The Student Room Group

Applying for Masters from low ranked university

Hi everyone,
I was hoping to get some advice from you on my situation, as I am planning to apply for my master's at high-ranked Unis like Durham, Edinburg, KCL, and Warwick (mainly clinical psychology, cognitive neuroscience and psychology degrees).

I'm starting my second year at the University of Greenwich (Psychology). In my first year due to some health issues, I got only a low 2:1 (63%) although I could easily get higher. At this point, I studied whole summer preparing myself for the second year and aiming at high 2:1 or even 1st, the same plan for my third year (I am pretty confident about achieving those grades). In addition to that, I am volunteering at a Neuro-disability hospital and, a listener with Samaritans. As a small bonus, I've finished the Neuroscience summer course, and at the end of my third year, I should also have 3-4 books added to my academic CV like Principles of Neural Science (Eric R. Kandel) etc...

Now the part I am most worried about, do you guys have any idea how badly ranking will impact my application due to university low position (76 according to CWUR and 95 place from Guardian)?

Even if we consider that my degree is accredited by BPS and much higher in rankings than a uni itself (47 last year and around 65 now) I'm not sure if that's enough.
Is it a waste of time considering those higher-ranked universities or do I have some chances?
(edited 1 year ago)
It’s probably enough - hopefully someone will be able to confirm.
Reply 2
Original post by ajj2000
It’s probably enough - hopefully someone will be able to confirm.


In worst case I think it would be enough to get into pre-masters at Durham
(edited 1 year ago)
Dont worry about it. 'Which Uni' is entirely a school leavers obsession - academics have a broader viewpoint, and they just look fpr 2i or First in a relevant suject. The most important aspects of amy postgrad application are your statement - 1) Why this course/research, 2) Why this Uni, 3) Why me - plus a really supportive reference. The name of your undergrad Uni will not be the deal-breaker. Apply.
Original post by McGinger
Dont worry about it. 'Which Uni' is entirely a school leavers obsession - academics have a broader viewpoint, and they just look fpr 2i or First in a relevant suject.

Some universities and admissions teams will definitely do benchmarking against prior performance of students on their masters courses from other institutions, that spreadsheet might never get circulated externally but it does often exist as there can be major differences between a given grade from different universities.
Original post by Mr Wednesday
Some universities and admissions teams will definitely do benchmarking against prior performance of students on their masters courses from other institutions, that spreadsheet might never get circulated externally but it does often exist as there can be major differences between a given grade from different universities.


Having worked at an RG Uni and recruited new teaching staff and PG students, no 'spreadsheet' existed.
We recruited from a wide range of Unis, including the OU and what you probably regard as 'lower Unis'.
Clearly not all Unis are as prejudiced or narrow-minded as yours.
Original post by McGinger
Having worked at an RG Uni and recruited new teaching staff and PG students, no 'spreadsheet' existed.
We recruited from a wide range of Unis, including the OU and what you probably regard as 'lower Unis'.
Clearly not all Unis are as prejudiced or narrow-minded as yours.


Not so much prejudice as damning statistics. If you see three students in a row arriving from one institution with notional strong firsts all scoring sub 40% on every assessment both practical and formal exam, benchmarked against a large and we'll understood internal cohort it does tend to point to quality control issues at other institutions. That example ended up with a "never recruit from there again" marker for very good reasons.
(edited 1 year ago)
Reply 7
Well if anything like that is used at the unis I've applied, then hopefully it won't severely impact my application.
Original post by Mr Wednesday
Not so much prejudice as damning statistics. If you see three students in a row arriving from one institution with notional strong firsts all scoring sub 40% on every assessment both practical and formal exam, benchmarked against a large and we'll understood internal cohort it does tend to point to quality control issues at other institutions. That example ended up with a "never recruit from there again" marker for very good reasons.
Reply 8
Original post by McGinger
Dont worry about it. 'Which Uni' is entirely a school leavers obsession - academics have a broader viewpoint, and they just look fpr 2i or First in a relevant suject. The most important aspects of amy postgrad application are your statement - 1) Why this course/research, 2) Why this Uni, 3) Why me - plus a really supportive reference. The name of your undergrad Uni will not be the deal-breaker. Apply.


Thanks, feeling l better now : p
(edited 1 year ago)
Good luck. A 2:1 is a good result and you did a top up. I went to 2 low ranked unis but had no problems with work etc. I’ve also studied some neuroscience on a private course and FutureLearn. As many say you’ll be fine.

Quick Reply

Latest

Trending

Trending