Is it ok to round my GPA to this? and what are my chances?

i got 3.85 this semester and my overall GPA came out to be 3.376...is it ok to round it to 3.4 or it would be unethical thing to do and i should just leave it as 3.38?

I have just finished my junior year at Southern Methodist University (Cox School of Business) and my finance gpa is 3.76 and my minor econ is 3.74 but my overall is 3.376..i was wondering what are my chances of getting a job or at least a chance to interview in the fall when recruiters start coming to campus?

50 Comments
 

i also wanted to add that i have 12 hours of accounting, which i know is also kind of a requirements for ibanks..should i take some more accounting or not?

 

even if you had a 3.4 at harvard, u'd still have a hard time getting an interview. if you go to SMU u'll need to get ur gpa to at least a 3.8 and then u'd still be a really long shot.

 
whatlife208even if you had a 3.4 at harvard, u'd still have a hard time getting an interview.

this is wrong by the way

and OP, it's fine.

 

but what if you are using connections?! how much would gpa matter in that case? and plus why do they care so much about your overall GPA and not ur Major gpa?

 
smu2008but what if you are using connections?! how much would gpa matter in that case? and plus why do they care so much about your overall GPA and not ur Major gpa?

Obviously it depends on the connection- there's no cut and dry formula.

Overall GPA should be a reflection of your general intelligence and work ethic/determination. You don't have to be a finance major to be a good analyst, you need to have an insane work ethic, which is why I believe the overall carries more weight. I have seen people list their major GPA in addition to the overall if it is higher.

And for the record, I concur that you can round up your GPA, as long as you list it as 3.4, and not 3.40, that's fine.

 

In what way are you qualified to make global statements regarding GPA? I am not trying to be petty, I am genuinely curious. Are you in banking, or are you a student that is repeating hearsay? I personally go to a target, and there are plent of kids in the 3.3+ range that get interviews

 
nothingmanOverall GPA should be a reflection of your general intelligence and work ethic/determination. You don't have to be a finance major to be a good analyst, you need to have an insane work ethic, which is why I believe the overall carries more weight.

Well i came to the US 5 years ago from another country and have pretty decent results i believe..would that be a good relection of my general intelligence and work ethic/determination or recruiting ibankers are strictly lookin only at you in terms of your GPA?

 

Well hell I have a 3.76 so should I round that up too. I don't go to a target school. So would a 3.8 on my gpa along with other extra-cirr.'s look good on my resume?

 
mtryea the rounding thing...i have a 3.898 --- safe to go 3.90 right

dude u have a fucking 3.9, what the hell do u have to worry about? ull get an interview that's 99% sure thing...

i just dont understand how kids with such high GPA dont have a simple common sense

 

SMU-

to answer your earlier question, interviewers definitely look at more than grade point to determine who gets interviews and offers. The reason interviewers care about it at all is just because most college undergrads (understandably) don't have comparable work experience/ accomplishments on their resume to demonstrate the traits that bankers are looking for. GPA is really just a signaling device, to use an econ term.

If you can convey that you have the right stuff through other means in your cover letter/resume/interview, that's how you overcome a low GPA and get the job.

 

Heck, if I went to SMU, I'd round that baby up to a 4.0 and probably still wouldn't stand a chance of being recruited.

 
SeancHeck, if I went to SMU, I'd round that baby up to a 4.0 and probably still wouldn't stand a chance of being recruited.

you are absolutely wrong. a lot of well connected families in the south send their kids to SMU. it places well in H-town, boutiques, and a few in BB. Albeit not a powerhouse, don't discount it's reputation as being just shit.

your comment reflects that you probably don't have a general grasp of how recruiting has become a 'national' thing (relatively speaking) as opposed to a north-eastern thing. you will realize this.

 
Seanc Heck, if I went to SMU, I'd round that baby up to a 4.0 and probably still wouldn't stand a chance of being recruited.

I'd disagree with you on this one. couple of my friends here at SMU who have 3.7-3.8 got great internships and full time offers from big top 5 BB ibanks..so if i had 4.0 on my resume i would def get a chance for at least an interview

 

rounding a 3.75 up to a 3.8 is fine, no one is going to make a big deal out of it.

Rounding a 3.74 down to a 3.7 is also fine, but why would you want to lower your gpa???

if the hundreths digit is 5 or greater you can round the tenths digit up to the nearest tenth.

 

Exactly my point. Why are people so hung up on GPA? Include the exact number. What difference does it make?

However, some on line applications only allow one place. Use conventional rounding in those cases.

