<p>I am planning to go to grad school and I am interested in research</p>
<p>my problem is that I am from a not very good college from a developing nation and I have poor grades
I am still in my 2nd year(about to finish) majoring in computer science</p>
<p>I am planning to attend a good research institute(assuming that is possible given my background)
can someone tell me what I can do to help my situation?
I will be happy if you can tell me or give me a list of good research institutions that are worth applying(given my background)</p>
<p>Well, it matters, and it matters A LOT more for international students than national students (I presume you are not from the US). Most, if not all, of the international students I’ve seen at top institutions came from a recognized international school.
Numbers (especially the GRE) seems to be very important for international students. </p>
<p>If you truly have poor grades then it isn’t really reasonable to have expectations of planning to attend a good research university, is it? Or are you being unduly modest? There are mid level universities where there is still good research going on but you have to meet some minimum qualifications. Have you looked into what these are? </p>
<p>@BrownParent - “you have to meet some minimum qualifications”</p>
<p>what do you mean by that?
can you elaborate?</p>
<p>“If you truly have poor grades then it isn’t really reasonable to have expectations of planning to attend a good research university, is it?”</p>
<p>let’s just say that I am not a good test taker and I believe that there is more to research than your grades.</p>
<p>@DoubleD - yes I am an International student and I would like to know what role do things like research experience and you being passionate about the subject play. </p>
<p>and as far as my grades are concerned I am planning to do good in my upcoming years.</p>
<p>I will be glad if you can give me examples of someone you know who did not have a good background but were through because of the research they did and their passion.</p>
<p>Yes there is more to research than grades. There is more to grad school admissions than grades, there is research, letters of recommendation and GRE, in particular. But in grad school you have to be able to get an A or B to pass your classes. Does your record show that you can do that in graduate level coursework? 3.0 gpa is widely recognized as the typical minimum requirement. Minimum may not mean sufficient. What research experiences do you have that will get their attention? (You can answer this to yourself.) Just keep these issues in mind </p>
<p>Well, research and your statement are extremely important for national students. I assume they are important for international students as well, but I get the feeling they’re not as important as numbers for you guys and especially the reputation of the international school.
International students are also at a competitive disadvantage for funding. </p>
<p>Thank you
but can you tell me something that I can do to help the situation. </p>
<p>The route that a number of our graduate students at Illinois Tech have followed is to apply and get into a Masters program to build an academic record in the United, States, get a few letters of reference and possibly some research experience. It might require you to self-fund the first year or the entire two year program but I have seen a number of our Masters students get into Ph.D. programs (our own program as well as others) after completing their degree.</p>
<p>I just did. Have high #s and probably do research on the side. </p>