<p>I'm an international student applying to Information Security programs for the Fall 2012 semester. My GRE score is 800Q, 640V, 4.5 AWA. </p>
<p>My percentages (GPA) for the first two years of undergrad study are not particularly high (though still at first class, and probably around a 3.2 on a 4.0 scale). My third year just got over and I scored much higher than before (around 3.7-3.8 on a 4.0 scale). </p>
<p>My question is - will this dramatic increase in my overall percentage help my application significantly? Are the last two years of undergrad study given more weightage than the first two?</p>
<p>*** how are you international students getting such high scores on the verbal? are green card holders considered international? Or do they hav eto be applying from another country?</p>
<p>I was fortunate to be in an excellent English school till tenth grade, which really helped with the verbal. Add a voracious reading habit to that equation, and you have your answer. I am applying from another country, yes.</p>
<p>Many schools will place more weight on your last couple of years. As well, many will place more weight on courses within or closely related to your intended field of study.</p>
<p>Llewellyon said it all. Your GRE is excellent. Your GPA is not bad at all, you can definitely get into good programs provided you have sufficient research/letters/SoP.</p>
<p>And yes, the last 2 years of your undergrad ARE the one that usually counts. So if you have something like this:
First 60 hours (basic classes like calculus 1): 2.5 GPA
Last 60 hours (harder classes like advanced string theory): 4.00 GPA
That’s gonna make your GPA 3.2, but your straight A or A+ during the last 60 hours on the harder classes will impress adcoms. They like upward trend because it shows you mature.</p>
<p>But really, what people look in PhD is research experience (although it can differs from major to major, like math is not so research-heavy CMIIW). If you get 4.0 without research exp, it’ll be easier to get into master program (masters program weigh GPA more), but it will be much harder for PhD (PhD programs weigh research more into their decision)</p>
<p>Ignore all of the previous posts that talked about research. They were giving you advice on PhD programs, which evaluate applications very differently from professional Master’s programs.</p>
<p>I don’t know terribly much about the IT field but I am wondering how competitive Master’s programs in Information Security actually are. There’s a lot of variation between disciplines here. Some disciplines generally have very little competition: if you are qualified to attend, you’ll get accepted. Other disciplines have a lot of competition, where the better graduate programs can pick and choose among many qualified applicants.</p>
<p>I noticed that Master’s Programs in IT are much more likely to practice rolling admissions with very late application deadlines than Master’s programs in CS, which makes me wonder if the field is generally less competitive. Less competition of course would mean that your early grades would hurt you less. </p>
<p>P.S. Take the advice you get on this forum with a huge grain of salt because we come from very different backgrounds.</p>
