How can I convince grad schools I'm not a 2.6 student?
February 6, 2011 4:29 PM Subscribe
I'd like to go to grad school. I have my eye on one or two programs, but there's a catch: My Undergrad performance is, uh, spotty and I need to become more competitive. What's the best way to do this? More inside.
It's been a solid 5 years since I graduated college. I've had a few different jobs, traveled the world, gotten married and generally lived my life. It was my 27th birthday last week and while that's definitely not like WOAH OLD MAN, I'm at a point where I'd like to start working towards something, getting into a career genre, earning some stability etc etc.
Recently I made 2 friends who are in game design professionally. It was also something I'd considered and in our time together they said I'd be a great fit for the program and that I should pursue it. I did my homework, got excited and then remembered the bad news.
My undergrad performance is spotty at best. A's in things I liked, C's in things I didn't. I think I finished up with a 2.6. I didn't know what I was doing there other than Going To College was what nice white, middle-class kids like me did. I know I borked it and it has cost me plenty in the meanwhile.
So I need to get in shape for this program. What's a boy's best bet? I know having a strong GRE will help, but is it better to make contacts inside the program? My friends have offered to put me in touch with professors and students in their program, but what's the protocol there? Is it better to focus on a portfolio of finished work?
Basically, I know I'm a weak candidate and the admissions process feels like a Magic 8 Ball. I need to know what I can do to reassure admissions comitees and powers-that-be that I am not the lazy thing my GPA says I am.
It's been a solid 5 years since I graduated college. I've had a few different jobs, traveled the world, gotten married and generally lived my life. It was my 27th birthday last week and while that's definitely not like WOAH OLD MAN, I'm at a point where I'd like to start working towards something, getting into a career genre, earning some stability etc etc.
Recently I made 2 friends who are in game design professionally. It was also something I'd considered and in our time together they said I'd be a great fit for the program and that I should pursue it. I did my homework, got excited and then remembered the bad news.
My undergrad performance is spotty at best. A's in things I liked, C's in things I didn't. I think I finished up with a 2.6. I didn't know what I was doing there other than Going To College was what nice white, middle-class kids like me did. I know I borked it and it has cost me plenty in the meanwhile.
So I need to get in shape for this program. What's a boy's best bet? I know having a strong GRE will help, but is it better to make contacts inside the program? My friends have offered to put me in touch with professors and students in their program, but what's the protocol there? Is it better to focus on a portfolio of finished work?
Basically, I know I'm a weak candidate and the admissions process feels like a Magic 8 Ball. I need to know what I can do to reassure admissions comitees and powers-that-be that I am not the lazy thing my GPA says I am.
Take a grad course or two in the field as a postbac student; you can usually transfer a certain number of recent credits or courses into a program if you're accepted later. Assuming you do well, get a letter of recommendation from the prof(s). You can also point to these good grades in your admission letter as proof that you've found your calling and you're going to succeed at it.
posted by treblemaker at 4:36 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by treblemaker at 4:36 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Whatever else you do, definitely take your friends up on their offer. Bonus: when you're talking with those professors, explain your situation and ask for advice. Don't ask for them to get you in, because that's an off-putting request, but they will likely be happy to give you suggestions which are much more informed than most responses here. It's also possible that while doing so, you will impress them, and they will want to actually try to help you get in.
(This isn't to say not to rock the GRE or put together a portfolio of finished work. Those also sound like good ideas.)
posted by J. Wilson at 4:38 PM on February 6, 2011
(This isn't to say not to rock the GRE or put together a portfolio of finished work. Those also sound like good ideas.)
posted by J. Wilson at 4:38 PM on February 6, 2011
"I want to go to grad school" isn't really specific enough to 1) give us anything to go on as far as providing specific advice, or 2) suggest that you've given this all that much thought.
"Game design" is an incredibly broad area. Are you talking about programming? Layout? Sound editing? Art? Q&A? Marketing? Every single one of those could potentially involve an entirely different program with different standards and culture.
Still, the fact that you've been out of school for five years means that your undergraduate GPA is a lot less important than it would have been if you had applied straight outta college. But exactly how much less is going to depend on what you're actually trying to do, and we don't know that. Either way, nailing the GRE and having an impressive portfolio are probably what you really need to focus on.
posted by valkyryn at 5:27 PM on February 6, 2011
"Game design" is an incredibly broad area. Are you talking about programming? Layout? Sound editing? Art? Q&A? Marketing? Every single one of those could potentially involve an entirely different program with different standards and culture.
