Schools Getting into grad school with a less than amazing record

AI Thread Summary
Falling ill with a bacterial infection has significantly impacted the original poster's grades and GRE scores, resulting in a GPA below 3.0. They have extensive research experience and strong recommendations, which may help offset their academic setbacks. Considering retaking courses to improve their GPA is an option, but there are concerns about the potential damage to their graduate school applications. Another participant shares a similar experience, emphasizing that while low GRE scores can be a hurdle, they do not eliminate all chances for admission. Overall, perseverance and a strategic application approach to a range of schools are encouraged.
diewlasing
Messages
14
Reaction score
0
Hello all.

Problem: This semester I fell ill with a bad bacterial infection and was ill for a while (with temporary partial hearing loss in one ear). It caused my grades and GRE scores to suffer IMMENSELY. I can't retake the physics GRE but I am retaking the general one. And also my grades this semester caused my gpa to fall below 3.0 (but only slightly, not much). But I also have a ton of research experience and really good recommendation. I'm thinking of staying in school another semester to take courses to bring back up my gpa but I'm unsure. Does anyone have an idea how much this will damage my chances of getting into a physics grad school?

P.S. I'm a natural born US citizen and native English speaker (I've been told this works in your favor)

Thanks!
 
Physics news on Phys.org
diewlasing said:
Hello all.

Problem: This semester I fell ill with a bad bacterial infection and was ill for a while (with temporary partial hearing loss in one ear). It caused my grades and GRE scores to suffer IMMENSELY. I can't retake the physics GRE but I am retaking the general one. And also my grades this semester caused my gpa to fall below 3.0 (but only slightly, not much). But I also have a ton of research experience and really good recommendation. I'm thinking of staying in school another semester to take courses to bring back up my gpa but I'm unsure. Does anyone have an idea how much this will damage my chances of getting into a physics grad school?

P.S. I'm a natural born US citizen and native English speaker (I've been told this works in your favor)

Thanks!

I have a somewhat similar experience, but I did not get sick. I just had my buisiest semester ever. My gre scores are crap to say the least(630 phys, 490 verbal(small vocabulary)). THey do not reflect my abilities. But I have been published twice, once in a major journal, and the other as first author. I have a near perfect physics gpa, and have taken more physics classes than any other student in the department. My school gpa is very good aswell. MY recommendations should be good. While i will have deficiencies I hope that graduate schools will over look my gre scores and actually evaluate my real potential as a student. While bad scores will eliminate you from some schools, they will not eliminate you from all. Do like me and apply to a whole range of schools from the best to the worst. (it doesn't hurt that my first choice is not the best school). Most of all don't give up (I haven't amazingly.) And if you don't get in get a good job for a year and try again. That is my plan. But I hope that I get into a graduate program. I think that I will get into alteast one. One of the programs that I will apply to, a friend with much worse scores applied to and got in, so there is hope.

good luck.Oh a couple of recommendations:
1) get started now. Most apps are due soon
2) for future takers of the Physics GRE don't answer too many questions. I got 48 correct, but because i got so many wrong it ended up killing my score.
 
I think it's a good idea to stay in school for another term (and to retake the GRE), but not to raise your GPA (although it will do that too). The low grades are a symptom of not having learned the material while you were sick. The smart thing to do is to make sure you've learned it before moving on.
 
Well actually, in all of my physics classes I get good grades, I finished those last year, I've just been doing electives and core requirements since. And on the GREs, it's not that I didn't know the material, its that was nauseous and the proctors didn't allow water or anything, even tissues, and the cold chills from the fever wasn't really a great asset in helping my focus. And I don't have time to take the GREs again, even if I stay on another semester.
 
TL;DR Summary: What topics to cover to safely say I know arithmetic ? I am learning arithmetic from Indian NCERT textbook. Currently I have finished addition ,substraction of 2 digit numbers and divisions, multiplication of 1 digit numbers. I am moving pretty slowly. Can someone tell me what topics to cover first to build a framework and then go on in detail. I want to learn fast. It has taken me a year now learning arithmetic. I want to speed up. Thanks for the help in advance. (I also...
Hi community My aim is to get into research about atoms, specifically, I want to do experimental research that explores questions like: 1. Why do Gallium/Mercury have low melting points 2. Why are there so many exceptions and inconsistencies when it comes to explaining molecular structures / reaction mechanisms in inorganic and organic chemistry 3. Experimental research about fundamental Quantum Mechanics, such as the one being followed by Hiroshima university that proved that observing...
guys i am currently studying in computer science engineering [1st yr]. i was intrested in physics when i was in high school. due to some circumstances i chose computer science engineering degree. so i want to incoporate computer science engineering with physics and i came across computational physics. i am intrested studying it but i dont know where to start. can you guys reccomend me some yt channels or some free courses or some other way to learn the computational physics.

Similar threads

Replies
12
Views
3K
Replies
9
Views
3K
Replies
3
Views
3K
Replies
1
Views
3K
Replies
26
Views
5K
Back
Top