Is it okay to mention family member's cancer in an interview
Hello guys. I am currently doing interview prep for investment banking SA 2023.
One of the questions I am most likely going to be asked about is the fall off of my grades. I had a 3.9 GPA in the 2nd semester of sophomore, my GPA is now 3.7 at the end of my 3rd year. I have legitimate reasons for this fall off:
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I tore my ACL mid sophomore and had to get surgery for it as well.
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One of my immediate family members was diagnosed with cancer so it was overall a difficult time.
Do you guys think mentioning cancer is a bit too personal for interviews? I think simply saying 'personal reasons' comes off as a BS excuse for underperforming.
There's no right or wrong answer. Personally, I wouldn't mention the specifics; not saying they're not true, but it does come off as kind of "excusey."
I would say "I had to deal with a couple of personal/family matters, but I guess everyone has those."
Or maybe not even mention anything at all -- dude, you've still got a 3.7. If you get the interview and they like you, I doubt most would ding you bc you've got a 3.7 instead of a 3.9. Plus, shit in life unfortunately pops up, and will also pop up when you're working -- if you're doing a bad job at work, they'll hopefully be sympathetic if there's a legitimate reason why, but after a while, they're just going to want someone who gets the job done.
Thanks for the input!
No
No. Adds some weirdness for no reason... 3.7 is a perfectly good GPA and absolutely no one will ask about it (they don't even see your transcript, so they won't know it fell)
Sounds good- was mostly asking because I was asked this at my last 2 interviews.
In that case should I leave it at personal reasons?
Your GPA is a 3.7 and they asked "why so low"? That is seriously unusual. Not like you failed all your classes or anything
I'd use the line Prospect said above - personal/family issues, it happens
Ignore ppl above it’s okay to mention it if they ask. Anyone who gives you a hard time probably doesn’t have a soul so you wouldn’t want to work there anyways. That said, I don’t think you need to go out of your way to talk about. Again, only bring it up if they ask about the gpa fall off
Appreciate the input!
That said, if they're asking and wondering why you went from no C's to a couple, it might not be bad to add a little detail. I envisioned you proactively bringing it up... but if they essentially are asking, "Dude, what's with the drop off?" I will contradict my above post and say that -- in that instance -- I probably WOULD get specific... but also add something to the effect you're not using it as an excuse (which you actually are, but that's okay). Something like, "I had a couple of family/personal things come up -- I had knee surgery, so that kind of messed with my normal study routine, and a family member got sick, so I was devoting more time than usual to that... still, I probably could have managed my time a little bit better, and next time something like that pops up, I'll know how to handle it better."
sorry to hear, but jim donovan said never let ur clients know ur having a bad day
i think the same applies in interviews
Is it important to your overall story, or just a reason why your GPA “fell” (valid it fell if you were dealing with family)?
If you learned something important from the experience then sure it’s fine to use if needed.
When I was in your shoes I also had a personal story that was very important to my development. I told it in a couple interviews and had awkward responses so stopped using it all together.
Some people might like it, some people might not. Wouldn’t have it as a planned talking point, but something you could bring up as needed.
3.7 and got EB in NYC for 2023
Interviewed with Blackstone, Centerview, Lazard and more
Not once was I asked about GPA
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