Not Getting Into Graduate School, What now?

In summary, The speaker is a physics graduate with a GPA of 3.0 and a low score on the PGRE, causing them to not get accepted into any graduate programs. They are seeking advice on how to improve their chances and are considering fields such as astrophysics or medical physics. They also mention their dislike for engineering jobs and their financial limitations. Other speakers suggest retaking the PGRE and getting a job in a related field to gain experience and motivation.
  • #1
Gandalf1990
9
0
I went to school for physics as an undergradute. I did well in my upper level physics courses, all A's and B's but I messed up very poorly in a math course and didn't put much effort into elective courses and the result is a GPA around 3.0. This combined with the fact that I bombed the PGRE(570)(How I did this bad I'm not sure. I know the physics but a standardized test is never going to test true knowledge very well). I did not get into any of the grad schools I applied to. The problem is that I love physics and after studying it I know that unless I find some sort of physics related position (research preferably) I will not be happy. I

I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how to get back onto the correct path? I know I don't want an engineering job, I would hate that I'm pretty sure based on my summer internship at an engineering business. The field that interests me the most would be astrophysics or cosmology, but i thought I have heard of people getting into medical physics with only bachelors before so I would definitely be interested if that was possible. Any advice? I'm sure I left out some important information but if anyone has anything I would be happy to hear.

Thanks!
 
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  • #2
Spend a year in college again and get your GPA up. Also can't you retake the PGRE?
 
  • #3
Sorry, yeah I realize that spending another year would give me better chances, but financially I don't think its possible to do so. I can retake the PGRE but I would be applying for another year away and I've heard then that even a better PGRE won't necessarily be enough if i have taken a year off of school since i can't really afford another year of schooling
 
  • #4
To me, a PGRE of 570 seems quite troubling. I found that the test was mostly a measure of your ability to prepare and dedicate yourself to something. The physics we all know is not very advanced, and most of the effort I put into it was into coping with the question type, format, and time constraints. Sure, along the way I brushed up on some concepts I had forgotten, but by and large I *KNEW* the answers to most questions when reviewing solutions, but for one reason or another the test format made it more difficult.

If you know that this kind of standardized test is troublesome for you for whatever reason, you really need to put in the time to fix it, however long that takes. If you were getting 800+ or something on the practice exams and then bombed the real deal that's one thing, but if this is consistent then it shows you didn't really make progress. Suppose you got into grad school and then ran into the same difficulty with the quals?
 
  • #5
The problem was definitely mostly my fault. I did not prepare as much as I should have and I know it is within my capabilities to go back study harder and get ~800 most likely. Another reason, not an excuse, but still a factor is that I transferred into physics after my sophomore year. I came from Mechanical engineering so it was similar but I was behind on my physics courses. That being said I had not taken any statistical mechanics, I was only a month and a half into my upper level quantum mechanics courses and I was only half way done with E&M. I took the GRE when I did because I had to in order to apply for graduate schools for the following year. Would retaking the GRE and reapplying next year with the same gpa but much higher PGRE make the difference or would the year off reflect poorly against me?

Thanks for your input!
 
  • #6
there's an easy way to fix this. lower your school expectations.
 
  • #7
chill_factor,

I did, I applied to very mediocre grad schools, A couple of them I thought even with my credentials would have been sure bets. But for some reason I did not even get admission into those.
 
  • #8
Gandalf1990 said:
chill_factor,

I did, I applied to very mediocre grad schools, A couple of them I thought even with my credentials would have been sure bets. But for some reason I did not even get admission into those.

Damn... I was in your situation too, and I got in. Guess not everyone is as lucky. Best of luck to you... if you have a dream, follow it as long as it isn't a crippling financial ball and chains on your future. Get a job, take the PGRE again, and try again next year... that's about the best you can do.
 
  • #9
Thanks,

Yeah I am definitely not giving up yet at least. Good luck to you in grad school.
 
