Terrible GPA and hopes of graduate school

[Steven Scott]

Hi all,

I'm ashamed to post this to complete strangers but I'm hoping you all might be able to give me some advice.

I started college in 2003 and had to leave prematurely due to medical issues. At that time, I had what was to later be diagnosed as schizoaffective disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and a severe depressive disorder. 

This was so rough on me that my GPA plummeted to an abysmal 2.1.

Fast-forward to today. My conditions, though not cured, have improved dramatically and I'm going back to school to finish my B.S. in geology next Fall. I'm going to be going to a different university but I'm wondering that if (and I absolutely will)  perform well, as in get all A's in my remaining classes, do you think a master's program would consider me? My dream is to get my PhD but I'm sure with such a poor record they won't even consider taking me.

Thanks everyone!

[lemma]

These things happen. Good on you for going back to study! I would recommend registering with the disabilities office at university to get any accommodations you need. You'd be surprised by how many students are registered. 

It would depend on the university, but a close friend of mine who has bipolar II was recently accepted into a PhD program straight from undergrad with funding. Due to his mental illness, he had several fails and low passes on his transcript, but had a strong thesis and good recommendation letters. I'm pretty sure his overall GPA was lower than 2.1 when he applied, though his thesis was very solid. 

 

[ltr317]

If your GPA shows an upward trend, many M.S. programs would view that in a favorable light, especially if you do well on the GRE, write an excellent SOP and get sterling LORs.  One step at a time, study hard and earn your undergrad degree first, then do well in your master's program before even thinking about a doctorate.  

[TheHessianHistorian]

On 12/11/2017 at 9:24 PM, mike_andrews said:

Hi all,

I'm ashamed to post this to complete strangers but I'm hoping you all might be able to give me some advice.

I started college in 2003 and had to leave prematurely due to medical issues. At that time, I had what was to later be diagnosed as schizoaffective disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and a severe depressive disorder. 

This was so rough on me that my GPA plummeted to an abysmal 2.1.

Fast-forward to today. My conditions, though not cured, have improved dramatically and I'm going back to school to finish my B.S. in geology next Fall. I'm going to be going to a different university but I'm wondering that if (and I absolutely will)  perform well, as in get all A's in my remaining classes, do you think a master's program would consider me? My dream is to get my PhD but I'm sure with such a poor record they won't even consider taking me.

Thanks everyone!

Yes, if you show extreme improvement, Master's programs will consider you as an applicant, even if your ultimate GPA is lower than what they say they'll accept. I have a similar track record. I also started my first B.A. (in Liberal Studies) in 2003 and finished with a 2.3 GPA (although my poor performance was due to nothing more than youthful immaturity and irresponsibility, no mental illness). I decided I wanted to go to graduate school for history, so I started a new Bachelor's degree (in History) in 2016, and am now wrapping up that degree with a 3.7 GPA. However, because the second degree involved so few classes compared to the first degree, my "cumulative" GPA (combining every undergraduate college course I've ever taken, across both degrees) is still 2.8. Some Master's programs no longer have a GPA requirement at all. There are some Master's programs, however, that have a requirement (usually 3.0) for cumulative undergrad GPA. I contacted several of these Master's programs and asked if they would still consider my application in light of the recent GPA improvement. Every single program said that yes, they would waive the GPA requirement for me in light of my personal growth.

So, if I were you, I would 1). find out if the programs you want to apply to even have a GPA requirement, 2). contact your potential programs who have a GPA requirement and ask them if they will consider your application in light of your improvement, and 3). include a brief explanation (i.e., one sentence, and then pivot to positives) of your poor earlier grades in your statement(s) of purpose documents when you apply.