I want to pursue ms in business analytics in USA. But I have low CGPA-6.88. Will this hinder my chances to get a seat in good Universities (not top most Universities).?

Question

Divakshi Arora · Accepted Answer

6.88 CGPA? Not ideal ,  but it&rsquo;s not game over, especially for MSBA in the U.S. where schools look at the full picture.
&bull; Many mid-tier schools (e.g., University of Cincinnati, Syracuse, or Illinois Chicago) don&rsquo;t have hard cutoffs and review holistically. &bull; If your low GPA came from a tough grading system or specific semesters, address it in a short GPA explanation paragraph in your SOP. &bull; What really helps: strong GRE or GMAT, plus real skills. Do a few quant-heavy Coursera or edX courses, and mention them in your application. &bull; Add weight through internships, analytics projects, or freelance gigs &mdash; anything that shows you&rsquo;ve got hands-on experience beyond academics. &bull; Bonus: some schools even offer pathway or pre-master&rsquo;s programs if you need an extra boost.
Plenty of students get in with average academics &mdash; just need to make the rest of the profile shine.
For more details you can read this blog on "MSBA in USA 2025"

Prakhar Tyagi · Answer

If you want to pursue higher education in a country that has the majority of the world's top universities, you must meet the eligibility requirements. However, because the MSBA programme is offered at a variety of universities, the entry requirements may differ. Let us go over some of the basic requirements for studying MS in Business Analytics in the United States:
Usual formal schooling of 10+2 from a recognized institution.Bachelor&rsquo;s degree in a similar or relevant field along with some work experience. Though required, not mandatory to have work experience. GMAT/GRE scores. A good score in English proficiency tests like IELTS, TOEFL, etc.Letter of Recommendation (LOR)  and SOP for Business Analytics form an essential part of the admission process.  Detailed and updated resumeF-1 VisaInternational applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0. This is equivalent to a B grade or an 83-86% score. If you have any further questions just ask me.

S Raghav · Answer

A CGPA of 6.88 is definitely on the lower end, but it won&rsquo;t automatically stop you from getting into decent MSBA programs in the US &mdash; as long as the rest of your profile is solid.
Schools like UT Dallas, USF, Stevens, and UMass Amherst have admitted students with similar GPAs. What really helps is showing you've done something hands-on. For example, an internship where you worked on sales data using Excel or helped automate reports in a company&rsquo;s CRM system can make a big difference. Even if it was just a 2-month internship at a small startup, if you did anything like creating dashboards in Tableau or analyzing customer churn in Python, that counts.
If you&rsquo;ve worked in roles like business analyst, operations support, or MIS (for example, pulling weekly reports from SQL databases or managing internal dashboards), that adds real value. Some folks even use freelance projects or Kaggle competitions to show data skills.
Try to get a GRE above 315, do a couple of online certs in Python or SQL, and write a clear SOP that explains your GPA and focuses on what you&rsquo;ve learned since. You&rsquo;ll have a solid shot if you put effort into building the rest of your profile.