[2016 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

Undergrad Institution: Appalachian State University
Major(s): Quantiative Geoscience
Minor(s): Math
GPA in Major: 3.3
Overall GPA: 3.45
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: Domestic, male, veteran

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 160
V: 163
W: 3.5

TOEFL Total: N/A
Research Experience: 1.5 years as a research assistant doing stable isotope Geochemical analysis on the Devonian rock record of western China and identifying excursions of trace elements associated with ocean anoxic mass extinction events

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Chancellor's list x 2 
Honor Graduate from Defense Language Institute, Monterey, CA
Letters of Recommendation/Appreciation from the commanders of Navy Seals and Army Special Operations in Eastern Afghanistan (2011-2013)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 1.5 years as a TA teaching and assisting in introductory Geology labs
6 months working as a museum curator at the McKinney Geology Teaching Museum.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Completed undergraduate degree in 3 years
President of local Chapter of the Student Veterans of America and activist for veterans issues on campus
Member of Appalachian State's Military Affairs Committee, board which deals with student veteran issues, recruitment, and retention

Special Bonus Points: Veteran's are considered an underrepresented minority at universities and in STEM fields

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I speak French, Korean and German
I am a first generation college student
Coursework and experience in Geophysics, Geochemistry, Hydrogeology, GIS, and writing code in MATLAB
10 years of experiences as an intelligence analyst in the US Army and for the private company BAE Systems

Applying to Where:

Virginia Tech - Geoscience - Hydrogeology, PhD
Tennessee - Geology - Hydrogeology, MS
Alabama - Geology - Hydrogeology and Geochemistry, MS
WVU - Geology - Hydrogeology and Geochemistry, MS
UNLV - Geology - Hydrogeology and Geochemistry, MS

Results:
Virginia Tech- Accepted PhD with full support, NSF funded project, joint project between VT and University of Rennes, start F16 or S16 (1st Choice)