<p>Hi everyone,
I am currently a senior student in UCBerkeley with major in Computer Science. I plan to get a Master Degree related to CS or other engineering disciplines.</p>
<p>(1)
My overall GPAs from semester to semester are:
Freshman: 3.45 (easier courses...) / 3.18
Sophomore: 2.90 / 3.19
Junior: 3.25 / 3.37
Senior: 4.00 (GPA of study abroad in Japan) / 3.42 (this semester)
My major GPA is around 3.4 too.</p>
<p>[The average GPA of UCBerkeley CS department is about 2.8-3.0]</p>
<p>(2)
My current GRE score is 660/780, and I plan to boost my GRE to 1500+ this summer.</p>
<p>(3)
I got three letters of recommendation, one from EECS professor, one from Berkeley iSchool professor and one from Japan's university professor.</p>
<p>(4)
I have internship experiences in investment banking and tech start-ups.</p>
<p>(!!)
However, I got two NP grades (one is major course and the other is non-major; both are in my sophomore year), even though I retook them and got A/A-;
Also, I got two C's in my major courses in the third semester...
Besides, I have two Incomplete grades, even tho I worked them out afterwards and received B+/Pass.
So overall, 4 bad grades (C/C-/NP->A/NP->A-) with 2 moderate "I" (I->PASS/NP->B+) grades.</p>
<p>So do you think will the above bad grades harm my chances of getting in a good CS master programs, such as CMU, UW-Seattle, Stanford, Rice, Cornell or UMich?</p>
<p>If I can't get into any of those grad schools, I will probably find a job and apply a few years later... :/
Thank you all buddies!! I really need your advice!</p>
<p>Keep in mind that it is standard practice in California public universities to allow undergraduates who fail a course to retake it and replace the failing grade with the new one so the impact on GPA is minimal if do not pass a course but retake it and receive a good grade. Many graduate programs will average the two grades when an computing the GPA for a student who repeated courses. This could have a significant impact on your GPA as computed by graduate schools you are applying to.</p>
<p>So what do you think of my grades? Do you think two retakes and two C’s are too bad, even with a GPA of 3.42?</p>
<p>Also, will my study abroad GPA help a little?</p>
<p>Btw, I will only be applying CS Masters; I’ve heard that Law/Med schools will count those F’s and retakes, but will CS programs even count so?</p>
<p>Hey can anyone give me some advice…</p>
<p>those grades will be harmful. I’d apply to a lot more schools or at least add ones a lot less selective.</p>
<p>You received an F and two Cs in courses in the field that you are are majoring in. You did not say whether or not the two Incompletes were in your major or not but if they are, admissions committees are going to see two more courses that were not completed successfully during a semester.</p>
<p>You have to remember that at the schools you are currently applying to your competition probably never received a grade lower than B in a major course. As Blah 2009 suggested, you need to be casting a wider net so that you can be sure of getting some acceptances.</p>
<p>The 4.0 from Japan really just looks like a fluke and won’t likely improve your overall transcript evaluation. It will also be difficult to demonstrate your ability to succeed in graduate school if you struggled in undergraduate courses that were key to your major. </p>
<p>That’s not to say it’s impossible, but I agree with the above posters that you will need to lower your standards and apply to less selective programs in addition to the ones you listed.</p>
<p>Thanks.
Those two Incomplete are just breadth courses, and that semester I suffered from a serious family issue (my grandpa passed away and I flew back to Korea for a few weeks…)</p>
<p>so do you think even if I improved my grades in the following two years, the second year’s grades still harm a lot?</p>
<p>The first two years don’t usually mean as much as the last two years; what looks good is a steady upward trend. You have a slight one going on, and I think if you took additional courses and did very well it would help your application. </p>
<p>Your GRE isn’t bad; I wouldn’t recommend re-taking it unless you are certain you will get a much higher score. Choosing to re-take those tests a few times and only scoring marginally better (or possibly worse) will not improve your application - the program will see all of your GRE scores for the last 5 years. The GRE can offset your grades a bit, but other aspects of your application will be important, too. Your letters of recommendation will need to be very strong and in support of your ability to do well in grad school; your personal statement will need to be carefully written and revised so that it is a good example of your writing skills and accurately and effectively portrays your desires and abilities to succeed in the program. </p>
<p>If you don’t get in, a few years of professional work experience in the field will help your application in future admissions.</p>