Does college GPA matter a lot?

[SlipperyDog]

I'm talking about for jobs and such, it seems that many of anandtechers here have decent jobs and I'm wondering if college gpa affected it a lot

 

[sheselectric]

depends on your major. i have friends in computer science/engineering who say it doesn't matter at all, but in a field like business your GPA would make more of a difference.

 

[GhettoFob]

I hope not.

 

[AUMM]

pretty much everyone out of college i've talked to have told me gpa makes no difference, as long as you know what you're doing

 

[FoBoT]

depends on the company/type of job

the company i work at, as long as you have the degree so that the HR weasel doesn't toss your application for "doesn't meet min. requirements" , then GPA is irrelavent

 

[Hammer]

Yes, it does. At least in my field.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: FoBoT
depends on the company/type of job

the company i work at, as long as you have the degree so that the HR weasel doesn't toss your application for "doesn't meet min. requirements" , then GPA is irrelavent

exactly.

When was the last time you filled out a application that asked for GPA?

 

[Schadenfreude]

Hmm, I guess so . . ..

But considering what I'm a philosophy major, doesn't matter that much for me . . ..

 

[gopunk]

it depends, but if i were you, i would still try my hardest. you never know when it will help you out.

 

[Ameesh]

it matters for grad school

 

[rahvin]

It generally matters in my field when you first get out. If any prospective employer asked what my GPA was these days I don't think I would even bother continuing the application process. In most jobs it will be how they judge whether to hire recent college grads, after you have been out a while it's really not even relevant anymore.

 

[Omegachi]

how bout for EE?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: rahvin
It generally matters in my field when you first get out. If any prospective employer asked what my GPA was these days I don't think I would even bother continuing the application process. In most jobs it will be how they judge whether to hire recent college grads, after you have been out a while it's really not even relevant anymore.

same here, for software development a high GPA will help you get your first job (especially if you didn't do any internships) but after that it's all about work experience and your skill set.

Having been part of the hiring process for developers I can say that a low GPA can hurt your chances of getting that first job, especially if it's below 3.0. Given two no-experience candidates the GPA is one tie-breaker in deciding which one to interview. Also, post-dot-com there's much less of a frantic search for warm bodies so employers can pick and choose more.

 

[wyvrn]

Yeah I was going to say for grad school, but no employer has ever asked me for my grade pt. average. When my high school employer asked for my report card, I didn't bother bringing it in. The only thing relevant to your employer is whether you can do the job. Grades don't often reflect the learning process that many students take to grasp the material, as we learn the most through our mistakes.

 

[Vette73]

I am a IS major (and Business Mngt. as second major) and someone from GE came out and told us that if you don not have at least a 3.5GPA then they don't even look at the rest of you resume. And the Army and Navy want at least a 2.7 is you want to enlist as a Officer.

So for some places and majors it matters a lot. But what you can do is put your Major GPA, not your overall if it is higher. I have a 2.6 in Business school but a 2.25 overall (I failed physics so that killed me, and I have to retake my MIS316 class so my GPA WILL be going up) So I plan on putting my Business GPA, not my overall. My teachers say nobody will probable point it out, as they will want to see what you did in your major, not __Insert crappy non-major class you sleep through__.

 

[DaveSimmons]

My teachers say nobody will probable point it out, as they will want to see what you did in your major, not __Insert crappy non-major class you sleep through__.

Though if you can keep both high, a good overall GPA "outranks" a good major-only GPA, since it shows you're also good at general studies, communication, etc. and not just programming or creating a business plan.

 

[Bluga]

I hope not.

 

[tigerbait]

how bout for EE?

my brother graduated EE with a 2.5 and he got a job right away and has been doing fine for the past 5 years.

 

[LordSnailz]

GPA does matter - that is one factor in getting your resume read or getting a phone screening - at least for engr. majors.

my brother graduated EE with a 2.5 and he got a job right away and has been doing fine for the past 5 years.

That was when time were good - it's a lot different now.

ls

 

[tigerbait]

GPA does matter - that is one factor in getting your resume read or getting a phone screening - at least for engr. majors.

my brother graduated EE with a 2.5 and he got a job right away and has been doing fine for the past 5 years.

That was when time were good - it's a lot different now.

yeah, you're right, I forgot to mention that.

I got a 3.62 in EE and I'm graduating in December (3½ years ) . Hopefully, I'll be able to find a good job. Nobody wanted me for a summer intern , but hopefully when I start interviewing for full-time, it'll be different.

 

[Bignate603]

I think it matters more on your first job, and then your experience counts much more.

 

[dethman]

as above, probably matters a little on your first job but not much later. also nice if you have something like latin honors but again dont take too much stock.

unless you're going to grad school.

 

[KernelPanic]

Hi,

I do recruiting on occasion for R&D positions for my employer (we're in Pharmaceuticals). One factor we look at is sustained performance, and GPA definitely factors in. If we're looking at a BA/BS position then we mainly review College GPA, (not High School), and for Ph.D.s we look at college and grad school. Also, we give the candidates problem solving tests.

Others on this board have said that the important thing is what you can do, not your GPA and that is true. However, if an employer is looking through a lot of resumes for a single position then this is definitely a factor in quickly pruning out unlikely candidates.

The best strategy overall is to always strive for the highest GPA you can, at whatever level (high school, college, grad school) you're currently in.

KernelPanic, Ph.D. (Biophysics/Biochemistry dual major)

 

[prodigy]

For internships, yes.

 

[rahvin]

I am a IS major (and Business Mngt. as second major) and someone from GE came out and told us that if you don not have at least a 3.5GPA then they don't even look at the rest of you resume. And the Army and Navy want at least a 2.7 is you want to enlist as a Officer.

As I said above, it matters for your first job. If you think GE cares what someone with 10 years of exerience had for a GPA you are sadly mistaken.

My GPA isn't even listed on my resume anymore. In fact I'm not even sure my schooling is even listed anymore (although I think they cover it in one short sentence).