I recently spoke with a college senior with a GPA <2.5 that hopes to go to graduate school. Is this even possible or has she shot her options down? What options would she have?
2006-07-31 07:20:56 · 10 answers · asked by Cheshire Cat 6 in Education & Reference ➔ Higher Education (University +)
She can get in, but she's going to have to give up on the very competitive schools. Many second tier schools (does not mean not good schools, just not highly competitive admissions) admit students with a low GPA or who are changing fields (and didn't take many courses in the new field) provisionally. As long as she does well her first semester or two, they'll change her status to regular and she'll be fine.
On the other hand... If she really needs to get funding, not student loans, it will not happen. They make those decisions based on GPA. If she does really well during her first year, she might qualify for funding for her second year.
As others have said, its important that she has improved her performance over time and has done well in her field. If she can't claim those two things, she should rethink her plans. Grad school is tough, no matter what school you go to. An A is a normal grade, B is not good, and C is failing. At most schools 9 semester hours is full-time, but 9 hrs feels like 16-18 undergrad hours. So, she needs to think about whether she's really ready for this.
2006-07-31 09:56:13 · answer #1 · answered by pag2809 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
If her major GPA is high, she may still have a shot. When I applied to grad school, my GPA had been lowered due to core requirements that I struggled with (for example, Statistics, Political Science courses that my college required). I made specific mention of the fact that while my cummulative GPA was low (around a 2.8), my GPA in my major was very high (3.89).
Also, it helps if her grades improved throughout her college experience. If her grades during her first year were low, but improved as she progressed, she can highlight this information to show her improvement as a student.
Overall, grad schools like to know that their selection of a student is essentially a good investment. As long as she can prove that while she struggles in some areas, she excels in her field, I'm sure she has a decent shot. Some colleges also offer a level between a Bachelor's and a Master's degree in certain fields (for example, a Post-Baccalaureate degree in Writing, etc.) She could find a school with similar offerings, take a few semesters to prove herself as a quality student, and then apply to the graduate program.
2006-07-31 07:31:25 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Depends on what she's looking to study and the type of grad school she's considering. Many of the more prestigious ones will expect a higher GPA, but good GRE's and an exceptional resume can help to offset that. Also, she should be prepared to explain her low GPA and indicate why she expects that to change in grad school.
Finally, taking a year or two off from school and accomplishing some good things professionally will be helpful if she chooses to re-apply at that time.
Good luck.
2006-07-31 07:27:00 · answer #3 · answered by nudie chick 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
She might have a shot if she does extremely well on her GREs. I think a great score and an impressive resume are probably the only way she could get in. Unless she's studying something like music where the audition is the biggest component of getting accepted.
2006-07-31 07:38:24 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Tell her to work for a year and get some experience that way. Then apply to schools. Grad schools tend to accept more students with work experience because they are at less risk to drop out of the program.
2006-07-31 07:40:14 · answer #5 · answered by msadvicegiver 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
GPA's aren't everything. Apply and see what happens. I wouldn't let GPA stop anyone! That's one academic picture of someone at one time in their life. Especially for those returning to college years after high school. Apply on and move forward!
2006-07-31 07:25:06 · answer #6 · answered by viclyn 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Her only option would be to find a school that doesn't require the GMAT, but then again, the school won't be a great one, so that speaks for itself. She should have thought about this when she was partying so much! I would have to know where she lives to tell you more...I went to graduate school, myself.
Tell her good luck. Maybe she can wait a year or two, get some work experience, then write a nice, sappy entrance letter to the admissions committee.
2006-07-31 07:24:37 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
No options. Grad schools accept students and I doubt they will make the cut. They should have applied themselves more to undergrad work so that schools would be knocking down their door.
2006-07-31 07:25:27 · answer #8 · answered by drinkupmehearties 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
a decent GRE result would no doubt be to your best advantage.
2006-07-31 07:24:45 · answer #9 · answered by pyg 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Go to law school! :-D
2006-07-31 07:24:56 · answer #10 · answered by Molly 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