research with a bad gpa first degree

[infinity101]

hello

i am currenty a second undergraduate student, and i had a pretty bad and hard first undergrad experience. However, this is my second degree's first year, so technically sixth year of undergraduate studies (i took 5 years for my first undergrad degree given that i took a semester off because of depression  )-so as you can see not the most ideal medical student hopeful. 

my first sem of second undergrad was a 3.48. And I am hoping to bring my GPA to a 3.75 by the end of this year by grinding through this semester. However, after taking a seminar course on membrane physiology, which is a completely research based course, I was deeply interestd in the heart, and realized that i would really love to learn a lot more. I also did a seminar on it and I really love it. I was never able to see and understand research from such a perspective before, although I volunteered AND worked at some labs simply helping masters or phd students, (who are not the most passionate about teaching undergrads anything). So i applied to a professor. The thing is that he said he would like to see my CV and transcripts. I was expecting that he would just be interested in seeing my CV, not my transcripts.

I would really like this position, and I am not sure that after seeing my transcripts, which would include my first undergrad degree marks, he would be willing to let me in. 

Should i only send my first sem of second undergrad transcripts? Should I tell him I am doing a second undergrad (I did not mention that in my email, i simply said that i am an undergraduate student interested in med and cardiac research)? I did my first undergrad in bio, and am doing my second one in psychology. However, for some strange reason, I really wanted to take some fourth year research based courses in bio, and did just that. So my first year second undergraduate courses are only psychology, but my second semester has 2 science courses. 

 

I have a very hard situation.  

Some advice would be really appreciated. 

 

[adhominem]

Are you applying for a summer position in which you are hoping to be paid? If so, he needs your transcripts and CV to assess whether or not you would be likely to receive a summer studentship to cover your stipend. This professor may or may not be able to afford to pay you himself, so he might be making a decision based on financial constraints. If you are willing to work as a volunteer, then you have a better shot.

Many profs recognize that there are plenty of great researchers who don't necessarily have a stellar GPA. That being said, if your GPA from your first UG is too low you may run into an issue. If you think it will be a deal breaker, maybe emphasize your commitment to improving in your email and explain the circumstances to whatever extent you're comfortable. Whatever you do, do not omit details of your academic past. It won't end well for you. This would especially be the case if he had you apply for a research summer studentship award and you were forced to omit your transcripts there too (since that is essentially academic misconduct and could result in serious consequences).

[Bede]

I had a terrible first couple of years in UG as well and eventually got a PhD. You may not get into UT but there are a lot of programs in smaller centers that will consider you especially if you make an effort to introduce yourself to PI's.