? About Hiring Engineers & GPA

[HogHunter34]

Asking the braintrust of TBH. I have a good friend of mine who’s son is a sophomore at Letourneau majoring in mechanical engineering. His GPA has dropped a little below 3.0 & they are saying they were told most companies won’t hire engineers with a GPA below 3.0
I’m surprised to hear this. I was never even asked what my GPA was & I have a friend that graduated from there years ago with a 2.75 and he had no issues finding jobs & neither was he asked about GPA. Not saying there aren’t companies that don’t inquire & yes I agree a higher GPA is something to market yourself and give you a competitive edge. In my opinion, internships are important to gain that real world experience & overshadow a GPA.
Of course I graduated 22 years ago so I’m not as in tune with today’s graduates & what companies are critiquing

[Gclyde28]

I know a few friends that have said their GPA was basically required to get them their first job (accountants, engineers, etc.). Every job after that was networking and experience.

Theres always exceptions to the rule but for people searching for employees straight out of college, GPA is a measure of how dedicated and proficient someone was at achieving their goal (graduating).

[Colorado87]

It does matter when your looking for your first job or even internship. Good jobs and internships are very competitive and with nothing else to judge by the GPA becomes a big factor for evaluation. That said good internships can overcome a lower GPA if you can get them. Right now in oil and gas there are lots of jobs so its easier but if the market tightens that will change. This is my experience at small companies. I do also know most big companies have a minimum GPA to even be considered for a job. My $0.02.


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[stinkbelly]

I use to hire/interview a lot of people. I would rather hire a 2.75 with real world experience than a 4.0 that has never worked in his life. My old boss was the opposite. She wanted a 4.0 regardless of experience.

[HogHunter34]

I actually had an interview with a chemical company in Houston & the guy asked me what kind of grades I made in physical chemistry. I was honest & said B first semester and C second semester. He responded & said good cause I don’t trust anyone who makes A’s in it lol.
Thanks for the feedback.

[diamond10x]

Just depends on whos doing the hiring, some companies want it and some don't care. Honestly GPA is a horrible criteria for anything other than showing what your grade is, has no relevancy to the type of person or worker you are.

[ddcainjr]

I know a few friends that have said their GPA was basically required to get them their first job (accountants, engineers, etc.).[/B] Every job after that was networking and experience.

Theres always exceptions to the rule but for people searching for employees straight out of college, GPA is a measure of how dedicated and proficient someone was at achieving their goal (graduating).

This was my experience as an accountant. GPA got you the interview in school, after that, not a big deal.

[LonestarGent]

Reminds me of the saying, "what's the difference in the dr that made A's in med school and the one that made C's? Nothing they're both dr's. Im sure that might not hold true in every field and in every scenario but I'd rather hire a guy that has real world experience and common sense then a 4.0 guy with no common sense or drive.

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[grizzman]

This was my experience as an accountant. GPA got you the interview in school, after that, not a big deal.

Same here. I didn't have a high undergrad GPA but have done pretty well. Passing the CPA was the game changer for me.

[be12hunt]

I think it a depends on the area, company and more so the hiring manager. Dow chemical hires a lot of ME’s and it totally depends on who the hiring manager is. Some it’s 4.0 or kick dust and cuss. Others as long as you have the piece of paper to qualify you are good.

[cehorn]

As others have said it all depends on the interviewer and position available. I personally look at school first. I.E. going into the interview I put more wait on a UT or ATM grad than a small less prestigious engineering school.

Looking specifically at gpa, I like to see somewhere in the 3.0-3.5 range. Anything above a 3.5 typically means they spent way to much time studying (too much time in the library, lab, etc.) and I don't see that as a plus as it generally doesn't translate to relating with people or working in a team setting. Keep in mind these are generalizations and each individual is different. In my day to day operations, everything is team based and nothing is rocket surgery (i.e. if you got the degree, or hell even got into the program, you are smart enough to do the work). Additionally, most of what you learned is school is thrown out and you are trained based on specific design elements not covered in school. So my big criteria is fit with team, common sense and "personality". It does me no good to hire Albert Einstein if he can't work with a team, communicate and get along.

[bmac]

I am an Engineer and know our company looks at that to a point. If you have a 2.75 and don’t work, involved in organizations, or outside groups that does not look as good as a 3.5+ doing the same. I would rather higher a 2.5 with common sense and work ethic over a 4.0 book worm.


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[kyle1974]

I hire the person, not a degree.

all day, any day, I will take a 3.0 student that worked through school, over a 4.0 student who's never had to have a job and go to school simultaneously.

part of the problem in large companies is you have a crew of people working in the HR department that have never done the jobs they're screening resumes for.

now, if your friend's son has a 2.75, and is simply going to school, not working or involved in some substantial activity, he's going to have to have some other angle to work. A contact, mutual friend, or alumni that will get him in, over the traditional HR screening process.

Large companies get thousands of resumes a year. If he has a hard time after graduation, he's just going to have to look at more obscure companies or fields.

[tx_basser]

I was the College New and Internship review team for over 10 years. Our company has a 3.0 requirement to qualify in the program. After seeing all of the candidates over the years anything below 3.0 gets you some pretty poor candidates.

[boomerball]

I do know of at least one company w/ 3.0 gpa requirement for new college grads