How should I round my GPA on my finance resume?
In general, rounding your GPA will not make a huge difference. However, on a resume it almost always looks better to have a 3.3 as opposed to a 3.25 or a 3.5 as opposed to a 3.45.
If you have a 3.3 or lower, you may have a hard time selling yourself as a 3.5 is generally considered to be the expected minimum GPA (however, this does not make 3.5 the GPA cutoff). If you have 3.35, rounding it up to 3.4 is a wise move. If you are over the cutoff mark, increasing your GPA by 0.1 will not add that much of a difference.
Another rule you should remember is to never round your GPA to 4.0, even if you have a 3.99. Having a 3.9+ GPA is already very impressive, but rounding it to 4.0 may harm you more than help you. A 3.95 is almost equally as impressive, and someone reviewing your resume and transcripts might wonder what your thought process was in adding the extra five hundredths of a point. If you have a 3.95 or higher and the dropdown box on the application only allows for tenths, follow conventional rounding rules and round up.
Also, make sure you never round up to a quarter or half point. The only rounding that should be done is with hundredths of a point. If you have a 3.24, you may be able to get away with rounding up to a 3.3, but it’s not generally advisable. If you have a x.x5 or higher, definitely feel free to round it up to the NEAREST tenth of a point. This topic has been debated heavily by the WSO community, so if you are unsure, please use the links below to get a better grasp on the reasoning behind rounding your GPA.
GPA Rounding Examples:
| Actual GPA | Resume GPA | Dropdown GPA (tenths) |
|---|---|---|
| 3.46 | 3.46 | 3.5 |
| 3.23 | 3.23 | 3.2 |
| 3.448 | 3.448 or 3.45 | 3.4 |
| 3.951 | 3.951 or 3.95 | 4.0 |
| 3.949 | 3.949 or 3.95 | 3.9 |
Relevant Discussions:
- Ugh frustrating GPA rounding on resume question (Note: This person's overall GPA is a 3.9. There is not point in putting the major GPA. If he were to put both on his resume, he should keep them both at the hundredths. If there was a dropdown box on an online application with only tenths, he would only be able to use his overall GPA which is a 3.9.)
- 3.49 GPA (Note: Yes, a 3.49 is a 3.5, though on your resume you should leave it to the hundredth. It really won't make a difference.)
Additional Resources:
- Relevant WSO Guides: Internship Guide and Networking Guide
- Relevant WSO Services: Finance Resume & Cover Letter Review and Wall Street Mentors
- Relevant WSO Forums: Get a Job and Public Resume Review Service