 

dont be a moron, round that shit up

anyways, gpa only means so much, you can be a total fuckin sociophobe with a 4.0, or a genius with a 3.3 who fucked around for 2 years and will get the job over the 4.0 b/c he knows his shit when it comes to interviewing.

recruiters arent looking for bookworms, just people that know their shit. some of you people care WAY to much about your gpa

 
johnp686

recruiters arent looking for bookworms, just people that know their shit. some of you people care WAY to much about your gpa

actually, from the way recruiters sort through resumes, the only conclusion you can realy make is that they ARE looking for bookworms. 3.5 tends to be the cutoff.

if you know someone who's willing to pass your resume along, that's an entirely different story...

edit: by the way, i'll bet $50 this guy is dan bush. any takers?

 
johnp686dont be a moron, round that shit up

anyways, gpa only means so much, you can be a total fuckin sociophobe with a 4.0, or a genius with a 3.3 who fucked around for 2 years and will get the job over the 4.0 b/c he knows his shit when it comes to interviewing.

recruiters arent looking for bookworms, just people that know their shit. some of you people care WAY to much about your gpa

Very true. Many top students get cut off b/c they interview poorly no matter their super GPA.

 

You have to be smart to a certain extent and that extent is not 4.0 smart.

If you have a good gpa that is within the boundaries (generally above a 3.5) and you interview well and know your shit you will get the position over the guy with a 4.0 who is a social idiot.

 
smu2008i got 3.85 this semester and my overall GPA came out to be 3.376...is it ok to round it to 3.4 or it would be unethical thing to do and i should just leave it as 3.38?

I have just finished my junior year at Southern Methodist University (Cox School of Business) and my finance gpa is 3.76 and my minor econ is 3.74 but my overall is 3.376..i was wondering what are my chances of getting a job or at least a chance to interview in the fall when recruiters start coming to campus?

If i were you, id put down my major GPA...just make sure you make it obvious that its your major and not overall. just my two cents

 

Didn't you guys all learn how to round in like 3rd grade? How can you have high 3-points from Top 10 or Ivy or whatever the f else schools and not know how to round?

I think my 3rd grade teacher said it like this: 5 and above, round up 4 or lower, round down

If you don't want to round down, then just use more decimals. It doesn't really matter. Stop being tools about this already.

 

Although my GPA is only a 3.4, I go to a really demanding engineering school. I'll be a junior next semester and am spending my summer at an Asset Management Firm, does this bode well? Will it be possible to switch to a BB next year?

http://www.tripsync.com --- "We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to t
 

I probably should've started a new thread. Sorry for hijacking yours.

http://www.tripsync.com --- "We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to t
 

To the OP: your school is going to hurt you more for IB than your GPA.

As regards HYPSM GPAs, I went to one of those and people with 3.2s were getting offers from BBs. If you have above a 3.0 at a target, have a higher major GPA, and can sell yourself well, you absolutely can get into banking, no question. You don't even need connections. The majority of people who make it to the first round are weirdos with high GPAs. You usually don't see them at the Superday though.

 

It is NEVER okay to slack off.

Think about in the business world. Nobody ever says oh your too high up so slack off.

Get the highest gpa possible. Don't slack off at all.

It is true that a 4.0 might mean you are too studious and you might not have a social life or be very outgoing.

The way to balance that common belief is by having great activities to supplement your great gpa.

 
Best Response

NEVER? i disagree with that. i think there are certain situations which can allow one to "take it easy." take, for example, senior year in high school. you were already accepted into your college, no reason to try your absolute hardest. as long as you maintained decent grades, you were fine. i guarantee that this is a very similar situation for some-not all-college seniors who already have FT offers at BBs and maintaining a decent GPA is all they need. no reason to go above and beyond when you absolutely have NO need to. id love to analyze the correlation between seniors GPAs pre/post FT BB acceptance. i think the business world is a bit different. you are never too high up, and if you do slack off, others who are putting in their all can take over. here, 9.98, 3.95, 3.93...its all the same shit. managing director vs. global head, on the other hand, is very different. just my $.02. please dont bash.

 

well if your thinking from a long-term approach....yes, it might be okay to slack off as a senior in high school because your college gpa will not be negatively impacted and nobody is going to look down upon you in any way if you have a solid college gpa and a slide in your high school senior gpa.

What if you are gunning for a top MBA program though?

Slacking off is not something the admissions committee will look favorably upon, Goldman Sachs IBD offer or not.

Your absolutely correct when you say someone will take your position if you slack off.

After your senior year in high school I don't recommend slacking off at all.

 

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