Resume GPA Presentation
I transferred a year ago from a CC to a target school. My first semester was rough and second was a 4.0. I now have a 3.5 GPA. I feel a little insecure writing this on my resume, since I am competing with the best students. I am applying to great REPEs and REIBs. I have been advised after 2 semesters to not include my previous school, but I want to highlight that I have only had 2 semesters at my school (in comparison to other applicants with 4).
Should I include my CC and high GPA there below my current school to emphasize this transfer or write a "Transferred from " and add a cumulative GPA of the two schools (3.7) ? I don't want to be misleading but typically a first semester is your worst and I have less credits to recover from it. I also think my transfer reflects some of my hustle.
I also transferred to a target. Campus recruiter from a BB told me to write cumulative GPA.
yes
That's great to hear! How did you format it on your resume?
I would put the higher cumulative one without question, this is very common and is actually more 'accurate' IMHO. I do not think you need to say 'transferred from' or anything like that, but you should be careful not to put any misleading dates of attendance. Since no one cares about those, just go with the fairly standard 'expected graduation May 20XX' or something like that.
It is the DEGREE that matters, the path is really not important at all.
Do you think transferring is a negative to add?
I don't think it is a negative per se, but some many see it that way in all honesty. As in, 'not good enough for admission from HS'. I went to a big state school that took a lot of transfer (hint, every big state school does), and there was a negative stigma to the transfer students. They didn't want to admit it for sure, so I wouldn't risk it personally. I think if you are talking about it in an interview and it frames well into your personal story, use it, but you are in control of that discussion. Resumes don't allow for nuance and explanation.
I mainly think it is extraneous information and thus takes away from space on a resume (plus, some risk of looking confusing). Personally, the only times I think I've seen it on a resume is when an AA degree was conferred prior to transfer.
I think of it a bit like a change of major, really no reason to put that (and nobody does), but you may want to retain key parts like key coursework if it offers value. So unless you are wanting to keep something on there that needs the transfer note to make it appropriate, I would save the space for more valuable items (or just extra white space).
Thank you for your honesty.
I wanted to clarify the cumulative gpa was not all from my current school, because it is not taken into consideration on my transcript from there. I don't want to get stuck in a situation that may backfire.
I understand, but if those credits are transferring into fulfill requirements of the degree you will ultimately get, they ARE part of the current school record. It is far more common that you probably realize.
I went to an HS that did dual enrollment with the local community college instead of AP classes, as a result I transferred into college with like 30 credit hours all with As. A lot of people in my state had this or something similar, it absolutely boosted GPAs.
You can present a 'major GPA' if you want to highlight, but frankly only reason is when cumulative sucks by comparison. If I see major GPA and the other not listed, I just assume its bad. A lot of students screw up freshman year (partying usually), so they think of very way of hiding that fact.
Trust me, the vast majority of people present cumulative and do not attempt to break out transfer credit GPA. That would require specifying and explaining multiple GPAs, which would look crazy and confuse the hell out of a resume reader. As an employer, I really just want to see one number. If you omit, I just assume you weren't proud of what it was (only recent college grads put it resumes of course, remove it after a few years of a real job).
Rule is this, keep it simple, honest, and consistent. It's a resume, not a transcript of your life!
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