College students everywhere are looking to get A’s at theend of the semester. Some students become obsessed with theirgrades, thinking that they will never get a good job if theydon’t get the top grades while they’re in school. Whatmany don’t realize is that there are several other qualitiesthat employers look for in a candidate besides good grades.
“Grades are an indication of motivation andachievement,” said Michael Damsky, station manager andgeneral sales manager at WXRT radio in Chicago.
There is no doubt that grades are important; otherwise therewouldn’t be the pressure there is to work for, and many timesobsess over for the 16 or more years one spends as a student. Butmore and more, employers are valuing other qualities in potentialhires.
Damsky has been hiring WXRT radio’s sales and marketingstaff for 21 years. He said that in sales and marketing, experienceand the interview weigh more heavily than grades.
“Grades have become less important in the real world [orat least my part of it] because there are better indicators of howwell prepared a person is for the types of jobs we have, as well asbetter indicators of potential achievement,” Damsky said.”Most important for new hires is the overall resume —where they went to school, major, activities, internships, anyjobs, grades.”
Damsky also said that the interview is extremely importantbecause it shows the candidate’s people skills, which arevery important for a salesperson or someone in marketing tohave.
According to “Job Outlook 2003,” an annual survey ofemployers’ hiring tendencies, internships in one’sdesired field are just as valuable as good grades. The survey,conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers,reveals that strong communication skills are the qualityemployers’ value most. It has topped the list for the lastfive years. Other qualities valuable to employers include honesty,teamwork skills and a strong work ethic. Grade point average ranksseventeenth out of twenty qualities.
Tom McKechney is the C.E.O. of Credentials, Inc., an educationverification company that has contracts with dozens ofuniversities. Employers contact his company to verify anapplicant’s degree or to obtain a copy of theirtranscripts.
“I would say that 95 percent of the time they [employers]just want to check the degree, in order to make the decision tohire or make an offer,” McKechney said. “Certainprofessions, such as medical, dental and legal, put more emphasison your actual transcript,” he said.
McKechney said employers seldom ask his company to provide GPAand other detailed performance measures commonly found on academictranscripts. He said that instead, the “state of theart” for most employers is to verify a claimed degree alongwith the date, major, honors earned and dates of attendance.
Kelly McMillan, manager of transcripts and certifications atSMU, says she finds the same case here at SMU.
“The majority of the degree verifications we receive arejust to inquire if the person did receive a certain degree. We haveonly a few employers asking for a transcript,” she said.
A report done by Jayne J. Feld for The Princeton Review, a guideto help students succeed in college, graduate programs, and getinto the work force, says that a 2.8 GPA in a difficult majorwon’t ruin one’s chances of being successfullyemployed. But in certain professions, such as investment banking,she said a low GPA is a near-impossible barrier to overcome.
Even Dr. Melanie Newbill, a dentist with her own practice, saysthat although grades in dental school most definitely matter, sheplaces the most emphasis on the interview.
Real-world experience paid off for Brad Auerbach, a 2002graduate of Indiana University. He had something many employerscovet — experience. Besides majoring in telecommunicationsand a double minor in political science and business, Auerbach heldsix internships in both radio and television throughout his fouryears in college. He interviewed for two media-related jobs and wasnot asked by either employer for his college grades. He is now anaccount executive for a radio station owned by Infinitybroadcasting where he sells on-air ad space.
“Neither station that I had interviews with even mentionedmy grades or GPA. They were much more impressed with, andinterested in the experiences I’d had in my severalinternships,” Auerbach said. “Even though I had prettygood grades in college, they just aren’t as valuable as rawexperience.”
