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In my case, if my college GPA drops, will it matter?

post #1 of 76
12/11/09 at 3:20pm
Thread Starter 
A) I go to a small no-name commuter college
B) I'm a business major
C) I have no relevant work experience or connections
D) I don't plan on going to grad school within the next couple years, if ever (lack of money and I'm not sure I can handle it without serious time in the workforce)
E) I'm pretty sure I'll die in some random accident right after graduation

I have a 3.8 GPA, and from the look of things, it'll probably be a 3.5-3.7 before I graduate. Will it hurt me if I'm looking for employment or trying to apply for grad school down the road? Cause I'm pretty much screwed as it is.
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post #2 of 76
12/11/09 at 4:31pm
For grad school, you typically want it as high as possible. Just for working, being a super keener is occasionally looked down upon, but it's highly dependent on the interviewer/boss.
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post #3 of 76
12/11/09 at 4:46pm
3.5-3.7 GPA is very good, and I don't think it will hurt you. It's most important to have good people skills, IMO. You have that, don't you?
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post #4 of 76
12/11/09 at 4:53pm
Thread Starter 
Er.. define people skills
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post #5 of 76
12/11/09 at 4:54pm
I used to be a corporate Head Hunter and I can honestly tell you that not one of my Corporate Clients who I recruited for cared/ or asked about GPA of candidates I introduced. At most they simply stated what type of degree they needed- if any. However I dealt mostly with Sales and Management Positions.

If you are interested in going into any kind of corporate sales/ management or public relations where you are actually interacting with people as your skill they tend to look at the 4.0 grads as bed wetters.

I can almost guarantee you will never lose a job based solely on having a 3.5.

Just my experience and I am sure some will disagree.
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post #6 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:12pm
Either way (work or grad school), a 3.5 or higher is gonna be good. I got into my job on a 3.35 (took a spill back in my sophomore year) and the same GPA got me into my Master's Program that I'm in now as well.
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post #7 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:32pm
"In my case, if my college GPA drops, will it matter?"

No.
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post #8 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:34pm
It'll matter to you. Lower your own standards now and you'll be lowering them your entire life. Have pride in maintaining the best GPA you can with your ability. One person's 3.5 is a triumph while another person's 3.5 could be a failure. Accepting defeat before it even happened will lead to disappointment. Do the best with things and situations you can have control over. Does dropping your GPA matter? You're damn straight it does!

Ross
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post #9 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirosia View Post
Er.. define people skills
Can you manipulate and pitch snake oil, beaming your own praises while subtly degrading your competitors? That's really all that matters in this world. (j/k but not really)
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post #10 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:50pm
I thought I would never go to grad school but did. I got in (barely) with a 3.0, graduated with my M.A. with a 3.7 and did not get into Ph.D. studies partially based on my undergraduate grades. So be careful about being flippant about graduate school. It could bite you.
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post #11 of 76
12/11/09 at 5:54pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
It'll matter to you. Lower your own standards now and you'll be lowering them your entire life. Have pride in maintaining the best GPA you can with your ability. One person's 3.5 is a triumph while another person's 3.5 could be a failure. Accepting defeat before it even happened will lead to disappointment. Do the best with things and situations you can have control over. Does dropping your GPA matter? You're damn straight it does!
I'm not necessarily lowering my standards, it's just that it's my senior year, and I'll be taking on my hardest classes. I'm still shooting for A's, but it's more difficult due to a combination of internal and external factors. I just did two of my finals, I ended up with a B- in one class, and hopefully a B+/A- in the other.

Quote:
Can you manipulate and pitch snake oil, beaming your own praises while subtly degrading your competitors? That's really all that matters in this world. (j/k but not really)
I actually have a base for being very manipulate, when purposely trying to be. People also like to hear me talk, which is odd since I lack confidence and proper tonality in my speech.

Quote:
thought I would never go to grad school but did. I got in (barely) with a 3.0, graduated with my M.A. with a 3.7 and did not get into Ph.D. studies partially based on my undergraduate grades. So be careful about being flippant about graduate school. It could bite you.
Well I do want to go, is just that the prospect isn't feasible at moment. I'm still lacking in funds, maturity, and general intelligence. (I.e, my highest math is Calc 1, and I didn't even do well in that)
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post #12 of 76
12/11/09 at 6:19pm
Don't accept less. Try your absolute best. Your GPA should reflect what you can do and not an excuse to lower it. If you do your best and it's 3.5, then be proud of that. If, however, you let it slip away because you think it'll be acceptable, you be disappointed.
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post #13 of 76
12/11/09 at 6:25pm
Thread Starter 
Well to be completely honest, I've never pushed myself to 100% in academics. I'm at like 70% at most, and I've learned to work within that. (So I guess that would be my 100%, eh?)
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post #14 of 76
12/11/09 at 6:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirosia View Post
Well to be completely honest, I've never pushed myself to 100% in academics. I'm at like 70% at most, and I've learned to work within that. (So I guess that would be my 100%, eh?)
Are you looking for justification for not putting forth your best effort? At the end of the day, you're the only one looking at yourself in the mirror.
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post #15 of 76
12/11/09 at 6:50pm
No one actually cares when you go for an interview. I disagree with baka's attitude about the 100% thing. For me at least, trying 100% means sleeping 5 hours a night and doing every single damn question imaginable PLUS all the practice tests before the exam. I used to do that and get straight 7s [our system is a 1 to 7 - 4 is a pass]. So that was all fine until I had a massive breakdown in my second year. Now I just gun for 6s and some 5s. I'm probably working at 60% but this allows me to do a lot of things I couldn't do before.

Now what I'm trying to say is you obviously are smart and can keep on cruising through uni/college or you can put the fun aside and get that 3.8 or whatever.

I'm looking in the mirror and I see someone who is happy and doing alright. Before I'd just see a sleep deprived, depressed chap getting awesome grades.
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