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I have an M.Sc in Physics. We had 16 theory papers, and eight lab papers, coursework-based M.Sc. details

Theory-- I have A in 4, B in 5, C in 5, D in 2 Lab- O in 5, A in 2, B in 1 I have an overall CGPA Of 7.03/10 which is first class with distinction. Our questions in M.Sc were largely descriptive and problems and evaluations were very strict for theory papers. The top student got 8.1/10. Can this cause problems for PhD applications?

CrimsonDark
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manu paul
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2 Answers2

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At least in the US, I would expect competitive candidates for a PhD program to have mostly As in the courses relevant to their study.

Remember that other people are applying along with you that have excellent records in their coursework. There are a limited number of slots to offer.

If you want to make an argument that your grades are competitive I would do so based on class percentile rank rather than comparison to the top score and/or have recommendation letter writers who are able to favorably describe your course performance relative to people they know were successful as PhD students.

Bryan Krause
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    As I have posted in the picture, the system is very different than the US. – manu paul Jan 22 '24 at 23:10
  • @manupaul If you're applying to Universities in other countries with a large foreign intake, it's likely they have their own translation tables for degrees from your country/institution of origin. See e.g. https://gpa.eng.uci.edu/. If you're applying to local universities, they are still likely to have their own prior biases for and against particular degree scores at particular institutions. – origimbo Jan 23 '24 at 11:47
  • Yes, I have seen that website. In the case of my university, I think it might be too linear and true for tech courses. I have studied Physics and the School of Natural Sciences evaluation process and scoring were different. No one got over 8 and only a few got from 7-8. Where above 6 is first class and above 7 is a distinction. I am considering foreign universities. As per this website, my GPA will be only 3.4 in the US system which is considered low. – manu paul Jan 23 '24 at 12:08
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Yes, for the obvious reason that the top student got 8.1/10 and you got 7.03/10. If both of you were to apply to the same school, why should the school admit you instead of the top student?

This doesn't mean you won't be admitted. It just means that you'll need to do some convincing, because the default reaction is to admit the other student.

See also How are Ph.D. applications evaluated in the US, particularly for weak or borderline students? Am I likely to get into school X? in particular the section on GPA.

Allure
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  • Thank you for sharing the link. I have read it. However, my question was a little bit different. As you can see the grading structure was slightly different than in the US in my country and specific university. 7 and above is considered passed with distinction and getting over 6 (B) is one of the highest marks in the class. I have heard that many professors irk just by seeing C and D in the scorecard, I wonder if that's true. As I have said, it was a coursework-based M.Sc and the scorer studied some different papers than me. – manu paul Jan 23 '24 at 10:14