<p>The year has ended. Some of you or your friends have graduated. Most grades have been posted (for the sciences, at least). And Im worried if choosing to come to Berkeley will be worth it in the end. My GPA for Spring 10 is not awesomeit averages out to 3.0 flat: A-, B, C+ (all science/engineering courses). Nice descending pattern. Damn, I couldnt believe it when I saw that C+. Did I really mess up that badly on the final? Ugh. A far cry from the A's I received my first semester. </p>
<p>Or, will someone slam me into reality and tell me that Id better step up my game if I want to stay in engineering and eventually make a living off of it? Are students who are average by Berkeley's standards overshadowed by those who earn better GPA's at "lesser" UC's or state universities? </p>
<p>I guess I could always work for the army like what my older brother is doing after he graduates from UCLA chemical engineering this June.</p>
<p>In general, GPA isn’t a huge factor if you want a job immediately after graduation. 3.0 is the cutoff that many employers use, so if you can keep that up and also get some work experience before you graduate, you should have as good a shot as anyone. The more selective hiring people sometimes may have slightly higher cutoffs, like 3.2 or 3.5. Beyond that, however, further increases in GPA tend not to help very much with regards to employment. With that said, you’ll probably have to step up your game anyway–chem eng is quite a bit of work in the upper division classes (and more challenging than the lower division prerequisites), and certainly ranks up there with EECS as the major having the most course requirements.</p>
<p>ps, those average gpa numbers are a bit distorted since they weigh in all ChE electives (170A/B, 176, 178, 179), which tend to assign higher grades, in addition to the required courses, which tend to assign lower grades. Realistically, no one takes all the electives, so the average student probably has a lower GPA across his/her ChE courses. Those avg ChE GPA numbers also do not account for the out-of-major classes that we are required to take (EE 100, E45, etc.); they only report averages in department classes.</p>
<p>When you’re surrounded by 30,000 other Cal students, it’s easy to forget how much having a degree from somewhere like Berkeley sets you apart from the masses.</p>
<p>You are the competition that most other job applicants are afraid of. Remember that when you interview.</p>
<p>Yo, I can’t really answer any of your questions icesplendor as I’m an incoming freshman, but I’ve been unintentionally tracking your posts(as I read topics in these berkland forums), and sorry to hear you’ve had a rough second semester.</p>
<p>You got all A’s 1st sem, so that was great, but yeah…try doing what you did last sem in the future?? Or just commit to studying extra during finals time.</p>
<p>May I ask what classes you took during fall sem and spring sem?</p>
<p>OP: The GPA cutoff between a lot of “higher end” jobs and “lower end” jobs is 3.0, period. Cupola makes a very good point and you have to keep that in mind. Some of the best employers out there take GPA very seriously and if you have a 2.9 but a stellar resume they will still just flat out reject you - that’s how the real world works. </p>
<p>But you really have to consider the reality that you just may not be cut for your current major. A C+ not only looks bad, but it also says something about your abilities. You might fit better with a social science major - something that’s in between hard science and pure liberal arts, but you just didn’t realize it. College is not just about the studying and partying, but it is also a place where you can grow individually; and that means knowing the limits on your abilities. </p>
<p>Or you could think that I am just BS’ing and decide to continue bumping your head on the wall and end up barely graduating with a mediocre GPA and see the hopes of getting into a top grad school vanish before your own eyes, or even worse, end up getting dismissed from the college due to bad grades… </p>
<p>Anyways, it’s your call, but if I were you, I would take at most one more semester to try it out again - because it might just be your study habits that needs work. But if you still see another dreaded C on your transcript next semester on your core classes, you really should consider switching majors or college. </p>
<p>jonnosferatu > you haven’t been to a career fair recently, have you? 'coz it doesn’t sound like you did. oh well, you can always try and take a 2.X gpa and apply for a decent job out there in today’s economy - let’s see how you stack up with others applying for the same job from bigdogs such as MIT, CALTECH, etc…</p>
<p>calbear2012 > most of the big name companies hiring in decent paying positions will ask you for your transcripts. Graduating from Cal is one thing, competing in the real world is another. Sometimes the big companies don’t just hire from Cal but also top schools around the nation. In today’s economy, you really have to stand out to get a “good” job - grades, resume, research experience, language skills, etc.</p>
<p>Sure, If you want to go after google than you better not be carrying anything below a A-, but the OP is not looking for google or microsoft, he is looking for a “decent” job and I think Cs heck even sprinkle some Ds are okay especially for an engineering. Sure he might not not be payed the big bucks, but I assure you a degree from Cal with faults in some hard classes will not banish him from any decent engineering job.</p>
<p>calbear2012 > It really boils down to what defines a “decent” engineering job then. Seriously, after all the crap Berkeley engineering threw at you guys, don’t you guys want a job that pays well (enough for you to pay back loans fast) and has decent security? I know I would and that’s what I told myself when I was looking for a job. Of course, my major would never pay as well as an engineer but I ended up with a “decent” job, but that’s another story. </p>
