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That's true, but it's also more competitive to get into PhD programs. You have to have research potential and strong undergrad academic performance. OP says he
by sicp-enjoyer 4y ago
That's true, but it's also more competitive to get into PhD programs. You have to have research potential and strong undergrad academic performance. OP says he is self-taught.
- lmeyerov 4y agoGood point -- Yes, no guarantee No, strong ugrad academic perf is not required. Professors review applicants, you need to identify and win a champion based on your aligned research interest & progress. Eg, research-y side projects and experiences motivating going to a R&D institution to begin with (which is what most professors are primarily there for.) Grades are likely more a university (non-departmental) level screener so less of a mandatory bar. All that said, it's still rough. Prev weak perf does suggest likeliness to fail classes portion & thus a rejection. Professors care more about r&d ability, where reading many papers and self-motivation for getting shit done is an expectation, and a missing or bad history biases most against that. I know great folks against the mold here who successfully got their PhDs, but they are rare applicants to begin with.