Anyone here got into grad school with a GPA slighlty below the requirements?

[edardi1]

My dream school told me that next year they MIGHT implement a CSD GPA requirement, and it MIGHT be a 3.5  So, I did a calculation and if I get straight A's in the rest of my courses, I will end up with a 3.46 major GPA.  Is there anyone here who got into a school with a GPA slightly below the requirement?  What other aspect on your application may have counteracted that?  Thanks.  

[SpeechLaedy]

I didn't have a lower GPA, but I did have a lower GRE score than they had and I got in. If your GPA is that close, I honestly wouldn't worry too much about a .04 difference. I had a strong personal statement and great letters of rec that I believe made a big difference. Plus, I had an interview at the school. I think if you get an interview, that in itself seems to increase your odds.

[slpmayb2123]

I have friend who have gotten in with lower GPAs. However, they were wait listed first. 

[SLPsingballs]

I think it depends on the school.  When I applied to schools on CSDCAS, they calculated my GPA slightly lower than some of my schools' minimums for GPA.  For a few of those schools, it mattered and I was rejected without even being considered.  However, after I emailed the schools that this might be an issue at and plead my case, a couple of the schools were very helpful.  I was accepted at 2 of those schools.  It didn't hurt that I have a 4.0 in CSD classes though (and 3.9 in last 60 units), as it reflected my current potential for grad school.  Mostly, it was hard to know that I wasn't looked at by schools that I really wanted to get into because of a different way of calculating my GPA.  I hope this is not the case for you, but just know there are many schools that will welcome your GPA with a strong GRE, SOP, LoR, experience, etc.  

 

[ElKel87]

My undergrad GPA was a 3.38 and I got into a few schools with a GPA range higher than that. The school I'll be attending in the fall said they had a requirement of 3.5 but when I spoke to them at the open house they said they would still consider me if my application showed improvement. I'm a career changer, so I was able to discuss in my statement of purpose that my time in the workplace made me a more motivated, hard working and disciplined student than I was in undergrad. It also helped that I received a 4.0 in my post-bacc, which brought my cumulative GPA up, so definitely make sure to get straight A's in your remaining courses, as you mentioned.

As others have already said, I also had very strong letters of recommendation and pretty good GRE scores (151Q, 161V, 5 AW). The analytical writing score in particular seemed to be really important to many of the schools I looked at.

[panda1991]

On 5/16/2017 at 8:22 AM, SLPsingballs said:

I think it depends on the school.  When I applied to schools on CSDCAS, they calculated my GPA slightly lower than some of my schools' minimums for GPA.  For a few of those schools, it mattered and I was rejected without even being considered.  However, after I emailed the schools that this might be an issue at and plead my case, a couple of the schools were very helpful.  I was accepted at 2 of those schools.  It didn't hurt that I have a 4.0 in CSD classes though (and 3.9 in last 60 units), as it reflected my current potential for grad school.  Mostly, it was hard to know that I wasn't looked at by schools that I really wanted to get into because of a different way of calculating my GPA.  I hope this is not the case for you, but just know there are many schools that will welcome your GPA with a strong GRE, SOP, LoR, experience, etc.  

 

 

I second this. Some schools are strict with the rules and won't make exceptions. I suggest calling or emailing to ask the department about the requirement and/or apply anyway since this is your dream school. 

[WannabSLP124]

Yes it really does depend on the school, but if this is a REQUIREMENT then I don't know how flexible they will be. When I applied, I only came across 1 school with a required GPA and they pretty much said don't bother applying if you do not meet their GRE and GPA requirements. That's much different than a school reporting their averages or GPA range. I would get clarification from the school. 

But you can offset a lower GPA with good GRE scores, work/volunteer experiences, participation in NSSLHA or other organizations, research experiences, great letters of rec. etc. Good luck!

[Pjeak]

I got into my 1st choice with a hefty scholarship. I was below the requirements in both GPA and GRE (GPA: 3.16 GRE: V150 Q147 W4). I was really close to my professors, so I'm sure they wrote really great LOR for me. I also mentioned in my SOP how transitioning from high school to college was difficult for me, but my junior year I buckled down. My senior year, I become an academic personal trainer where I had the opportunity to teach essential skills to students who were on academic probation. This showed that I not only worked harder, but was willing and able to help kids with similar struggles. I beleive this really helped my application. My GPA in CSD courses was a 3.57 also. I applied to 4 grad schools and got into 3 so it isn't all about grades and GRE. I was also fairly involved on campus and didn't just go to school and go home. Hope this helps! Good luck!

Edited May 20, 2017 by Pjeak

[Pjeak]

5 minutes ago, Pjeak said:

I got into my 1st choice with a hefty scholarship. I was below the requirements in both GPA and GRE (GPA: 3.16 GRE: V150 Q147 W4). I was really close to my professors, so I'm sure they wrote really great LOR for me. I also mentioned in my SOP how transitioning from high school to college was difficult for me, but my junior year I buckled down. My senior year, I become an academic personal trainer where I had the opportunity to teach essential skills to students who were on academic probation. This showed that I not only worked harder, but was willing and able to help kids with similar struggles. I beleive this really helped my application. My GPA in CSD courses was a 3.57 also. I applied to 4 grad schools and got into 3 so it isn't all about grades and GRE. I was also fairly involved on campus and didn't just go to school and go home. Hope this helps! Good luck!

Accepted: Syracuse University, Plattsburgh State University, The College of Saint Rose

Rejected: New York Medical College

[Louly]

My cumulative GPA was a 2.8, got completely denied by one school with a 3.0 GPA requirement. Even after having one of my references from a prestige school write to explain my situation (the bad grades were from 12 years ago & my last 100 credits, I maintained a 3.8), the director still said no. I just said screw it! on to the next school. A month later, I got accepted into five other programs that are actually some of the top 20 schools for SLP training. If they deny you even after a pretty good explanation, you obviously do not want to be with a program like that anyways. Good luck! 

Edited May 20, 2017 by Louly