Hello! I’ve posted a lot but now it’s my turn to seek advice. Here’s a little recap:
I’m an incoming second year at UCLA majoring in Electrical Engineering. I’m a direct admit so getting into the major is not an issue. First year was very difficult rigor wise but I feel I adjusted well and maintained a good study/life balance. I’m involved on a student payload rocket project as a systems engineer and was recently was asked to join the AIAA chapters Recovery Team as a lead engineer. Work wise I was hired and get paid as a School of Engineering Ambassador and also volunteer as a student mentor.
I worked really hard but unfortunately I did get 1 C but I’m working with the professor to raise it to a C+ since I got a B in a subsequent more intensive class. After finishing freshman year, I am almost done with every single lower Div EE and CS classes including the general math and physics stuff. I’ll be taking upper division EE classes solely starting winter quarter with Advanced Circuit theory and signals and systems just as examples. Overall my GPA is a 3.279 after all the EE CS and Math and physics all grades on bell curves so I wasn’t overloaded on ges and stuff. Is that ok? The major average is a 2.78 so I guess I’m above but what do employers think? My dad is a Program Manager at a Major Defense and Aerospace Company and I’m already on the internal system for internships next summer but what about other places? His idea of a good gpa is also a little skewed saying he likes to see 3.8+ but that’s enough for summa cum laude at ucla engineering. On resumes should I put 3.28 or 3.3?
Any advice is appreciated I just wanna know how I’m doing.
On resumes, put what’s on your transcript. You do not want to seem like you’re dishonestly inflating your grades. 3.3 instead of 3.279 would definitely fall under that umbrella.
" Is that ok? " - It sounds reasonable to me. You’ve been working hard and taking advantage of opportunities to learn outside of class too. Continue with the study habits you’ve formed…and perhaps your GPA will rise over time.
@bodangles Yeah that’s what I assumed. It was a 3.31 but a few Bs at spring quarter dropped me to the high 3.2’s.
@colorado_mom Thanks! I’m hoping as I get to upper division courses it will rise up. It is unfortunate that UCLA normalizes grades in the lower division courses so a 90 does not guarantee you an A.
On a seperate note, how am I faring for grad school? I would prefer to stay in California and I’m also open to attending with tuition assistance from my employer. A 3.5 is needed to get into ucla automatically so that’s obviously the first goal and will take a lot of effort. My friend got into UCI with a 3.1 so maybe it is possible with the right extra curriculars.
What is the actual question here? Is it just about whether to round your GPA? I don’t make hires for industry, never have, and probably never will, so I don’t really know at what level of precision it would be acceptable to round up/down. If I was hiring for my research group, it probably wouldn’t bother me to round to the nearest tenth because I have access to your transcript anyway, but industry hiring is different, so I don’t really know.
@boneh3ad Haha sorry for the vagueness that was a side question. I’m wondering more if my performance freshman year was ok and if I’m on track for getting a job and internships. My CS professor said I’m doing fine but wanted outside perspective from the school. Like am I too low to apply for research?
It’s the end of the first year where you not only had to adjust to the different level of rigor inherent in college coursework, but also the responsibility of living alone and managing your own time. You seem to be doing fine.
Having a C or two is not going to torpedo your career. not by a long shot. I had, if I recall correctly, two Cs as an undergraduate (one in a technical course) and still ended up at a top 10 graduate program afterward. This isn’t high school. Few people just breeze through it all.
Put a 3.27. Standard is 2 decimal places on a resume and you don’t want to go up.
Also, for raising your grade, I wouldn’t count on it. I got a C in my first ChemE class and got a B+ in the next subsequent one and haven’t got anything less than a B since. My advisor, and interviewers/professionals I’ve talked to, says that as long as you pass and your transcript isn’t littered by C’s, they can tell you’ve made progress by higher grades in subsequent classes.
Regarding resume GPA, put it exactly as listed on your transcript, and specify the date of the GPA (in case someone looks at a later transcript with another quarter of grades on it).
I think it’s pretty common to start out with a lower GPA freshman year, and then raise it. That’s what happened to me. Just work hard and you’ll be fine. Agree with the others about listing GPA accurately.
@MaineLonghorn@ucbalumnus@chemeng111 Thanks guys for the advice. I’ll def make sure to use 2 decimal places and a date on it. I’ll be sure to continue to work hard and not slack off over the next few years. In regards to the grade I got a 78.89 in the class which curves down to a C. Would it be unreasonable to ask for a C+? The professor has a history of changing with enough pestering and improvement from the next course.
To your original question…Is that OK? It wouldn’t matter what the number is…it’s going to have to be OK. It’s already in the bank. I’m not a big fan of grade grubbing. Take your C and move on.
All snark aside, it’s not bad, really, despite what your dad might say. If you can improve it, by all means do. Your other experiences have great value though. Jobs that demand 3.8+ are rare and could result in some unintended consequences for the recruiters. They will likely miss out on students who have more rounded experience and miss out on good candidates from schools with grade deflation.
Do a little introspection into whether or not you could have put in more effort or improved your efficiency. If the answer is yes, make those changes going forward.
Good luck and congrats on a solid first year. They don’t call engineering pre-business for no reason at all. It’s a difficult field.
I’m not a big fan of grade grubbing. Take your C and move on.