Does GPA Matter?

[Nurse McDreamy]

I'm a senior nursing student that is scheduled to graduate in a couple of months (April) with a BSN. I've been looking into GN internships and residencies that I can apply for so that I can start working. What I've been noticing is that some of the hospitals have a minimum GPA that you must have in order to be considered for their internship/residency...

Does GPA really matter??

Will I still be able to land a desirable job in a good learning environment with a sub-par GPA?

When I first entered nursing school last year I was under the impression (maybe I had gotten some bad advice) that now that you are in nursing school GPA doesn't matter, the important thing is that you become an RN.

As a result I've spent most of my time in nursing school trying to understand concepts and not necessarily trying to be anal about making all A's in every class. (It definitely kept my anxiety level at a minimum, unlike some of my classmates :nuke:)

My main concern getting out of school is finding a job at a good hospital that has a excellent learning environment that can help mold me into a good nurse.

[UCI&USFMom]

If a hospital has a minimum GPA for new grads....then I'd say that GPA matters for that hospital, right?

Most of the residencies I applied for required certain GPAs. The job I ended up getting didn't even want to see my transcript, although my GPA was on my resume.

Hospitals wanted to cut down the number of applicants that's why they require the GPA, I am assuming. Cedar Sinai is also requiring a 3.5 GPA minimum.

[ajt575s]

GPA doesn't seem to matter in my area. Though some of the main employers around here asked for transcripts, many of my classmates with lower GPA's got jobs, while many with higher GPA's did not. The more important things are experience working in a hospital, internships, etc., and how you answer the interview questions. The nurse recruiter I talked to told me that GPA is mostly a "tie breaker" kind of thing; if two candidates are very similarly qualified, it may help sway the manager one way or another. I think you should emphasize any internships/work/clinical/volunteer experiences, and you'll be fine.

[Avocadoloveer]

Yea NYU requires over 3.5.

[JeanettePNP, MSN, RN, NP]

I have an excellent GPA and it didn't help me get a job. It did help me get into a very good grad school though. What I know now is that excelling academically isn't going to do much in the working world, and the important thing to do during school is to cultivate connections and experiences that will help you get a job later.

[bradons]

GPA means nothing.

Book smarts does not equal hands on real world smarts.

[Avocadoloveer]

its not just academics but its also your experiences. you need to balance both. of course in the interview, it really up to you on how you present yourself.

[MN-Nurse, ASN, RN]

Does GPA really matter??

Will I still be able to land a desirable job in a good learning environment with a sub-par GPA?

For your first job, GPA *absolutely* matters. Subsequent jobs not so much.

If a nursing student's main concern is finding a job at a good hospital, I would advise doing as well as they possibly can in nursing school.

My 4.0 GPA was one of the major factors that led me to getting a new grad residency position at a good hospital a week after I passed the boards. I know many of my classmates applied for this same position but were not selected for interview.

You certainly can find a desirable job in a good learning environment with a sub-par GPA, but it might take longer than you would like.

I don't claim that getting a 4.0 GPA is the only way to get a good job. However, as long as you are going to be in nursing school, you might as well do the VERY BEST you can.