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I live in Mexico and I go to a private University where doing a thesis isn't a requirement for graduating (many universities in Mexico follow this). I only take classes and do small projects for exams. But I want to do a graduate program in Canada or USA or Europe. I don't have any experience in the field. What are my chances in getting into a graduate program without any relevant work? What should I do if it is very important?

I'm studying actuarial Science so I don't have any sort of Github account or online work. And I'm not aiming at a very top university.

jakebeal
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Memo Contreras
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  • I find it questionable to mark a question that explicitly asks about USA, Canada and Europe as a duplicate of a question whose scope is limited to the USA. Possibly, the question should be asked three times, though; once for Canada, once for Europe (which is probably still too broad a question), and once for the USA. Also note that the other question explicitly says "particularly for weak or borderline students". I don't think "live in Mexico" and "not aiming at a very top university" are sufficient to conclude this is about "weak or borderline students". – O. R. Mapper Oct 08 '15 at 08:29

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In Europe you typically do not need any research experience or industry experience to get into MA programs.

You typically do not need this to get into a PhD-program either, but it helps to have something to show; a very nice MA-project, perhaps a published (or publishable) paper from your MA-work, popular publications such as newspaper article or similar where you communicated you subject, a nice open source project you contribute to, etc. Some contributions to the field you apply in. This is not a requirement, but it helps when candidates are evaluated. The admission for PhD-programs mainly depend on the research proposal you have submitted: do the comity have faith in your project, it's potential impact or interestingness, does it align with the institutions research goals, and does it seem realistic to complete in time?

Eiriks
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  • I mostly agree up to "The admission for PhD-programs mainly depend on the research proposal you have submitted", which does not seem generally valid for "Europe". In Germany, a typical mode of operation is that there is no research proposal when applying for a PhD candidate position (at least none written by the applicant) and the topics and questions of research are only gradually chosen during one's PhD candidacy. – O. R. Mapper Oct 07 '15 at 15:03
  • You are off course right here Mapper, I should perhaps have limited my "Europe", to "Scandinavia". – Eiriks Oct 15 '15 at 10:28
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This depends on the field that you want to enter, the school that you want to go to, and so on. Your question is a bit broad, but I would say that lower ranked institutions (which doesn't at all equalize to bad or worst), will be willing to consider you, and you can indeed build up a good career from them. A small research project shouldn't hurt, but if you cant, I do not believe that you are at a serious disadvantage.