Spin Off : College GPA and getting a job

[Katy Belle]

I was reading the thread asking for advise about whether her DD should drop Chemistry and try again. One worry was that it would affect her GPA. Some felt that college GPA doesn't matter and some felt it mattered for transferring, keeping scholarships, etc.

What about College GPA and the job hunt? DH works for a large oil company. He's an Accountant. He certainly looks at GPA when hiring people straight out of college. They don't even get an interview if its low...I'm thinking under 3.0, but I'm not sure. He also looks at their "Accounting GPA." He certainly wants people who did well in college.

What has been your experience? If you are in charge of hiring, do you look at GPA?

 

[Coconut36]

I worked in IT and while I know we looked at things like if someone had a degree in the field or at relevant experience I never saw anyone in my field ever look at or obtain GPA for a candidate.

 

[Princess on the Run]

I have never been asked my college or law school GPA by a prospective employer.

In the jobs I have had since graduating law school, I have been in charge of hiring receptionists, secretaries, paralegals, clerks and attorneys and I've never asked for it (although some put it on their resume). I don't care if someone tests better than others. In my line of work, it's more about personality, work ethic and the way your mind works than book smarts. I figure that if someone graduated, they are capable of reading and retaining information. Beyond that, I am more concerned with how they do the job than how they performed in random classes that may have nothing to do with what I am asking them to do now.

I don't come across as a "smart person" but I had 2 majors and 4 minors in undergrad and have a JD. I feel like that should say enough about how smart I am and I don't need to tell people any more about it. I find that people who spend a lot of time talking about GPA and how smart they are usually end up being the ones who don't bring anything else to the table. I'd rather someone show me who they are than what numbers they have.

 

[kamik86]

Although GPA matters I don't think one class will matter that much.

The difference between a A and a C 2.0. (anything under a C and most schools don't count the class). Now most BS programs have at least 32 classes (4 per semester for 4 years) So even if you got all A's in your other 31 classes the drop in your grade will be less then .1. Very very rarely is that going to be the deciding factor in who to hire.

That being said my job did have a special program with more training (and more pay) which they didn't like to take anyone with less then a 3.5 to get into. I think that is the only case where it would matter when there is a hard cutoff and your .1 happened to drop you below that.

 

[LisaR]

My husband works for a large company. They pretty much only hire their engineers from three or four colleges. I'm not saying they don't ever look at someone from another college, but if it is a new hire, they do have a strong preference for one from certain colleges. Since they are new hires out of college, their GPA is a huge factor. They pull students from top universities for a reason. They want the better candidates. If two people go through the rigorous engineering program and one comes out with a 2.0 and another with a 3.8, that will certainly be taken into consideration.

My DH just hired someone for a non-engineering job. Three of his candidates were older and had a long standing work history. I doubt DH even knew what college they went to because they had a work history. Another candidate was fresh out of college. He did have an internship that my husband could reference but my husband absolutely talked with him about the college he attended, the types of classes he took, and his GPA.

 

[Ginny Favers]

I partied away my first two years of school, then decided it might actually be a good idea to go to class, and got a 4.0 my last 4 semesters, which included all my major courses. I ended up with something like a 2.8 GPA.

I've been on MANY interviews in my life and have only been asked my GPA once (it was the only question he asked me--the guy was a pompous jerk and I wouldn't have wanted to work for him, anyway, if that's all he cared about!). It is sometimes asked for on applications, but obviously, the further you get from college, the less it matters.

 

[wdwmom0f3]

I just asked my husband if he looks at someone's GPA when he interviews someone and he said that he did. I also remember when he was hired years ago they did look at his GPA and he was hired in at a higher level than say someone with a lower GPA, however he said that they don't do it like that anymore though.

 

[castleview]

I was only asked my GPA once. And like the previous poster, it was a lame interview with a guy that I probably wouldn't have lasted working for anyway.

 

[DetaxiMom22]

A lot of federal government jobs actually want a copy of your college transcript before you can finish applying for the job (on-line). Usually there isn't mention of a certain GPA though, so I'm not sure if it is just to make sure you have the degree.

 

[mikehn]

accomplishments is whats most important for me. I want to see what you've accomplished. There are plenty people with good grades that cant get squat done.

 

[LisaR]

accomplishments is whats most important for me. I want to see what you've accomplished. There are plenty people with good grades that cant get squat done.

There are a number of ways in which an employer can determine if a candidate is a good fit for the job.

