Grad School Chances with a Low GPA: My Story

[Ulyaoth]

So I'm trying to finish up my BS in Mechanical Engineering technology, have decided within the last year I definitely want to go to grad school for a masters in actual engineering, just worried about my chances. My present GPA is around 3.23, I'm retaking a class that if I do good in should bring me back up to a 3.3 plus whatever else I do this semester which so far is pretty good. Just worrying because I've not been too good in math, the class I'm retaking is Calculus I which I'm doing pretty good in since I picked up better algebra skills since first taking it to help some plus being more serious to begin with. Only thing is it's a calculus applications class, and I've seen for transfer credits to some other universities they don't count it at least towards a bachelor's degree.

I still need to take calc 2 next fall, but the one listed on my degree requirements is also calc 2 applications, I'm going to talk to my chairman if taking regular calc 2 would be allowed to fulfill that requirement instead so that it'll help toward my chances of getting into grad school. I'm wondering if this is worth it because I've been having difficulty researching if grad schools really care for prerequisite classes in undergrad to be accepted, since I know a lot of grad students at Stonybrook who just say in their first year they're taking a bunch more math classes there to make up for having not taken as much as stonybrook undergrads would have taken.

Which leads to my next question, I took a college algebra class a few years ago due to not having finished math b(second level of math in NY when I was in high school) that didn't count towards my major, but now I've been given an exempt on taking a language class and have been told to take a gen ed elective, which that class would fit, and thus I won't have to take so many classes my last semester and potentially do better next semester from less workload of course, but figured if it's available to get a better understanding of math I'd take calc 3.

Sorry for rambling a bit but any thoughts, suggestions?

 

[R.Mesri]

It definitely sounds like you are on the right track! Taking Calc 2 instead of Calc Applications could be a good idea if it would give you a better chance of getting into grad school. However, if you do decide to take Calc 3 as a general elective, it could be beneficial to your grad school chances as well - it would show that you have a strong background in math, which is an important part of engineering. Additionally, having a deeper understanding of calculus could help with any future coursework related to engineering. It's also important to keep in mind that many grad schools look at more than just grades - they will want to see a good record of extracurricular activities, research experience, relevant internships, and letters of recommendation. It may be beneficial to start looking into those opportunities now, if you haven't already, to increase your chances of acceptance into grad school. Good luck!