BigThomason51

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to update everybody.  I posted earlier in this thread!  I came from a poor uGPA (~2.7), that was not reflective of who I could be.  However, it happened, and there was nothing I could do.  I was very lucky to find a Masters Program in my field that was willing to take a chance on me.  During my ~two years, I was able to excel and achieve close to a 3.9 GPA.  I took the GRE and was only able to do slightly above average (my combined percentiles were 70th.)  I went ahead and applied to 6 schools and was rejected by 3, accepted by one outright, and had two interviews.  I was informed last Friday that I was accepted to a program that I had my hopes for us, that was very highly ranked in the field!  
I want to give some advice for people who are in the same predicament reading this thread.  If you want to go Ph.D. and have a super low GPA, a Masters is the way to go. You will read online people say that a uGPA will also trump a Masters GPA, but for a Ph.D., I have found this not to be the case.  Sure, some universities will reject you off the bat, but I got generally good responses from schools.  In fact, out of the three schools, I applied, NONE mentioned my undergraduate GPA.  That's right. NONE OF THEM DID!  That tells you something. In fact, I didn't even mention my low GPA in my SOP (however, that doesn't mean you shouldn't even mention it, but I'm just letting you know that I did not.) 
Furthermore, make sure to apply broadly.  One thing that worried me was when I got two rejections in a row and thought that I was on the path of having to reapply.  If you have a low GPA, apply to as many schools as you can afford.  I wish I would've applied to around 10, but was lucky that I found acceptances.
A low undergraduate GPA is NOT the end!  You can overcome it! 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to update everybody.  I posted earlier in this thread!  I came from a poor uGPA (~2.7), that was not reflective of who I could be.  However, it happened, and there was nothing I could do.  I was very lucky to find a Masters Program in my field that was willing to take a chance on me.  During my ~two years, I was able to excel and achieve close to a 3.9 GPA.  I took the GRE and was only able to do slightly above average (my combined percentiles were 70th.)  I went ahead and applied to 6 schools and was rejected by 3, accepted by one outright, and had two interviews.  I was informed last Friday that I was accepted to a program that I had my hopes for us, that was very highly ranked in the field!  
I want to give some advice for people who are in the same predicament reading this thread.  If you want to go Ph.D. and have a super low GPA, a Masters is the way to go. You will read online people say that a uGPA will also trump a Masters GPA, but for a Ph.D., I have found this not to be the case.  Sure, some universities will reject you off the bat, but I got generally good responses from schools.  In fact, out of the three schools, I applied, NONE mentioned my undergraduate GPA.  That's right. NONE OF THEM DID!  That tells you something. In fact, I didn't even mention my low GPA in my SOP (however, that doesn't mean you shouldn't even mention it, but I'm just letting you know that I did not.) 
Furthermore, make sure to apply broadly.  One thing that worried me was when I got two rejections in a row and thought that I was on the path of having to reapply.  If you have a low GPA, apply to as many schools as you can afford.  I wish I would've applied to around 10, but was lucky that I found acceptances.
A low undergraduate GPA is NOT the end!  You can overcome it! 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to update everybody.  I posted earlier in this thread!  I came from a poor uGPA (~2.7), that was not reflective of who I could be.  However, it happened, and there was nothing I could do.  I was very lucky to find a Masters Program in my field that was willing to take a chance on me.  During my ~two years, I was able to excel and achieve close to a 3.9 GPA.  I took the GRE and was only able to do slightly above average (my combined percentiles were 70th.)  I went ahead and applied to 6 schools and was rejected by 3, accepted by one outright, and had two interviews.  I was informed last Friday that I was accepted to a program that I had my hopes for us, that was very highly ranked in the field!  
I want to give some advice for people who are in the same predicament reading this thread.  If you want to go Ph.D. and have a super low GPA, a Masters is the way to go. You will read online people say that a uGPA will also trump a Masters GPA, but for a Ph.D., I have found this not to be the case.  Sure, some universities will reject you off the bat, but I got generally good responses from schools.  In fact, out of the three schools, I applied, NONE mentioned my undergraduate GPA.  That's right. NONE OF THEM DID!  That tells you something. In fact, I didn't even mention my low GPA in my SOP (however, that doesn't mean you shouldn't even mention it, but I'm just letting you know that I did not.) 
Furthermore, make sure to apply broadly.  One thing that worried me was when I got two rejections in a row and thought that I was on the path of having to reapply.  If you have a low GPA, apply to as many schools as you can afford.  I wish I would've applied to around 10, but was lucky that I found acceptances.
A low undergraduate GPA is NOT the end!  You can overcome it! 
 
