<p>I'm a junior undergrad at a top UC school. I am a neuroscience major and I'm worried about my chances to get into my choice of grad school. I have a 3.4 GPA here, but I obviously still have time to bring it up; it's just hard. I also transfered to this school and my previous GPA was a 3.9. Will grad schools look at my total GPA? </p>
<p>I work in a neuroscience lab 20 hours a week with a fairly prominent professor in the field of neuroscience I wish to enter. Hopefully I will be published on one of her papers before I graduate, but I might apply beforehand. What are my chances of getting into a top grad school?</p>
<p>I am really interested in </p>
<p>UCLA
Cal
UCSF
USC
NYU
Columbia</p>
<p>Am I totally hopeless? And what can I do to boost my chances of getting in?</p>
<p>Grad schools will look at all your grades. I assume your total GPA is higher than a 3.4, given your 3.9 from your first school. Even so, a 3.4 isn’t excellent but it’s hardly a deal-breaker if you have solid research and good LORs. Obviously, it’s in your best interest to get the best grades possible, but it seems like you’re in pretty good shape. Research and LOR will get you a long way in admissions, GPA is just one part of the application. If you don’t think your app will be strong enough to apply during your senior year, you could always try to get a research assistant gig after graduation and apply later once you’ve gotten more experience and can apply with all your undergrad grades. </p>
<p>Those are all very selective schools, but there’s no reason not to apply to them as long as you apply to some less selective programs as well. The worst that can happen is you’ve wasted some time/$$.</p>