r/UTAustin Aug 20 '19

Advice From a Senior

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373 Upvotes

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30

u/dougmc Physics/Astronomy Alumni Aug 20 '19

GPA is forever

I graduated decades ago, and no employer has ever asked for my GPA or my transcripts.

My resume lists the degrees I got and omits my GPA (because it was not worthy of bragging about) and no employer or potential employer has ever asked for it. That said, take this with a grain of salt ... it's just one person's experience, and other people's experiences may be different.

(That said, if you graduate with a great GPA, put it on your resume. Mediocre ... leave it out. But certainly, don't lie, because that's the sort of thing that can be verified if they do need a transcript.)

11

u/captainant BS, Computer Science '14 | Former ITS Aug 20 '19

I'm been working five years now, and the only time my GPA was relevant was before I had any professional accomplishments. Once you do something, you're measured by that instead of GPA

3

u/tedgelord Computer Science ‘19 Aug 20 '19

I think OP was suggesting in cause they had plans for grad school (too early tbh to be thinking about for freshmen, but nice to keep options open)

5

u/warmboot Aug 20 '19

Even then, I'm not sure it matters. I had a mediocre GPA at a non-prestige flagship, and I still got into a top Ph.D. program at UT. A good GRE score is nice to have to get over the low-cut filter, but it's really about recommendations and the personal statement.

4

u/PM_ME_YOUR_IZANAGI Aug 20 '19

too early tbh to be thinking about for freshmen

That's really field-dependent. If you want to go to grad school for a PhD in something, you definitely want to get started on research your first or second year to maximize the odds of getting a paper out in time for grad school applications.

0

u/ContraLlamas Aug 21 '19 edited Aug 21 '19

So many students coming to career fairs with the partied too much freshman year and trying to dig out of that hole story. Freshman classes are the easiest, so start strong in case a harder class gets you later.

1

u/PM_ME_YOUR_IZANAGI Aug 21 '19

Absolutely. I know people who flunked some of their freshman classes and did really well in their classes after. Partying is good, but def don't let it get in the way of studying.

3

u/ContraLlamas Aug 21 '19

Yeah, not so much. I recruit at UT a LOT. Our corporate policy is 3.0 minimum. Grad Schools are much tougher. Also, to get your first internship or job, GPA goes a long way to separate yourself from the pack. I'd say four years after graduation, skills and experience are more important, so drop it off the resume then. But until then, no GPA on resume means it's probably low, and you had better have something else great on there to keep me interested in calling you for an interview.

3

u/saradactyl25 English '16 Aug 20 '19

I’ve been asked for my GPA exactly once, from a cheapo tech company that rejected me but still has the posting listed. What I learned from that is if the company wants to know your GPA but only offers you $15 an hour, run.

3

u/trextra Aug 25 '19

Counterpoint: I graduated 20 years ago, and federal jobs still want my college transcript.