 
 
 
 

Reach out to every single program coordinator and generate some type of rapport with them. Although they usually do not have a say in whether you are accepted or not, the programs I ended up getting into were the ones where I contacted the coordinator EARLY and assessed my competitiveness for the program. 
Secondly, I would prepare 3X harder for my interview. I botched my first interview because I got super nervous and couldn't accurately describe my research (they ended up rejecting me two weeks ago.) Do not make this mistake, and practice even if you feel like you know your research on the back of your hand.
Third, I would have taken the GRE again.  I came into the process with a low GPA, and a good GRE, however, it could have been better. A lot of schools have filters for people who do not have a certain GPA or GRE. 

Thank you so much for posting this.   You're stats are almost identical to mine!  Glad that you found success!  

Just dropping here to post!  Very low uGPA (less than 2.7), but was able to get accepted into a Masters, and now have around the 3.7ish range.  Currently applying to PhD programs in the same field as my masters.  I have slightly above average GRE scores (50-60th.)  Applied to 6 schools.  Hoping for an acceptance!  

One of my friends heard back today from a Ph.D. program she interviewed at a while ago, letting her know she was accepted. There's hope. If you can, shoot the program coordinators for the programs you are waiting for an email. 

One of my friends heard back today from a Ph.D. program she interviewed at a while ago, letting her know she was accepted. There's hope. If you can, shoot the program coordinators for the programs you are waiting for an email. 

One of my friends heard back today from a Ph.D. program she interviewed at a while ago, letting her know she was accepted. There's hope. If you can, shoot the program coordinators for the programs you are waiting for an email. 

Solid advice. I went the creative route, but I had more than five people review it including a professional writer. I had the professional writer review it first, and she helped me avoid some pitfalls and structure it better. 
It's possible, but make sure you get it reviewed A LOT. So try your best to get the first draft done as soon as possible, and then have as many people as you can review it and provide feedback. The original draft of my personal statement took a complete 360 after all my reviews, so I think it's imperative you get fresh eyes to view it.  I know it's going to be harder with your one-month deadline, but you said it yourself; you're a great writer. So work extremely hard to get the first draft and then find people to look it over. 

Solid advice. I went the creative route, but I had more than five people review it including a professional writer. I had the professional writer review it first, and she helped me avoid some pitfalls and structure it better. 
It's possible, but make sure you get it reviewed A LOT. So try your best to get the first draft done as soon as possible, and then have as many people as you can review it and provide feedback. The original draft of my personal statement took a complete 360 after all my reviews, so I think it's imperative you get fresh eyes to view it.  I know it's going to be harder with your one-month deadline, but you said it yourself; you're a great writer. So work extremely hard to get the first draft and then find people to look it over. 

