<p>You pretty much answered your own question ;).
For all their faults, Asians tend to whine a bit less</p>
<p>^lol yeah but I think most of the Science and Engineering kids on these forums have ancestral or current ethnicities linking to the Asian continent. I mean aren’t Asians classified as a plurality here on Cal? So I guess it’s just stressful if it’s true Asians whine a bit less.</p>
<p>Bottom line: lol it doesn’t effing matter what employers think since in the end no have no control over that. But wait, we do have control over something: the amount of effort we put into our academics (not just studying harder but really more important is studying smarter). And who knows that might correspond to better GPA’s. </p>
<p>Don’t think about the curve even if it exists. Just do your best to answer all the questions out there. Active learning, find harder questions before the midterm online or from friends relating to a topic and effing master that concept/topic. God/LawsOfProbabilityIfURAtheist only knows how much harder real world science/engineering problems will be.</p>
<p>As an asian, there’s no need to whine. We all have 3.7+ GPAs</p>
<p>To answer your question about GPA, school, and prestigious scholarship awards: I can tell you that while there may be a little adjustment for the school, it is the GPA that counts when awarding scholarships (e.g. NSF, Fulbright, etc.). Thus, a 3.8 from Oregon State will most definitely trump a 3.5 from Berkeley.</p>
<p>@fortify, I cannot say this in a nice way, but **** you because I am Asian and I wish I have a 3.7. One lazy semester essentially ruined my overall gpa and I am still in the process of recovering up to 3.5 until next semester so that I am allowed to apply for the fifth year masters program. But yeah, out with the stereotypes because it offends people like me.</p>
<p>I was kidding. My gpa is nowhere near 3.7</p>
<p>You’re right. It’s probably a 4.0. You jerk!</p>
<p>This topic concerns me. A good friend of my D’s at Berkeley is working her tail off, as is my D at Stanford. The math and science classes at both schools are really tough. Meanwhile, their friends with less intellectual capacity (based on SAT’s, high school GPA, high school placement and courses taken, etc.) are getting A’s at the big state school (where D and friend could have gone for free, I might add.) I know D and friend are getting a much better education, but already my D is seeing the problem, since some summer internships she is looking at require a 3.5, 3.6, or 3.8. Her math grades really screwed up her GPA, and so she is ineligible.</p>
<p>[National</a> Trends in Grade Inflation, American Colleges and Universities](<a href=“http://www.gradeinflation.com/]National”>http://www.gradeinflation.com/)</p>
<p>Go to the bottom to get some school specific information. In general, more selective schools tend to have higher grades (Berkeley is no exception). There are, however, a few less selective schools that have relatively high grades (e.g. Wisconsin Green Bay and La Crosse).</p>
<p>Also, Berkeley is a “big state school”.</p>
<p>^but that’s overall and not by major. Average GPA’s vary by major. Anyway honestly maybe one isn’t meant for academia if you can’t attain a super high GPA, no matter what college you go to and I think there might be truth to that. </p>
<p>As for industry I’m sure there are many ways of getting in. If your GPA is low, then go to a not so prestigious grad school and get a kick A gpa and try for industry again if you can’t right out of college due to your GPA.</p>
<p>My posts usually end up killing a thread since my posts are pretty dumb so I hope this post will end this thread since honestly there’s no answer to this thread except either work/study harder and get better grades, or find other ways to supplement your capitalistic value as a human being (aka your resume) with internships/extra cirrics, etc.</p>
<p>Shouldn’t this thread die now?</p>
<p>FROM EECS website:
"A typical GPA for courses in the lower division is 2.7. This GPA would result, for example, from 17% A’s, 50% B’s, 20% C’s, 10% D’s, and 3% F’s. A class whose GPA falls outside the range 2.5 - 2.9 should be considered atypical. (A Typical GPA for basic prerequisite lower division CS courses (CS 40, CS 41) is 2.5, with GPA’s outside the range 2.3 - 2.7 considered atypical.)</p>
<p>A typical GPA for courses in the upper division is 2.9. (This GPA would result, for example, from 23% A’s, 50% B’s, 20% C’s, 5% D’s, and 2% F’s.) A class whose GPA falls outside the range 2.7 - 3.1 should be considered atypical. A typical GPA for basic prerequisite upper division courses (EECS 104A, EECS 105, CS 150, CS 153) is 2.7 with GPA’s outside the range 2.5 - 2.9 considered atypical. "</p>
<p>People really like to quote that policy, but that policy dates from the quarter system (pre-1983) and has not been followed in years (a study in 1999 found that EE and CS grades were higher than that, and grade inflation has increased since then).</p>
<p>I currently attend Berkeley and I’ve seen that policy quoted by professors in CS61C, EE40, and EE122 so far. I can’t verify that it’s being followed exactly, but I don’t think they’d directly quote it if they didn’t plan on following it at least a little to some extent.</p>
<p>“their friends **with less intellectual capacity<a href=“based%20on%20SAT’s,%20high%20school%20GPA,%20high%20school%20placement%20and%20courses%20taken,%20etc.”>/b</a> are getting A’s at the big state school” </p>
<p>uhh ouch.</p>
<p>I haven’t read all of this thread, but one comment that stuck out to me was that the poster “hated every minute” of their first two years of college at Berkley. </p>
<p>Some thoughts:
No one should hate every minute of their college experience.
Actually learning something is more important than GPA.
And college is more than just grades.</p>
<p>That being said, you do have to position yourself for what you want out of life. If medical school is a goal, GPA is important (and so is the school you and they are not all Ivy League or top,top tier. Do some research and choose a school that would be the best fit for you socially, academically - a place where you will feel comfortable and have the support you need to succeed. We learn better if there are resources for us to draw on to help with the learning process (math and science tutoring, clubs, support groups, MCAT tutoring, mentoring, workshops, etc… - ask yourself, “what does this college offer me that will help me achieve my goals outside of the classroom?”)</p>
<p>Does anyone ever graduate with a 4.0 (straight A’s) over all 8 semesters from Berkeley? Has this happened recently in a math/science/engineering/CS major?</p>
<p>I knew someone who graduated in EECS with a 4.0, including a lot of A+ grades. And this was years ago when there was less grade inflation than there is now.</p>
<p>I know someone who graduated with 22 A+ from EECS(and I think he did have 4.0)
but this was few years ago
Professors literally worshipped him</p>
<p>^That is so epic…22 A+'s,</p>
<p>Reminds me of my brother.</p>
<p>I know several people in EECS with 3.8/3.9+ right now. But 4.0 with 22 A+ is crazy…</p>
<p>Very interesting article in the New York Times today:</p>
<p><a href=“Why Science Majors Change Their Minds (It’s Just So Darn Hard) - The New York Times”>Why Science Majors Change Their Minds (It’s Just So Darn Hard) - The New York Times;
<p>'Youd like to think that since these institutions are getting the best students, the students who go there would have the best chances to succeed, he says. But if you take two students who have the same high school grade-point average and SAT scores, and you put one in a highly selective school like Berkeley and the other in a school with lower average scores like Cal State, that Berkeley student is at least 13 percent less likely than the one at Cal State to finish a STEM degree. '</p>