About to finish college with a 2.1 GPA, screwed around in those years, how screwed am I for life?

btharmony · 2016-02-07T22:32:59+00:00

gpa doesn't matter anymore. As long as you walk out with that piece of paper and network among your strong ties (family members, cousins, etc) youll be okay.

wont_tell_i_refuse · 2016-02-07T21:51:10+00:00

About as fucked as any other college graduate.

RedPillProgress · 2016-02-07T23:59:31+00:00

Wont_tell is right, except for med school / that track. Your done for in that track unless you know someone (seems like you dont like "school" and what not and your parents forced you to attend. So med school wouldn't be your cup of tea anyways.

The degree itself is a piece of paper. Meh. What do you like to do? Do you like sales? Are you good at speaking with people? Maybe a real estate license or insurance license could benefit you!

Btw, I am in the exact same boat as you. Hated every second of college (I mean I made good friends, but I hated that I was locked in and could not focus fully on what I do, real estate agent) 2.3 gpa, graduating this year

cuteman · 2016-02-08T03:24:41+00:00

As they say in engineering departments around the country, C's get degrees.

[deleted] · 2016-02-08T00:26:19+00:00

you're not 'screwed for life' or any such nonsense, but yes, you have screwed yourself out of a lot of post grad stuff. Most places that require a degree do not check your gpa, so as long as the school you went to isnt utter shite, you should be fine. I'm still unsure as to how you can graduated with a 2.1 though, pretty sure every program i've been in required a 2.5-3.0 for major coursework.

Thu Jan 1 0:00:00 1970 UTC

[permanently deleted]

GunnarX · 2016-02-07T22:27:07+00:00

That's about my GPA in a diploma course I hated and was pressured by my family to compete. I hate every day of it, even though it pays well, so I'm just applying for something else to start this summer. Life is too short to do something you don't enjoy - you will find a way.

Josewasframed · 2016-02-07T22:33:13+00:00

Not screwed for life...but you'll have to make up for that gap that could've gotten you into grad school or a decent job.

Best advice: start networking and talking to people about finding jobs.

[deleted] · 2016-02-08T01:56:01+00:00

Post bac

miraistreak · 2016-02-08T02:32:08+00:00

Semi fucked until you land your first career level job.

After that your GPA doesn't matter at all because your experience will superset your degree.

Many jobs won't ask for your GPA and even less will verify it for what it's worth.

causeandcorrelation · 2016-02-08T03:38:32+00:00

I finished uni with a 1.6 (out of 4). Below the minimum of what the school allows (thanks to good relationships with certain professors). I finished despite nearly 2 extra years of study of repeat subjects. I now make $104k salary nearly 4 years after graduating (thanks again to good relationships). Short term will be hard. But it was going to be anyway.

The__Tren__Train · 2016-02-08T01:38:40+00:00

Gpa certainly does matter in many areas, including accounting. Big 4 won't even look at you unless you have over 3.5, generally speaking. This is, of course, until you get CPA, then your accounting degree is pretty well obsolete.

How much debt do you have?

Money_Bags97 · 2016-02-08T03:26:28+00:00

Well I've got to at least have a 3.5 to transfer to the uni I want for an engineering degree. I dicked around my highschool and first semester of college so I have to make up for it.

You not fucked but don't plan on using your gpa as a plus for a job. Get experience doing something you want

ooooooooooooooooooo1 · 2016-02-08T03:58:20+00:00

That fucking STEM meme lol, that sucks dude. My teachers are trying to push that on me too.

RMK24 · 2016-02-08T05:24:34+00:00

Yeah you're definitely fucked for at least the first few years you have in the work force, but after that, networking and a good work ethic can lead you to some great places.

BlackHeart89 · 2016-02-08T06:22:23+00:00

You're good bro. Jobs don't do background checks and shit on your grades.

As long as you're relatively smart, fast learner, and work hard, you'll be fine. A lot of jobs don't even require you to have any experience. Just a BS in anything will land you a job in something completely unrelated.

I wish to god I would have known this back when I graduated high school.

