<p>I am not saying you shouldn’t challenge. Infact that is the opposite of what I stand for. To note, what I was referring to was your reaction to my opinions. You can think you have more rational opinions than I do, and that is fine, because that is what opinions are: interpretations of what we see and hear about. However, it’s important to keep what meanings you extract from others in the right perspective. By overreacting to what you think I meant, you have made absurd assumptions. Without those assumptions, you wouldn’t see my posts as arrogant the way you did, atleast that’s how it seems to me.</p>
<p>When you’re talking about the NYU girl, of course every situation is different. There’s no need to say that there’s a different solution to everything. Sure there is. But what are we assuming from the situation of that particular student, in context with what we’re discussing here? Simply that a lot of people don’t think enough and research enough and make enough of an effort not to grow up to be a loser. That’s the blunt side of it.</p>
<p>I’m trying to form a basis of what we’re actually arguing about, because you’re picking little things out of my posts that don’t have a significant amount of relevance to what I’m trying to say entirely, so I’m trying to see what your argument really is. Please reply with what you disagree with in my last two posts.</p>
<p>By “getting out into the workforce” and “getting your foot in the door” I mean the following:</p>
<p>GPA is good for getting your resume past the initial screening stage of interviews. That is getting your foot in the door. Once you actually get the interview, GPA is a minor player in the decision at most companies. You get your foot in the door, nail the interview and get the job.</p>
<p>Once you get out into the workforce, there is essentially no use for GPA, just as there is no use for GRE scores or SAT scores or any other outdated measures of your performance. When looking for your second job, it is far more important to have the recommendations of your previous managers and a history of good work and experience. Most if not all companies won’t even ask your GPA if you have already held a full time job for long enough to produce any sort of results, at least in my experience and that of the people I know.</p>
<p>My point is that all of that is something that is useful for anyone to know, whether they have their degree yet or not, and as such, it is perfectly applicable to CollegeConfidential.com regardless of whether the average reader has a degree or not. There was no reason to call anyone out over that issue as you did.</p>
<p>By all means, work for that high GPA. It will certainly help you get your foot in the door at that first job. Someone who has a low GPA gets only a couple offers at less than ideal jobs then has to have a couple of years of experience to make it into a job that is ideal for them. If you have a higher GPA, you are more likely to have more opportunities for that ideal first job. However, like I said, after you get that first job, GPA doesn’t count for anything anymore, and it all comes down to job performance, measurable results and networking.</p>
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<p>If you are looking for a job in a new industry, you are doing one of three things: You may be looking to use the same engineering skills that you used in the previous industry, just with a different focus, such as moving from the auto industry to the aerospace industry but staying in a mechanical engineering role. You may be looking to go into a different direction based on some experience you had at your previous job, such as going directly into management instead of a technical position. Otherwise, you are probably trying to get a job in a totally different role that what you have ever had before.</p>
<p>In the first situation, you won’t need a GPA because you will have had plenty of experience in that field to begin with, even if you were working on cars instead of planes. The technical skills are still the same. In the second situation, you wouldn’t have anything in your schooling that would even apply, so GPA wouldn’t matter and you would be going entirely off of your own experience. The third situation would likely require a whole new degree or set of training, so it doesn’t really apply.</p>
<p>@ Enginox
OMG that totally reminds me of the new scrubs season! That’s awesome though. I am more impressed by you than before! </p>
<p>@Hadsed
“I’m trying to form a basis of what we’re actually arguing about, because you’re picking little things out of my posts that don’t have a significant amount of relevance to what I’m trying to say entirely”
Well then Maine should review his post because he said that Enginox was the person that put the least amount of thought into his posts, but your above comment shows that you haven’t. Everything you say has significance believe it or not. Choose your words carefully.</p>
<p>I guess my problem is that you make way too many generalizations(In my opinion), granted, generalizations ARE important, but to go back to your comment on lawyers, some of them become lawyers to help people and because they love the law, and not all of them fight and claw to get to the top, they fight for justice and for their clients. I think it’s honorable.</p>
<p>You keep doing one thing that is making your arguments faulty: you’re confusing what I hold as an opinion and what I’m trying to convey as fact. If you can argue facts, then that is the challenge you should be taking up. If you’re going to keep ragging on my opinions, then we’re getting nowhere.</p>
<p>I’m not quite sure what you’re arguing anymore. How else can we define a problem if we don’t try to find a general basis in which to argue? That is not the same as generalizing really, unless that fits your definition of generalizing. To me, generalizing is like stereotyping, which is not what I’m doing. Again, I’m providing a foundation for which we can argue upon. That ‘generalization’ is this: most people who end up in crummy positions despite their good performances in university have made some bad decisions. Whether those bad decisions were to do with their major, their financial choices, or what have you, it doesn’t matter because every situation is different.</p>
<p>I know I’ve said this in at least the last three posts I’ve made, yet you’re still avoiding the issue. If you agree, then simply say so. I can’t tell if you’re agreeing or disagreeing or if you’re just nitpicking. If it’s the third, then stop it because nitpickers are just damn annoying. For example, what significance does my comment about lawyers have anything to do with the argument that we were having? And what about your comment on the NYU girl? Yes it depends on more than one thing, but clearly that does not matter because we’re not arguing the other things, we are arguing about her bad decisions and the consequences she’s facing.</p>
<p>These things have no significance, and it’s a bit frustrating to read how you’re avoiding the main topic of argument altogether in order to pick something that hardly has much relevance.</p>
I understand this. I agree with this. This is what you thought Enginox said. This is what you thought I was calling out as being unrelated. This is not what Enginox said. I c/p’ed what he actually said. You read what I c/p’ed. He did not say what you thought he said. His comment was irrelevant. That was the point. </p>
<p>On another note, about GPA getting your foot in the door: consider medical school. Exact same concept (work with me here, I know, med school is an orange), GPA + MCAT (+ EC’s) gets your foot in the door. After that, it all comes down to your interview. Does that mean you can belittle the GPA? Heck no! You better HOPE you have a high GPA, otherwise you’re screwed! Yes, it may “only” get you in the door of medical school, but that’s a HUGE step - very crucial.</p>
<p>Those sorts of things aren’t always measurable. The best thing to do is to work as hard as you can on the things you can control, rather than worrying about things that are not so easy to control.</p>
<p>I still think GPA is not that important in the real world. If I was 10 years younger (and I’m young!) I’d say GPA is everything but after some experience in the working world, I’ve seen my fair share of people that get jobs (even certain technical jobs) thanks to their experience and connections.</p>
<p>That’s the reason internships are so important for young engineers and other young professionals. Nowadays, employers expect hires to be trained and internships are the best way to get that early experience. If I had to put my money on who would get a job, I’d put my money on the person with a 3.3 GPA and 3 internships over the person with a 4.0 and no internships.</p>
<p>Does GPA help you get one foot in the door? Yes, no doubt. Will experience trump GPA most of the time? You bet. Take a look at some job sites, filter for entry level, and see which ones mention GPA (hint: the high level finance jobs will).</p>
<p>How is anyone not smart enough for engineering? I could see it not being someone’s cup of tea but saying you or someone isnt smart enough/isn’t cut out for it is just degrading in my opinion.</p>