 

[Andtototoo]

I've changed jobs quite a few times post-college and I've never been asked about or for my GPA. I've hired many many times and never once asked for it from anyone else.

I have to say that if someone asked about my GPA at my age and with my experience, I'd probably laugh in their face. I have nothing to hide (I graduated with full honors, PBK), but info that old says nothing about my ability to do the job today.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I was never asked for my college GPA. Same goes for my husband. My sister is an attorney and no one asked her for her law school GPA when she was applying for jobs. One thing I would point out, though, is that it could likely matter what school you attend. At least in my state, certain universities carry significantly more clout than other universities.

 

[Janepod]

Depends on the field. I worked in investment banking til I became a stay at home mom; my husband still does. Our firms only interviewed/hired graduates of the top schools with near-perfect GPAs. But that's for the first job out of college. After that, it matters much less.

 

[Coconut36]

I was never asked for my college GPA. Same goes for my husband. My sister is an attorney and no one asked her for her law school GPA when she was applying for jobs. One thing I would point out, though, is that it could likely matter what school you attend. At least in my state, certain universities carry significantly more clout than other universities.

I do agree in certain fields or certain areas that where can be important to some employers (in my case we didn't necessarily care as long as it was a recognized place..I do know "McDegrees" were scorned and overlooked if they had little experience/were starting out).

 

[apirateslifeforme]

I was the valedictorian of my graduating class in college (2 degrees, 3.93 GPA). To this day, I'm told to put that on my resume - not necessarily the GPA, but the summa cum laude/valedictorian status, because "that's quite an accomplishment" - and potential employers either read right by it, or they say, "I see you were valedictorian..." *shrug* "That's nice" (in a monotone).

 

[Coconut36]

I was the valedictorian of my graduating class in college (2 degrees, 3.93 GPA). To this day, I'm told to put that on my resume - not necessarily the GPA, but the summa cum laude/valedictorian status, because "that's quite an accomplishment" - and potential employers either read right by it, or they say, "I see you were valedictorian..." *shrug* "That's nice" (in a monotone).

I know nobody would have noticed/noted such a thing when we were interviewing/hiring. I mean it can't hurt but depending on your field it is possible they just blow by it (that doesn't mean it wasn't an accomplishment..you should be proud!).

 

[StephMK]

It could matter if you ever want to go to grad school. 15 yrs after I graduated with a degree, I was told by an advisor that I was not a good candidate due to my previous record. I had a 2.9 from not having a purpose when I went and partying too much. Despite having good references and volunteer work in the field I wanted to enter, she didn't feel I would be right in her program. That was a hard blow because I was not at all the person I was back in college.

It made me give up for about 2 years then I tried again with another college. I got in and graduated w/my MEd with a 4.0. On teaching application, there have usually been spots for undergrad and grad grade point averages.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

It is absolutely something I look at closely and something that I take into careful account. I also look at any serious applicant's transcript to see what he or she studied to get those grades. It's not the only thing that I take into consideration, but to me it is a useful barometer to show either cognitive ability and/or work ethic, and in my business you need to be exceptionally strong in one of those areas, if not both, so it matters. I also prefer to hire from certain schools, am ambivalent about others, and will actively discount candidates from a few, but again in my profession that is pretty much the norm.

I'm especially surprised by all the people working in the legal profession who say they don't look at GPA, as it is the second thing that every one of my friends from law school takes into account, after the actual Law School from which the candidate graduated.

 

[supercarrie]

I am a campus recruiter. I've just finished working in the UK for two management consultancies, and am about to start work in Los Angeles for a major accounting firm.

For campus hires (i.e. straight out of college), both where you went to school and the GPA (or in the UK, degree result) mattered. This is primarily because we (at my most recent company, essentially the top management consultancy in the world) received SO many applications, we had to use something as a first screen to weed people out.

At the other management consultancy I worked for, which was less well-known, GPA did not matter as much as what they did (i.e internships, work experience alongside studying, leadership roles, etc). However, we still expected something "decent".

So, yes, GPA DOES matter, but it is extremely important at larger companies which receive a high number of applicants for their entry-level roles, and perhaps less so at smaller companies where the applications are fewer and they have more time to review applications for individual characteristics.

Note: we also looked closely at WHAT they studied. Certain degrees at certain universities are known for being much easier than others. As a general example, we'd consider an engineering student with a slightly lower GPA above someone with a sociology degree with a higher GPA. However, this was also down to the type of skills we looked for as well.