Admissions Having an A- average in upper division physics course

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A rising senior preparing for grad school discusses challenges faced during the pandemic, including a decline in grades, particularly in core major courses. Despite achieving straight A's in advanced classes, the overall GPA is 3.7, with aspirations to improve in upcoming advanced courses. The student acknowledges a drop in motivation post-pandemic and regrets overloading classes during a difficult time. They aim for mid-tier graduate programs, possibly in the top 20-40 range, and have secured a research opportunity with SULI, though they feel underwhelmed by the data analysis work. Two strong recommendation letters are in place, including one from a leader in AMO physics. Feedback emphasizes the importance of focusing on the fit and value of the graduate program rather than its ranking.
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Hello, all I'm a rising senior who's about to apply for grad school. However, this year has been a rough year for me as my overall grade has declined a bit, especially in that I did not do well in 3 core major courses: mechanics B and EM II I got a B and STAT MECH B+(sadly, I thought i deserved much better grades b/c I feel like i know more than my peers who got better grades). My QM, RELATIVITY, WAVE/OPTICS, and EM I(yes this is considered pretty advanced courses at my uni) have straight A's , so no A-. As of now, my GPA stands at a solid 3.7. In the coming fall I will be taking more advanced courses: QM II and atomic physics which I have a strong feeling that i can get A's on(since its back in person and QM is the only course I enjoyed over this year)

The issue with me is that prepandemic my grades looks solid, pretty much stem courses all A's , at worse, A-'s . BUt after pandemic, my motivaiton just went down a deep hill and so I did not put much effort. In fact, I decided to overload my classes(exceeds credit limit) myself at the worst time possible. Never mind my bad decision, I know I will have practically no chance for top-tier, so I'm trying to shoot for mid-tier. Perhaps top 20-40.

With regards to my research, I did got into SULI this summer which I will be performing some data anlaysis and I heard they are in the process of making a paper. But that's really about it, also performing data analysis is a bit underwhealming for me since I came from a strong programming BG. I do not have any other solid research other than doing some independent projects working with lasers. But I do have 2 solid recommendation letter ready , with one of them a leader in the fields of AMO physics that I'm applying to.

I would love to hear some honest feedback.
 
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The pandemic has hit everyone hard. Don't be too hard on yourself. You're not in a bad spot.

Avoid focusing on a graduate school's "tier" and focus more on what you're likely to get out of the program, what project you'll be working on, the people you'll be working with, and how well that school fits in with the lifestyle you enjoy.
 
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Likes CalcNerd and Vanadium 50
I graduated with a BSc in Physics in 2020. Since there were limited opportunities in my country (mostly teaching), I decided to improve my programming skills and began working in IT, first as a software engineer and later as a quality assurance engineer, where I’ve now spent about 3 years. While this career path has provided financial stability, I’ve realized that my excitement and passion aren’t really there, unlike what I felt when studying or doing research in physics. Working in IT...
I have a specialization in condensed matter physics and materials physics, and off-late, I have been seeing a lot of research directions moving towards quantum computing (AMO and non-linear optics) and the huge chunk of quantum materials research (and funding) is dedicated towards QIS and QC research. I am wondering (sort of in a dilemma), if I should consider switching my field? I am currently at the stage of a postdoc.

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