Question for hirers please

triplea

Wondering if theres anyone who wants to voice opinions here?

Ive been in IT really since 1997 having held several different roles mainly system admin. Now I looking to change jobs again and one of the things they ask is about school grades ( keep in mind that I left in 1988 at 16 and Im now 45 )

I didn't do great at school to be honest and my grades were lousy. Do employers ever take these STILL into consideration? I was just going say I took them but not indicate any grades ( technically true/no idea what they were now ) Was a different person then.

Just interested.

scaredoftests

I have never been asked about my grades. *Not a hirer.

EANx

I follow the state laws for alcohol (21 in the US) when it comes to grades, if it looks like they're under 30 then I ask. If you're getting this frequently then I would assume one of three things:

1) It's a regional thing. Do other people you know in the industry get the same question?
2) It's a presentation thing, perhaps something about your resume or interview is making them wary.
3) It's a position thing. Are these all low-end jobs? They might have a set of questions they ask all candidates for certain jobs and just because you're closer to retirement than graduation doesn't mean they'll stop for you, especially if it's a relatively junior person doing the asking.

triplea

Hi,

Maybe a bit more info.

I think this is a catch all application and its for a UK government job ( Im from the UK ) so maybe they are looking at graduates too and this would be relavent..

This is for a IT security and compliance post at a mid range position. Should be a nice crossover from sysadmin with sec experience.

cbdudek

As someone who has done hiring or been involved in the hiring process for over 15 years, I can tell you that grades are only brought up if someone is being hired out of college or having graduated in the last year. If they have over a year of experience and a degree, we don't look at grades. We look at these things in this order....

1. Experience - It is king. The more relevant to the position, the better.
2. Education - If you have a degree, this will make a huge difference. The more relevant the degree is to the job, the better.
3. Certifications - They are the icing on the cake. If you have relevant certs, you will be viewed more positively.

If you are strong in all 3 areas, I called that the trifecta. Whenever we got resumes back for a job, we would usually find a couple resumes with all 3 areas covered. Those would be the people we would start with.

In short, I wouldn't worry about your grades. Shore up any weak areas in your portfolio.

triplea

Thanks for reply.

I sorted thought that would be the reason.

Hopefully being a sysadmin in a iso27001 enviroment combined with Sec+ and SSCP will help.

Danielm7

It's not the largest part of my role but I do some hiring, I really don't care about your grades at all. Even if you're straight out of school there are a ton of different things that can contribute to your grades. I have a decent coworker who hates taking cert exams because he gets test anxiety, otherwise he's a solid employee. I've know people in college whose parents paid for everything, their job was to 100% focus on school and they got straight As because of it. I've also know people who were working 2 jobs with a family and paying their own way, they put in a ton of work and got Bs. The second person could very likely end up as your best employee because they have such strong drive, but if you skipped them because the first one was more fortunate then it would be a mistake.

LordQarlyn

The only time I inquire about grades are with recent grads with little or no experience applying for entry level jobs. I know it sounds lame, but in my experience as hiring manager so far, grades do provide some insight to a person's work ethic and dedication to goals. If they've been in the field for a while, I look for what work accomplishments and certs they obtained.

In your situation, I doubt anyone will be concerned about your grades, they will look more for your accomplishments and skills.