<p>I would highly suggest that sophomores start going to job fairs next fall when you start upper divs because the real world is a lot different than in school. What I noticed was that the competition is MUCH stiffer in the current economy PLUS there was much less offerings. As a big school, Cal cranks out quite some number of grads, and guess what? A position with a GPA cutoff that usually pays 50%+ more than one that doesn’t usually have not only undergrads going for it but also master and PHD students from the same school. My friend who was an ME grad told me that when he applied for the job, there were preliminary testing and interviews… against other people from top engineering schools around the country. </p>
<p>He ended up not getting the job because he didn’t pass the testing phase, and he got a job that pays about 57k a year now. (The average I guess?) But compared to the 82K/yr job he was going for, I think that’s a huge drop… Personally I think his job is “decent”, but the point I am making is that jobs with GPA cutoffs are often lucrative, and the big companies really are looking for “elites” for these jobs. </p>
<p>The lesson here - don’t party too much and let your GPA slip, 'coz it’ll cost ya down the road.</p>
<p>The sad aspect of Berkeley chemical engineering, since you mentioned it, is that, frankly, it doesn’t pay you much more than does a chemical engineering degree from the average school, particularly when you factor in the highest living cost of the Bay Area, where most Berkeley ChemE’s tend to stay. In fact, a Berkeley ChemE degree, despite coming from one of the highest ranked departments in the world, can sometimes actually pay you less than the average.</p>
<p>For example, in 2008 (the latest year for which Berkeley has data), the average reported Berkeley ChemE made $63,343. That’s actually lower than the $63,749 salary reported by the average chemical engineering graduate in 2008. That’s right, lower. Berkeley ChemE’s end up making less. </p>
<p>Thanks for those of you who relieved some of my worry. Are there any personal stories floating around? </p>
<p>By the way, I’m a girl. </p>
<p>For Sagert—</p>
<p>Fall. 15 units.
Chem 4A
Math 53
NucE 39A
ChemE C96 (P/NP)
Integrative Biology 35AC (P/NP…that was a mistake because I’m pretty sure I got an A in it. -__- )
Materials Science and Engineering 24 (P/NP)</p>
<p>Spring. 17 units.
Chem 4B
Engineering 7
Physics 7B
Psych 2 (P/NP)
UGIS 192D (P/NP: mechE/bioE research via URAP)</p>
<p>Hmmm…should I go grade crazy…sigh. I hate that mindset…The A’s I received were from classes I enjoyed. I hope that I’ll enjoy all my classes and professors from now on…</p>
<p>@stressedBear
Thanks…for your advice. Though you introduced a few extraneous suggestions that I wasn’t asking for. I’m not switching out of engineering. I’d sooner switch universities than do that. </p>
<p>Honestly, I’m happy with the decent job that pays 50K+ starting salary. That’s what I expected all along. It’s not like I need to fuel some crazy money-hungry ambition. I won’t have significant loans after I graduate since I’m on financial aid. Furthermore, I’m out to make a living, not to become rich. I’m Asian; I live ridiculously frugally. I won’t be terribly upset if I make a little less…there’s only so much money can buy. And I can always work my way up once I’m employed. And…I can marry an engineer and double our income. Yeah. </p>
<p>The C+ was in Physics 7B. I know the mistakes I made…more mathematical than physical. Dumb. Unfortunately, sometimes more points are rewarded for the math rather than the physical concept. I don’t know WHY, but one mistake I know I made on the final–instead of taking the integral of something, I simply multiplied two things together. Wasn’t thinking straight. That problem being 15% of an exam worth 35% of my grade means that single problem was worth more than 5% of my final mark. Sigh.
An unfortunate combination of a professor who only went over theories and not problem-solving and a timid, unenthusiastic GSI could have been a factor to my poor mark. But on the other hand, I should have been able to overcome those obstacles if I had dedicated more time to teaching myself the material and practicing problem-solving more. Of course here I could insert excuses to why I didn’t have the time for that.
Small useless rant.</p>
<p>@OP: Life is what you make of it and ultimately you will have to live with the decisions you make - so just think twice before you make any big decisions. And keep in mind, don’t let over confidence blind your judgment, it’s a far too common mistake made by Cal students (a.k.a. overachievers). </p>
<p>Here’s my “rant”:</p>
<p>GPA doesn’t define you as a person, but it opens more doors. It won’t matter a thing once you have landed your job/got into top school, but before that, it’s THE stepping stone.</p>
<p>The same thing with alcohol and drug usage - you can enjoy it all you want in school, but if you let it take over you, doors will be shut. You can smoke weed and drink until you picture yourself having “fun” with hollywood stars everyday, but just keep in mind that some jobs out there requires a drug test.</p>
<p>Money isn’t everything, but for the same amount of work you do, you will always want to get paid better. It’s human nature.</p>
<p>If you marry someone and he makes decent bank like you will, your income will not be doubled. There is the marriage trap-- where essentially both of you guys will have to give a significant portion of your incomes for taxes.</p>
<p>Anyways, being able to juggle Chem 4B, Engineering 7, and Physics 7B is a pretty impressive feat. Engineering 7 is a course where Math 54 is recommended to be taken beforehand, so yea, quite an achievement. By creating this thread, you’ve shown that you’re quite proactive in bringing about a change in your grades(or back to the A trend in 1st sem). I’m positive you’ll do better next sem…just watch out for that higherdiv o-chem!</p>