[awbh1990]

I'm currently a U.S. undergrad with a 3.3 GPA. When I graduate, I will have a Bachelor's degree in both History and Political Science and, hopefully, my GPA will be above 3.4 (maybe close to 3.5). I'm considering applying to study for an MRes in History at King's and was wondering if anyone can give any insight as to what my chances of getting an offer are. I completed my first 2 years of undergrad at a community (junior) college for financial reasons and am also worried that this may hurt my chances. For what it's worth, I am also a member of both the Pi Sigma Alpha (Poli. Sci.) national honor society and the Phi Alpha Theta (History) national honor society here in the U.S. and will have completed two full years of undergraduate level Latin once I'm finished. Any help or info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[awbh1990]

Anyone at all?

[NeoXerxes]

(Original post by awbh1990)
I'm currently a U.S. undergrad with a 3.3 GPA. When I graduate, I will have a Bachelor's degree in both History and Political Science and, hopefully, my GPA will be above 3.4 (maybe close to 3.5). I'm considering applying to study for an MRes in History at King's and was wondering if anyone can give any insight as to what my chances of getting an offer are. I completed my first 2 years of undergrad at a community (junior) college for financial reasons and am also worried that this may hurt my chances. For what it's worth, I am also a member of both the Pi Sigma Alpha (Poli. Sci.) national honor society and the Phi Alpha Theta (History) national honor society here in the U.S. and will have completed two full years of undergraduate level Latin once I'm finished. Any help or info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I am a graduating senior from a California undergrad with a 3.7 GPA in Political Science. I applied for the MA in War Studies at King's and have been given an offer. I'm also a part of Pi Sigma Alpha, along with Phi Beta Delta and Pi Alpha Alpha.

Depending on your additional experience (internships, etc.), you should have a good chance!

[awbh1990]

I haven't had what you would call true internships, but I've spent a couple of summers working at our local courthouse. Thanks for the advice.

[awbh1990]

Anyone else?

[Willez]

I was under the impression that King's College normally takes upper seconds and firsts only, which would equate to about 3.75 US GPA and above. I wish you good luck, but be warned that history is a very subscribed to course at King's College - especially since it's one of the best in the country for history.

[awbh1990]

(Original post by Willez)
I was under the impression that King's College normally takes upper seconds and firsts only, which would equate to about 3.75 US GPA and above. I wish you good luck, but be warned that history is a very subscribed to course at King's College - especially since it's one of the best in the country for history.

Their postgrad page for international applicants equates an upper second with a 3.3 I believe. Do you recommend any other postgraduate history programs that might be more within reach and still respectable?

[Willez]

Bristol, SOAS, Warwick and UCL are all very good. To be honest though, I'd wager that they're all of roughly the same difficulty to get into. I'd say go ahead and try for KCL and all the ones I've listed. Keep in mind that SOAS focuses on Asia.

[awbh1990]

(Original post by Willez)
Bristol, SOAS, Warwick and UCL are all very good. To be honest though, I'd wager that they're all of roughly the same difficulty to get into. I'd say go ahead and try for KCL and all the ones I've listed. Keep in mind that SOAS focuses on Asia.

Thanks a lot for the advice. If I magically got into one and hypothetically did top-notch in obtaining an MA, what are the chances of finishing my PhD at a place like Oxford or Cambridge? Or do they focus more on undergrad work?

[awbh1990]

My primary goal is to get the Masters and then transfer to a better school for the PhD. All in all, I'd just like to know which programs I have the best shot of getting into given my GPA. I'm also considering Glasgow University as well.

[Willez]

I'm of the opinion (probably a bit biased) that UK is the best in the world for postgraduate research and work. UK universities are very research-oriented, so you don't need to worry about them being too focused on undergraduate stuff. With a superb MA, then yes you would theoretically stand a chance at Oxbridge although at the same time, everyone else applying to Oxbridge are also top-notch applicants. You'd be one of many, so you'd have to find a way to differentiate yourself. Hope this helps.

[UKiwi]

It might be worth emailing postgraduate admissions at King's and asking them what sort of chance you stand with your expected GPA?

[awbh1990]

Thanks, Willez. It helped a lot. UKiwi, I may try that. Does anyone know how competitive I would be for entry at Glasgow?

[ScholarsInk]

I would suggest that we are hardly in the best position to give you information about these things, which could very well have profound effects on your future plans. Contacting the universities would probably be your best bet. I'm fairly certain most of them have people trained quite specifically in dealing with international issues.

[AmandaLu]

Hello I'm also from the states completed my first two years at a junior college. I graduated with a BA in History and a 3.3 and have been offered a place for the MA in Modern History at Kings. Hope that helps!

[awbh1990]

(Original post by AmandaLu)
Hello I'm also from the states completed my first two years at a junior college. I graduated with a BA in History and a 3.3 and have been offered a place for the MA in Modern History at Kings. Hope that helps!

That helps a lot. Thank you very much.

[NeutralMilk]

(Original post by awbh1990)
I'm currently a U.S. undergrad with a 3.3 GPA. When I graduate, I will have a Bachelor's degree in both History and Political Science and, hopefully, my GPA will be above 3.4 (maybe close to 3.5). I'm considering applying to study for an MRes in History at King's and was wondering if anyone can give any insight as to what my chances of getting an offer are. I completed my first 2 years of undergrad at a community (junior) college for financial reasons and am also worried that this may hurt my chances. For what it's worth, I am also a member of both the Pi Sigma Alpha (Poli. Sci.) national honor society and the Phi Alpha Theta (History) national honor society here in the U.S. and will have completed two full years of undergraduate level Latin once I'm finished. Any help or info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

We don't take kindly to your types over here.

[Nixiii]

Hi

I've applied for History MRes at King's as well...from what I can gather it's as much about your grades as your personal statement/academic references with places like this - good grades are desirable obviously, but an MRes has a focus on research as well - so make sure your topic is sound and has clear direction to give yourself an edge over other well-qualified applicants.

They're taking their sweet time getting back to me at the moment, but as I've received offers from everywhere else that I've applied to so far, I'm hoping that I'm on the right track. :P

Good luck with your application & I may see you there!


Edit: (Maybe they saw this - just got my conditional offer today woo!)

[awbh1990]

(Original post by NeutralMilk)
We don't take kindly to your types over here.

Most of the world doesn't take kindly to your "type" anywhere.

[awbh1990]

(Original post by Nixiii)
Hi

I've applied for History MRes at King's as well...from what I can gather it's as much about your grades as your personal statement/academic references with places like this - good grades are desirable obviously, but an MRes has a focus on research as well - so make sure your topic is sound and has clear direction to give yourself an edge over other well-qualified applicants.

They're taking their sweet time getting back to me at the moment, but as I've received offers from everywhere else that I've applied to so far, I'm hoping that I'm on the right track. :P

Good luck with your application & I may see you there!


Edit: (Maybe they saw this - just got my conditional offer today woo!)

Thanks a lot for the helpful info and congrats!