Undergraduate GPA

Hi,

This is my first post in WSO. I go to a non target public school in NY. My GPA right now is 3.0. If I want, I can graduate a yearly( meaning next fall), but I can't really raise my GPA. At best, it will be 3.2 by the time I graduate. But if I stay for 2 more years, then I might be able to raise it to 3.4 ish.

I do not have any internships, neither in BB or Boutiques for this summer, and I know that without internships, my chances of making it into IB (which I really want), is pretty low given my current GPA. Therefore, my questions is, is it worth staying one extra year in college and try to raise my GPA? I already have 25k in student loans and this might go upto 50k by the time I graduate, or should I graduate next fall and try my best to look for a FT offer in IB.

Please let me know what to do, I really need some advice right now, as I need to make up my mind by the end of this summer. Because I also plan to go to a very top notch B-School for MBA.
Thank you very much.

9 Comments
 

Dude, graduate on time. You need to decide if you really want it and if so, you have to hustle hard. For whatever reason, your GPA indicates that you haven't wanted it bad enough. Set realistic expectations - you want to go to HBS but you have a 3.0 from a non-target? One step at a time, man. If you really want it bad enough, I'm sure you'll get some breaks. Good luck

 

For you, IB might be more realistic post-MBA. Even with your 3.0/3.2, if you apply yourself at a job and show career progression, as well as solid ECs outside work etc, you can still get into a top MBA program (but it is going to be an uphill climb) - if you do that, you can get IB post-MBA. Unfortunately, IB will be extremely unlikely for you before that.

 
Best Response

I'm going to be real with you here. You have 0 shot at a "very top notch B-School" with your experience, GPA, and if your user name is indicative, race. Likewise, with the combination of your GPA/lack of work experience, IB is out of reach (and forget BB's - I'm talking boutiques as well.)

I don't think that having one more year of school is going to help - you're going to have to set your sights on some other kind of job and try to network and climb the ladder. Maybe you can do BO/MO -> IBD at a smaller bank. I'm not sure any advice is really relevant, because having a 3.0 at a non-target and no work experience means that you really haven't cared earlier and don't have the ability to hustle when you need to.

I'm not trying to be mean here, this is merely a wake up call for you to start looking elsewhere.

 

Race means he's probably got a better shot, not worse....he's a minority according to username. He absolutely has a shot at a top MBA program - not because of his current credentials, and he'd certainly have a huge uphill battle to get there, but the GPA/school is one part of a wider application and I know for a fact people with worse/similar stats have made it to top b-schools after a few years of work experience.

As you said though, no shot at IB right now.

 

First of all, whats your major? If it's a STEM major, you might not be in that bad of a position as everyone is saying. Although if it's something like philosophy, you dun goofed.

 

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