When should a low GPA be addressed in a personal statement?

Graduate School
1

<p>Hi everyone! I just graduated from UC Berkeley with an overall GPA of 3.46 and a major GPA of 3.8. I realize that my overall GPA is not that low, but I had a GPA of 2.6 my first year in college. Since I'm applying for grad school soon, I was wondering if I need to explain why my grades were so low in my personal statement. It's important that the schools know I won't let this happen again, but I also don't wish to draw unnecessary extra attention to my bad grades.</p>

<p>If I should talk about it, how should I word it? I don't have any great reasons for it except that I didn't realize my strengths/interests. I was also immature and had too much on my plate (too many difficult classes at once, extracurriculars, job on the side)...</p>

<p>Any advice would be greatly appreciated!</p>

2

<p>I have exactly the same problem. I’ve talked to some people about it and most of them said that there is no need to give too many excuses for it, as it happens to many undergrads. We can’t really cover the fact that we didn’t study as hard as we could in first year. In the end, your overall trend is what matters the most, and I think that raising your gpa to 3.8 from 2.6 is a good sign of improvement. Instead, you can address to how much you’ve changed over the years, in terms of self-discipline, motivation for success and stuff like that. They love to hear these words rather than excuses for doing bad.</p>