Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A students are the ones getting into elite colleges, not the C students.

Also, the vast majority of C students are average in everything, both academically and in other areas. One can be an A student and still be risk takers, and leaders.

But, if you want to follow the adage, go right on ahead. Gives my A/B student a better shot at a better college.

Well. “C’s earn degrees,” you know.

Anonymous wrote:A students are the ones getting into elite colleges, not the C students.

Also, the vast majority of C students are average in everything, both academically and in other areas. One can be an A student and still be risk takers, and leaders.

But, if you want to follow the adage, go right on ahead. Gives my A/B student a better shot at a better college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A students are the ones getting into elite colleges, not the C students.

Also, the vast majority of C students are average in everything, both academically and in other areas. One can be an A student and still be risk takers, and leaders.

But, if you want to follow the adage, go right on ahead. Gives my A/B student a better shot at a better college.

I think the OP means in college. Anyone can make A's in high school. Certainly A's and B's.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe a decade after graduation, who knows. But, try getting an internship during college with a 2.9 as a business major.

The kid with the 2.9 GPA who is in the same fraternity or on the same lacrosse team as the CEO was will get the internship over the 4.0 kid every day. The 2.9 kid will also have a large group of friends similarly connected who will prove to be helpful throughout his career.

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Please try your best to be a C student so that you'll be a boss. I can confirm this is 100% true.

Now, just to be clear, this adage clearly doesn't apply in fields like medicine, engineering and, to a large extent, law, all of which are highly GPA-driven. You won't make it into the door of any med school or halfway decent law school if most of your grades aren't A's.

Anonymous wrote:It's been said that the A students work for the B students, the C students run the businesses, and the D students dedicate the buildings.

Now, just to be clear, this adage clearly doesn't apply in fields like medicine, engineering and, to a large extent, law, all of which are highly GPA-driven. You won't make it into the door of any med school or halfway decent law school if most of your grades aren't A's.

But in business majors, I think there's some truth to the C-students-rule-the-world theory. Although exceptions abound, students who get 4.0's tend to be follow-the-rules, color-inside-the-lines types who spend college with their nose in a book, refusing to take risks or buck the system. These traits are invaluable to a surgeon or an airline pilot, but in the business world, they often lead to becoming a yes-man who never rises above middle management as opposed to a trailblazer who runs the show.

Another problem with A students is that many of them have been told their whole lives by well-meaning parents and teachers that grades are king and as long as they keep those up, doors will open for them. Again, that's true if your dream is to be a doctor, but for business-minded students, prioritizing grades over socializing and networking can set you on a path to mediocrity. Take two business majors, a 4.0 library shut-in and a 2.9 fraternity president and intramural team captain, and check on them a decade after graduation. My money is on the frat god having the more successful career.

So, what are everyone's thoughts? Is it possible we push kids to focus too much on grades, especially in fields where making top grades often comes at the expense of what actually matters for success?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's been said that the A students work for the B students, the C students run the businesses, and the D students dedicate the buildings.

Now, just to be clear, this adage clearly doesn't apply in fields like medicine, engineering and, to a large extent, law, all of which are highly GPA-driven. You won't make it into the door of any med school or halfway decent law school if most of your grades aren't A's.

But in business majors, I think there's some truth to the C-students-rule-the-world theory. Although exceptions abound, students who get 4.0's tend to be follow-the-rules, color-inside-the-lines types who spend college with their nose in a book, refusing to take risks or buck the system. These traits are invaluable to a surgeon or an airline pilot, but in the business world, they often lead to becoming a yes-man who never rises above middle management as opposed to a trailblazer who runs the show.

Another problem with A students is that many of them have been told their whole lives by well-meaning parents and teachers that grades are king and as long as they keep those up, doors will open for them. Again, that's true if your dream is to be a doctor, but for business-minded students, prioritizing grades over socializing and networking can set you on a path to mediocrity. Take two business majors, a 4.0 library shut-in and a 2.9 fraternity president and intramural team captain, and check on them a decade after graduation. My money is on the frat god having the more successful career.[i]

So, what are everyone's thoughts? Is it possible we push kids to focus too much on grades, especially in fields where making top grades often comes at the expense of what actually matters for success?

You've set up a false dichotomy. The reality is the students who rule the world are the ones who have a 4.0 AND are fraternity president and intramural team captain.
Sure, there may be 4.0 shut-ins, but I don't know many team captains who aren't also good students.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe a decade after graduation, who knows. But, try getting an internship during college with a 2.9 as a business major.

The kid with the 2.9 GPA who is in the same fraternity or on the same lacrosse team as the CEO was will get the internship over the 4.0 kid every day. The 2.9 kid will also have a large group of friends similarly connected who will prove to be helpful throughout his career.

PP. My business kid has somewhere around a 3.3 as a junior at a school in the back end of the T100. Too much fraternity activity during freshman and sophomore years. He has finally buckled down and is getting much better grades this semester, but he is struggling to get an internship. His resume is likely not making it past GPA filters. Sure, his fraternity brothers will be there for him one day, but right now they too are struggling to get internships if they didn't study hard the first two years. Just saying, this is what it looks like on the ground, right now.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe a decade after graduation, who knows. But, try getting an internship during college with a 2.9 as a business major.

The kid with the 2.9 GPA who is in the same fraternity or on the same lacrosse team as the CEO was will get the internship over the 4.0 kid every day. The 2.9 kid will also have a large group of friends similarly connected who will prove to be helpful throughout his career.

Anonymous wrote:Maybe a decade after graduation, who knows. But, try getting an internship during college with a 2.9 as a business major.

Anonymous wrote:It's been said that the A students work for the B students, the C students run the businesses, and the D students dedicate the buildings.

Now, just to be clear, this adage clearly doesn't apply in fields like medicine, engineering and, to a large extent, law, all of which are highly GPA-driven. You won't make it into the door of any med school or halfway decent law school if most of your grades aren't A's.

But in business majors, I think there's some truth to the C-students-rule-the-world theory. Although exceptions abound, students who get 4.0's tend to be follow-the-rules, color-inside-the-lines types who spend college with their nose in a book, refusing to take risks or buck the system. These traits are invaluable to a surgeon or an airline pilot, but in the business world, they often lead to becoming a yes-man who never rises above middle management as opposed to a trailblazer who runs the show.

Another problem with A students is that many of them have been told their whole lives by well-meaning parents and teachers that grades are king and as long as they keep those up, doors will open for them. Again, that's true if your dream is to be a doctor, but for business-minded students, prioritizing grades over socializing and networking can set you on a path to mediocrity. Take two business majors, a 4.0 library shut-in and a 2.9 fraternity president and intramural team captain, and check on them a decade after graduation. My money is on the frat god having the more successful career.[i]

So, what are everyone's thoughts? Is it possible we push kids to focus too much on grades, especially in fields where making top grades often comes at the expense of what actually matters for success?