Employers Look at GPA

According to an article in The New York Times, the factor that matters most to many employers is a recent college graduate’s grade-point average.

In the article, Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., senior vice president of human resources for the IAC/InterActiveCorp, says "he has found that a young applicant’s G.P.A. is the best single predictor of job performance in the first few years of employment. . . . G.P.A. is the best indicator an individual is likely to succeed. . . . It demonstrates a strong work ethic and smarts."

The article also reports that the National Association of Colleges and Employers' Job Outlook 2007 survey "found that 66 percent of employers screen candidates by G.P.A."

In fact, Tory Johnson, the chief executive of Women for Hire in New York, "tells recent graduates never to put a grade-point average that is below 3.0 on a résumé. 'That is like saying "Hi, I’m mediocre," ' she says."

So what to do if your GPA is not above a 3.0? Here are a few tips from human resource directors:

• Omit your GPA. If you get through the first cut, you may have a later chance to explain your grades.
  
• Play up your GPA in your major. If your overall GPA looks low, then use the 3.1 that you earned in your major discipline.
• Play up your GPA in your senior and junior years, if they are an improvement over your first college years.
• If you were working your way through school, supporting a family, or dealing with family illness, then say so. These can be admirable reasons for a lower GPA.
  

Better yet, avoid the problem altogether by realizing how important that GPA may be and working hard now to achieve a good one.

Source: Those Low Grades in College May Haunt Your Job Search