3.4 (program)
Next, Ava shifts her attention to USC. USC’s English literature program doesn’t have any GPA minimums or major GPA expectations, but the grad school requires all applicants to have at least a 3.0 GPA.
Ava then looks up UC Berkeley’s English program . This grad school, too, requires a minimum 3.0 GPA. In addition, its English doctoral program boasts an average GPA of 3.85. Ava records all of this in her table:
Ohio State | 3.0 (school) 3.4 (program) | 3.6 | N/A | |
USC | 3.0 (school) | N/A | N/A | |
UC Berkeley | 3.0 (school) | N/A | 3.85 | |
University of Chicago | ||||
Unfortunately, Ava is struggling to find GPA information for the University of Chicago. After doing a little research, she encounters a short passage concerning GPA on the university’s English department webpage: “The Admissions Committee does not have specific cutoff levels for GRE scores and GPAs.” As there are no specific GPA expectations, Ava must now take an additional step and start conducting some research on the competitiveness of her programs.
If a program you’re applying to offers little or no concrete GPA information, it’s time to compare the competitiveness of your programs . I recommend starting with U.S. News , a helpful and robust resource with loads of information on grad programs and their rankings.
Here’s what you’ll do, in order:
As we’re aware, Ava is struggling to find GPA information for the University of Chicago’s English doctoral program. She decides to look up English program rankings on U.S. News . Right away, she locates this 2017 list of the top English graduate programs (note that the list does not differentiate between master’s and doctoral programs).
According to this list, UC Berkeley and the University of Chicago are tied at #1, Ohio State is ranked #30, and USC is ranked #33. Because the University of Chicago is one of the most highly ranked English programs, Ava can therefore assume its GPA expectations are similar to those for UC Berkeley (and, likewise, more difficult than those for Ohio State and USC).
Ava returns to her table and records her programs’ rankings in the “Notes” column. She then records estimated GPA expectations for the University of Chicago using the rankings she’s found and the GPA information she wrote down earlier for Ohio State and UC Berkeley:
Ohio State | 3.0 (school) 3.4 (program) | 3.6 | N/A | Ranked #30 |
USC | 3.0 (school) | N/A | N/A | Ranked #33 |
UC Berkeley | 3.0 (school) | N/A | 3.85 | Ranked #1 |
University of Chicago | None | >3.6 (estimated) | 3.85 (estimated) | Ranked #1 |
Now, you have a clear sense of which schools you can apply to and which will be more challenging to get into than others.
Ava’s 3.4 GPA is noticeably higher than the GPA cutoffs for all of her schools, so she shouldn’t have any problem getting her grad applications looked at; however, her chance at getting accepted varies depending on the program.
Her 3.4 GPA and 3.7 major GPA are both high enough for Ohio State’s English program and likely good enough for USC, too. On the other hand, a 3.4 GPA is markedly lower than the average GPA of current English doctoral students at UC Berkeley and (most likely) the University of Chicago. As a result, Ava will probably have a much smaller shot at getting admitted to these two schools than she will Ohio State or USC.
A table based on GPA alone can’t say for certain where you’ll get accepted, though. In reality, we can’t predict what programs will think of certain applicants. But through the simple process described above, you should be able to develop a clear idea of which schools you can apply to as well as which ones you’ll have to work extra hard for in order to stand out.
But what if your GPA isn’t high enough for any of your programs? The battle’s not over, I promise! Read on for the steps can you take to maximize your chance at getting accepted into grad school — even when your GPA just isn’t cutting it.
Let’s get something out of the way, first: a low GPA doesn’t always mean you’ll get rejected . If your GPA is significantly lower than a school’s minimum, then, yes, you’re highly unlikely to get accepted. But if you can make a compelling case for yourself, or if your GPA is only slightly lower than a program’s GPA expectations, an admissions committee might be willing to make an exception for you. So whatever you do, don’t freak out — it’s not totally impossible to get into grad school with a low GPA!
Besides GPA, though, what other factors and materials can prove you’re truly ready for grad school? Answer: a ridiculously strong application . Here are our top tips for putting together a fantastic grad school application — even if you have a low GPA.
