r/gradadmissions

I’m an honors maths and cs major at nyu and I ended up with a 3.5 cumulative gpa for my first year. It’s so hard to get an A here. I know it’s my fault bc sometimes I got too lazy and forgot to do the homework so even if I get all As in my exams I still end up with a B+…

I want to do AI phd in the future, I just want to know does this gpa means I am saying goodbye to those top cs phd programs or is it still possible, I still dream about Stanford…

Also a quick question for those stem majors with 4.0 or 3.9, how hard do yall study? I feel like I need to lock myself in the library all day if I genuinely want to bump it up.

So, I was never in a hostel till now. I am now going to join a B-school.

Please give me some advice, suggestions and tips for hostel life and how to get to accustomed to hostel life in less time.

Hello everyone,

I am from India.

I am in dilemma. I will be pursuing PhD in my field of interest that is more interdisciplinary and needs some coursework/study that my current major lacks. Though I have relevant research experience in that field, still I doubt that lack of grades in relevant coursework my PhD demands will lead me to a disadvantage. Will certificates be of any value to showcase that I know & have done some study & got grades in courses that I couldn't learn due to nature of my major? Pls help.

For those who don't know what NPTEL is, its basically like Coursera or MIT Open CourseWare but regulated by Indian govt. and proctored exams are conducted at the end of each 4/8/12/15 week courses and has transferable credits. (for ref: https://nptel.ac.in/)

I know a balanced perspective is important, but it seems like every time I see something positive about a PhD, it's immediately followed by a "but" and a list of ten negatives - making the perspective overwhelmingly negative.

Today I’m feeling pretty overwhelmed and discouraged with the application preparation, so I’d really appreciate hearing the good (and only the good) about a PhD. I'm looking for a positive thread to bookmark for when things feel tough.

If you’re currently doing a PhD or have already finished one - especially in STEM/biology - can you share ONLY the good parts?

*What made the process meaningful, exciting, fulfilling, or worth it?*

and

*What changed in your life after graduating?* Thank you

I want major in one subject and minor in another. But, I heard from some people you are unable to go to grad or law school without an Honours Bachelor’s Degree.

Is this true? I assumed that since it’s all the same 4 year degree it wouldn’t be a problem. But apparently not!

Please let me know!

I was just wondering this thing is my mind,

right now my_qualifications is that i am in class 12 currently

My apologies, this is a long post. I feel absolutely defeated.

I currently attend a university that is typically known as safe school/last resort. It has a reputation that the students don't work hard, and any employer that has to pick between me and a candidate who attended a university with higher status would automatically pick the higher status one regardless of the works I pump out or what my CV says. Not only does my university have a rough reputation but it also lacks in resources needed for what I study (social sciences, sociology focused). For those reasons alone, my advisor and a plethora of other professors here have heavily encouraged me to apply to a "better" university.

Heading my advisor and professors words, I decided to apply to universities that were "better". Everything was going really well! I did a ton of research on programs, reached out to prospective advisors well in advance, spent months building my research proposal, etc. I passed the document screenings just fine and had interviews too! I applied with the hope of at least getting into 1 of the schools and it seemed like everything was going to be fine. But I walked away with 0. I received the last rejection today.

I know that it's because I didn't meet the criteria but god I feel so freaking crushed. I really, really thought I had a shot. My confidence has taken a major blow and I'm just so frustrated. Like I feel like I'm always being passed over. For scholarships, for jobs, for programs, literally for everything since I was a kid. And I know that these people worked hard to get in to their programs or get these nice scholarships, but I wish I could be good enough to deserve it too. I don't know what's wrong with me.

I know I don't have the credentials a lot of people have, but I feel as if my circumstances are super skewed because I am my own support. Couldn't afford tutoring as a kid (I'm dyslexic) because my family was low-income and I didn't have the time to anyways since I worked in high school to help out, worked two jobs in college to make ends meet (even with taking out student loans) so not a lot of time to network and my undergrad advisor was awful anyways (he basically refused to help me and literally told me I'd never succeed, laughed when I said I wanted to go to grad school), my MA advisor is nice but very hands off despite me asking for help, not to mention he has like 10 other students; I'm learning how to do everything on my own. My current university doesn't provide funding for MA students so I couldn't attend conferences and I've been passed over for scholarships here too... All the networking and learning how to properly do research and paying for tuition and just literally everything I have been doing on my own.

