Questions from a concerned freshman

<p>(1) I'm about to finish the semester and I feel I'm going to get 2 A- (if I'm lucky) and 2 B-. Worst case scenario would be 4 B- (I'm taking four classes). Assuming I kick butt the next 7 semesters, how hard will jobs look at my freshman fall semester? I want to work in the business field and read that they're a stickler when it comes to GPA for fresh out of college undergrads. </p>

<p>(2) What GPA do you think is the cut off for business jobs (i.e. Investment banking, financial analyst, Goldman Sachs, etc)?</p>

<p>(3) I'm torn between majoring in Math or Econ. Which do you think would give me more of the edge? Does what you major in even matter? I had someone from Goldman Sachs tell me that it doesn't matter what your major is, the fact that you have a major (and decent GPA) is what they're looking for. How true is this?</p>

<p>(4) I'm so worried right now. I'm starting to feel overwhelmed because in the back of my mind I'm thinking about the future; working in the business field. And realistically, it can be cut throat for undergrads coming fresh out of college. </p>

<p>(5) Please feel free to add any additional input that goes beyond the scope of the questions I asked. </p>

<p>Thanks CC in advanced. This is really appreciated.</p>

<p>I’ve got some advice…stop worrying about what your grades could be and close the semester strong. Then, come back and ask for advice about the grades you actually got.</p>

<p>1) Work as hard as you can to get those a minuses. Trying to bring your gpa up later would be much harder.
2) for investment banking, generally 3.5+ is considered fine from a target school but you probably want 3.7+ higher for a bank like goldman sachs, expecially from a non target school.
3) Math might be more useful depending on what role you want to go into and a higher gpa from that might be considered better (not certain about that one). But, having any business finance/econ/math major can get you an IB job.
4)don’t worry. it’s good that you know you want to do IB already so you can motivate yourself, prepare, and work for it. you’re at a pretty good advantage in that regard.
5) disclaimer: i’m just a junior in college so keep in mind this is from my perspective and what i’ve gotten to know about the IB industry.</p>

<p>If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed, that’s not going to impact your grades in a good way. My advice would be to go talk to someone on campus who might be able to give you more solid advice than an internet forum. Your career planning office might be able to give you a realistic assessment of how much your GPA will mean. A psychologist on campus might have some suggestions for reducing stress/coping mechanisms/fostering good study habits or advice on how to manage your work load. Your Dean of Students office might be able to hook you up with a tutor in the subjects your falling behind in.</p>