Grades vs People in University: Two Games Played at Once

There are always two games being played at once: the one that decides who gets the trophy and the one that really matters

Disclosure

This blog may be misinterpreted. The content is limited to the context of employment and professional growth and does not factor in desires and quality of life. These are opinions from the author's experience and biases.

The Game for the Trophy

We enter the university for higher education, as required by some jobs we want or driven by our personal interest. Some jobs say we require a graduate with this degree, with that GPA, hopefully with honors. Some are lax, and some are stricter. But we can agree that the overarching end goal of attending university is that you can graduate to be somewhat employable.

Throughout the years, we strive to attend classes, coursework, and achieve high grades. Join relevant clubs aligned with your study, attend countless learning events in-person and online to get ahead in the industry, and compete in competitions.

We attend classes with fellow students ranging from "The Big Brain Einstein of My Study" to "How did this guy ever think of going to university?" We connect them, hopefully have the same interests, become somewhat close, they become your friends, have inside jokes, and hang out with each other nearly every day. This is normal, everyday student life. Hopefully, with your new friends, you perform well academically, and not get lost in vices ot maybe just a little.

Now near graduation, you have completed all coursework, passed all classes with flying colors, gotten high grades, gotten certifications, won some competitions, and gotten into the honors role. "Amazing", you thought to yourself, "I'm on track to get a good job." So, too as I thought.

The Game that Matters

The truth of the matter is that it matters less than most students expect.

• Have high grades? So do most of your classmates
• Achieved course certifications? They have it as well
• In the honors role? Some are in it as well
• Won competitions? Some have as well
• Part of a relevant club? It's very common
• Attended countless learning events? It will become common knowledge in a few months
• Have hundreds of people in your network? Can you rely on them when it matters?
• Have a stellar resume? Received any reply to your application?

In my experience, these don't differentiate you from the average and above-average student. As someone who is very competitive and invested years of my life into the grind, I believed it mattered a lot, and I still look back to see if it does.

Assuming that you are competent, so it doesn't seem like a nepo hire, in my field, technology, in the Filipino tech scene, what matters is not academic performance, BUT PEOPLE.

• Did you network with your professors and get recommendations or even referrals for work?
• Did you connect with speakers and organizers after learning events?
  • To introduce yourself and inquire about open positions in their company
  • To have speaking opportunities?
• Do your friends have the same burning drive to succeed as you? The saying is "tell me who your friends are, and I'll tell you who you are", right?
• Did you make your network weighty so that they follow through if you ask for an introduction or trust you in case of a collaboration?
• Did you take advantage of the spotlight after winning a competition to get noticed by key people, particularly experts and recruiters?
• Do you have an initiative that brings key people together? This is near the epitome of networking.

I started grinding ever since the first year of university, got extremely confident that I'll get a job in no time, and when push came to shove, that I needed one, I failed and got rejected so many times.

I admit I haven't done everything in the things I listed, and acknowledge that it's not exhaustive. It's only now that I relatively realize the saying "Your network is your net worth" and "Deals are made behind closed doors."

This is an empirical food for thought for early-year university students. Grades are not the end-all-be-all of career success. Some might require it, like in medicine or graduate studies. But in technology, it's people over grades.

Author's Notes

Near the end of writing this, I realized this is near the heated Filipino discussion of "Diploma o Diskarte", with diskarte meaning strategy or resourcefulness. This is a rabbit hole on its own that I didn't expect to touch.

I discussed this with a friend who's above me in literature and business, and he said you need both to get to the highest level. Vague on what the highest level is, as we are all in different industries. We can all assign different weights to Diploma or Diskarte, preferring one over the other, but I believe almost nobody would disagree that we need both.