[deleted] · 2016-02-08T09:42:43+00:00

D's get degrees.

thor_meaway · 2016-02-08T10:28:52+00:00

Did you get an internship ?

batfish55 · 2016-02-08T13:06:21+00:00

Must get this out of the way: Way to go, dumbass.

Now that that's out of the way....

Yea, you're not going to get a great job right out of the gate with that gpa. But gpa only really matters until you have a few years' job experience under your belt. Not sure what kind of biology you studied, but I'd bet even with a low gpa, you can still get a job as a tech working in a lab or something. I'd imagine it doesn't take a lot to run tests on medical samples, for example: there's an established procedure, do it, record results, done. Science, bitches. Put in a few years (3-5?), put your work exp at the top of the resume, look for work elsewhere.

STEM is the way to go. IMO, that finance degree would only pan out if you A) got into a frat house with ties to Wall Street, or B) wanted to do financial planning or investment advising. You can read books about investing at home. You can't run lab experiments at home. You can ask people online or at a CPA's office about money stuff. You can't pepper your bio prof with questions at home.

Yea, you kinda screwed yourself a bit, but if you turn yourself around and start working, you're not in a bottomless pit.

It's those liberal arts degrees that are worthless. Do what makes you happy and the money will follow!!! Right. /s

Jttoo · 2016-02-08T14:16:45+00:00

Get enrolled in some college for a masters degree in Finance, or whatever the fuck it is that can make you happy!

Get into any place that you can, study hard and do well, then transfer to a better name school.

It's your life. Do what YOU want to do!

SirCockburn · 2016-02-08T18:00:17+00:00

If you want to go to medical school, it's not completely out of the question, but stop blaming others for your problems first and foremost. It's not your parents fault. It's not your professor's fault. If you're serious here's what you got to do:

1) Start taking all courses you did poorly in again. Anything other than an A is a step back. This is the most important step of them all.

2) Get some hospital experience. Volunteering or scribe job will suffice.

3) Get involved in research around your school. It looks good at a lot of schools.

4) Try an SMP. These programs are for people who have fulfilled pre-med pre-reqs, but don't quite have the grades. Examples: Georgetown, Boston University. Warning: if you fuck up here, kiss your doctor dreams goodbye

5) Get some hobbies. One should be physical fitness.

TLDR: stop blaming people for your mistakes and start rectifying your problems. If you do that, medical school isn't too far out of an idea.

[deleted] · 2016-02-08T03:43:36+00:00

No one is ever going to ask for your GPA in a normal job except for Google or some tech company that you don't want to work for.

Absolutely no one will ever ask for it after your first job. Relax. I kinda wish I wasn't so anal about mine in school

Also finance is kind of a useless major. You can do any finance job. Would you even want to?

Best of luck.

[deleted] · 2016-02-08T02:54:04+00:00

Enjoy your retail sales job.

[deleted] · 2016-02-07T21:31:49+00:00

Unless you have a degree from a prestigious ivy league school or famous engineering or med school. Not very screwed you could have a 4.0 gpa from a state school a laundry list of volunteer work and internships but at the end of the day your just a commoner with no noble connections. Youll be passed over for jobs for people who have Ivy league legacies and network connections they were born into. This is real life. Achieve good grades because you have a thirst for learning but realize chances are they wont get you much unless you have a prestigious background attached to them. At the end of the day status and connections are all that matters.

SnarkyFella · 2016-02-08T04:38:42+00:00

Trust me, it barely matters. Have your Resume + Cover Letter + References ready to go BEFORE you finish and start applying EARLY. Do this and you will be fine.

Title	About to finish college with a 2.1 GPA, screwed around in those years, how screwed am I for life?
Author	ubernotneeded
Upvotes	14
Comments	40
Date	February 7, 2016 9:27 PM UTC (10 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/askTRP
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/asktrp/comments/44no2g/about_to_finish_college_with_a_21_gpa_screwed/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/askTRP/about-to-finish-college-with-a-21-gpa-screwed.160438 https://theredarchive.com/post/160438

Comments