  • #10
Gandalf1990 said:
Thanks,

Yeah I am definitely not giving up yet at least. Good luck to you in grad school.

as for your job, here's my recommendations: since you hate engineering, can you do programming? if you hate programming, can you sell stuff? if you hate selling stuff, are you willing to do manual labor?

i personally think that working by itself is pretty beneficial, if nothing more than to give you motivation "if I don't make it that's what's waiting for me outside". i have personal experience with this: i worked as an analytical chemistry technician before, and that's how i knew to stay the hell away from the pharmaceutical industry.
 
  • #11
chill_factor said:
as for your job, here's my recommendations: since you hate engineering, can you do programming? if you hate programming, can you sell stuff? if you hate selling stuff, are you willing to do manual labor?

i personally think that working by itself is pretty beneficial, if nothing more than to give you motivation "if I don't make it that's what's waiting for me outside". i have personal experience with this: i worked as an analytical chemistry technician before, and that's how i knew to stay the hell away from the pharmaceutical industry.

Yeah, Without having worked as an intern i would have stayed in engineering which would have been a mistake. I would probably opt for an engineering position to tide me over until I get into grad school. I agree with you that it serves as a good motivator to study for the PGRE and get into grad school.
 
  • #12
What country are you from. Also if you are in the U.S what state? There are some cheap colleges and you get a job and be a part time student. All you probably need is a A is a 4 credit class upper math/physics or maybe 2 4 credit classes to bring up your GPA.
 
  • #13
xdrgnh said:
What country are you from. Also if you are in the U.S what state? There are some cheap colleges and you get a job and be a part time student. All you probably need is a A is a 4 credit class upper math/physics or maybe 2 4 credit classes to bring up your GPA.

I am from the U.S. from Illinois. There are definitely some cheap schools that I could attend part time to bring up my gpa but I wasn't sure if that would really be worth much since it would not be from a good university. It is definitely an option though
 
  • #14
Most universities have standardized physics curriculum so that wouldn't be much of a problem the reputation of the school. Grad school cares most about knowing that you will excel in Grad school and the best way to show that is to get high grades in upper tier classes.
 
  • #15
What upper tier classes did you take?
 
  • #16
xdrgnh said:
What upper tier classes did you take?

I've taken two semesters of Upper Level E&M, I've taken two semesters of upper level Quantum Mechanics, two semesters of upper level classical mechanics, one semester of thermal physics/statistical mechanics. One classical experiment course, doing stuff like millikan's measurement of the electric charge, etc. I am in an observational astronomy course that covers the types of equipment used now adays. I think that's it for upper level physics
 
  • #17
Gandalf1990 said:
The field that interests me the most would be astrophysics or cosmology, but i thought I have heard of people getting into medical physics with only bachelors before so I would definitely be interested if that was possible.

Occasionally physics technicians or physics assistants are hired with only a BSc-level education. You could try inquiring about that. Getting a job as a full medical physicist today is rather competative for accredited PhDs.
 
  • #18
Gandalf1990 said:
I've taken two semesters of Upper Level E&M, I've taken two semesters of upper level Quantum Mechanics, two semesters of upper level classical mechanics, one semester of thermal physics/statistical mechanics. One classical experiment course, doing stuff like millikan's measurement of the electric charge, etc. I am in an observational astronomy course that covers the types of equipment used now adays. I think that's it for upper level physics

That does sound like a very competitive list of of classes. If you want to go into cosmology then taking a class in GR would make you very competitive. Or taking a Grad level class would help your application for reapplying to Grad school.
 
  • #19
The GRE exists because it is in fact a good way to measure an individual's understanding in physics. Nonetheless, that sucks and I wish you the best of luck. Take a year off and review the material. Not sure how good a comparison this is, but I have know some people who had very good results taking a year off of school to study for the MCATs. The 3.0 gpa is very low though (not trying to trouble you, I'm sure you know that).
 
  • #20
Gandalf1990 said:
The problem was definitely mostly my fault. I did not prepare as much as I should have and I know it is within my capabilities to go back study harder and get ~800 most likely.

Do it.

A lot depends on how much you want to get into graduate school. If you do nothing, then you are definitely doomed. If you do something, then you may or may not be doomed.

