How Important Should the GPA Be In Hiring?
When interviewing for many (if not most) jobs, employers should arguably focus less on a candidate’s “GPA” (grade point average) than on other factors – factors which often present themselves loud and clear in pre-recorded interviews.
The number one factor for many jobs is communication skills, meaning the ability to express oneself concisely and compellingly (and ideally minus “you knows,” “likes” and “ums”). Communication and writing skills seem to be what employers need most and what candidates lack most. Even in pre-rehearsed recorded interviews, these skills either shine through or they don’t.
A second non-GPA factor that should be at the top of most interviewers’ lists is solid experience. Ideally, experience should be in a field related (however tangentially) to the job. What could be a better predictor of future success in a particular field than past success in the same field? No matter if the applicant is just out of school; he or she might have acquired experience (not to mention initiative in seeking out that experience) through part-time work, internships, or extra-curricular activities.
Even experience in a totally unrelated field can tell the employer volumes about a candidate’s grit and determination – qualities that are crucial in most employment. After all, in today’s fast-changing environment, success is often less about knowing a particular body of knowledge than about having the dedication to hard work and determination to master and stick with a new job.
So should “GPA’s” be short for “Gone to PAsture”? Of course not. They can still tell interviewers much about an applicant’s dedication – especially if the applicant is a recent graduate. To achieve a high GPA, most students must have shown the determination necessary to put in the hours required to come out on top. But here again, the GPA is just one indicator of hard work and determination. If the student was a leader of an organization, created an organization, worked hard for one (e.g. wrote consistently for the school newspaper with constant deadlines) or somehow effected change and innovation within the confines of campus, that's another good indicator of success – perhaps even more so than the GPA.
It is true that interviewers are more likely to focus on GPAs when interviewing for certain jobs – particularly in the financial sector – such as investment banking and accounting. With competition as fierce as ever, some interviewers will not even consider candidates with GPAs below a 3.0 (or higher in the case of more competitive jobs).
So are these employers right to give so much weight to the all-mighty GPA?
Not according to the employer, Google, which reportedly no longer asks for GPAs (unless the candidate is just 1 or 2 years out of school) on the theory that GPAs simply don’t tell you much.
In short, when judging a candidate in a recorded video interview, look for solid communication skills, determination, and (if possible) experience. Most importantly, keep an eye out for that sparkling diamond in the rough-- and don't be blinded by a less than stellar GPA.—
Ziggeo lets you quickly and easily pre-screen candidates by watching their videos. Candidates simply record short videos of themselves for your own private viewing.