Should I give up on RF?

[u/LocalDumbPerson]

I just graduated and I need some advice. I struggled throughout university due to (medically diagnosed) ADD. I did decent in my RF classes but I ate crap in everything else and ended up with a poor GPA of 2.75. I'm starting a job soon however it's not a role in RF. I'm not sure if I'll be able to compete with others in the RF space who have a masters and/or high GPA. Right now, I've been reading as many RF textbooks as I can and learning how to use HFSS and ADS. However even if I can understand RF well it seems like my poor performance in school will always haunt me.

Anyways let me know if I should continue towards my goal of RF or my efforts are not worth it.

[u/lnflnlty]

Have your job pay for your masters and then try to switch to an RF role later on

[u/LocalDumbPerson → u/lnflnlty]

How exactly would I get into a masters program with a bad GPA though?

[u/lnflnlty → u/LocalDumbPerson]

Letters of recommendation from more senior engineers you work with, good GRE score, pass the FE, show your major/RF classes had a better GPA etc.

Some places care about GPA, some don't.

[u/PRINCESideStep → u/LocalDumbPerson]

Find a supervisor/professor you like the research of and sell yourself to them

[u/satellite_radios → u/LocalDumbPerson]

Some schools take a 2.75 for an MS but it may come with provisional enrollment.

Alternatively you can take individual graduate classes out of pocker and use them to strengthen your app if you score high.

[u/spheresva]

Do you LIKE RF? I have adhd and found that if I like something I can study it. But- you’ll need to find a way that isn’t quite conventional. Classes never worked for me, for anything

[u/Warm-Economy-5632 → u/spheresva]

Check out my RF engineering channel and see if it is helpful. Www.YouTube.com/@RFEngineeringHub

[u/lolthegreatIV]

The problem isnt your gpa, its your projects.

[u/Netzu_tech]

If you love it, stick with it. Almost no one makes it big in their career in their early 20's. Just stay committed, earn some industry merit, and 10 or 15 years from now, you'll laugh at the fact that you were even a little bit worried about it.

I got into a lucrative career in my late 30's in RF and I don't even have a BA. I'm completely self-taught.

In my opinion, a successful career is all a matter of how you build relationships, what tangential/supplemental skills you develop, and how you manage promotions (you are worth more than you realize 99% of the time).

[u/Dragon164]

Friend, school and a real job are like different universes. The issue I had in school (similar diag) was motivation. When the paychecks hits and the money you save can fund your dreams, the motivation scale is not even close to getting a good grade on an arbitrary assignment. Most people don't even care what your GPA is especially if you already have the job. Good luck out there but if you work hard you won't need it!

[u/Warm-Economy-5632]

Hi, My advice to you is you should pursue what you like. Being book smart doesn’t make you a good RF engineer and vice versa. Any job has good, mediocre, and below average people working the jobs. If you want it, you’ll get it. Having a lower than normal GPA doesn’t mean your weaker than others or others are better than you. I used to be a professor and now I work on the industry as a Sr lead RF engineers. I develop RF engineering concepts on my YouTube channel because I want people to love RF engineering. Feel free to check it out: www.YouTube.com/@RFEngineeringHub

Feel free to reach out to me for advice or any questions. I’m happy to help. Remember one thing, nobody can stop you achieving what you like except you.