lacking recommendations

[bb]

I graduated a year ago from a reputable university with a BA in
biology. My GRE subject test score is exceptional, and although I
haven't taken the GRE general test I have performed well on practice
tests. I also have a 3.4 GPA. However, my problem is that I never
got to know any of my professors well, never went to office hours,
never did any work outside the class for them, and didn't really do
anything to stand out in class. I can't imagine that any of them
would agree to write me a recommendation, and even if they did, they
wouldnt have much to write about as I haven't accomplished much
outside of school. None of my previous employers would be qualified
to write a recommendation either. What can I do? I have heard of
people taking graduate courses as a non-degree student, but only to
demonstrate they can get good grades. Would that work to get
recommendations also? I just don't see how. Would I have to take 3
different grad courses to satisfy the 3 recommendation requirement, or
could I expect a grad school to relax the requirements so that I only
have to get 1 or 2 recommendations? I am finding it difficult to even
get an internship somewhere for a recommendation. All of the
internships I have seen so far require you to currently be a student,
or have previous work experience that I don't have. I just can't
believe how difficult this grad school thing is. From looking at
university websites describing current grad students and their
accomplishments (a lot of people with undergrad honors) I almost get
the feeling that I don't deserve to go to grad school. But with what
I want to do in life it is a necessity. Please help!

[Daniel A. Jimenez]

Post by bb
I graduated a year ago from a reputable university with a BA in
biology. My GRE subject test score is exceptional, and although I
haven't taken the GRE general test I have performed well on practice
tests. I also have a 3.4 GPA. However, my problem is that I never
got to know any of my professors well, never went to office hours,
never did any work outside the class for them, and didn't really do
anything to stand out in class. I can't imagine that any of them
would agree to write me a recommendation, and even if they did, they
wouldnt have much to write about as I haven't accomplished much
outside of school. None of my previous employers would be qualified
to write a recommendation either. What can I do? I have heard of
people taking graduate courses as a non-degree student, but only to
demonstrate they can get good grades. Would that work to get
recommendations also? I just don't see how. Would I have to take 3
different grad courses to satisfy the 3 recommendation requirement, or
could I expect a grad school to relax the requirements so that I only
have to get 1 or 2 recommendations? I am finding it difficult to even
get an internship somewhere for a recommendation. All of the
internships I have seen so far require you to currently be a student,
or have previous work experience that I don't have. I just can't
believe how difficult this grad school thing is. From looking at
university websites describing current grad students and their
accomplishments (a lot of people with undergrad honors) I almost get
the feeling that I don't deserve to go to grad school. But with what
I want to do in life it is a necessity. Please help!

Your professors probably remember you better than you realize. Think of
three professors where you liked their classes and you received decent
grades. Go to each of them and explain your situation and ask for a letter.
Even if you don't stand out vividly in their memories, they can still at
least write something nice about how you were "diligent" and did well on
your assignments. Admissions committees pay attention to many factors other
than your letters, but you have to have all the letters to be considered
for admission. Some admissions committees may choose to use the letters
as a filter, to weed out students who have, say, two or more negative
recommendations; these same committees might be happy to admit someone
with "he/she was diligent"-type letters but other outstanding features
like great GREs, a great transcript, relevant work experience, etc.