Chances With Low GPA due to Medical Issues During Undergrad

[alexf]

I am going to be applying to a few Psychology master's programs, including UW Milwaukee, Montana, and South Dakota. My worry is that during my undergrad I had to have surgery almost every semester which caused my GPA to falter. I have an upward trend, but my GPA for my current school is a 2.7 not very high. I do however, have a lot of leadership experience, have held a job, and should do well on the GRE as I've been preparing for a long time now. I'm wondering if I still have a good chance of getting into a program even if my GPA isn't the best, and if there is a way to let schools know the medical issues were the problem, not my abilities as a student. I'm scared I'm going to apply and no one is going to see past a low GPA.

Thank You

[lewin]

Sorry to hear about your health issues and congratulations on getting through and finishing in spite of them. Many places have a spot where you can explain extenuating circumstances like yours. Here are some concerns I would have as an admitting faculty member so that maybe you can address them with your application.

1. If your grades are non-diagnostic because of health problems, I might not have enough to judge whether you're a good candidate. Maybe you aren't bad, but I can't tell whether you're good either.

2. Even if the poor grades were due to surgeries not a lack of ability, you still may have missed out on a bunch of knowledge. That is, more than just demonstrating ability, grades demonstrate that you acquired the body of knowledge required for graduate study.

3. Are the health problems resolved? If not, I would be concerned about admitting somebody who might end up being absent a lot, whatever the reason.

4. I might wonder about your ability to prioritize. If the surgeries were interfering university so dramatically, it might have been better to drop out, get well, and then go back so that you could focus on your studies.

These things might not be true or fair, but they're the criticisms that one could make.

Consider doing the psych GRE. It would show that you know psychology well, even if your grades don't reflect that.

[PsychGirl1]

I totally agree with Lewin. If you don't get in this year, consider getting a job as a research coordinator and taking some night grad classes to prove that you can get those As. And of course, acing the psych GRE would be helpful.

[Quant_Liz_Lemon]

I'm not sure I agree with the other posters. It really depends on how your transcript looks. If you had one really really bad semester and then steady improvement, you should be fine as long as one of your letter writers addresses it. Rereading your post, it looks like you have a continuously spotty transcript. Then I think taking a few classes as non-degree seeking would be a good plan of attack (and having a letter writer address it).