<p>I really want to work on an undergraduate math research project, but I keep being turned away or (once) blown off. It says at my school's website to feel free to contact professors doing undergraduate research projects, but I'd either not be answered or told no. I was also rejected from the math REUs I applied for and am starting to become discouraged. Is there something I should do differently?</p>
<p>Okay so my overall GPA is 3.0 but my major GPA is 3.86, and I have 4 semesters to try to improve. I want to go to a top-tier graduate school for math and expressed this on my applications for REU, but still was rejected. Is it my overall GPA that is the problem?</p>
<p>Don’t feel too bad. REUs are as competitive as graduate school applications. The more selective ones get several hundred applications for maybe a dozen spots. Your application needs to stand out in some way (glowing letters of recommendations, several graduate courses under your belt, or maybe being a member of an underrepresented group) to have a real shot.</p>
<p>Try doing an independent study with a professor, or talking to a professor you have a class with. Thats how I got started. In my experience, if a professor at least recognizes you from a class you have with them and are doing well in, they will take you much more seriously, especially since you are taking the initiative and approaching them. Its also a plus if you are interested in the same area they are in, so read up on what your professors are researching. </p>
<p>Emailing a professor who you’ve never had a class with, and who doesn’t know you isn’t a bad idea, you just have to do more to convince them that your serious about working with them. </p>
<p>I applied to a bunch of math REUs my sophomore year, I got rejected from all of them too.</p>