Interview questions on GPA

 

 

The long awaited placement season have finally arrived, and all around you, your batchmates are busy polishing up their CV/resumes, practising job interview questions etc, indulging in hushed whispers about the companies, CTC offered and PPO’s ( pre placement offers) …..

Meanwhile, you are at your wits end. The graduation has come to an end, and you are less than enthusiastic about placements – in fact you dread facing the placement interview panel – all because your Bachelors GPA is less than satisfactory. At this very moment you might be Googling ‘’ how to address my low GPA at placement interview’’ or ‘’I have a very low GPA, will I ever get placed or am I screwed?’’  

Accept it or not, academic background/profile has become increasingly valuable for employers these days. The undergrad GPA acts as a basic filter for many companies. A consistent academic record is actually highly valued by companies , as it shows that you can be depended upon to achieve under stress, and consistently. Which makes most companies have a minimum GPA/% cut off…

So if you are one of the many engineering/BCom/BBA graduates who are worried to death about how address a low gpa during placement interviews read on….

  • Face the ‘’Why Low GPA?’’ Question Headlong : Admit that you have been complacent, have been inefficient at time management and studying regularly. Treat your failure as a learning experience, at the same time if you have had some unforeseen circumstances that resulted in the low GPA like terminal illness of a family member, having to work two jobs for making ends meet, let the interviewers know that.

  • Highlight Extracurriculars or Internships Covered : Did you run the college newspaper? Do you have interesting work experience at volunteer organizations, NGOs? Did you lead a fundraising campaign? If you have done some internships bring it up- even if you think they are unrelated. The recruiters will see that you have some redeeming points and you have what it takes to engineer a grand turn around.

  • Show That You Scored Well in Relevant Papers/Modules : Let’s say, you are a BCom student, with a not so glorious GPA. If say you are applying for a Marketing position – you can always show how you scored well in the Marketing module.

  • Bonus Points if your scores improved through the years : Your overall Grade Point Average might be lousy, but if your individual semester/year scores improved overtime, then employers will see it in a positive light – that you owned up to your failures and concentrated on improving

Having a bad GPA might not mean the end of your professional life. Focus on learning from your mistake and enhancing your resume through relevant internships, projects and you will not have a problem landing your first job.