Still, the fact that you've been out of school for five years means that your undergraduate GPA is a lot less important than it would have been if you had applied straight outta college. But exactly how much less is going to depend on what you're actually trying to do, and we don't know that. Either way, nailing the GRE and having an impressive portfolio are probably what you really need to focus on.
posted by valkyryn at 5:27 PM on February 6, 2011
Is the program related to your undergraduate degree? What have you been doing in the five years since you graduated – are the "few different jobs" directly related and naturally building up to the program you are interested in?
posted by halogen at 5:38 PM on February 6, 2011
posted by halogen at 5:38 PM on February 6, 2011
Ah, we're in similar boats, but my GPA was a bit better. I just got into grad school. I was worried about how my undergrad performance would affect my application. Here's what I did to offset it:
*I got really fucking stellar recommendations from people who know how to write a letter of recommendation [ie, "I am so-and-so, I run this organization, have X years of experience in this field including running X department, etc, and I've worked with entropone in this capacity and highly recommend..." and so on].
*I did well on the GREs.
*I talked to people at the program: former professors, admissions committee, academic folks. I don't know if that helped at all, but it was good for me.
*I put in my application that I was going to take a class in an area that my undergrad was clearly weak in, that was important for the program: both to refamiliarize myself with the content, with working in an academic environment again, and to demonstrate my ability to do graduate-level work. Once I was enrolled in the class, I emailed the academic committee to ask them to put a note in my file that I was registered for that class.
It worked.
posted by entropone at 5:44 PM on February 6, 2011
*I got really fucking stellar recommendations from people who know how to write a letter of recommendation [ie, "I am so-and-so, I run this organization, have X years of experience in this field including running X department, etc, and I've worked with entropone in this capacity and highly recommend..." and so on].
*I did well on the GREs.
*I talked to people at the program: former professors, admissions committee, academic folks. I don't know if that helped at all, but it was good for me.
*I put in my application that I was going to take a class in an area that my undergrad was clearly weak in, that was important for the program: both to refamiliarize myself with the content, with working in an academic environment again, and to demonstrate my ability to do graduate-level work. Once I was enrolled in the class, I emailed the academic committee to ask them to put a note in my file that I was registered for that class.
It worked.
posted by entropone at 5:44 PM on February 6, 2011
Add to that: I had decent work experience. Well, pretty good work experience. A lot of different jobs in the six years since I graduated school, due to... a lot of things... but it comes together nicely, and it helped me write a letter of intent that said, "in this work, i was exposed to this, but i wanted to do this, and it raised these questions. clearly this degree helps me pursue this."
posted by entropone at 5:45 PM on February 6, 2011
posted by entropone at 5:45 PM on February 6, 2011
Are your better grades in subjects related to the degree you'd like to pursue now? Or are they in what was at the time your major? If either of these is the case, it can help you spin the overall poor GPA-- either way, it indicates that you're smart and capable of working on one type of problem. If it's the type of problem you're now interested in tackling, that's for the best. If not, then at least it indicates that you're able to focus on something.
As others have said, though, what you did in the last five years might matter just as much, if it's relevant at all. You might also consider taking a few classes in the field, just to make sure it's actually something you want to do. This will ensure that you have a better grasp of what the field is before you're trying to actually enter it, something which will strengthen your application not just because it'll fill out your resumé, but also because it will make your arguments for why you'd be a good candidate that much more sophisticated. Plus, if it turns out you don't love it, you haven't invested too much time or money.
posted by dizziest at 5:51 PM on February 6, 2011
As others have said, though, what you did in the last five years might matter just as much, if it's relevant at all. You might also consider taking a few classes in the field, just to make sure it's actually something you want to do. This will ensure that you have a better grasp of what the field is before you're trying to actually enter it, something which will strengthen your application not just because it'll fill out your resumé, but also because it will make your arguments for why you'd be a good candidate that much more sophisticated. Plus, if it turns out you don't love it, you haven't invested too much time or money.
posted by dizziest at 5:51 PM on February 6, 2011
when i was applying to grad schools, i used this book, which was really helpful: Graduate School: Winning Strategies for Getting In With or Without Excellent Grades.
Maybe check it out at the library if you're not into dropping the cash. I found that even though not every single thing applied to me, it really helped me with a checklist of ways i could improve my chances.
good luck!
posted by andreapandrea at 6:38 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Maybe check it out at the library if you're not into dropping the cash. I found that even though not every single thing applied to me, it really helped me with a checklist of ways i could improve my chances.
good luck!
posted by andreapandrea at 6:38 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
I'm in a similar position. Here's what you do: Contact the admissions person in the program and ask what they need in terms of GPA, so you're not guessing. If they require something higher than what you have, ask how you can work around that. They will probably ask you to take some classes and get a certain GPA in those classes to prove that you can do the work. Make sure you understand exactly which classes, and where you need to take them (at their school or at a local community college).
posted by hought20 at 9:11 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by hought20 at 9:11 PM on February 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
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posted by sninctown at 4:36 PM on February 6, 2011