PhD Admissions: Weight of Masters Performance Relative to Undergrad Performance

Graduate School
1

<p>A little background: </p>

<p>B.S. in biology from an Ivy League university
Cumulative Undergrad GPA ~2.9ish (have transcripts from 2 schools)
GRE 1520
Currently getting M.S. in biostatistics</p>

<p>Long story short, my undergrad GPA sucked. I transferred schools and my cumulative GPA is ~2.9 (3.9 from first school, 2.something low from the Ivy). I'm currently enrolled in a two year M.S. program (55 credits) in biostatistics at a state university. Needless to say, I'm now highly motivated and taking this dead serious. I plan on applying to a bunch of biostats PhD programs next year and was wondering how they will weight my masters performance. </p>

<p>If I demonstrate that I can excel in my rigorous courses (longitudinal analysis, categorical analysis, statistical theory, linear algebra, etc.), and also get stellar recommendations, will that compensate for my poor undergrad performance? I also have a 1520 GRE if that's relevant.</p>

2

<p>Your undergrad GPA will be less important than your masters GPA. </p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/graduate-school/1076170-phd-admissions-does-undergrad-gpa-matter.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/graduate-school/1076170-phd-admissions-does-undergrad-gpa-matter.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>Your undergraduate GPA will likely be a major factor, because graduate GPAs are notoriously inflated. A “B” is at best an average grade in grad school, and generally frowned upon, at least in STEM fields. More is expected of PhD applicants with a Masters degree, and such applicants are expected to have substantially more research experience in addition to top grades.</p>