Hello everyone,
I am a rising senior in biomedical engineering at North Carolina State University. My plan is to apply to graduate schools in Fall 2015 and I’m very interested in applying to UCSD’s graduate biomedical program. My undergraduate GPA is a 3.55 currently. I am optimistic that I can get that to a 3.6 before applying but in all likelihood it should stay around a 3.55. I am currently conducting research and I’m planning to continue it up until the time I graduate. I also have industry experience; I’ve interned at two local biomedical companies and am continuing to do so. I have some questions regarding admissions into the graduate program. First, what is a good range of GRE scores to target to be competitive when applying to the graduate program? I realize since UCSD’s graduate biomedical program is in the top five in the nation that my GRE scores would have to be fairly high, but I’d like to know if there is a compeitive range I should target when taking it this summer. Second, how competitive is my current undergraduate GPA? Many people have told me graduate schools don’t just look at GPA, however I am a bit worried that it is low for a school of UCSD’s caliber. Finally, how important are the statement of purpose and letters of recommendation compared to the GRE scores and undergraduate GPA? Also do the letters of recommendation have to come from university personnel or can you also include recommendation from people in industry? If anyone who has applied to the UCSD’s graduate biomedical program and has gotten in would mind helping me out with these questions and also listing their scores/experiences I would really appreciate it.