Woeful, unrelated, post-bac courses?

Graduate School
1

Hi all,

I finished my BA in political science two years ago with a GPA that would put me in the running for most graduate schools I have looked into (at the minimum, anyway).

However, I made a poor decision to take some post-bac courses to qualify for a completely unrelated discipline (Computer Science) which I abandoned halfway through due to depression.

As such my transcripts have my first degree which I have attained a great GPA from, then a year of incomplete study.

I’m back on track and looking into Urban Planning/Planning programs which are related to my original degree’s concentration. Most programs’ admission requirements state something along the lines of: “applicants must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0/4.0 (B) or 3.2/4.0 (just below a B+) for the last two years of full-time studies of an undergraduate degree (or equivalent).”

I’m hoping since these courses weren’t taken as part of a degree (non-degree status student) that they will be disregarded but they certainly are a black mark on my transcripts.

Has anyone had any experience with abysmal post-bac courses marring their academic record?

2

Of course it’s a problem (meaning if you hadn’t taken those courses, your applications would be better). But that doesn’t mean you can’t get into any grad programs.

One problem is that this is more recent than your degree classes. You might need to take a grad class or two as a non-degree student to create some distance from your murky past.