Many grad programs consider GRE scores to be one of the most accurate indicators of your ability to study (and therefore comprehend) grad-level material. If you can score highly on every part of the GRE (or, at the very least, on the section more relevant to your field of study), your application will certainly stand apart from others !
In order to perform well on the GRE, you must first understand what constitutes a good GRE score overall. For specific sectional scores, refer to our guides on how to set a goal score for the Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning sections.
Furthermore, be sure you know how to study efficiently for the GRE . Quick tips for studying include using high-quality GRE prep books and taking as many practice tests as possible to hone your test-taking skills. And if your score isn’t high enough, there’s absolutely zero shame in retaking the GRE !
All of this goes for GRE subject tests , too. If your programs require a GRE subject test, study as diligently and as often as you can so you can approach test day confident you’ll receive an excellent score. If you want to get an idea of how high to aim, take a look at the current GRE subject test percentiles .
Applicants with below-average GPAs are usually expected to discuss their grades in their statements of purpose. Don’t think of this essay as a time to make excuses but rather as an opportunity to explain why you received poor grades and how you intend to make up for the low GPA as a grad student.
Whatever you do, don’t lie! Even if you’re embarrassed by your GPA or the reasons behind it, be as honest and as humble as you can be. Above all, emphasize your commitment to the program and your chosen field of study . How will this program ultimately assist you in reaching your academic and professional goals? What can you bring to this program that other applicants can’t?
Oh, and don’t forget to show off your exceptional writing skills ! Typos and awkward grammar are a sure-fire path to rejection, but eloquence and cogency will place you in a brand-new light.
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Another step you should take is to secure excellent letters of recommendation . Most of the time, these letters should be from (former) professors; however, you can also request letters from employers, mentors, or coworkers who can write about your academic interests, work ethic, and overall commitment to the field you’re trying to enter.
While you won’t be able to see the letters your recommenders write for you, you can make sure the letters they compose are high quality. To do so, only choose recommenders with whom you have positive, professional, and memorable relationships . Don’t just opt for the professor who gave you an A your sophomore year; carefully select people who can speak honestly and enthusiastically about your abilities.
Contacting professors of the program you’re applying to is a great way to establish connections and ask questions about the application process.
When contacting a professor directly, always take the time to introduce yourself first , explaining why you’re interested in the program and why you’re contacting this professor specifically. Then, explain why you’re worried your low GPA isn’t high enough for the program . At this point, feel free to ask directly if the program has ever accepted applicants with similar GPAs or if there is anything you should include in your application to make up for the deficit.
Remember, professors are busy people and not all are open to divulging admissions information, so don’t expect a step-by-step guide on what you must do. Just be courteous and genuinely enthusiastic about the program and you’re sure to get some help!
Not everyone has the time or money to do this, but getting a little work or research experience in your field can give a humongous boost to your application . Most, if not all, of the time, a relevant professional background is a big plus to grad schools, as it demonstrates your dedication and overall zeal for the field on a career-driven level.
If you’ve conducted research in your field as part of your undergraduate career, you can compensate for a lower GPA, especially if you created notable research findings or published papers.
You don’t need to have years and years of experience, either — just enough to prove the field is an important part of your life. If you can’t find any paid positions or prefer something more short term, opt for (unpaid) internships .
If you have a semester or two to spare before grad school applications are due, consider registering for individual courses at a local university . This is an excellent opportunity for you to showcase your commitment to studying the field. It also shows your ability to handle a college workload and perform well in an academic environment.
If your undergrad major is different from the field you want to enter, taking classes in the field is a convenient way for you to acquire some of the basic knowledge you’ll be expected to have for grad school.
The most common GPA needed for grad school is 3.0 , though exact grad school GPA expectations can vary a lot by program. Some schools do set strict cutoff GPAs, which generally range between 2.5 and 3.5, but you may be able to apply (and potentially get accepted!) even with a lower GPA.
