Do employers really look at your high school grades before hiring you?

[nrsin4]

On another thread a poster said that hospitals will look at your grades in high school as part of their hiring process. Is that true? This worries me a bit.

A little background...I am 35 years old and married with six kids. I am your typical middle-class, religious stay-at-home-mom. If people I know ever hear about the kind of teenager I was in high school they say "NO WAY...I don't believe it!" I was raised in the same type of home that I have now as an adult. My parents were good, religious parents who taught me right from wrong. However, when I was 15 I decided to choose the "wrong" friends and fell into the "wrong" crowd. I was a rebellious teenager. I smoke, drank, smoked pot, slept with my boyfriends, etc. Most of the kids I hung out with didn't go to school. So...I "decided" that I didn't need to go to school, either. I finished my junior year and then never returned.

At 17 1/2 I got pregnant with my oldest and it changed my entire life. I realized, overnight, that the way I was living my life was not me...it was not how I was raised. I decided that since I was now starting a family of my own that I needed to change my life to follow how I was taught...and knew deep down in my heart how I was really meant to live.

After my dd was born I took my GED test (without taking any of the prep classes) and passed with flying colors. I got a 100% on many of the sections. The testing proctor told me that he couldn't understand why I didn't stay in high school. I told him it was because I had a temporary case of "stupid".

Shortly after getting my GED I married my wonderful husband, he adopted our oldest and we started our big family right away. I have been a mother and wife ever since I was 18 years old.

We are now done having children and our youngest is 3 1/2. Last year I decided that it was a good time for me to start college and follow my dream of becoming a nurse. I started taking my academic pre-req's, working towards my RN. I have a 4.0 GPA in college.

Tomorrow I am starting my second week of the CNA course (at one of the best nursing colleges in my city). I'm loving the class and doing very well (I've gotten 100% on every test/quiz). I decided to get my CNA done now, so that I can work part-time to help with my college tuition costs and to get some hands-on working experience before getting into the RN program. I am taking my academic pre-req's slowly. I know that I personally can't handle school full-time while I have children at home. Five of my six children are currently in school all day. When my youngest goes to all-day kindergarten in two years I will be ready to start school full-time myself (and most likely will take a break from working as a CNA at that time).

OK...after all of that, here's my question! Is my past of being a stupid teenager 20 years ago going to effect my ability to get a good job as a CNA? I'm interested in working in a hospital. I would love to work on the postpartum floor or in the newborn nursery as I'm dreaming of becoming a L&D nurse. Our clinicals for the CNA program are at the hospital I'm hoping to work at.

I'm worried now.

[rancelumsden]

I'm the one who posted it. I have no idea, and cannot generalize, that most hospitals do this. I know for a fact it was true at this institution, primarily when attempting to choose among candidates who were otherwise equal. This is the kind of thing done in every industry. If you have many candidates, especially if right out of school and no experience, you're going to take someone who did better in school than the others if all other factors are equal.

All you can do is try! Go send a resume --- fill out application. See if you get interviewed. There are many factors that go into hiring --- don't let anything stop you from trying to get hired.

[nrsin4]

Thanks for your reply.:) I'm not going to let my teen rebellion keep me from applying for jobs. It's just that time is my life is a big embarrassment for me. Actually, when people ask me what year I graduated I just tell them 1991. I'd like to avoid having to go into a long explanation of why I didn't have good grades my sophmore and junior years and why I don't have a senior year.

I'm hoping that they won't ask about my high school performance since it was so long ago. I hope that my college GPA and grades in the CNA program will speak for my abilities.

On a side note...I just changed my screen name. I didn't realize that I had violated the rules with my original name. Sorry everyone!

[Juliamine]

I dont know how an employer would look at high school grades. I honestly dont know for a fact, but I am almost 31 years old and have had a few jobs in my lifetime and can honestly say I was a rebellious teenager myself who graduated high school with a less than honorable GPA. I do not think your high school past will effect your chances. If you were a youngin who recently graduated and did the couple months of CNA training without a job past, then I think you would worry about it.

[emndarmic]

I agree with Juliamine...

I think someone who was fresh out of high school would be easier to check on than someone out for this many years. People who have any past at all (and we all have some skeletons) understand that nobody's perfect and we all make mistakes. I don't know how they would check on your grades when in fact you have to physically sign a release from the high school to have your transcripts sent to a college (at least I did when returning to college after 15 yrs, I've now been out of school for nearly 19 yrs) so I'm unsure if they could do that anyway without your consent. If they would ask for your consent just say...Yes you may, but I admit I was a rebellious teenager that learned from my mistakes, and learning from my mistakes is what makes me the person I am today, so I ask you to please not judge me based on what I did this many years ago.

Good luck :)

[nrsin4]

Thanks for your replies! I feel better about it and won't worry about it anymore!:)

[casi, ASN, RN]

As a CNA no one has ever asked to see my high school grades. I believe that since I've been out of high school for so long or because I have so many college credits my school didn't even ask for my high school transcripts to apply to nursing school!