I go to a target school, but after first semester, i have a 3.2 gpa.
After doing the math, i realized that even if i got all As in the rest of my class, i will probably have like a 3.7 GPA max by the time i apply for junior year internships, and the likelihood of me getting all As is not very high. How screwed am I?
Also, my major is not considered hard.
| +326 | UBS Tech MD hires Son (from no-name college) as an Intern | 57 | 11h |
| +241 | Evercore Intern Seizure | 35 | 2h |
| +90 | [Official] 2026 IB Analyst Bonus Megathread (with 2025 Consolidated Pay and Perks/Benefits) | 12 | 2d |
| +55 | Is DCM actually underrated ? | 21 | 10h |
| +54 | JPM M&A is Gone??? Purely Coverage Banking??? | 22 | 2h |
| +46 | Are all Tech / TMT groups sweaty? | 33 | 22h |
| +40 | Losing my personality in Banking | 6 | 33m |
| +38 | Am I behind? 31 Year Old Analyst | 9 | 1d |
| +38 | Associate & Above IB exits | 15 | 3h |
| +31 | Incoming IB Analyst: Best Ways to Prepare? | 8 | 2d |
Career Resources
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
I should add that I am realistically expecting maybe a 3.6 by the time i apply.
3.6 > 3.5 which is the normal cut off point, as explained by the hundreds of threads on WSO relating to GPA cut offs.
I read a wso post, some guy was explaining that even though 3.5 is the cut off, 3.8 is the actual cut off. Anything below 3.8 requires something something special on your resume like having very good internship experience or whatever.
Target school as in an Ivy League? You'll be fine. Princeton and Cornell are notorious for grade deflation.
Yes ivy league. But like I said, I'm kind of worried because my major is considered one of the easiest ones, and also, my gpa is technically out of 4.3 since an A is a 4.0 and an A+ is a 4.3
If you're already in one of the easiest majors, there isn't anything else you can do besides "work harder." Do some better research into GPA padding classes if your major classes are still too hard.
Why'd you mess up your first year?
I didn't mess up my first year, i messed up my first semester. And honestly, idk why lol
From what I've heard at a non-ivy target, it's a sliding scale between gpa, work experience, and networking. My good friend got offers at top EBs and Buy-side firms with a lot of networking and he only had a 3.5. As long as you ball out this year you should be fine.
Even though an A+ is a 4.3 at your school, people will not view your GPA out of 4.3. They will most likely look at it out of 4.0.
cornell
Why do we do this: "I go to Ivy but my GPA is only a 3.5"? boo hoo. If you're GPA isn't a 4.0 because you messed up freshman year and you don't know why it's so low, then I hope you at least got a lot of good poom poom and developed a charming personality .
Why don't we just go after what we want and focus on being our best selves?
Nesciunt id praesentium ut quos laboriosam. Debitis sapiente voluptas nam deserunt praesentium sit. Ut totam modi nostrum temporibus beatae. In id ipsum reprehenderit. Ipsam repellat omnis asperiores placeat qui enim.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...