To determine what a solid GPA for grad school is, we must look at the following three factors:
Strong GPAs are important to grad schools because they emphasize your dedication to academia and your chosen field of study . GPAs also provide schools with a clear idea of how well you’re likely to perform at a more demanding educational level.
Occasionally, grad programs may want to see your major GPA, but the importance of a major GPA varies depending on the program and what you majored in .
Not all schools require a certain GPA for grad school applicants, but if you’d like to figure out what your programs’ GPA expectations are, follow these steps:
Worried your GPA is too low for graduate school? Here are some tips you can use to increase your chance at getting accepted:
In the end, don’t spend too much time worrying about graduate school GPA expectations. If you’ve got a high GPA, great! But getting into grad school with a low GPA isn’t impossible, either — it just takes a little more elbow grease.
With that, I wish you the best of luck on your grad school applications!
Confused about grad school? Read our article on what grad school is and what it can offer you to learn about the differences between a master’s degree and a Ph.D.
Wondering if you should take the GRE? Our detailed guide answers all of your questions about getting into grad school — with or without GRE scores!
Got questions about the GRE? Check out our comprehensive GRE FAQ , and get information on how the GRE is formatted and what it tests you on !
Hannah graduated summa cum laude from the University of Southern California with a bachelor’s degree in English and East Asian languages and cultures. After graduation, she taught English in Japan for two years via the JET Program. She is passionate about education, writing, and travel. View all posts by Hannah Muniz
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Joshua R. Eyler gives the U.S. grading system an “F” in his new book, "Failing Our Future: How Grades Harm Students, And What We Can Do About It."
Joshua R. Eyler gives the U.S. grading system an “F” in his new book Failing Our Future: How Grades Harm Students, And What We Can Do About It . In it, which publishes on August 27, Eyler makes the case that grades hurt academic success and are helping to fuel the ongoing youth mental health crisis.
Eyler is director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching & Learning and an education professor at the University of Mississippi. I recently spoke with him about how he came to these conclusions and the alternative grading systems he’s studied that thousands of schools are already using.
One of the main arguments in favor of grading is that it inspires students to do work, and without it, students wouldn’t have any motivation.
The research doesn’t really support this claim, Eyler says. In his book, he points to a 2021 meta-analysis of many previous studies looking at the impact of grading overall . The study compared three groups of students, one who received grades, a second group that received feedback but no grades, and a third group that received no grades or feedback. The study’s authors note: “Overall results indicated that grades positively influenced achievement but negatively influenced motivation compared to no feedback.”
Perhaps more significantly, students who received comments without grades saw increased achievement and motivation. “Compared to those who received comments, students receiving grades had poorer achievement and less optimal motivation,” the study’s authors conclude.
And this research is not an outlier. “That work really confirms research that has been around for decades showing the [negative] effect of grades on performance learning and motivation,” Eyler says. “It’s a continuous thread that we see through these investigations.”
Education scientists often talk about intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation. Grades, most agree, are extrinsic motivators. “They're the prize, the candy, the reward that students get for following the rules and moving through the system,” Eyler says. “What we know about extrinsic motivators is that they are good for compliance. They work to get people to do things that they don't want to do. And so, yes, they can work to get students in seats, to get them to turn things in on time, to get them to participate.”
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However, there’s a catch. “An extrinsic motivator can never guarantee that someone will learn just because they're forced to be in a classroom,” Eyler says. “Learning depends on intrinsic motivation which grades affect pretty negatively.”
Additionally, grades can often interfere with fundamental patterns of learning. “The natural way that we learn something from a scientific perspective is we try things out. We make a mistake. We get feedback on that, and then we try it again,” Eyler says. “This is a cycle that our brains are really built to go through as we learn new things and grades arrest that process before it can ever take place. So we get to the trying things out part, and then we get a stamp of how well we tried them out without the opportunity to benefit from the feedback and the trying again.”
Beyond academics, grades are consistently linked to stress and negative mental health in students, Eyler says.
