Quote:
Originally Posted by IKE
I have heard of that grades don't matter if you went to a certain school, but I have only heard this referenced to Ivy League and MIT.
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My hiring story (circa 1994): I got my first position out of school at a great company, doing work I enjoyed, mostly because I knew someone (a professor) who knew someone (an earlier graduate of his) who worked for someone (the earlier graduate's boss) who was getting ready to hire a couple of fresh-outs, after several years of hiring freezes. The professor recommended me because a) he knew me, via class contact and engineering related extra-curricular activities and b) believed that I would reflect well on him and the school. I also had good enough grades (around 3.4-ish as an undergrad, and about the same in grad school) to pass the sniff test. There were a couple of rounds of interviews, and they actually offered me my choice of two jobs. My boss eventually told me that the main reason he made me an offer was because I apparently interviewed very well, and exhibited both technical knowledge and self-confidence [blush]. No mention of GPA. Your mileage may vary.
My point is that it isn't necessary to go to an ivy-league or well-known school, or have a perfect GPA to build a career that you really enjoy. Your GPA only has to be good enough not to hold you back. I think for most highly-motivated folks that translates to about a 3.2 GPA today. A fantastic GPA alone won't result in your success after school ends. Active participation in FIRST helps, no question.