GPA: Grade Point Average, Good Person Assessment, or Both?

A GPA requirement is necessary when considering a student’s financial aid. I may differ from others because I actually need the financial aid to go to school. My father offered to pay half of my tuition and I have to pay the rest. I have four hundred dollars to my name…That’s enough for about two semesters’ worth of BOOKS!

The Truth of Financial Aid

The incentive to get better grades to keep one’s loans is imperative. If you do not make a solid effort to get the best possible grades you can in school, you should most certainly NOT receive student loans or scholarships. I know people who just never show up to their classes, and I think to myself, “Why are they even here?” Somebody is loaning them money – making an investment in them – and they are not proving to be a good one. Nobody wants to make bad investments. So if the givers of student loans gave to students with, say a 1.0 GPA, the logical course of action would be to cancel the student’s aid since said student is not proving to be a successful investment (assuming a successful investment in terms of student loans as a successful graduate who contributes something to society.)

The Problem of Emotions

One against imposing a minimum GPA for student loans might argue that some students may have difficulty making new friends and finding their place at college. These psychological difficulties would have serious academic repercussions. Thus, one could conclude that a more considerate means of determining a student’s eligibility for financial aid should be developed.

A clear objection to this argument would be that a standard GPA for many academic programs and loans is a 2.0. A 2.0 translates to a C average. Grades at college however are generally professor-inflated based on a student’s intrinsic qualities. If a professor knows you well and likes you, it is very doubtful they will fail you or knowingly dispel your eligibility for aid. Due to this, a C in one course, may be equivalent to an F in another course. Therefore, A 2.0 GPA, regardless of emotional factors is a reasonable standard for a student who makes a shred of effort. A student would really need to not show up, or irreparably neglect their work to get below a 2.0.

The Truth of College

Speaking from experience, nobody can go to college prepared. Whether they aren’t prepared for the academic or the social aspects of college; nobody is truly prepared for college. College is a learning experience not just inside the classroom, but inside the student as well. If you don’t belong in college, you don’t deserve the student loans. Who belongs and who doesn’t is SHOWN by a student’s GPA. Since the Professors are grading you as a professional, as well as your work, it is difficult to fail out of college. If college is not for you, your GPA will indicate it.


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