Grades seem so engrained in our education system that even talking about a school without grades feels radical. But there are many that exist. More than 3,000 Montessori schools, including 500 public schools, are gradeless. Beyond these, many K-12 districts and colleges across the U.S. have embraced nontraditional grading systems, Eyler says.
“There are definitely some great models and examples of schools that don't have any grades, both at the K-12 and college level,” Eyler says. But he’s not advocating schools across the country pump the breaks on all grading. “I think a lot of this conversation is really trying to get from the traditional grading schemes that we're in now to reorienting students' relationship with grades by trying out some of the alternative grading models that people are using.”
Many school districts are moving toward standards-based grading, which is also referred to as competency or proficiency mastery grading. Other grading methods include portfolio grading, collaborative grading, and specifications grading.
“There’s lots of different ways people are experimenting with the kinds of evaluation that they’re using to release the pressure valve and put the emphasis back onto learning and less about the grade itself,” Eyler says.
Technology isn’t needed to move from traditional grading to another grading method but it can make it easier by allowing teachers to create multiple opportunities for success through their LMS or other tools.
Elyer points to a colleague at the University of Mississippi who offers an unlimited retake system on chemistry classes. To do this the professor created a vast dataset of questions. “She has all the possible problems in the LMS and it generates new exams kind of randomly pulling from that databank. So it saves time. It helps to automate the process,” he says.
Additionally, new software is being developed to translate mastery-grade transcripts into their traditional grade equivalents. Eyler says these later tools may be helpful but aren’t necessary because colleges can already evaluate non-traditional transcripts.
Many proponents of traditional grades say that without grades there is no way to tell if students have learned, but that’s not true, Eyler says. “There's nothing inherent to a grade that is intrinsically connected to whether or not a student is learning something. We can give students that information through written or oral feedback just as easily as we can, in fact, better than we can, just by putting a 92 or a B- on something.”
He adds this idea is tied to another common misconception that grades are necessary to maintain rigor and academic standards. “That's not true, either, for many of the same reasons,” he says.
Erik Ofgang is a Tech & Learning contributor. A journalist, author and educator, his work has appeared in The New York Times, the Washington Post, the Smithsonian, The Atlantic, and Associated Press. He currently teaches at Western Connecticut State University’s MFA program. While a staff writer at Connecticut Magazine he won a Society of Professional Journalism Award for his education reporting. He is interested in how humans learn and how technology can make that more effective.
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I recently completed my Ph.D. in Germany. I believe my dissertation was evaluated extremely unfairly. For my dissertation, I published seven papers in high-impact international medical journals (IF from 3 to 6). I used four of them as core papers and three of them as additional publications. I also have six conference papers. My seven papers have been cited about 34 times so far. The first one was published in Oct 2017.
For the written theses, I had two main reviewers and one of them suggested my grade to be “strong magna cum laude ” and the other one said it should be cum laude ¹. Then, I was very much prepared to change the second reviewer during my defense. I did an excellent presentation and defense (that is what everyone who was there told me). The second reviewer asked only four questions during the defense. I answered them properly although one was unrelated to my work.
After the defense was over, I was told to go out with the entire audience until the review committee decided my grade. They took a long time and I was sensing there must be something they didn’t agree with. Finally, I was called to go in and one of the reviewers said: “Congratulations, you passed. Unfortunately, your grade is cum laude. We are stuck in the middle.” This was extremely disappointing to me and I believe the whole process was totally unfair as everyone else also think so.
As I heard from the student members who sat with the committee, this reviewer said I didn’t include a reference for the animated graph that I have produced myself, and insisted that I don’t deserve more than cum laude. They were fighting for a long time until the first reviewer gave up. I, my wife who also has a Ph.D. from many years ago, and the entire audience didn’t expect my grade would be like that. In fact, many believe that I am unfairly treated because of my skin color. This is the most difficult situation for me. I am very much stressed and I don’t know how much impact it will have on my career at least to get a postdoc position. What bugs me is that this reviewer doesn’t have a major point.
I am now considering to appeal to the university. But, I am scared. I also wish to retract my thesis and submit it to another university in Germany and defend it again. Please advise me on what to do.
