text: how much does a low gpa (but a  high rank) matter for admission to the us for a phd in biochemistry ? i did my m.sc. in biotechnology from the university of pune (india) and my gpa according to the us system is 2.85. i, however, had the second position in a batch of 14 and the topper was a few decimal points ahead of me in gpa. my gre score is 1340 (quant.=760, verbal=580, analytical writing=5.0) and my toefl-cbt score is 297 out of 300.  does my  low gpa affect my chances of being selected  for a phd in biochemistry  in the us ? will my second rank be taken into account ?  thanks. don't be discouraged....just try!!! you might get in somewhere.