undergraduate gpa

red_herring
Fri, 19 Dec 2008 13:55:53 +0000

I’m not sure exactly what you mean by top, because there is no official cutoff for that term. However, for chemistry, Northwestern is ranked 9th (US News and World Report), and has a section in FAQ about successful applicants:

Typically they will have a GPA above a 3.6 /4.0; GRE scores for FALL 2008 class averaged 565/800 Verbal, 722/800 Quantitative, Writing Analysis 4.8/6.0, 694 on the Chemistry GRE, and strong letters of recommendation from research advisors which demonstrate laboratory and critical thinking skills. Recommendations from undergraduate laboratories, internships, or industrial settings are best. In addition, copies of one’s publications list will enhance one’s application and should be included, although publications list are not required.

Hope that helps. Good luck.