO frustrating!

Hmm...in a weird way, I'm kind of relieved that I am not the only one in this position. I submitted my application back in January, and still have not heard back. Just the typical "still in review" response. I also paid $85--I wish if being waitlisted were the case, they'd at least tell me. I'm losing my mind not hearing ANYTHING back..."you're waitlisted" would be a relief at this point!

Yay! Good for you! Congrats!!! Still nothing for me....but I applied to VAC, so who knows! :-D

Ditto AyaT! Good luck!!

I had my admissions advisor call and ask me to write an additional "brief" statement explaining some grade deficiencies from 5 years back--maybe that's what they mean when they say "second review?" But that was two weeks ago and I haven't heard anything else. Irritating....

I call/email my admissions advisor. I applied to VAC, so I'm not sure how different online vs on campus admissions are. I applied 8 1/2 weeks ago though, so either way it just seems like a long time.

I just passed the 8 week mark since my application was submitted. Everything's completed/received--I have checked with my admissions advisor about ten times now. "Still processing......." is the only thing I get.

I did hear from them, but no decision yet. I sent you a message about it last week.

Yeah--I just passed my six week mark on Monday. The wait is brutal!

Anyone?

I am going nuts!!!!!! I submitted my app 28 Jan for the May start date. It's been almost six weeks, and my app status still says "submitted and in the first stage of evaluation." I got the financial aid housing request thing and filled it out. Anyone know when decisions come out? Does your app status change? I emailed the admissions office, but no word back yet.....

Thank you all for your advice. I have been volunteering quite a bit, and I have scored some solid recommendations (AF Colonel, Director of the counseling center I have been volunteering at, and a previous instructor I had for several classes during my undergrad). I have always been a strong writer, and I have been taking my time writing my statement of purpose and resume (revising and then revising more). I will tell you what...if I could go back ten years and smack my own forehead-I would! Now I understand how frustrating it must be to give a young person just starting out in college advice only to have them ignore it. Arg.... I will get there. I am just going to have to work extra hard. I am up for the challenge, though! Thanks again everyone!

Okay, so if I understand correctly, "lumping" undergrad classes for your GPA might help when schools say they'll look closer at your last 60 credit GPA? If that's the case, it wouldn't really matter if I took a undergrad or grad classes either way, right? I'm assuming they will start at your last class and count back 60 credits. The program I have my heart set on is the MSW at University of Southern California. Thanks for your reply!

I’m hoping someone out there can help me. If I'm not posting on the right forum, someone please tell me. Without going into a long, drawn out story, I spent ten years earning my bachelors due to moving around and being young and stupid. I have a couple semesters of bad grades (from approx 5-7 years ago). The last three years I buckled down and got great grades, but because I graduated with so many credits (198 to be exact—yes, I know) those couple of semesters really dragged down my cumulative. My GPA for my last 60 credits is a 2.98, but my cumulative is only a 2.63. I’m applying to a school that is pretty competitive, which only increases my anxiety over my low overall GPA. I keep reading and hearing that when you find yourself in a situation like that, it may help to take a couple grad classes wherever you can get accepted before applying to your actual school of choice. I got accepted to the local university and was planning to take two grad classes this spring before applying to my school of choice for fall. I emailed my admissions counselor at my school of choice to ask her opinion, and she said: “It won’t increase your undergrad GPA if you now take grad classes. I would encourage you to take undergrad classes to increase your GPA.” Isn’t your undergrad GPA pretty much set when you graduate? She knows I already graduated with my bachelors in August. Has anyone else run into this situation? I’m desperate for any advice!