Why it matters.
In my field, cum laude or rite (the two worst German PhD grades) are rarely ever awarded and if they are, it’s usually a sign that there were major issues and a strong hint that the PhD should not consider any career aspirations in academia. Such PhDs often end in positions which mainly care about the title for its own sake (e.g., to impress customers). Your field may differ a bit, but even in law (which is known for using the entire spectrum of grades), such grades would not bode well on an academic career.
I would be careful with taking the position that the grade does not matter. As already said, the vast majority of PhDs that stay in academia have either summa cum laude or magna cum laude (the two best grades). Since getting a summa requires at least a bit of luck in many examination rules¹, many people do rightfully not care about the difference between the two. On the other hand, not having either is likely to raise some eyebrows and may prevent you from getting your desired position without you ever knowing why. Even if you find stories of people who had a successful academic career in your field with a cum laude, beware of survivor’s bias.
Moreover, many job offers in Germany (in particular at government agencies) explicitly require a very good PhD². This includes professorships to the extent that it is in the text of the respective laws (Landeshochschulgesetz), e.g., the one for Northrhine-Westphalia states (translation mine):
Einstellungsvoraussetzungen für Hochschullehrerinnen und Hochschullehrer sind […]: […] besondere Befähigung zu wissenschaftlicher Arbeit, die in der Regel durch die Qualität einer Promotion nachgewiesen wird; […] Preconditions for being hired as a professor are […]: […] an outstanding qualification for scientific work, which usually is evidenced by the quality of the doctorate; […]
Now, this does say “usually”, which means it is technically not impossible to get a professorship with a bad PhD, only more difficult. But that already can be a severe disadvantage and may mean that you are ending up with a considerably worse position.
One function of such rules and phrases in job offers are things like avoiding nepotism or having to hire a bad candidate due to lack of better ones. Still if the criterion is phrased respectively, it may be legally impossible to hire you since you fail a hard criterion. If I found out that the successful candidate for a public job I failed to get only has a rite, I would certainly suspect foul play and consider legal action.
All in all, this grade may very well be career-ending.
¹ I know of cases where somebody did not get a summa only because they did not perform top-notch in a one-hour oral examination on their field of study that was unrelated to the topic of the PhD. Consider a theoretical cosmologist PhD being asked about lasers. ² Including your grades on your CV as well as providing a copy of the actual PhD certificate is the default in the hiring process, so you cannot really hide it.
I am now considering to appeal to the university. But, I am scared.
It sounds like you have little left to lose here. If your PhD gets re-evaluated from scratch, you are very unlikely to end up with a worse grade. There is a small risk that you earn a reputation over making a fuss about this, but those who care about this will also likely care about your grade. On the other hand, if I were to consider you for a position and asked you for the story behind your grade (and I probably would), I would rather be negatively surprised if you hadn’t made a fuss.
Now, every faculty in Germany has its own PhD rules and therefore it is difficult to make any general statement here. However, there are several aspects of your story where my PhD rules could have kicked in:
There would be two further members of the committee who can intervene in case of major disputes or grades being given with questionable reason or an accusation of academic misconduct (using material without a reference) against which you could not defend yourself.
The entire committee (four professors) grades the defense.
If the two main examiners differ by more than one grade, a third examiner would have to be consulted.
If your thesis is deemed to have major flaws, you have to be given the opportunity to amend it.
Grades for the thesis have to be given independently and cannot be changed afterwards. (It sounds like the “bad” examiner wanted to give a cum laude, so it cannot be the middle, unless he changed it to a worse grade later.)
There is a written record of committee’s decisions.
Nobody else would have been admitted to attend the committee making the decision. It is particularly weird that students can attend, but you cannot.
I recommend that you thoroughly read your faculty’s PhD rules and consult with whoever oversees the process (usually the dean). Also talk to the “good” examiner (your supervisor, I presume) to get a more detailed story of what happened.
Note that most PhD rules also forbid you to just submit your thesis to another university.
Beware that you very likely did not get the full story so far. For example, attendees of the committee’s decision tend to primarily report the most egregious aspects even though other points had been made.
