what do marks really mean, anyway?

If my friend has a very BAD GPA (like very very bad) and wants to apply for a work-study position (which requires giving his transcript). Will they be looking at that? Does he have a worst chance at getting the job even if he has tons of work experience? What’s the need for giving the transcript anyways?

???????????????

hey there,

well, the good news is that there’s no mandatory minimum GPA, at least as far as i can tell. in order to be eligible to do work-study for this coming school year, you just need to be registered in a minimum of 2.0 credits in the fall/winter terms. however, if the job posting requires a transcript, then there’s?probably for a reason for that.

as for how relevant work experience will be, without knowing the employers, the job, or what your friend’s work experience is, it’s nearly impossible to tell. like, what if he’s applying for an office?job and he has 10 years’ experience as a hand model? that’s a ton of experience, but it probably won’t help him here. unless the employer has a hand fetish.

yeah, work experience does matter. but i’m not the one employing people, so who am i to say what?exactly is important to them? i’ve been rejected from more positions than you can possibly imagine, so i’m really not an authority on the subject.

regarding the transcript,?allow me to?get just a tad preachy about this. it won’t be too bad, i promise. you’ll live. get over it.

as someone who worked a work-study job (this one) for the past fall and winter terms, i can see the benefit in providing a transcript. it may not seem like it, but working 12 hours every week?is tough. (i know that everyone who works part-time at a tim’s somewhere for 20 hrs/week is probably rolling their eyes at me – i don’t know what to say. i’m sorry. get a work-study job instead?)

depending on your program, 12 hrs/week can nearly double the time you’re at school. it saps your time and energy, and if you don’t have good time management and study skills, you may not be able to handle?that very well.

so, your transcript is a good way for the employer to judge whether you can handle the additional workload without sacrificing quality of work at your job or at school. i know it’s not perfect, but until we figure out a better method of measuring intelligence and work ethic, we’ll just have to roll with it. sorry, dude.

cheers,

aska