Are you talking about the personal statement or statement of purpose? Those are typically different statements. The statement of purpose (SOP) would be the one that most schools require, and only some schools require a personal statement (sometimes referred to as a personal history statement).
For the statement of purpose, focus on your background and experience. This isn't a place to give anecdotes or talk about personal difficulties. Treat it as a combination of a CV and cover letter. Your interests should be grounded in experience. One technique that I found super helpful was to start with a description of a research project I did. I got the idea from a friend's SOP (said friend got into 5 out of the 6 top schools she applied to). Using her approach as a guide, I briefly summarized the most memorable research project I did, explaining the topic, my approach, my discoveries (using some jargon in the process) and how this project led me to eventually find my research interests. In the next paragraphs, I then backstepped a little to talk about my general background in the discipline, specific background in my subfield, and I wrapped up my statement with a conclusion that talks about what I'm currently doing with my life as well as my career aspirations for the future.
For the personal statement, you can talk a bit more about your personal experiences, but the general idea is that yes, clichés are bad. I've had to completely rewrite my personal statement about four times before my recommenders were satisfied with it. What ultimately got me on the right track was when my professor told me to treat it like a mini intellectual autobiography. Basically, don't include random things that have nothing to do with your academic trajectory. And make it flow nicely. If you have had any difficulties or questionable parts in your application, this is the place to talk about it. But don't make it a sob story or give excuses. Rather, it's better to focus on the steps that you've taken to address these issues, how these difficulties have helped you along the way, etc.
I'm not sure what you mean when you say you want to incorporate a narrative structure. Do what feels most natural to you. I think it's safer to make it more traditional. Honestly, though, I've discovered that the best statement is simply one that doesn't go overboard trying to prove something or hide something. Stick to the truth and the rest will come. You don't need to describe how interested you are with elaborate adjectives, nor do you need to tell the school that you believe you're competent. Show them directly by describing your projects, experiences, and insights. Oh, and don't forget to research the schools and show them why you're a good fit (e.g. faculty whose research is in your subfield, organizations and workgroups specifically dedicated to your area).
By the way, since you're talking about narrative...I should mention that I was super upset when told I'd have to overhaul my third draft of my statement. I was having such writer's block and didn't know how to start or what to say, and so I just decided, hey, why not go out on a limb and try a poetic style? Well, that lasted for about three sentences. My end result was a completely normal statement, but it helped me get over the writer's block and identify a connecting point for all the random stuff I had to say. Cool story, eh? 

I had a 2.8 GPA when I graduated from Binghamton University with my bachelor's in 2012, earned a 3.8 GPA in 30 credits worth of post-bacc courses. I have been accepted to 1 graduate school in speech-language pathology so far!!!! 

Thanks!  I really appreciate it!  After my first two rejections in a row, I was getting worried, but luckily things turned out!
And super congrats on getting accepted into UIC once again! Let's kick some ass in our programs!  

To answer your question, I'll be honest and I'm sorry if it's a little harsh. But I hope the info from the directness is worth it.
In addition to what Bioenchilada said, "not a good fit" is also a way for schools to reject you without having to say exactly why, to avoid hurting people's feelings and to avoid an argument with an applicant.
Also, it's likely that the first cut (interviews) were made with little regard for "fit". They might choose to interview the most promising applicants and then decide later whether or not there is room for them in the department.
Finally, "fit" is a nebulous and subjective thing and I've learned that whenever schools say no for reason X, it doesn't always mean that "X" is the ultimate reason for saying no. In this case, it might not be that your interests aren't a good fit with the department, but the department only has so many spots for people with an interest in X and maybe they decided to admit the other people instead of you. What they said is still true, because now the department "needs" are already filled, so your interests are no longer a good fit for what they are looking for. (Note: I've seen this applied to other things too, a prof might say "I don't have funding for another student this year" but they might really mean, "I'm limited in my funding so I'm waiting for a really exceptional student" etc.)
In any case, I wouldn't worry about it---grad admissions are tough and a lot of the times, the decisions depend on factors you can't control, like who else is applying and what the department specifically wanted this year. It looks like you have at least one admission, good luck with the others!

Accepted to VCU BSDP!

Officially committed to Vanderbilt IGP. Excited to see they moved one up to #14 this year.
Opened up waitlist spots for Sinai CAB and Emory CB. Hope they pulled someone off the waitlist who really wants to go!

As a fellow sub-3.0 GPA-er, I've been following you over in the Biology forum. Super proud of you, man!! You deserve it!!  

