<p>Does having distinctions of either 'cum laude', 'magna cum laude', or 'summa cum laude' when you graduate matter for grad school or prospective employers? I know 'summa cum laude' will be extremely difficult to get (usually it's given to 3.9+ GPA) so is it worth pursuing moreso than the other distinctions?</p>
<p>Thanks guys.</p>
<p>Yes, it's very prestigious, but all it pretty much says is you graduated with a high GPA. Some schools also require an essay/thesis to be submitted, I know UF does. I personally aim to graduate at least magna cum laude, really going for summa cum laude. Good luck =)</p>
<p>do you need at least those gpas for your major or can it be your overall?</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure it's based on your ranking in your graduating class... Top 5% for summa, Top 10% for magna and Top 15% for cum.</p>
<p>It may vary by school. At my daughter's school it is not by top % at all but by GPA. (3.90 to 4.00 Summa cum laude
3.80 to 3.89 Magna cum laude 3.70 to 3.79 Cum laude).</p>
<p>And it is not a rounded GPA - 3.6999 does not qualify.</p>
<p>It definitely varies by school. Last time I checked, at mine it's 3.9+ Summa, 3.7+ Magna, 3.5+ Cum laude (with an included % requirement I believe.)</p>
<p>^ Yeah, my school uses that same scale. Usually only a few acquire summa (around 20 or less) so it would be a really difficult goal to reach. I am willing to sacrifice my social life if the distinction looks good for grad school and/or employers.</p>
<p>oh.. my school has different requirements for different programs... like eng is lower, while arts and sciences is higher. etc</p>