How devestating to my future career is a C in my GPA?

[Rocket254]

I have a 4.0 so far but and flew through Diff EQ, Calc 1-3 with no problemo. However, Linear Algebra is kicking my butt. I'm borderline B/C in the class.

If I make this one C and make and make A's and B's the rest of the way, will it hurt me career wise?

I'm a Comp. Engineering major.

 

[Laura1013]

Not in the slightest. Calm down. Take it over again if you feel you need to.

 

[Rocket254]

Well, the drop date was a month ago...

 

[hotcommodity]

Don't feel bad, I got A's in all of my math classes except for Linear Algebra. It's quite different from other required math classes. I received a low B in the course, and I still find myself studying the material, just don't give up.

 

[mathwonk]

high grades in senior year matter most, and real promise as revealed to profs matter even more.
, i had B-,D- as frosh, then D- and flunked out, then returned and got A, then jumped back to honors level, got B+, A- then went up to grad level as senior and got A in grad real analysis, then got into a top grad school with support.

i did not succeed however, and eventually learned that just trying to do well matters more than grades and became very successful. became phd, nsf postdoc, internationally invited speaker, happy grandfather,...

so at some point quit counting scores and start trying to understand the subject. then you will be on the train.

by the way learn to spell devastating.

 

[k3N70n]

Don't make the mistake of taking it again right away. Just leave it for a while. If you still feel like you really need to redo the class redo it after you have a better mathematical background. Then you'll ace it almost effortlessly.

 

[mr_coffee]

You really thought 1 grade would destroy your career?
A high GPA is nice yes, but you don't need a 4.0 to get a good internship/co-op. Its experience and good communication skills that will get you into a good job.

 

[G01]

One low grade won't hurt you. As mathwonk said, time is better spent making sure you understand the material instead of counting scores.

 

[user101]

Dude chill out.

I know many people with Bs/Cs, more than As, and they're still getting internships. While grades play an important role, there are other factors too.

 

[fizziks]

Always remember:

real world work experience > GPAs/transcripts/schoolwork

 

[Ian_Brooks]

Always remember:

real world work experience > GPAs/transcripts/schoolwork

thank God!

I can sleep easy till my thesis is done.

 

[Asphodel]

thank God!

I can sleep easy till my thesis is done.

If only it was quite that simple.

Having a 4.0 makes you too paranoid about grades, though. Worrying too much won't make you smarter, it'll just make you not get enough sleep and have health issues.

 

[GleefulNihilism]

Don't worry about it. I'm getting my Masters in Physics with an Astrophysics specialty next month and my Intro to Physics grade was a C-. Individual grades won't matter in the long run.

(In my defense, the class was at 8 am and I am not a morning person by any definition of the term.)

 

[Rocket254]

If only it was quite that simple.

Having a 4.0 makes you too paranoid about grades, though. Worrying too much won't make you smarter, it'll just make you not get enough sleep and have health issues.

I believe this...

I entered this semester weighing ~180 and fairly built. I'm down to 167 and have lost a ton of definition.

 

[cscott]

If I can get hired at RIM with my 80 GPA and not being in CS/CE, then you're doing fine!

Even with your GPA they're still going to bring you in and see what you're about. Your employer will figure out quickly whether you're smarter or stupider than what you brought in on paper.

 

[cristo]

I wonder why so many students, mainly in the US, ask about "one bad class." Is it put into your heads that you must get the perfect degree or else you will have no chance of getting a job, whatsoever? 4.0 is perfect, right? So, how is getting one grade that drops that from 4.0 going to "devastate your career"? There's really no need to worry about not doing so well in one class. However, if you are worried enough to ask this question, then you could always knuckle down and try to understand the class your having difficulties with and get a good grade.

 

[Asphodel]

Is it put into your heads that you must get the perfect degree or else you will have no chance of getting a job, whatsoever?

Roughly, yes. Although it's not usually put that way, more like "do well or you can't get into [next level] / have no future / are doomed to total failure". You get people freaking out over what *preschool* their kids get into. The focus ends up on that kind of crap and on a series of silver bullet fads rather than making much real progress in our education system.

 

[Benzoate]

If I can get hired at RIM with my 80 GPA and not being in CS/CE, then you're doing fine!

Even with your GPA they're still going to bring you in and see what you're about. Your employer will figure out quickly whether you're smarter or stupider than what you brought in on paper.

I do not know about students in other countries, but I do think a lot of american students focus on which top school to get into , rather than applying to a school that may have their best interests at hurt. Like everything else in the united states, its all about the label. Colleges are no exception. I think in the minds of many american students , the definition of of a "great place for learning" means the college with the highest number of nobel prize candidates , or the school with the highest number of pulitzer prize winning journallists or the school that has the finest research facilities and the highest endowment fund. Sadly many students do not realized that, from the college educations journals I've read, many of the professors are busy with their own research rather than concentrating on teaching and helping the students learn better. I'm not at a small college and but my research university isn't really a "name brand university" and my physics department is very small,as I might imagine for many universities, but luckily for me , most of the time when I need help with a problem, my professors are always their to help me. So I don't mean to imply the notion that big research universities=top universities. In most cases, these brand name universities correlates with high GPA.
I still think students should apply to decent universities, but only if its decent for the student, not usa newsweek or the princeton review. my 2 cents.

I don't know if the same mentality should apply to graduate schools since most of the focus shifts from learnning to research; you may have to apply to a top school for graduate studies if you want
to study general relativity or quantum computer.

 

[leright]

Roughly, yes. Although it's not usually put that way, more like "do well or you can't get into [next level] / have no future / are doomed to total failure". You get people freaking out over what *preschool* their kids get into. The focus ends up on that kind of crap and on a series of silver bullet fads rather than making much real progress in our education system.

Sure, people in the US are somewhat conscientious of their grades, but I don't know anyone that believes their future will be "devastated" because of a C. No offense, but at first I seriously thought the OP was joking.

Your degree is what, ~130 credits? Do you really think getting a C in a 3-4 credit class will devastate your GPA? It might early on when you've earned very little credits, but after you've earned many credits it will become insignificant. Think about your situation rationally and then it won't seem bad at all.

 

[Rocket254]

Ok, that's leads to another question. This is my first semester at my current college. However, I transferred 64 hours in. When applying for a job, I would send them my cumulative GPA, correct? If so, I think I will be ok.

 

[ROLEX4life]

Yeah, a C is no big deal. I have all A's and B's with one D. I got that last Spring in Engineering Mechanics. Ever since I started college in Fall 2006 majoring in Aerospace Engineering, I questioned my decision until halfway through spring quarter I decided to switch to Mathematics. At that point, I stopped caring about that class entirely and ditched a lot and stopped doing homework. I am amazed that I even passed. At first, I was devastated. It was the first D in my life (and hopefully the last) but I realize that one grade won't make or break you and it doesn't bother me anymore. Don't let it bother you either.