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to update everybody.  I posted earlier in this thread!  I came from a poor uGPA (~2.7), that was not reflective of who I could be.  However, it happened, and there was nothing I could do.  I was very lucky to find a Masters Program in my field that was willing to take a chance on me.  During my ~two years, I was able to excel and achieve close to a 3.9 GPA.  I took the GRE and was only able to do slightly above average (my combined percentiles were 70th.)  I went ahead and applied to 6 schools and was rejected by 3, accepted by one outright, and had two interviews.  I was informed last Friday that I was accepted to a program that I had my hopes for us, that was very highly ranked in the field!  
I want to give some advice for people who are in the same predicament reading this thread.  If you want to go Ph.D. and have a super low GPA, a Masters is the way to go. You will read online people say that a uGPA will also trump a Masters GPA, but for a Ph.D., I have found this not to be the case.  Sure, some universities will reject you off the bat, but I got generally good responses from schools.  In fact, out of the three schools, I applied, NONE mentioned my undergraduate GPA.  That's right. NONE OF THEM DID!  That tells you something. In fact, I didn't even mention my low GPA in my SOP (however, that doesn't mean you shouldn't even mention it, but I'm just letting you know that I did not.) 
Furthermore, make sure to apply broadly.  One thing that worried me was when I got two rejections in a row and thought that I was on the path of having to reapply.  If you have a low GPA, apply to as many schools as you can afford.  I wish I would've applied to around 10, but was lucky that I found acceptances.
A low undergraduate GPA is NOT the end!  You can overcome it! 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to update everybody.  I posted earlier in this thread!  I came from a poor uGPA (~2.7), that was not reflective of who I could be.  However, it happened, and there was nothing I could do.  I was very lucky to find a Masters Program in my field that was willing to take a chance on me.  During my ~two years, I was able to excel and achieve close to a 3.9 GPA.  I took the GRE and was only able to do slightly above average (my combined percentiles were 70th.)  I went ahead and applied to 6 schools and was rejected by 3, accepted by one outright, and had two interviews.  I was informed last Friday that I was accepted to a program that I had my hopes for us, that was very highly ranked in the field!  
I want to give some advice for people who are in the same predicament reading this thread.  If you want to go Ph.D. and have a super low GPA, a Masters is the way to go. You will read online people say that a uGPA will also trump a Masters GPA, but for a Ph.D., I have found this not to be the case.  Sure, some universities will reject you off the bat, but I got generally good responses from schools.  In fact, out of the three schools, I applied, NONE mentioned my undergraduate GPA.  That's right. NONE OF THEM DID!  That tells you something. In fact, I didn't even mention my low GPA in my SOP (however, that doesn't mean you shouldn't even mention it, but I'm just letting you know that I did not.) 
Furthermore, make sure to apply broadly.  One thing that worried me was when I got two rejections in a row and thought that I was on the path of having to reapply.  If you have a low GPA, apply to as many schools as you can afford.  I wish I would've applied to around 10, but was lucky that I found acceptances.
A low undergraduate GPA is NOT the end!  You can overcome it! 
 
 
 
 
 

Happy to say I just accepted an offer of admission from one of my top choices and a top 20 school in my field.  For all of those with low-GPAs, there is hope! Find a masters that will accept you... do extremely well and the door will open for Ph.D programs! 
EDIT:  Also, thank you to this community for the great advice and support along the way! 

Happy to say I just accepted an offer of admission from one of my top choices and a top 20 school in my field.  For all of those with low-GPAs, there is hope! Find a masters that will accept you... do extremely well and the door will open for Ph.D programs! 
EDIT:  Also, thank you to this community for the great advice and support along the way! 

Happy to say I just accepted an offer of admission from one of my top choices and a top 20 school in my field.  For all of those with low-GPAs, there is hope! Find a masters that will accept you... do extremely well and the door will open for Ph.D programs! 
EDIT:  Also, thank you to this community for the great advice and support along the way! 

Happy to say I just accepted an offer of admission from one of my top choices and a top 20 school in my field.  For all of those with low-GPAs, there is hope! Find a masters that will accept you... do extremely well and the door will open for Ph.D programs! 
EDIT:  Also, thank you to this community for the great advice and support along the way! 

Happy to say I just accepted an offer of admission from one of my top choices and a top 20 school in my field.  For all of those with low-GPAs, there is hope! Find a masters that will accept you... do extremely well and the door will open for Ph.D programs! 
EDIT:  Also, thank you to this community for the great advice and support along the way!