Maybe I can reveal that I actually got rite for my PhD. I think my second reviewer is a psyco who never let his PhD student passed. I think I am the first one getting away from him.
So in the end I got rite . He was so delighted and told me that with that grade I may not be able to find a post-doctoral position. Outside Germany no one asks about the grade. In Germany I still got an academy position in a research center.
I believe the grade matters. But the reality is that fewer and fewer people want to do academia and therefore you might still get a position since you are still a Made-In-Germany PhD. Best wishes to you.
[EDIT] Updated 2 years later
I am now still a post-doctoral researcher in the research center for the 4th year. First of all no one ask for my grade. Second my advisors are happy about what I did for them.
One of my friends with made-in-Germany PhD, who also got a rite because the second reviewer did not like his research topic, is now an association professor and also the Institute Head in our home country.
I just want to address that rite is not the end of the world.
Welcome to the cum laude club! I've been a full professor at a polytechnic in Germany since my defense, am now retired. Since there is such an inflation of mcl and scl grades, search committees for which I have read the decision book or participated in myself are more and more disregarding it. The papers (in our field, computer science) at least, especially the conferences, are the ones looked at. And as someone noted above, many professors are retiring in the next years, so there will hopefully be many positions to fill.
Trying to challenge a grade in Germany will be difficult. You can obtain the protocol of the deliberation with a freedom-of-information-act application to the official office of the university (it will differ from state to state). Generally these tend to offer little possibility for requesting redress legally, and that can take anywhere from 3-8 years, as the administrative courts are overworked.
Oops, just saw this is three years old - so tell us, what happened?
At least if you are or plan to be in the United States:
Let's come to the important point first: Nobody will ever ask you about your grade, and if they did, it would have no impact at all. The point of a PhD is to show that you're a capable researcher, and you've made that point. Beyond that, it's about the concrete accomplishments -- papers, presentations, where and what you published, etc. You have a bunch of papers in good places already, and so anyone who evaluates you has plenty to work from.
In other words, you worry unnecessarily. In the 17 years since I got my PhD, nobody has ever asked me how it was rated, and I've never asked anyone that question either. So just let it go and move on: focus on the things you can affect (your next publication) and not on the things where you feel like you didn't get a fair shake.
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Hello, I am applying for PhDs in the US this admission cycle. I have 8 yrs of professional experience and 6 years of teaching experience. I have a Masters degree. But my grades in undergrad and masters are pretty low. 5.5/10 in UG, and 2.3/4.3 in masters. The programs I am applying to do not have a minimum grade (I checked with admin). However my concern is that my grades would be a problem. I just got diagnosed officially with ADHD last week, and I have realized how bad it was and why I was the way I was in college. I am interested in my field and I do enjoy it immensely. I will soon be starting with treatment so I hope it will be better. However, I would like if I should justify my grades in my personal statement due to problems caused by my ADHD or that would be a cause for them reject it. Does anyone have experience regarding it? Did anyone of you guys disclose something like this in your applications?
To add - one of the programs I am applying to, the whole research in based on ADHD and Autism, so I believe my experience would help in that.
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IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
How to Get Into Grad School Despite a Low GPA Strong admissions essays can help applicants compensate for a less-than-ideal college GPA, experts say.
I got into an IV league PhD straight out of undergrad with a 2.6 GPA, extremely strong research presence, and a long CV. You'll be fine. Address the low grades and end on a high note with the good grades and what you've learned doing research in your application. You'll be fine. I'm in the US.
Find out how to overcome a low GPA in undergrad and get into top PhD programs. Read advice from experts and users who have faced similar challenges.
If you are in a terminal MA program and applying to PhD programs, grades matter. After graduation and when you're on the job market, grades won't matter as much as your dissertation, publications and recommendations. The way that grades would matter then would be what they say about your professors' estimation of your work and whether they are ...
I have a 3.46 gpa for my bachelor's degree. As I understand it, this average is pretty mediocre, especially for a PhD. I've already been rejected from one school and am expecting to be rejected from another. The last school I had previously been accepted for a masters but I'm expecting rejection for the PhD because they don't exactly have a lot ...
