Applying to schools with less than minimum GPA

[228]

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First off, I know it is kind of an obvious answer question but bear with me. I've been told that some programs will seriously consider your last 60-70 hours of coursework in evaluating you. I am applying for four schools, two of which have 3.0 minimums to apply.

I graduate this fall and will have around a 2.9 by graduation, up from a 1.9 just a year ago when i was a sophomore. My first year and a half killed me..I made horrible choices and didn't care about my career as a 18-20 year old.

But..My last 77 or so hours have been pretty good, at around a 3.75, and pre-req GPA is also about 3.75..I'll have around 200/250 shadowing hrs from 2 OT + 100 volunteer hours with terminally ill patients + 2 Leadership positions at 2 Universities, among other things.

Will they even give me an interview? Also, what is the deal with repeating courses? Do they take the avg. of 1st and 2nd attempt or do grade replacement for say, pre-req's? I have taken a couple of these courses twice to get A's in classes i flunked as a dumb freshman.


Thanks for any and all help👍🙂

 

[IndianaOT]

@228:

These questions are best addressed to the individual programs, and the answers are likely available on program websites.

When a program indicates that their cumulative or prerequisite GPA requirement is X, that is nearly universally a requirement that cannot be fudged. So if you do apply and have below a 3.0 cumulative and/or prerequisite GPA, you cannot be considered, regardless of any other factor.

My suggestion is to firm up your prerequisite GPA and this will help your cumulative GPA. Some programs do look at last 45 or 60 credit hours to get a sense of academic momentum. But those programs also have the 3.0 or 3.X minimum to be considered. Again, if you do not pass the first screen, the programs are unlikely to go further.

I understand this may be disheartening. Look into the programs you are considering very carefully. Review each webpage carefully. Review FAQs and class profiles. Know all you can about them, and then ask questions if needed.

Best of luck to you!

Josh Morrison
Director, Student Enrollment Services
IU School of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences, IUPUI
www.shrs.iupui.edu
[email protected]

 

[228]

Thank you for the response, Josh


This is another option I have been considering, although I admittedly don't know too much about the ultimate downfalls that this decision would bring down the road.

I have considered Academic bankruptcy at the first University i attended, where my first two years, I averaged a lowly 2.03. Yes, you read that correctly. Since transferring to another school my gpa has been outstanding, but I would literally have to take a couple years' worth of classes to get my weighted gpa from a 2.9, where i might be when I graduate, to a 3.2-3.3 to be SLIGHTLY competitive.

Would declaring academic bankruptcy get my application tossed out of the pile immediately? I suffered from Social Anxiety Disorder my freshman/sophomore years, even a couple of panic attacks in class. Long story short, didn't go to class and flunked 4-5 easy courses. I was a bum.

If anyone has any insight on declaring academic bankruptcy and what pros and cons it would offer, thanks!

 

[IndianaOT]

@228:

I do not know the rules of academic bankruptcy at your institution, and the policies of OT programs regarding academic bankruptcy vary. If you have documentation of your disorder, I wonder if an option is to attempt a grade change to W from F. At Indiana University, there is a policy that allows this if appropriate documentation and faculty approval.

If you could do this, the academic bankruptcy goes away, and your GPA immediately improves. I am not sure that institutions will know about academic bankruptcy if it's not indicated on a transcript. How OTCAS deals with that I don't know, since IU OT does not participate in OTCAS.

Academic bankruptcy is a last option but it's not by its very nature a negative one.

Josh Morrison
Director, Student Enrollment Services
IU School of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences, IUPUI
www.shrs.iupui.edu
[email protected]

 

[ExceptionalSea]

there are some programs that only look at the last 60 credit hours for your gpa. i know university of wisconsin madison is one of them. i would do some research and find try to find other programs that also do this.