Question for those who know PhD Job market

Graduate School
1

<p>Hi guys, I just joined and have a burning question.</p>

<p>I am a third year student in a reputable PhD program in a humanities field. This semester is my last semester of coursework and I'll be writing my dissertation soon.</p>

<p>I have one big concern, namely my graduate school GPA. I received three B+'s as a first year grad student, when I had no motivation and didn't think getting straight A's was important. Some professors warned me thereafter that this will cost me dearly when I go out into the job market, which made me panick and start worrying about grades.</p>

<p>So to summarize, here are my grades from coursework so far:
Semester 1: A, A, B+, B+
Semester 2: A, A, A, B+
Semester 3: A, A, A
Semester 4: A, A, A
Semester 5: (in progress: probably A, A, A)</p>

<p>One good thing is that none of the B+ courses are not with my committee members: I received A's in all of them. My committee has a high opinion of my performance.</p>

<p>On the one hand, I heard that grades don't matter after undergrad; on the other hand, I've heard horror stories that even one A- could raise someone's eyebrow. Do you think my B+'s will seriously hurt me when I go out into the job market?</p>

<p>I welcome opinions from everyone, but I would especially like to hear from "Professor X." Thank you very much!</p>

2

<p>If your grades hurt you at all on the market (and there is a chance that they might), their significance will disappear altogether after you secure your first FT position.</p>

<p>Your letters should lessen their impact, however.</p>

3

<p>This has got to be field specific. In the biomedical sciences, people seem to disdain having to take classes and only first years do. We were also warned by our instructor that it would be better to do poorly in his class and spend more time in our rotations.</p>

4

<p>They say that in the biomedical field, but that is not always the case. They are an important factor for grad student and post doc fellowships. I really hope that they are not important for your 1st grants and faculty positions.</p>