Below average GPA from top 10 school as a D1 athlete?

How hard would it be to get an ib interview/job with a 3.3 GPA from a school like Duke as a D1 varsity athlete with an economics major? I know 3.5+ is ideal, but with weedout courses and D1 athlete status and decent work experience (thanks to connections, not going to lie), how hard would it be to have a shot at a decent level IB with good exit-ops?

 

3.3 is low. If you're a junior, try to get perfect grades this semester to bring up your GPA for recruiting in the Spring.

It's definitely doable but some places have a 3.5 minimum. Unfortunately for meritocrats, knowing the right people can get you around that. You just need to network a ton. Send a lot of emails to alumni and reach out to former athletes from your team that are working in banking. Try to use any connections you can to your advantage.

 

Sorry for the other thread just wanted some quick advice. My teams above average in a competitive conference (think ACC/Pac12/etc). I was going to switch to European studies, but I like Econ and feel like Econ would better prepare me for a finance job. I like Europe too, and feel like my GPA would be better, however if I do get interviews I feel like my finance/Econ knowledge would be lacking (I'd probably take a finance elective or two if I was an Econ major- wouldn't be able to as a non major for the most part due to prereqs)

 
Best Response
patriotsfan1:
Sorry for the other thread just wanted some quick advice. My teams above average in a competitive conference (think ACC/Pac12/etc). I was going to switch to European studies, but I like Econ and feel like Econ would better prepare me for a finance job. I like Europe too, and feel like my GPA would be better, however if I do get interviews I feel like my finance/Econ knowledge would be lacking (I'd probably take a finance elective or two if I was an Econ major- wouldn't be able to as a non major for the most part due to prereqs)

Econ doesn't help you jack in finance after the intro classes - going to a ugrad business school is the only way to not self learn things. Otherwise your going to have to self learn things and econ is loaded with tons of math - minded kids who are going to dominate the curve. Will they have an advantage in recruiting? - Short answer is yes, but a 3.5 in ES will be more competitive than a 3.0/3.1 in econ. Being an athlete is a large time commitment but not large enough to hurt you that much academically (say .2 or so difference in GPA) unless your marginal at the sport and have to workout like a madman in order to stay on the team or something. Usain Bolt works out like 4 times a week and eats a shit ton of junk and is still pro. I'm not sure what your individual situation is but I'd keep it in mind that a lot of athletes are like that and still pull 3.8's in finance/econ so I definitely wouldn't major in a subject where you see your gpa ceiling be a 3.3 - regardless of school, regardless of athlete/non athlete

 

3.3 from Duke, Stanford, UVA type school/athletic program combos should be fine. You may not get an interview everywhere but as an athlete with a so-so GPA from a great school you should get some looks in my experience.

 

Alright thanks for that response. I'm going to try until the end of the semester to be an Econ major, but if that doesn't work out I'm seriously thinking of switching to ES. If I did stick to be an Econ major and got about a 3.3 cum GPA from a UVA/Duke/Stanford type of school, what job would I be looking at in the finance industry? Less prestigious IBs or would I br pushed into something completely different ie PWM

 

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