Chance of getting into Grad school with low gpa?

Applying to College
1

<p>I'm not sure if this is the appropriate subforum to post in, but I just wanted to throw this out and see if anyone here has advice for me. </p>

<p>I'm 37 with a Bachelors in Landscape Architecture (BLA) from a respected state institution. My cumulative GPA is 2.6, and my upper level gpa is about the same. </p>

<p>Since graduation, I worked for 8 years at three different firms, and progressed in responsibility with each one. I left my job in 2008 to move to a different area of the country, and was caught out of work when the great recession hit. The recession hit the construction-based industries (Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Civil Engineering) extremely hard, so for the past 3 years I've been taking odd jobs here and there to get by. </p>

<p>I'm very interested in going for a masters in another field. </p>

<p>My question is, do I have a realistic chance of getting accepted in a masters program, even if just on a probationary status, with my low gpa? And if not, what can I do to improve my chances? Should I be looking at 2nd-tier schools instead? And if so, are they worth the cost in the long run?</p>

<p>I've read that taking non-credit grad level courses and doing well in them can help. Is there anything else or am I just wasting my time?</p>

2

<p>If it is an entirely new field, you might be better off earning a second BA/BS, or even an Associates degree if that is all it would take to get you started in a new career. Alternately, consider taking the pre-reqs. for the grad program you want to be in on the cheap at the closest community college, or public U, and when you have hard evidence that you can pull the kind of grades the grad schools want, admission will be easier.</p>

<p>True story: Back in the last century, my undergrad GPA was about a 2.8. After working for a couple of years, I decided to change fields and enrolled as a “Senior Transfer” at my cheap-o home-state public U. After one academic year as an undergrad, I enrolled as a “non-degree” grad student for a semester, then worked for another year while applying to grad school. My GPA at that U was about 3.9 - not because it was easier there, but because I was older and more dedicated. I got in everywhere I applied, and did my M.S. at the U that offered me the most money.</p>