Does having really good grades in college really matter?

• I want to know if you really have to make good grades to get an education in college and get a good job. I just started college in the summer and I got a 4.0 gpa, but now I have 5 classes and I am really stressed about my school work. I am worried that I will fail my classes. I am doing ok, but when it comes to the tests I am worried to death. I want to continue in college, but I am scared to death about getting good grades. What grades are considered good so that you can still be successful in the future? ANY ADVICE!

• Answer:

  The answer really depends on what you are planning to do after college. It you are planning to go on to graduate school (or even just thinking about it), the answer is yes. Some employers also look at grades. In other cases, it doesn't matter as much. Some employers are just looking for the paper and don't really care where or how you got it. Grades can definately be stressful, but you are off to a very good start. Push yourself but don't forget that very few people manage a perfect GPA. So, don't beat yourself up over a missed decimal point. If you really are stuggling, talk to the professor. It this doesn't help, look at your university's policy for retaking or dropping classes. I don't advocate dropping classes unless you really have to, but sometimes it's a must. Also, something to remember is that many places differentiate between your overall GPA and your major GPA. What I mean is that they they are less interested in your grades in that Intermediate Basketweaving class and more interested in the GPA of the classes that pertain to what you want to do in the future. Some grad school will actually rescore your GPA to reflect this (i.e. you could end up with a 3.5 overall GPA and a 3.75 GPA in Biology or whatever). This major GPA will be more important to these schools than the general one unless there is a major difference between the two. In this case, it's most important to keep your grades in your major high. Also, people notice upward trends. If, for instance, you don't do that well in your freshman year but manage a great GPA in your junior and senior year--use it to your advantage. If prospective employers don't have a transcript, tell them you were on the honor roll your last two years. As long as it's true and doesn't come off as bragging it may help. Since you were wondering, the average nationwide GPA is right around a 3.0 (I can't remember it exactly) and this is the general bottom line for most graduate schools though they often want higher. Also 3.0 is generally around the GPA required to join honor societies (though it may be a bit higher for some and often is only calculated for the field the society pertains to). At some schools this average GPA is higher or lower than at others due to inflation or deflation. I would think that a 3.5 or so would be considered relatively good by most anyone. The bottom line is that you have 4+ years to build a solid GPA. Doing badly in a class or two won't help but it doesn't necessarily have to kill your chances either. Best of luck.