Rising undergrad senior looking for help digging themselves out of their hole

[swiggles]

Hey all, thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this.  I'm starting to do some research into the topic and I'm feeling very nervous and overwhelmed.  If this is the inappropriate area for this post I apologize and I'd be happy to look elsewhere

I'm rising senior at a well known and popular school for IR in the US and I'm very interested in pursuing a career in IR, Asia/Korea Studies, some combination of the two etc.  

For the first 2 years of undergrad (plus last fall to an extent where I received 2 A's a B and an F) my performance was pretty middling around a 3.2.  Last spring things more or less came to a head and I had a terrible semester.  Finally managed to admit I was an alcoholic and start dealing with it this year, ended my second semester of Junior year with a 3.87 and a 4.0 for the summer class I just wrapped up.

To be frank I'm worried that things are too little too late for my long term goals as I'm going to be graduating with a 3.0-3.1 GPA If I keep things up which is... less than competitive for many of the amazing programs I would have loved to attend like Asian Studies at Georgetown SFS, the Korea specialization at SAIS, Korea studies at SOAS in London, similar programs at UCSD, Elliot School, Lee Kuan Yew etc.    

I'm looking for information on what i can do in the next 4-5 years before I'm ready to apply to these programs to unscrew myself.  I figure that the only way to really mitigate my failings is to start early while I'm still in school.

In terms of the GRE, I took an official computer delivered practice test this afternoon without really knowing much about the test and got a 326 (167 verbal 159 quant).  I think I could bump my quant score up a lot with a little bit of practice.  I have coursework in micro/macro econ, calculus, and quantitative research methods but my performance is very middling as I took those classes before sobering up.  I took and... failed International econ last fall which is considered an upper level IR class at my school, but I retook it this spring and got a full A (previously mentioned F of that semester).  I also have some very middling grades in Korean which I'm hoping to spend the whole summer studying up on.

In terms of my quasi-work experience I have a couple internships

Last summer at a DHS component in their HR department working with hiring data to analyze trends and some experience in security operations

Full year split into two springs at a well regarded Military aerospace consultancy doing research and analysis that were used to an extent in the products sold to business customers.

Some other less relevant stuff like a community planning internship in a city close to my hometown.  

 

In summary. I have no idea what to do next other than keep my grades up.  If anyone has any tips please let me know whether that involves additional coursework for me to focus on. professional avenues to explore etc.  I want to do everything I can to snatch my dreams back and I'm looking for guidance haha.

Edited June 11, 2020 by swiggles

[LazarusRises]

Frankly there's not much you can do about the GPA, but your GRE scores are solid and it sounds like you have good professional experience. Especially if you're planning on waiting 4-5 years before applying to grad programs, I wouldn't let your GPA bother you too much; that far out of undergrad it's probably the least important part of your application. Just focus on building valuable skills and making the connections necessary for great references and you should be fine. 

[Can't Pick a Username]

I created an account just to respond to this! @swiggles, you remind me of me from seven years ago . I graduated from a tiny (not super well-known) LAC with a 3.0ish GPA in IR. Like you, I had a slew of painfully bad grades, including several Cs, Ds, and Fs in primarily my math and quant-heavy econ classes. Unfortunately, I had no one to blame but myself. I just slacked off too much, prioritized the wrong things (like partying and drinking), etc. While I finally got things together by the end of college, I only barely managed to get my GPA above a 3.0. Needless to say, it was really demotivating. I didn't think I had a chance of getting into ANY graduate school, so I decided to pour my heart into my career and learning from past mistakes. For the next six years, I worked really hard to address my weaker points (like quants). I re-took Macro and Micro at a local community college (received As in both). I took a ton of data analysis classes over a period of 3 years and eventually became so strong in Excel and R that I was asked to conduct trainings on both at work. I volunteered to take on research projects at work that exercised these skills until I was comfortable enough to lead in these areas. I also took a giant risk at the end of 2015 and moved to a country I'd never been to in Sub-Saharan Africa to help lead a major RCT research project for a small health NGO. And finally, I moved to the UK in 2017 to work closely with a professor (himself a Rhodes Scholar) at a well-known institution (think Oxbridge) to conduct research for his project portfolio. 

When I finally decided I was ready and strong enough to apply for graduate school last year, I worked hard to crush the GRE (eventually got a 334, with a 170Q & 164V). I asked my recommenders (the professor I worked with and my two previous bosses) to highlight my strength in research and quants, which I think may have helped alleviate concerns that AdComms would have had upon seeing my college transcript. I also spent countless hours positioning myself as the "quant person" through my essays and made sure that I had 3 close friends and family members review them until we all felt that they conveyed this successfully.  

