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So outside of working and acing exams, what else can be done to prove to the better graduate programs 5 or 6 years down the road that you are a better student now?
Publish more work. Beef up your resume with successful grant proposals. Produce case studies.
Publish more work. Beef up your resume with successful grant proposals. Produce case studies.
I agree. A killer resume with lots of work experience can cover up a low GPA. So I hope the person graduating with a low GPA did a lot of internships and published a lot of tangible work. In my field they do not care what you GPA is even starting out. Experience dominates everything in my profession.
It will depend on what you want to do after school.
Graduate program? You have an uphill battle to be taken seriously for admission, because you've got no observable record of outstanding scholastic achievement at the undergrad level, which will ding your competitive edge. A few borderline grades in undergrad and then buckling down? That could look to grad admissions like you made some missteps and found your stride. Tanking for four years just looks like you weren't a serious student, and will indicate that you don't know how to handle an undergrad workload, let alone a grad level one, and didn't have school as a priority, all of which is going to be unappealing. Many programs have GPA cutoffs, and it wouldn't matter if you ended magically blowing whatever entrance exams you may have to take out of the water (possible after eking out the bare minimum graduation requirements as an undergrad, though not especially likely).
Going straight into the working world? Luck of the draw. I've predominantly worked for establishments that required certified transcripts as part of the application process (not just my first job out of school, either). The only job I've had where my undergrad transcript wasn't considered in my hiring was one where I had to submit a portfolio of writing samples from college-level work. It will depend greatly on what you want to do professionally and specifics of the employers you attend to work for, regarding how much your GPA will affect things.
It depends on what profession you are in. In the accounting, business, education, or any government related job, they will check your official transcripts. Those professions are where your GPA is important for landing your first job in your career. Most other companies just do a basic background check verifying that you completed your degree in your major. Once you get your foot in the door with a company and stay there for at least two years the GPA becomes less important.
So outside of working and acing exams, what else can be done to prove to the better graduate programs 5 or 6 years down the road that you are a better student now?
I want to pursue an MBA but my undergrad major was Chemistry.
I was a chemistry major. You are most likely going to start off in a temp to hire job making around $17-20 an hour. Make sure you emphasize your analytical technique skills on your resume. Such as ability to operate and interpret data on GC, HPLC, NMR, GPC instruments. Ability to prepare solutions and make dilutions. Ability to adhere to GLP practices and adhere to OSHA lab guidelines. If you did some formulations and synthesis of organic compounds in you undergrad research lab that will be a major plus. Don't worry about your GPA if you plan on entering the chemical industry. Most of the temps I work with left their GPA off their resume and the company I worked for did not ask for their GPA. Just be prepared to work for 35,000-40,000 a year with no benefits your first year in the industry. It's common for undergrad chem majors to start out making that. Your GPA won't invite negative consquences unless you plan on going to grad school which is almost necessary in the chemistry field if you don't want to be a lab monkey doing grunt work testing the samples all day. Otherwise you won't have any problems finding a job but it will most likely be a temp to hire position that can become permanent after 6-12 months.
I graduated from undergrad with a 2.8 gpa. 5 years later, I'll be attending graduate school in two months. I completed an internship during my last semester in college and worked my way up to being an instructor (full-time, seasonal work...pretty much the 'norm' in my field). After my internship I volunteered for a season while working full-time elsewhere in town, became a part-time instructor for a season and then became a full-time instructor. I've worked my butt off and got into grad school (one of most reputable programs in my field) with an excellent admissions essay/goals statement and outstanding references. Even got a graduate assistant position, to boot!
It can be done. It'll probably take a bit more work (getting into grad school, that is) than someone who graduated with a 3.5+ but it can definitely be done and it will be rewarding. My GPA never came up in interviews, and I have been a productive employee.
I graduated from undergrad with a 2.8 gpa. 5 years later, I'll be attending graduate school in two months. I completed an internship during my last semester in college and worked my way up to being an instructor (full-time, seasonal work...pretty much the 'norm' in my field). After my internship I volunteered for a season while working full-time elsewhere in town, became a part-time instructor for a season and then became a full-time instructor. I've worked my butt off and got into grad school (one of most reputable programs in my field) with an excellent admissions essay/goals statement and outstanding references. Even got a graduate assistant position, to boot!
It can be done. It'll probably take a bit more work (getting into grad school, that is) than someone who graduated with a 3.5+ but it can definitely be done and it will be rewarding. My GPA never came up in interviews, and I have been a productive employee.
Grad schools will overlook your sub 3.0 GPA if you have a solid resume with a lot of work experience and a killer GRE/GMAT scores. You prove to grad schools that you are well rounded if you can have great test scores and some work experience in your field. The OP says he wants to get his MBA. Most MBA require you to have work experience before they accept you. Getting into the workforce as soon as he graduates should be his first move. Congrats on your success and wish you the best of luck in grad school and continuing your career.
As long as the person is otherwise competent and astute at interviewing and job searching, it is a slight barrier to initial employment. Some prestigious employers simply may disqualify the person. It is a major barrier to an academic career unless you want to pay for the cost and money of fully rehabilitating the academic record.
I've had to produce transcripts when applying to a lot of jobs, but this was for verification purposes. They didn't care about my GPA. I'm in the social services/criminal justice field, though. There are typically only three situations where GPA matters when getting a job in my field: internship, superior academic achievement to meet a salary grade requirement for the federal government, and needing a 2.0 for the few law enforcement agencies that require college credits.
Hypothetical question, say this person develops a love for medicine or dentistry and wants to be a doctor or dentist, can a low GPA ever be fixed for those professions?
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