3.26 GPA at Ivy For SA 26 as Transfer Student

Currently a transfer sophomore at an Ivy from UChicago/Duke/Caltech with 4.0 GPA. Hit some personal/family issues this first term and grades just came out with 3.26 GPA (one Pass/Fail, one A-, two Bs). Double majoring in Math and CS.

Already submitted some SA 26 apps listing "cumulative GPA 4.0" as grades weren't out yet. Next term can potentially bring cumulative back to 3.8 if back on track.

  • How should I handle this situation for SA 26 recruiting (BB/EB, MF PE, Citadel/Point72)?
  • For remaining applications, should I keep using 4.0 cumulative or update honestly? How will this affect background check?

Any insights would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

17 Comments
 

Feel like it is not uncommon. Minor reasons may occasionally enter the equation. Sometimes the pure inclination to explore new places and environments is already enticing.

 

Similar to you, my grades haven't been released yet. For JPM, I put "N/A - Transfer" since that option was available. I'm not sure if it hurt my chances by doing so, but my resume does include my previous school's 3.9 GPA.

 

Do you know when HR/third parties will verify GPAs or request transcripts? If this occurs shortly after an offer is extended, it will cause problems. 3.26 is too far from 4.0.

 

Thanks. My concern is that if I keep "4.0" on my resume and they conduct a background check or verify GPA shortly after making an offer, my offer will most likely be withdrawn. I'll be fine as long as they conduct a background check after the spring term of my sophomore year, and I'm confident that I'll be able to bring back my GPA.

 

I mean, you don’t technically have your grades yet, right? As of right now, the only transcript you have has a 4.0. Just get it up next semester, maybe take some summer classes, and you will be fine. 

 

Whether they conduct a background check 1 year later or 1 month later after you get the offer is irrelevant. They will just make sure that the gpa at time of application aligned with the gpa you submitted to them.  

 

What I would do is have 2 schools on your resume and include the 4.0 from your old school, and leave off the 3.26 from the new school (for new apps) since that is quite low so better to leave off imo. So just don't list a gpa on your resume for your new school.

 

Thank you. For future applications, I am thinking about adding the previous school's 4.0 back and the current school's "N/A - Transfer" on the resume, then entering "4.0" into the application systems. The current resume only lists the current school with "Cumulative GPA: 4.0/4.0" and does not include the previous school.

 

For your resume I'd recommend doing what I said above. I've never seen someone put "N/A - Transfer" on their resume.

As for application systems specifically, that is a bit more unclear. Is there a way to calculate total GPA that combines your old school GPA and your current GPA?  I would get in contact with career services and tell them about your situation and ask -- imo that seems the best solution because the way that you interpret cumulative GPA should be based off total courses taken I would think? I would not put 4.0 on the application system because that would be a lie (since you have grades under an A at time of application). 

But just as a general tip, people don't give out interviews based off the application system -- they do it based off your resume (we get a resume stack of all applications from our school). You should be fine for interviews imo as long as you do the above.

 

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