I don't know what's wrong with me. It could be that I haven't presented at a conference but that costs money I don't have because my school won't cover anything, or maybe I don't have enough publications but those take time and I'm on a visa. Or maybe it's the schools that I've attended but I can't afford the nicer ones without scholarships. I'm on a student visa (outside US) so I'm limited with the hours I can work, and I may or may not be working under the table already to afford living. I am meticulously strict with money, I'm 100% financially responsible for myself (not in contact with family for a laundry list of reasons) and I spent the equivalent of almost $600 on application fees...

I'm desperately trying to get out of this cycle of being passed over and into something with better opportunities. So badly. I can't tell you how much time I've spent watching lectures on YouTube or coaching for graduate interviews or searching for networking events around me or free seminars to attend. I volunteer at my university often, usually for networking or beefing up my CV, but also because I like helping students. I also work as a research assistant. I'm on campus more than I'm at home. The bags under my eyes are permanent at this point and my meals are limited to once a day. My advisor tries to help me but like I said, he has 10 other students to juggle (and who tend to be a higher priority). I'm constantly trying to improve. I just don't understand what else I'm supposed to be doing or what's wrong with me...

I do have a PhD program. I'll be staying at this university and starting in the fall (no funding). I know having a PhD program at a last resort uni is better than not having a PhD program at all. I know it's a privilege to be here. I'm not trying to sound ungrateful, I just... I just feel like I'll never be anything other average. Like I'm not good enough. I want to be a professor, I want to teach and inspire others and contribute to research and give students equal opportunities to be the best versions of themselves; to make sure students never feel the way I do... But this constant rejection has me thinking that everyone was right: I'm nothing special. That it doesn't matter how hard I try, I'm too stupid to ever make it into academia or make a difference. I'm just not good enough. And I'm so tired.

If you made it this far, thank you. I hope no one can relate to this. I welcome advice for improvement or strategy or honestly just kind words at this point. And I apologize if this comes off whiny or ungrateful, that's not my intention. I'm just deeply upset by this last rejection. I really thought I had it. Like I thought this was my chance to get into something better and I don't know where it went wrong or what I did.

(Also, it's not that don't like this school, in fact it's the opposite; I love this university. And I hope to come back and teach here to help with said lack of aforementioned resources. I believe it can be a good school for students, especially non-stem ones (the STEM schools have way more funding and better resources than humanities), especially for those students who didn't meet the criteria to get into the "better" universities.)

Hey everyone,

I have an MS in Electrical Engineering (focused on embedded systems and IoT) and I’m actively looking to start a PhD in US. My background is hands-on I’ve built systems using Raspberry Pi, ESP32, and similar hardware, and my research interests are in:

• Embedded Systems (real-time control, RTOS, hardware-software co-design)
• IoT (sensor networks, edge computing, wireless protocols)
• Battery Management Systems (BMS) monitoring, balancing, state estimation

I’m trying to cut through the noise of cold-emailing and find labs that are actually looking for students right now, rather than blasting out generic emails.

If you know a professor who:

• Is actively recruiting for Fall 2026 or Spring 2027
• Works in any of the above areas (or adjacent ones like power electronics, control systems, or cyber-physical systems)
• Has funding for a RA position

I’d genuinely appreciate a name or a nudge in the right direction. Happy to DM my CV if that helps make an intro easier.

Thanks in advance this community has been incredibly helpful to a lot of people and I’m hoping it comes through again.

Hi community, I was wondering how one can be accepted for a PhD in a European university. Is it possible to do a phd in a prestigious university without having studied there in the past? I have done over 30 applications and although I seem to have the right skills, I have zero callbacks. I have internship experience in a big company, relevant thesis in most cases and good recommendation letters but nothing seems to work. My grades are average though, and my university is not very prestigious, which I’m not sure if those are to fault.

