Expert: Jay Cutts - 2/20/2009

Question
Hello! I am currently a junior at the University of Mary Washington, majoring in Environmental Science. I am contemplating Graduate School, but I am unsure of how competitive my application would be in general; I am wondering if it is strong enough for admission into graduate school, or if it would be a better idea if I spent some time in the working world first. I have a 3.31 cumulative GPA, a 4.0 in my major, and I am doing a research project this semester. This semester should increase my cumulative. I will be attending a conference or two next year. I plan on graduating with honors, and I am trying to secure an internship or research opportunity over the summer. I have yet to take my GREs, but on my SATs I scored a 1890/1600, if that is any indication of my standardized test-taking skills. I am on the varsity equestrian team, I have experience in theatre, and I'm in two honors societies (officer of one), as well as a resident assistant, but I am not sure if extracurriculars are that important for grad school. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Answer
Hi, Lyssa.

I don't see any reason why you couldn't be a strong candidate for grad school.  Even your current cumulative GPA is within a reasonable range and your major GPA is excellent.  

I'm not familiar with the scoring on the SAT so I'm not sure whether your scores are high or not.  However, in any case, the GRE is learnable.  I've been teaching it to people for 18 years!  So if your test taking skills are strong, you can push your score into the excellent range.

This is the time that you should be getting started on the admissions process, working on your GRE and starting to get your personal statement in order.  This summer is when you would complete everything and plan to take the GRE early fall. It is best to leave this summer as free as possible so that you can focus on this.

I'd be glad to talk with you about your plans.  I am also available to work with you on the GRE, personal statement and admissions.

I have a lot of free information available on my website at:

http://www.cuttsreviews.com

Good luck!

Jay Cutts
Cutts Graduate Reviews