Kitkat

I just want to second this part. What I did was found one of the big socities that does conference specifically for the field that I want to go into, and they had a list with links to all the schools that had programs in that field. It was a great starting point. I'm sure that there are plenty of resources out there for people.

These threads might help you out if you haven't seen them already. http://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/2954-sub-30-gpas/ You do have a chance, if you make a very good case for yourself, and I think if you do well on the GRE it could help...... But it might really depend on how focused you are. I would recommend figuring out what you would want to specifically study when you go to grad school, rather then applying to a bunch of different program types, and hope you get in somewhere (you might have already done this, I don't know, but it looks like you are looking at a bunch of different subjects). I only mention this because some other people on the forum have said that one of the things profs and addcomms ask is where else you are applying to. If you list off some schools, and they know their own field, and some of the schools you are applying to don't have/ are weak in that field, then they might question how serious you are, and then not take you. It also depends on where you are applying to. There are some very good lower ranked schools that are not as competitive, that would be more willing to give you a shot. It partially depends on if you can get yourself some other good LOR's on top of the one you look like you already have. PS geology is a hard science, and especially so if you think physics is, because there is a whole field of geophysics. ;-)

With contacting profs, would it be best to use your student email if you have one? And for those who don't have one, what type of email address should you use. I am assuming that it is best not to use something that would embarrass yourself.

lady liberty

lady luck

With a lot of the hard sciences here I think there are several reasons people go for the PhD. One is because with a lot of jobs you'll need the PhD to get the jobs you want so you might as well get it. Also, many of the PhD programs you get your masters along the way, its just the way that they work. And third, in the sciences at least, schools give you funding if you are in a PhD program, but not if you are going into just a masters.

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This is a good enough score to get you into a good number of schools, depending on what field you are going into, and how competitive the schools you are looking at. I have seen a some schools with a minimum of 1200 composite, which you are fine on, but more competitive schools I have seen average scores between 1300-1350, but those are programs in geosciences. Since I don't know what your field is, I don't know how the most competitive programs look for average scores. At the same time, if you have a really strong application outside of your GRE score (stong LOR's, strong SoP, good GPA) then your GRE still might be fine for getting into even the most competitive programs. So basically it is really hard to say.....

You are giving me hope, I am in a similar situation. 1310 on the GRE, both in the 600's. Verbal is high in my field(92%), and quant is low for it (64%). Although, I am assuming doing well in your major helped, I am wondering if you also did good research as well. As to everyone who is saying that these are good scores you are right. That isn't what I am worried about in my case. Its a matter of the in-balance in this case of my GRE scores in applying to these programs. I am hoping that the high verbal helps offset my low quant. Otherwise it is a good score and if you look at it as a composite score compared to the average composite score of the schools that I am looking at, I am very much in the middle of the pack. So as far as that goes, solid score, all is good, I am not going to sit here and say mediocre. I just wish that I had scored maybe ~30-40 points higher on quant so that I could worry about this less. I think that people are only saying scores like this are mediocre due to the programs that they are looking at. At the best programs in the fields many people are looking at, higher scores are average. I, unlike these other people would not say mediocre, but would emphasize the fact that they are the 'norm' for applying to more competitive schools.

rubber duck

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I guess what else I am looking for on this one is, how did people know what they wanted to do in graduate school, and have that show through on their applications. What experiences did you have that you were able to talk about in your SoP/CV whatever that you think helped/will help convince addcomms and labs that you are a good fit for them?

time line

While I won't deny that age probably was a factor in not getting into a program, with these numbers, I am wondering if you applied to any higher ranked/more competitive programs as well? I have also heard of cases where people were rejected from a school because they were seen as 'too good', that they probably applied to other schools that have better programs and will get in there, will probably go there, so why should they even bother accepting you there? Although, good candidates like you can also get rejected because you don't properly fit into the program that they have as far as they are concerned. This might be do to the fact that you are much closer to them in age, if not older, and they see you as a threat. This doesn't excuse the behavior, but it might be the reasoning behind it. It just might be their way of reminding everyone, themselves included, whos in charge, and that they see you as sort of a threat. If so it's rather childish.

long day

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Yes you are right to want to tailor your essays to each program, especially in a more science related field. You want to mention the school, why you want to go there, who you would want to work with and why. Now this does not require you to change your entire essay, it does require you to pay attention to the essay for each school that you are applying to. You do not want to say Prof X's lab, when he is working at University Y, when applying to university Z. What you can do is, talk about what you want to do, what you want to focus on, and then connect that to the program you are applying to and people you would want to work with and why, and just tailor that part to each school.

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