PhD programs in Chemical Engineering and me?

<p>Hey CC,</p>

<p>I'm not coming to you after NOT having done my research so please don't flame me! Anyway, my main question has to do with my stats and my ability to get into a graduate school.</p>

<p>Right now, I'm looking at the following schools as prospective places to go but I'm not exactly sure where my chances stand. </p>

<p>-U of Colorado, Boulder
-Northeastern University
-Texas A&M
-U of California, Riverside
-Virginia Tech (where I go to school)
-U of Texas, Austin? (it's a top 10 school, but not an ivy so I don't know how stringent their admissions criteria would be..)</p>

<p>I'd prefer doing a directy BS to PhD. I'm quite interested in getting my PhD and although I'd like to get my Master's first, I don't think I can afford to get that first. I guess a little information about myself might help a little more.</p>

<p>STATS:</p>

<p>Major GPA: 3.6
Overall GPA: 3.3</p>

<p>Math GRE: 800
Verbal GRE: 650</p>

<p>Tissue engineering research experience. Might be looking into something with macromolecules or thin films over the summer.</p>

<p>I've also got a summer long internship under my belt with a consultancy for job experience.</p>

<p>I came into college with a lot of credit which luckily counted towards my major. With a little bit of extra work and overloading a couple semesters on credits, I'm going to be able to graduate in 3 years instead of 4. </p>

<p>A lot of what's holding my down in terms of grades is the fact that I've been working 20 hours a week as a math tutor at the campus tutoring facility so I can help partly pay for college and keep a roof over my head. The other unfortunate reason for my grades being a sub-par is bad luck with professors. Classes I averaged an A in throughout the semester was dropped down to a C on the "whim" of a professor. It didn't make sense to me then, doesn't now either but that hit was pretty hard, considering I'm in college for only a little logner.</p>

<p>I know most colleges have an admissions deadline for January 1st and I'm a rising senior (with my credits) so hopefully by next semester's end I should be able to pull off a 4.0 (It's going to be my easiest so far), putting me at a 3.4. </p>

<p>Getting a job is almost out of the question (I'm an international student) but it isn't really what I'm interested in either.</p>

<p>I apologize if there was a lot to read, but the community here seems pretty helpful from what I've seen. Does anyone with experience know about my chances into the grad schools I listed above or other grad schools that it would be a good idea to apply to? Any input at all would be appreciated. Thanks :).</p>

<p>I’d say, try to increase your GPA as much as possible. While GPA is not everything, it is one of the main factors. Also, seek for good recommendation writer, super important. Your list of schools seem fine to me, but you might want to add some other safety schools. Just FYI, UC is a little bit hard. good luck with that.</p>