Hi! I just finished my first year of my psychology bachelor’s and it’s pretty much solidified how much I really want to pursue a clinical psychology PhD. I was able to join a research lab as an RA and I’m TAing for a psyc course and still serving as an RA for that same semester too which I’m very excited about. I was talking to a friend who’s parents has a PhD in clinical psych and was told that I’m almost guaranteed going to have to get my master’s first and that honestly scared me a bit because I don’t want to spend unnecessary money when I know exactly what I want to do :/ Just wanted to hear other’s thoughts and experiences trying to go straight from undergrad to a PhD. Thanks!

Every now and then I’d take a peak and think to myself. Wow, we’ve really crossed that hurdle.

It makes me so frustrated that I am full-funded phd admitted student and also I got rejected from an visa interview.

Did I look so suspicious? What the...

I have a bit of time left so I will do the interview again, but the time(I have to take a day off, and it takes nearly 3 hours to get to the interview location) and the cost($185 +@) is so irritating.

Hi all. I’ve been going through a lot lately and just needed to get this out somewhere.

I applied to a few master’s programs and got into more than one, which should feel like a win. One offer came with full funding in another country, the other was partial funding closer to home. I accepted the first one because I was pressured by a deadline, and the second one only just came through, which honestly made everything worse.

Now I’m stuck. Something happened recently with a family member that makes leaving feel wrong. Like genuinely wrong. The guilt is eating me alive. But I already committed. And I don’t know how to undo any of this or if I even should.

I’m not looking for anyone to tell me what the “right” choice is. I just feel completely paralyzed, like every option has a cost I’m not sure I can pay. Scared, confused, and honestly just not okay right now.

Needed to say it out loud somewhere. Thanks for reading.

Long story short, due to a lack of research experience in undergrad, I took a gap year after graduating with a Molecular Biology degree in 2024 to gain experience as a volunteer at a cancer research lab. Then, I applied to a research-stream MSc at a Canadian university in a medical sciences field, and I got in. However, I was unable to find a PI and deferred my admission to this year. Currently, I’m working as an RA in a different lab. If I fail to find a supervisor this year, I will need to reapply.

Recently, I was invited after a couple rounds of email questioning to a lab meeting at one of the PIs I’m interested in, and the other candidate was told to “volunteer to increase their chances”, followed by their offer of their summer being flatly denied. I was told to “stay in communication” since a grant had just been awarded, they’re waiting on more decisions, and the PI is travelling for 2 weeks. They also asked for a reference from the cancer PI who they met the other day. When I provided this information, they said they will return next week and would need “discussions before moving forward, thank you and see you soon”. I assume this is a good sign, but I would like some second opinions.

Before anyone asks, I have interviewed with 4 other labs at this dept., one of which turned out to be a rejection. They are currently in the process of interviewing other candidates so therefore it is quite opaque. What are your opinions on my odds?

Edit: The lab that rejected was concerned about my cGPA and computational experience and asked for references anyway, while two of the three remaining labs asked for references as well.

I'm trying to understand whether NTU's reputation actually carries the same weight as Ivy League and Oxbridge internationally, particularly with HRs and recruiters at major engineering and tech companies outside Asia. Would really appreciate insights

Hello all,

I am currently a Macquarie University student studying a double degree in Electronics Engineering and Applied Physics. I am interested in applying for a master’s program at Imperial College London after I graduate, but I had a question regarding academic transcripts and previous study.

Before starting my current degree, I was enrolled in another degree program where my academic performance was not as strong. In my current degree, however, I am performing very well. I wanted to ask whether my previous degree would appear on my transcript or be considered when applying for postgraduate study. If so, would it negatively affect my application, even if my current academic performance is strong?

Additionally, if I were to transfer to another university and complete my degree there, would my previous academic record still appear on the transcript for my new degree, or would only the units completed at the new university be shown?

Thank you for your time and assistance.