Would retaking the GRE and reapplying next year with the same gpa but much higher PGRE make the difference or would the year off reflect poorly against me?

One thing to do is to step back, and ask what the decision is. With a 570 PGRE and your current GPA, you are totally doomed. The question is assuming that you managed to hit 800 in your PGRE, then are you totally doomed, and the answer is I really don't know, but you are better off than you are right now.
 
  • #21
Gandalf1990 said:
There are definitely some cheap schools that I could attend part time to bring up my gpa but I wasn't sure if that would really be worth much since it would not be from a good university.

It's not the university but the courses. If you take graduate level physics courses and you do very well, then that's good. If the courses you take are obviously intended for the sole purpose of boosting your GPA, then it's going to be obvious to the committees and that's bad.

One principle that has worked for me is the principle of least regret. Suppose you do nothing. Then you'll be spending the rest of your life wondering what you could have done differently. Now suppose you spend a year, and a year from now your PGRE scores don't improve and you've completely blown your classes. In that case, you know that you are doomed, but knowing that you are doomed avoids regret later.
 
  • #22
I would highly recommend getting into software for a year and save up some money. In software you can make a good salary from the start. If you don't have a money cushion during grad school then things will be more stressful than needed.

A couple weeks ago, one of my friend's (grad student) car broke down and he got quoted around $900 to get it fixed. He said that the bill might out him over his credit limit on his card. I couldn't even imagine the stress that would bring going into the final weeks of a semester.. Luckily, he told me about it and I spent a Saturday fixing it for him. So, get money, a lot of it asap. Then while you're working restudy for the PGRE and up that score.
 
  • #23
One thing to keep in mind is that if you have no formal astrophysics/cosmology background and apply to a program to study for it, you only have good chances of admission if you have a strong physics background (e.g. good grades in your upper level physics courses): this will tell the committee that you are probably intelligent enough to handle the physics needed for those fields. If you got mediocre grades there, the committee has no reason to be confident in that ability. The other way to impress them is to show some actual research background, or some skill that is very useful for astronomy/astrophysics/cosmology which can be useful to the faculty there. Since most of the relevant training these days is computational in nature, getting a good amount of experience in programming is critical if you want to make up for a poor GPA. Then you'll have to go above and beyond and do some sort of research project that shows you are capable of solving a problem by yourself (this is the hallmark of getting the PhD, after all). Do it with a faculty member at your undergrad school, if possible, to get a good letter of recommendation out of it as well. And don't worry if it's a non-traditional way of getting accepted; if the committee thinks your work was strong enough to take a chance on you, that's a strong compliment.
 
  • #24
I would like to hear about what you ended up doing?
 
  • #25
I ended up returning to a position at the company I had previous held an internship at two of the previous summers. I have also recently taken up a position at Tesla Motors. I still have plans to go back to grad school hopefully in physics, but at this point I will not be able to financially do that for a few years.
 

1. What could be the reasons for not getting into graduate school?

There are a variety of reasons why someone may not get accepted into graduate school. These could include a low GPA, lack of relevant experience, weak letters of recommendation, or a competitive applicant pool.

2. Should I try applying to graduate school again in the future?

It ultimately depends on your individual circumstances and goals. If you are determined to pursue a graduate degree, you may consider taking steps to improve your application, such as gaining more experience or improving your academic record, before reapplying in the future.

3. Are there alternatives to graduate school for furthering my education?

Yes, there are many options for continuing your education outside of graduate school. You could consider pursuing a post-baccalaureate program, professional certification, or online courses to gain additional skills and knowledge in your field.

4. How can I cope with the disappointment of not getting into graduate school?

It can be difficult to deal with rejection, but it's important to remember that not getting into graduate school does not define your worth or potential for success. Take some time to reflect on your goals and explore other opportunities that may align with your interests and strengths.

5. Is it worth it to apply to a lower-ranked graduate program or a program in a different field?

This decision will depend on your individual circumstances and priorities. Some students may choose to apply to lower-ranked programs or programs in different fields in order to gain more experience and improve their chances of acceptance in the future. However, it's important to research these programs thoroughly and make sure they align with your long-term goals.

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