SHS1217

Has anyone here had success with doing a graduate certificate to help offset a low undergrad GPA when applying to grad school?

Hello! I have a BS in wildlife biology and I graduated in 2019 with a GPA of 2.83 which is obviously very low. I was a transfer student and my community college GPA was 3.6 but unfortunately after transferring I was working graveyard shifts full time while going to school full time and it really messed me up. I have learned to be better about time management and I want to go to graduate school in the field. For now I am in the military until 2023 and I want to improve my resume as much as I can while in so I can go to grad school when I get out. I hope to eventually get a PhD but I suspect it’ll be best to get a masters first. What would be the best way to improve my application/resume for the next 3 years? Would you recommend retaking classes or taking relevant graduate courses online? Or focusing on internships/volunteer field work? Certifications (GIS maybe?). I will be working full time so a full time job or degree isn’t an option but maybe other stuff will help? Would a graduate certificate online be valuable? Thank you in advance for any advice.

I am very much hoping to go directly into grad school at UCD but if not, would completing a MS in biological sciences at Sac State help me get into the PhD program at Davis if I do well?

Hello, I am currently an Undergrad at UC Davis majoring in Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology. I am planning on applying to the Ecology PhD, Ecology MS and Population Biology PhD programs at UC Davis. I am a transfer student and my AA GPA is 3.68, and my UC GPA will be around 3.50, however I got a D in Calculus B. I am retaking it, but unfortunately, due to my increased work hours, I may get a D/D+ again this quarter (my 3.50 projected GPA included this). I also got a C- in Microbiology but that is not required for my major. Other than that, I got a D and a C in community college in GE classes (I retook the D and got an A+, the C was theater). I have not taken the GRE yet but I tend to do quite well on standardized tests. My research experience is limited, I have been volunteering in a grad. students lab entering data into a spread sheet. But I will be studying abroad in an ecology program in the spring with a research component and I am working on finding a research related internship over the summer and next year as well. With the D in math, do you think I have any shot at any of those programs if I get some research experience and do well on the GRE? Thank you. Any advice for those programs?