Haunted By Low Grades? Here is What You Should Do.If low grades are a sticky spot for you in your job search, there are ways to handle the issue without detracting from who you are as a professional today. Grades, in general terms, are only an issue for those who have recently graduated and are seeking entrance into a professional field. Once you have experience in a field, grades in coursework cease to hold much importance. If you are troubled by low grades, however, you should work around them as much as possible and confront the issue head on only when asked.
Leave GPA Off Your Resume
If your GPA isn't one to be especially proud of, you can leave it off your resume. While this might not be in line with the typical resume of the recent graduate, your experience in other areas, such as jobs held while in school or leadership in organizations might compensate for the missing GPA. If you feel you must include a GPA, calculate the GPA for classes dealing only with your college major and include it was well. You can put your overall GPA under your Major GPA to show that you know your stuff, even if you suffered in your first year of school.
Don't Bring Up Grades
There is no reason to bring up your grades if nobody asks about them. Simply refrain from mentioning them and the rest of your dazzling interview might give the company what it needs to make a decision without even bothering with averages and coursework.
Be Honest if Grades Do Come Up
If the subject of your grades does come up, be honest with your response. If the reason for your grades is one that is not conducive to employment, such as heavy partying, you might rephrase that to say that you neglected your studies to pursue other opportunities on campus, but soon realized that coursework was most important and changed tactics, but not before your GPA was damaged.
When you do mention your grades, give the reason why they were low and then, of course, spin the response in a positive way.
Examples of this include:
"I wish I could tell you why I didn't work my hardest that first year, but that person is so different from who I have become. I'm honestly not sure what was going on in my head four years ago. Fortunately, I can say that today I am hardworking and the grades in my most recent courses reflect this."
"Theory based classes weren't particularly interesting to me, so my grades suffered in my first year of school. When I started practical classes that developed the kinds of skills I need for my career, however, I was much more involved in the coursework and my grades and abilities improved accordingly."
"I had a hard time balancing a full-time job (family responsibilities, etc…) with coursework initially, but as I developed stronger time-management skills, I was better able to handle a tremendous number of responsibilities. This has given me a huge advantage in my chosen career as I'm ready to take on multiple tasks and deadlines to get the job done."
