THE POWER OF YOUR GRADUATING GRADE

Once my cousin phoned me and was telling me about one of his lecturers that was asking them to pay for marks or they will fail. I gave him my sincere opinion about the matter, “your marks are not free and must be paid for!”  However, I found that there are different ways people pay for marks. That’s why I decided to share with you insight on how to earn any marks you want in school. What I want to share is much and that’s why I divided them into a series I entitled, Paying for Marks in School. This week on Student Groove, I want to help you see the power of your grades; so that you see why it’s very important that you do all you can to pay what you should to get excellent marks.

It’s safe to say that one of the targets of every student in school is to get good grades at the end of every semester and ultimately at the end of their stay in school. A good reason for this is because ones possibility of and time of graduation is hinged on ones grade.

However, there is more to what your graduating grade point exerts on your life after graduationthan its power to make you a graduate. Your grade point to a very large extent determines the outcome of your life after graduation. It can open doors for you or limit you from entering certain open doors.

When you have what is generally referred to as a good grade point, it can open doors for you where it appears none exist. There have been many cases where people are hired not necessarily because there are vacancies for them but because of how impressive their graduating grade point is.

That’s why while you are busy saying that they are not the most intelligent since they crammed their notes to clinch first class, people wants to associate with them and do them good. Make no mistakes about this, I quite understand that the first class graduate may not be the  best mentally and skill wise, but their grade point strongly suggests that they are and that’s why it opens doors for them.

Similarly, there are many jobs you cannot apply for unless you have certain grades. That’s no matter how intelligent you are, if your grade point suggests that you are not intelligent, you won’t be given a chance to compete for certain jobs. The implication is that even though there are job openings suited for your mates and discipline, your grades limit you from applying. In essence, there is an open door before you; but your grades keep you from walking into it.

Contrary to what many people say, your graduating grade is not just paper. It’s a paper that says a lot about the opportunities you can seize and the ones you can’t. Please don’t tell me that your life doesn’t depend on your grades. I know that very well! But to think that your grade doesn’t matter at all is deceiving yourself. Graduate with a pass and apply for Masters Degree programme in your department to show me that your grade doesn’t matter!

I understand that the purpose of education is not acquiring best grades. However, nobody goes to school to make the worst grades. That’s why I admonish you now that you are in school, do your best to make the paper powerful enough to make strong statement for you.

Another power your grade point has is in profiling you and attracting favours for you. Generally, once someone is introduced as first class graduate of so and so University or best graduating student of a particular department/faculty, a certain prestige is conferred on him/her and that gives him/her the opportunity to enter, speak and work where many of his peers won’t.

However, no matter what you know and how much better you are than the First Class graduate who made his First Class with malpractice or sorting lecturers, you may not have as much privilege as he has especially when you appear in places where the key consideration is one’s graduation grade point. Please don’t this twisted: I am not saying that First Class should be made by all means. My emphasis is that it is a good thing to desire and work towards.

One more powerful thing about your grade point is that it’s a message to your parents or sponsors. Sane parents don’t train their children primarily for what they will get. They train them because responsibility demands that and for what the children will become. What they really gain is the joy of seeing their children come home with excellent report card.

Excellent performance makes every parent happy even if they don’t come out jumping up and down to celebrate you. Someone like my Dad in those days won’t celebrate with you but will announce it to all his friends out of excitement. If you have no reason to work to legitimately and legally earn good grades, do it for the sake of your parents/sponsors.

Sterling academic performance has the capacity to heal your parents of the pains of squeezing out from the little they have to ensure you are educated. It can make your father overlook the car he couldn’t buy because of your education. It is the lace, holladies, george, and wrapper that your mother would have loved to wear if not for the sacrifices she is making for your education.

I understand that your parents won’t disown you if you get poor grades. In fact, if you perform poorly, they will turn to motivational speakers and preachers overnight telling you that your grades won’t determine your future. But it is better that they celebrate you than console you.

My point?

Your graduating grade is important and has a great deal of power. While you are in school, please work hard to get a good one! Please don’t just get First Class without learning. Knowledge and first class will be a byproduct of properly learning.

Join me next week on Student Groove as I share with you more insight on paying for your marks.

Meanwhile, if you need help on how to improve your performance in school, get in touch with us for a live or online coaching session that will help you put your time to maximum use. Do well to freely share this post with another person. It may be what someone needs to attain peak performance in his life and work.