Do I even have a chance?

<p>So basically I am at my last year at UC San Diego with BS in Management Science. Management Science is categorized under Economics Department at UC San Diego and it's just like Econ, but with more quantitative scenarios including some finance, and linear programing.</p>

<p>My GPA is 2.9 and I hope to bring it up to 3.0 before I graduate. Now chances are I probably will get 3.0. </p>

<p>I plan to go onto graduate school after I graduate from UC San Diego, however I am afraid that no school will accept me because of my low GPA.</p>

<p>I have not taken GRE yet, so of course the pieces are not all set.</p>

<p>I have no internship/work experiences and I am not sure if I can get one before I graduate (June 2010).</p>

<p>I am really into financial sides of the corporations world, and hoping to study something like international economics, industrial organization, etc</p>

<p>I was looking into Boston University, Rochester, Santa Clara University, UC, and NYU.</p>

<p>What are my chances and what can i do to improve my chances?</p>

<p>Or should I just pay another 20k and stay 1 more year at UC San Diego to boost my GPA?</p>

<p>Please, i feel like i wasted my parents money and did not really study hard. now i feel guilty and shame not only to myself but to my parents as well.</p>

<p>You may want to consider getting a master’s first from a university that may not be so well known. Do well there, pick up some research/work experience, get to know your professors so they’ll write you glowing recs, and then aim for a PhD from one of your top choices. You’ll still have to pay for it (funding sucks universally for master’s students), but it would probably serve you better than paying for another year of undergrad. </p>

<p>Talk to your current professors to see if they have any suggestions about where to apply and get their support as much as you can, since you’re going to need them to write you letters when the time comes to apply anyway.</p>

<p>thanks for the answer bubblesocks, your answer really does mean a lot. I was thinking about either San Jose University or Cal State University: East Bay (only because I can commute from home and neither of my parents or I can afford to cover expenses) , and hopefully transfer to bit more prestigious school after for phd. do you think I should just apply to whichever grad school I can and aim for the highest one, or just one that’s near from my house?</p>

<p>and another question is, I want to get into the world of business and finance. I originally wanted to be an investment banker, but as time went by, I found myself further from that goal. If my ultimate goal is not to stay in academia field, but to go out in the business and financial world, do you think phd is still necessary?</p>

<p>thank you so much for your sincere answer and I appreciate you taking time to write on my wall. Thank you so much.</p>