Last year, I applied to: 

- UChicago Harris MPP
- Tufts Fletcher MALD
- Duke Sanford MPP
- HKS MPP
- Columbia SIPA MPA
- WWS MPA 

I got into every school except for WWS where I was waitlisted. I got into Harris, Fletcher, Sanford, and SIPA with substantial scholarships as well (including some full scholarships). HKS didn't offer much money but if you told me seven years ago that I could get into Harvard, I would have laughed in your face.  

I'll be honest with you- it won't be easy. You're going to have to work really, really hard but if you're up for it and truly intent on learning from your past mistakes and becoming a stronger version of yourself, then you CAN do it. I'm proof that schools truly are holistic in their review process. 

Good luck! Feel free to message if you have any questions. 
 

Edited June 11, 2020 by Can't Pick a Username

[GradSchoolGrad]

19 hours ago, swiggles said:

Hey all, thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this.  I'm starting to do some research into the topic and I'm feeling very nervous and overwhelmed.  If this is the inappropriate area for this post I apologize and I'd be happy to look elsewhere

I'm rising senior at a well known and popular school for IR in the US and I'm very interested in pursuing a career in IR, Asia/Korea Studies, some combination of the two etc.  

For the first 2 years of undergrad (plus last fall to an extent where I received 2 A's a B and an F) my performance was pretty middling around a 3.2.  Last spring things more or less came to a head and I had a terrible semester.  Finally managed to admit I was an alcoholic and start dealing with it this year, ended my second semester of Junior year with a 3.87 and a 4.0 for the summer class I just wrapped up.

To be frank I'm worried that things are too little too late for my long term goals as I'm going to be graduating with a 3.0-3.1 GPA If I keep things up which is... less than competitive for many of the amazing programs I would have loved to attend like Asian Studies at Georgetown SFS, the Korea specialization at SAIS, Korea studies at SOAS in London, similar programs at UCSD, Elliot School, Lee Kuan Yew etc.    

I'm looking for information on what i can do in the next 4-5 years before I'm ready to apply to these programs to unscrew myself.  I figure that the only way to really mitigate my failings is to start early while I'm still in school.

In terms of the GRE, I took an official computer delivered practice test this afternoon without really knowing much about the test and got a 326 (167 verbal 159 quant).  I think I could bump my quant score up a lot with a little bit of practice.  I have coursework in micro/macro econ, calculus, and quantitative research methods but my performance is very middling as I took those classes before sobering up.  I took and... failed International econ last fall which is considered an upper level IR class at my school, but I retook it this spring and got a full A (previously mentioned F of that semester).  I also have some very middling grades in Korean which I'm hoping to spend the whole summer studying up on.

In terms of my quasi-work experience I have a couple internships

Last summer at a DHS component in their HR department working with hiring data to analyze trends and some experience in security operations

Full year split into two springs at a well regarded Military aerospace consultancy doing research and analysis that were used to an extent in the products sold to business customers.

Some other less relevant stuff like a community planning internship in a city close to my hometown.  

 

In summary. I have no idea what to do next other than keep my grades up.  If anyone has any tips please let me know whether that involves additional coursework for me to focus on. professional avenues to explore etc.  I want to do everything I can to snatch my dreams back and I'm looking for guidance haha.

I think you should divide your considerations.

1. What schools you probably won't get into because they are really big on your GPA --> UK schools (which is a shame because they have really strong area policy programs). 

2. What schools you could get into with a few years of solid work experience --> Georgetown or GW area studies programs (honestly people who do these tend to be younger anyway). It might not be a bad idea if you a really wanted to dive into your area focus.

3. What schools you might be able to get into with 5 years of solid star level work experience --> premier IR / Policy schools 

*Keep in mind, you better have a really strong statement explaining your failings in undergrad and how you grew

Edited June 11, 2020 by GradSchoolGrad

[mapiau]

I was in a similar situation to you, and when you are a few years out of undergrad your GPA starts mattering a whole lot less than when you are in school.

I don't remember my exact GPA in my first two years of undergrad, but I failed advanced calculus twice and got Cs in two spanish classes. I also freaked out about how these bad grades were going to stop me from getting into any grad school. I ended up graduating with a 3.5. I only worked full time a year between undergrad and applying to grad school, but with similar GRE scores to you got into AU SIS, SAIS, Syracuse Maxwell, Fletcher, and UCSD GPS. I got significant aid at most of them and a full ride and stipend at GPS, which let me graduate with no debt.

So I don't think your grades are as big of a barrier as they look to you today. Sure, there are some elite programs that a low undergrad GPA can be a major problem for. But I personally have a nice life after attending an "average" program, so it's all what you make of it. If you're dedicated to Asian studies I would recommend devoting serious effort to language practice outside of the classroom (I never learned anything in formal language classes) and finding relevant work opportunities after you graduate.