Wannabe PhD

Hi guys,
I’m a prospective PhD student.
I’m a physics major. I’ve had a rocky college career–lots of c’s and b’s. I’m currently retaking business calculus 130 at Santa Barbara city college .
I’ve attended SBCC as well as UNT in Denton, TX, where I quickly dropped out.
I’m probably not very attractive as a student in California, but can anyone give me an idea where to transfer in California?? I’m serious about physics–I’d even like to get a PhD in Astrophysics or a related field.
One other thing-- I’m bipolar, which explains my crappy college performance.
FYI, my GPA is probably in the 2.0 - 2.5 area. (I’m not sure).
ALSO, I got into UCSB as a freshman. Do you think I can still get into UCSB somehow?
Thanks for the input!!
Sincerely,
jakezdasnake

I’m not clear where you are in your physics career. If you are taking business calculus, how much have you finished of your undergrad degree in physics? Are you currently doing a physics transfer degree?

It sounds like its too soon to worry about applying to PhD programs. With a low GPA, it’s going to be tough to convince a school that you are grad school material. Hopefully, you are early enough in your academic career that there is time to get that GPA up.

If you have a GPA that low, you’re not going to be considered most places—in fact, there are a lot of universities that, as a matter of university-wide policy, cannot take students into graduate programs if they have below a 3.0.

One possibility would be to get things turned around, and if you can do that successfully as an undergrad, then look for a masters with thesis program, as a smaller commitment to see if you really are interested in the sorts of things you’d be doing in a PhD program. (It isn’t a perfect parallel, but it’s a taste of it.) A lot of people have no idea what’s actually involved with a PhD program before they’re in it, and have an overly romanticized view of what’s involved in it—I mean, I know I did, for one. You really need to go into that sort of thing with your eyes open.

As far as undergraduate transferable credits, I have about 70 transferable credits (for UC or CSU), but a low GPA.
I failed one class (business cal 130) which I mistakenly took while I should’ve audited it (it’s not part of a physics degree program.) Now it’s on my GPA.
It is the biggest zit on my transcript.
After retaking business cal 130, my GPA should be in the 2.4-2.6 range.
Would a school with a 60-80% acceptance rate consider accepting me?

@jakezdasnake get your GPA up to at least 3.0 (preferably 3.5 or higher); only then should you start considering Ph.D. programs.

You’d have to have absolutely killer GRE scores for grad schools to not just immediately dismiss your application on the basis of your GPA.

A separate issue is why do you want a PhD? Unless your desired career path requires it, a PhD means lost time/earnings in the workforce.

PhD is my long term goal.
I’m just wondering which school would accept a poor GPA such as mine (2.4-2.6).

PhD is just a long term goal.
I’m just wondering which california school would accept me so that I can get a B.S.
my GPA is really bad 2.4-2.6 range

Which California schools would accept you into a PhD program with a 2.5±0.1? Nearly none, Certainly none that are respected enough to give you a decent chance at a job in the field and at that degree level afterward.

Sorry, but that’s the hard truth.

Your struggles with business calculus might indicate that astrophysics isn’t really the career for you, or that you need more time to overcome the challenges that make you struggle academically. Math isn’t some silly hoop that you have to jump through on the way to a physics degree. It is a fundamental tool astrophysicists use every day.

My advice would be to stay at the community college until you can get an academic year of solid, challenging, transferable STEM classes and high grades under your belt. Don’t go off to your four year school until you have figured out how to succeed at the community college level. It’s only going to get harder.