<p>anyone else in the sub 3.0 category this year? :o</p>
<p>In the crapshoot/procastinator category. Lot’s of skeleton apps with no SOP. High gpa/gre, no publications. Deadlines coming up :(</p>
<p>11 PhD apps submitted with my sub 3.0 GPA. I’m <em>hoping</em> that my applications will be read beyond this low GPA, that it will be taken into account that the 3.0 was from a strong university known for grade deflation, that I was working 30+ hours a week, etc. etc. </p>
<p>From there again I can only hope that my high GRE (750Q, 740V, 5.5), 95%ile subject test score, and 6+ years of research experience will be enough to reassure schools that the GPA is not at all representative of my abilities as a grad student. </p>
<p>If nothing else, I should be a great case study in how much weight grad schools really give to undergrad GPA.</p>
<p>where are you applying starstuff?</p>
<p>A variety of schools… it’s so hard to gauge likelihood of acceptance when my GRE scores are as far above a school’s average as my GPA is under. I realize that half of the schools on my list are crazy reaches, but there are faculty at each of these schools who are such perfect fits with my research that I feel I’d be cheating myself if I didn’t try. </p>
<p>University of Maryland - Baltimore
University of Maryland - College Park
University of Colorado - Boulder
University of Colorado - Denver
University of Illinois - Chicago
Oregon Health & Sciences University
Northwestern
Georgetown
Columbia
NYU
Stanford</p>
<p>Is anyone else here crazy enough to apply to top ranked schools with a sub 3.0 GPA?</p>
<p>Starstuff: if you dont mind me asking, have you heard back from any of these schools?</p>
<p>I’ve read that if your gpa sucks, you should apply to MS programs, and use that to boost up your gpa. This is what I am doing, and my gpa is a 3.5… I’ve heard that if you have publications, this can over-rule a weak gpa… do you have publications, and did you apply to MS or PhD?</p>
<p>So far only an early rejection from OHSU; no word from any of the other schools yet. On thegradcafe website it’s apparent that a few of my other schools have been sending out at least some interview invites already… so I’m crossing my fingers and hoping I’ll get a later round invite. By next week I’ll probably be calling around and checking up on the remaining schools to see where things stand. </p>
<p>I’ve also sucked it up and started working on some MS and post-bacc applications… maybe my PhD dream will be delayed by a year, but if there’s any way to improve my GPA for the next time around, I’m taking it! :)</p>
<p>I had been resisting applying to MS programs thus far because I don’t have the money or any financial safety net (ie: parents) to help take on that kind of debt for school and living expenses… but loljkjk is right, MS seems to be necessary with a low GPA. I do have some publications, but I’m still unsure whether they’ll offset the GPA. </p>
<p>@loljkjk: Are you in a MS program now and applying to PhD, or applying to MS programs?</p>
<p>i’ve got 2 interview invites, so far (out of 11) and 1 rejection. the 2 invites are from schools lower on the totem pole, but both of which claim to require a 3.0 undergrad GPA; most of the rest were “reaches,” if that even applies at the PhD level. i do have a masters in the field to which i’ve applied, 11 years of research experience, and ~ a dozen publications, though, to help offset my crappy GPA. decent (not for this message board) GRE score, as well. regardless, i’m still anxious as hell to receive word from the other 8 institutions. :)</p>
<p>@hairy elephant: Congrats on the interviews, and best of luck with the other 8!! The dozen publications is very impressive; all of those schools would be lucky to have you! Do you care to mention what field you’re applying in? And if this isn’t your first year applying, what improvement in your app do you think is helping the most? </p>
<p>Congrats again, and good luck waiting on the others :)</p>
<p>thanks, starstuff23! i’m applying to bioinformatics programs… first time applying. been working for research institutes for 10+ years, and i think it’s time to get a real edumacation. :)</p>
<p>i think we have very similar stats (aside from your killer GRE scores – congrats!), so i wouldn’t worry about not having received invites yet. good luck! i applied to:</p>
<p>University of Maryland, Baltimore (interview)
University of Maryland, College Park
University of Michigan (rejection)
Boston University
University of Pennsylvania
University of Washington
Penn State University (interview)
University of California, San Francisco
University of California, San Diego
Harvard
Yale</p>
<p>i don’t expect interviews from many of those schools, but i think it was worth a shot. :)</p>
<p>welp, 2 more interviews. UM College Park and UCSF (got the UCSF one today, and i’m still kinda in shock). i can believable. :O</p>
<p>also got a rejection from UCSD this morning, which made the UCSF invite all the more sweet.</p>
<p>so uh, yea. hopefully this thread will provide some reassurance to those who have doubts about their low GPAs (i sure as heck did!). :)</p>
<p>Wow, congrats!!! Those are some awesome interview invites! Looks like you’ll have some exciting decisions to make this spring!</p>
<p>Thanks for letting us know, too… it’s definitely reassuring to see that at least some schools will look beyond undergrad gpa to realize what a great PhD student you can be!</p>