HELP - What to do about my 2.9 GPA???

[finishit]

I've been doing DSSTs, Cleps, and ECEs, which obviously haven't brought my GPA up to a 3.0, I'm at a 2.9 GPA with only one Clep left, which I'm eager to take tomorrow.

1) There are no seminars that fits into my degree requirements being offered at this time, and a one credit course I could register for next semester costs roughly $700.
2) I'm not motivated to take any in-class course! Much less pay hundreds of dollars for it!
3) I'm burnt out and just want to Clep this last class and graduate already.

BUT, of course, my academic advisor is pressuring me to take an in-class course, if only 1 credit seminar, to pull my GPA up the 3.0. She said that in the future if I want to apply for Grad school or apply for a job and they request college transcripts, my 2.9 GPA could hurt me. Seriously???:confused:

What do you guys think, does she have a valid point in that my 2.9 GPA could hinder my future educational/career goals?

At this point in my career, I have no desire to go to Grad school and already have job offers on the table that don't require transcripts and/or information on my GPA.

[Tog]

Can you take an online class? It might be a reasonable compromise.

I wouldn't worry about employers. Unless you just graduated and you are getting your first job, it rarely matters. The exception might be internships, work-study programs, law firms or analyst positions at Goldman Sach's.

On the other hand, you can probably rule-out any reputable grad school with a 2.9. To be honest, you'd probably need at a 3.5 to get into most programs.

[alleycat]

I have a question for you, what school do you attend? Is it one of the Big Three? Well recently I have seen two people that applied for jobs have to have a 3.0 or above to get the position. Never mind just having a degree you need a 3.0. If your GPA is hurt by a class that you have taken and have not received a really great grade the easiest solution is to just retake the class with the bad grade and depending on your school policy the grade is replaced with the new and improved grade from you retaking the course. It is an easier solution then taking a new class.

This is completely up to you and what you want to do with your situation. It is hard when you get to the end and you do not have alot left to give. If you do go to grad school that GPA will more then likely be the one that employers will look at.

[SRT12]

they want your money!!

[Tog]

I doubt that this is about money. Honestly, the advisor is giving pretty reasonable advice. However, I can understand the desire to get it over with.

Maybe you can take an easy "fun" class that you would actually enjoy to pad out your GPA a bit?

[cookderosa]

I've been doing DSSTs, Cleps, and ECEs, which obviously haven't brought my GPA up to a 3.0, I'm at a 2.9 GPA with only one Clep left, which I'm eager to take tomorrow.

1) There are no seminars that fits into my degree requirements being offered at this time, and a one credit course I could register for next semester costs roughly $700.
2) I'm not motivated to take any in-class course! Much less pay hundreds of dollars for it!
3) I'm burnt out and just want to Clep this last class and graduate already.

BUT, of course, my academic advisor is pressuring me to take an in-class course, if only 1 credit seminar, to pull my GPA up the 3.0. She said that in the future if I want to apply for Grad school or apply for a job and they request college transcripts, my 2.9 GPA could hurt me. Seriously???:confused:

What do you guys think, does she have a valid point in that my 2.9 GPA could hinder my future educational/career goals?

At this point in my career, I have no desire to go to Grad school and already have job offers on the table that don't require transcripts and/or information on my GPA.

I'm of the opinion that 2.9 and 3.0 are essentially the same thing, HOWEVER, it's like selling something for 99 cents...do people really think it's less than a dollar? Maybe. So- it's a legitimate concern. Additionally, never close doors when it's just as easy to keep them open, but always weight the work/time/money involved. This might be too expensive and it might not even work.

First off, I doubt a 1 credit class is enough to raise your GPA, but I could be wrong- I would need to know:

1. how many GRADED CREDITS do you have?
2. how many CLEP/NON-GRADED CREDITS do you have?
3. how many credits will you graduate with?


Going on major assumptions here, but here's a basic calculation. Assuming you are not at the big 3, which assumes you likely max out at 15 CLEP, which assumes you are within 1 semester of graduation, which assumes your CLEP meets the final credit requirement ---> so I'm using the rounded numbers 15 credits of CLEP and 100 credits at 2.90 GPA but I can't see you breaking 3.0 without taking a minimum 3 credit course at an A (not A-)

So....what happens if you can't pull off a solid A? Then you'll have a solid 2.9 anyway. Also, if you have more than 100 graded credits, it's going to take more than 3 credits, possibly as many as 6.

What does your school charge, can you rock this out in summer school or is it too late? Do you have financial aid grants or would you have to borrow the money?

Re grad school: there are SO MANY open enrollment options that you can absolutely 100% cross that off your concerns list PERIOD.
Re employers wanting a certain GPA: depends on your industry. I'd say the industries that do (education) can be counted on 1 hand, the other 99% of the world doesn't give a rat's a$$.

For me, if it didn't delay my graduation date AND it wouldn't require me going in debt, I'd be all over raising it into 3.0 just because I have the kind of personality that wouldn't like sitting on the line. If it doesn't bother you- then it doesn't bother you.

Good luck deciding!!

[finishit]

Thanks for all the feedback! What happened was I got a C in my last in-class course, programming II, which brought me down to a 2.9. Honestly, it does bother me, there were unforeseen issues that came up at that time and I could do little to change it, I'm lucky I got the grade. I'm with UMUC, and if I wanted to go to grad school I would most likely go back to UMUC, but way in the future. I need four credits to graduate, which is why I'm taking SS&H to satisfy that. Or the other option would be if I don't pass this Clep, I'd have to take two more DSSTs. I work in IT as a systems analyst, and so far there has never been an instance where I've been asked to show my GPA. I'm pissed that I've come so far and now I would have to pay $1000-1400 for in-class courses to raise me to 3.0 and graduate later...is it really worth it in the end?

[ryoder]

My 2 cents is that the risk may outweigh the reward in this case.
Yes grad schools compare based on GPA but I have seen a lot of admission processes where they weight GMAT/GRE, years of experience in the industry, GPA etc and come up with some sort of score to compare you on.

It is not easy to raise a low GPA. Especially if you have a whole lot of courses with grades already.

You can pick up the phone and call the grad program you are interested in and ask the admissions advisor. Sometimes this advisor is the department head. In the case of FSU's MIS masters, the person deciding if you get into the program is the top dog in the program which is really nice.