That being said, how common is it for panels to accept PhD applicants with low GPA's but otherwise good profiles? How true would this hold for direct PhD programmes (straight from their undergrad degree), where the applicant has shown strong potential for research but has an average GPA?
Grade Point Average (GPA) is one of the most common grading methods worldwide. In this guide, we cover how GPA works, when it matters for PhD applicants, and how it compares to some other grading systems around the world.
Realistic Applications A top-tier Ph.D. program doesn't have to accept a student with a poor academic record since so many students are trying to get in. However, a good program at a lower-tier school might look beyond grades and be willing to take someone who has other impressive credentials.
My grades in the masters program are good (>3.9 GPA), but at a state university that is not so highly ranked. If the grades from the less competitive masters aren't enough to overcome the poor undergraduate grades, is the quality of my masters thesis likely to help me secure admissions to a top PhD program?
Discover the five steps for mitigating the impact of a low GPA so that you can move forward with a successful graduate school application.
Nonetheless, when you're applying to graduate schools with a weak academic record, it's important to be honest about why your grades didn't cut it. Read on for tips on how best to explain yourself and potentially gain admittance into the program you want to get into.
One bad grade in a graduate course can create an uphill battle for the next semester. So during the graduate program, there is some incentive to keep grades up and avoid getting Cs or Ds in classes.
Of monsters and mentors: PhD disasters, and how to avoid them. Despite all that's been done to improve doctoral study, horror stories keep coming. Here three students relate PhD nightmares while two academics advise on how to ensure a successful supervision. For all the efforts in recent years to improve the doctoral experience for students ...
What GPA is needed to get into grad school? Learn what a good GPA for graduate school is and how to get in, if your GPA is below average.
20 I am an undergraduate studying in Australia aiming for a US PhD program. I want to apply for a PhD in statistics. I have good grades in all of my math and stats courses in general. Unfortunately, the statistics department has quite a few very bad lecturers. And the two lowest grades I got are from two probability and statistical courses.
At least from my experiences in class, professors tend to grade grad students on a diff scale in classes with both grad and undergrad in them. Don't worry about it! As others said, grades don't matter as long as you meet your program's GPA requirement - prioritise your research and only compete with yourself (not other students). 2 Reply ...
I am going to apply for a PhD program at an Ivy league university. I am afraid that some bad marks in the master's (especially one in a relevant subject) would affect my application. Some background: I completed my B.Sc. in mathematics with very good marks (corresponding to a GPA of 4.0 or something close to it) in Europe and then moved to ...
Master's degree. (varied by country and institution) A Doctor of Philosophy ( PhD or DPhil; Latin: philosophiae doctor or doctor philosophiae) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research.
My PhD program had 3 grades". A meant you did well and the professor liked you. A- meant either you did well enough to pass but had some flaws or that you did well but the prof didn't like you. Any flavor of B meant you did poorly. Any other grade was essentially a fail. Reply.
Grades seem so engrained in our education system that even talking about a school without grades feels radical. But there are many that exist. More than 3,000 Montessori schools, including 500 public schools, are gradeless. Beyond these, many K-12 districts and colleges across the U.S. have embraced nontraditional grading systems, Eyler says. ...
How to explain bad bachelor grades due to mental health issues in PhD application? Ask Question Asked 2 years, 11 months ago Modified 2 years, 11 months ago Viewed 3k times
A smart professor would take such a student in preference over a student who had 4.0 throughout, because overcoming difficulties is an important part of nearly every PhD, so being used to struggling is a plus, as long as you eventually came out of that struggle "victorious".
I recently completed my Ph.D. in Germany. I believe my dissertation was evaluated extremely unfairly. For my dissertation, I published seven papers in high-impact international medical journals (IF...
But my grades in undergrad and masters are pretty low. 5.5/10 in UG, and 2.3/4.3 in masters. The programs I am applying to do not have a minimum grade (I checked with admin).