<p>Has anyone ever seen this happen? I just worried that, while I may be a decent student, I may end up being a horrible employee. While there is a correlation between GPA and productivity, I have a feeling I might be the exception to the trend.</p>
<p>At the moment I'm studying at a JSU, and I feel like we're being spoon fed in some of our classes. While my grades appreciate it, I still need to put in a good amount of time in some subjects, doing the HW and studying, maybe too much time. There are two guys going there just because they're working and it's close to where they work. These two intelligent guys rarely have to open the book or look at their notes, never need to ask questions, and are always the first done with the test, usually in half the time I take to complete the test. Like I said, this is just a JSU, I can't imagine how many of these kids would be about if I were in a legitimate school. I mean, people tell me I shouldn't compare myself to others, but I'm competing against these types for a job, so I don't see why I shouldn't.</p>
<p>I would just hate to think that I could spend all this time in school and still not get hired to work in this field.</p>
<p>You should look into doing co-ops or internships during your undergrad yrs; the work experience you gain may move you up in in the eyes of future employers, in comparison to students who lack any work experience. And often employers will hire from the pool of students who do co-ops and internships with them.</p>
<p>Yes, I have seen good/great students who ended up being horrible employees. I’ve also seen bad students end up being good employees. A good company is going to make it so that you can succeed. They’re not going to expect you to start a new job and be an expert from day one. Instead, they should train you on whatever you need to learn while also giving you tasks that you can successfully accomplish, probably with some help in the beginning. They are not going to want to see you fail.</p>
<p>That being said, some people just can’t make it in the workforce. I’ve heard of people who were fired from there jobs after a short period because they could not adapt. However, I feel that there could possibly be some other contributing factors such as the employee finding the work extremely boring, a poor work environment, misrepresentation of what the job is actually like, etc. So, there is a chance that you could fail but realistically you’ll probably be fine.</p>
<p>Hard work carries you pretty far.</p>
<p>If you are doing reasonably well in your classes and are working hard, you’ll do fine in the real world. Others might do better, but you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>The internship thing is really important however.</p>
<p>For me, the real world was a hard transition. It took me too long to realize that I would NOT be spoon fed. I was given challenging assigments and let loose, with very little supervision. I finally learned that I did NOT know much, even after getting a BS and MS. It was up to me to research, make phone calls, and work my butt off. I remember asking an experienced engineer how long it would take before I felt like I knew what I was doing, and he said, “Oh, about five years, minimum.” He was right! So be patient, and prepared to keep learning every day. At least you have the internet now to help you find contacts and information!</p>
<p>I agree with the 5 years thing. At the end of the day being a productive and effective employee encompasses many different things. Many of those skills are not the same as being an effective student.</p>