Is research experience or GPA more important when applying to MSCS programs

Question

It seems that for PhD programs the research is more important but, which is more important for masters programs?

Answer 1

The answer, here, is that it really depends strongly on the individual program, since Masters programs vary much more than Ph.D. programs in both their purpose and organization.

For some programs, you can essentially get automatic entry based on grades alone (my own Masters was that way, for example). For others, research and recommendation letters may weigh in significantly, especially if students are funded rather than self-funding. Research does generally weigh much less than for a Ph.D., however, particularly since a Master is often expected to be a terminal and industrial-focused degree.

Thus, in general, GPA is significantly more important than research, but the degree to which this is true varies wildly by program.

Answer 2

Undergraduate GPA will normally matter more. If you have contributed to a research paper as an undergrad, but your GPA is very low then it may look like you can't manage your research and studies well, or someone else did most of the research.

That being said, for a research masters if the GPA was passing I would still have an interview to let the student explain their situation. That interview would likely involve an in-depth discussion about what research they carried out to see if they actually know the area / research. Depending or your country, your advisor may not give interviews.

Answer 3

As far as I know, US universities carry out weighted average values for taking in admissions. The factors for admission include General Point Average, Research Experience, Experience, Professor's recommendations, Test results, and Project experience. They come at a weighted average of all the above factors and then give you admissions.

Which college gives more weight to which factor is college dependent and that requires you do a lot of internet search, write to people from the department that you are planning to apply for, find out which factor they value the most and hone your curriculum vitae to suit the situation.