What is considered a competitive GPA in engineering?

Graduate School
1

<p>What is considered a competitive/strong in GPA engineering to employers? Also, what is considered a competitive/strong GPA to grad school (there may be no difference)?</p>

2

<p>For employers I believe anything from 3.5 to 3.75 will do fine. For grad school for Masters anything above 3.6 and for Phd anything above 3.8. </p>

<p>It is a double standard because I have heard that many employers would rather hire someone with a 3.65 than a perfect 3.99 because they just assume that the 3.99 person was a bookworm and did not have a balanced life during college. And believe me you kinda have to be a bookworm in engineering to maintain something around 3.9 and might have to compromise a lot of your social life. </p>

<p>However, I know a girl who did a varsity sport, travelled around the world and still graduated with a 3.91 in CE. But just try to maintain it in the 3.75 range and you will be fine in both worlds:)</p>

3

<p>

Competitive for what, exactly? There are grad schools that will take anyone with a 2.8+, and employers who will hire you as long as you graduate… because those are places no one wants to go! At the other end of the spectrum, there are grad schools were anything less than a 3.8 is going to need something special to get admitted, and employers that will only take a 3.9… because those are places EVERYONE wants to go!</p>

<p>Short answer: a 3.0 should get you a decent job and a shot a decent grad school. A 3.5 should get you a very good job and a shot at a very good grad school. The better the GPA (all else equal) the better the position you are competitive for.</p>

4

<p>

If these numbers were true, hardly anyone would either get a job or go to grad school! At my alma mater, 3.5 was the 75th percentile, 3.75 ~88th percentile, and 3.85 ~94th percentile. Employment and grad school rates are much better than those numbers would allow!</p>

<p>

Although there will always be some who prejudge, most would prefer the 3.99 candidate so long as the 3.99 candidate comes across as a well-rounded and competent engineer and not Rain Man. The problem with the 3.99 crowd is that many of them chase that 4.00 right out of any social circles and wind up not knowing how to relate to people, something that looks bad in an interview. But this is hardly universal - an old friend of mine graduated with a 3.98 (+/- 0.01) and had no problems choosing her own path (she is now a professor).</p>