I am lost and need advice.

College Majors Business Major
1

Hi.

I am feeling quite lost and hopeless when it comes to my post graduation life. Allow me to explain.

I am a sophomore and I have two years left in my college career. I am currently majoring in corporate finance, but I was torn between that and accounting. I really like finance, and I am still learning about accounting, all though it’s okay so far. I was torn between the two majors because, most importantly, I am looking for a well paying job after college. A stable career. Well, with what I’ve learned and been told, it seems like I may very well be struggling after I graduate, and may be a server with a college degree.

You see, my GPA is not great. Accumulative, it’s a 2.8. My business/econ major is a 3.3. I slacked a lot earlier in college, and thankfully I saw the errors in my ways, but possibly too late. My goal is to have a 3.0 accumulative by the time I graduate. I have about 2 years, but I am beginning to feel like it’s not going to be possible. I work to pay for school, so finances are obviously important, or I can’t go to school. I can study and study, but I also have to work, and I’ve never been a great test taker, so I am afraid it will never be a 3.0. Even if I got B’s for the rest of my classes, it would sit at a 2.9. What are the odds of me, or anyone, getting straight A’s in advance finance and accounting classes? Maybe someone who can commit a lot of time to school, or who is naturally talented in academics. Not exactly me.

How this all ties in? Finance is incredibly competitive. I’ve been told things such as I need ATLEAST a 3.5 to get any sort of job. People told me I might be better off switching to accounting because finance is so competitive. I am not looking for a high paying job right out of college, all though that would nice. I am looking for something maybe at 40k a year to start, and I am willing to work my way up if possible. Also, people tell me banks hire all kinds of majors, and mostly everything can be learned through training, making the degree a bit useless. Others tell me statistically speaking, I will end up in insurance sales such as Northwestern Mutual, which also doesn’t need a degree. I get a lot of crap about my major from my accounting and engineer friends, and I just don’t want to major in it and end up selling insurance or not find a job at all.

Okay, so accounting may be the way to go. I kinda like accounting, it’s not a bad career choice, and maybe my GPA doesn’t need to be super high to find any kind of work. Then I talked to some accountants, and I got equally disappointed. Let me state this, I had no real interest in the CPA exam. I don’t have the money to stay in school any longer then what I can afford, so the CPA exam, needing 150 credit hours, might not work out. Apparently, accounting without a CPA is like philosophy without law school. “Good luck fining a job. I guess you could be a book keeper or sales clerk.” Yes, people have actually told me this. Well crap.

What are my options exactly? All I want is a job out of college that pays 40k a year. I’ll even do 30k. I just don’t want all my schooling to be for nothing. As I believe I said before, I am trying my best to join organizations, and I will try my best to get good grades, and I will try to get internships (I’m not sure who would give me a shot with my GPA.), but I can’t help but feel stuck, and I will be that way even after I graduate.

2

My advice is to focus on the major where you enjoy the subject more.
You will likely be more willing to do the work to get the grades, and hopefully
your enthusiasm will come through on interviews too.

3

Thanks, but I can’t help but feel like I need to get lucky to get a good job with finance.

4

I’d go to your schools career placement office and ask for help. They will have an idea of where people with your GPA from your college might find jobs. And you still have time to improve your GPA.

5

Also try to get internships in summer-or even take a semester off and complete one. That is a way to get your foot in the door.

6

A couple of things to mention.

(1) A BA/BS a lot of times is the minimum educational level to be considered for many jobs, so even if you don’t use it directly, (with, say, a job with a bank) it is not useless. And the pay scale is probably higher for degree holders, even if non-degree holders are eligible.

(2) Some finance jobs are super competitive, but not all are. Not all potential employees are going to look so close at your GPA. ESPECIALLY after your first job.

(3) If you go with accounting, you may be able to find a company to pay some of your costs, so a CPA may be more possible than you think.

(4) If you finish solid, and get a degree, you’ll likely get a solid job in the range you mentioned. Financial analyst, business analyst, …, and so on. If you live in a less populated area, you may need to move to get the job, though.

(5) I agree with the other posters, ask around in the placement office, try to get an internship (if it will fit with your current work), and pick the major that you are more passionate about.

(6) And finally, some employers will appreciate that you put yourself through school. You won’t be a corporate n00b on the job, you know the value of a dollar, and so on. They are more likely to look past your GPA. You just need to finish your degree, and stay positive.

Good luck!

7

Can you take classes over the summer, either online or (cheaper!) at a local community college? These grades would add into your GPA and thus would dilute the early bad grades.

A drastic move is to transfer. Your GPA starts from scratch, but you may lose a semester to a year in credits.

Most importantly, an internship (a paid one, preferably) will help you the most in finding a job. :slight_smile:

8

I think the highly competitive finance jobs you are referring to are the high profile/high exposure corporate position in the big name companies like Google, Microsoft, GM, Ford, etc. or evening investment banking firms like Goldman’s Sachs, JP Morgan, etc. Also, getting into public accounting with a Big 4 or next tier firm to work toward a CPA, is also highly competitive.

I think you have a option of first getting some work experience, like in a summer job, and then get into a lower profile medium to small size firm. Some firms value work experience over a high GPA.

9

Honestly, I think you should consider the accounting route. Get some Quickbooks knowledge along the way. Work on passing the CPA exam. You might not get a Big 4 job, but you can have a fine career in accounting without the Big 4 on your resume.

You can also work for a few years, pass the CPA exam, crush the GMAT and go back for a masters in tax or accounting. From there you can get recruited to the Big 4.

It won’t come easy, but you can make it happen if you want to. If done correctly, you have employment security for your entire career. At some point the GPA will no longer matter. It will be eclipsed by the CPA and work experience.

Good luck!

10

arc918 is correct. Also, in the accounting route, if you can work hard and get accepted into a graduate program (MBA, Masters of Accounting or Tax) where the Big 4 or the next tier of accounting firms recruit, that can be a fresh start for you.

11

Intern with a small firm during your vacation and show that you are hard-working. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know!

12

Rather, it’s not just what you know, but also what you’ve done.