Let's say you're working through your senior year of college and staring down the barren desert of a resume you've been poking at the past few weeks.
You've got to be asking yourself, "do I put this lousy GPA on the resume, or leave it off?" The short answer is...
it depends.
It depends on your chosen career field, it depends on the extent of the other qualifications being detailed on the resume.
And finally, it depends on the GPA itself.
Let's consider these issues separately.
Your Chosen Career Field Employers recruiting new graduates into technical fields are going to taking GPA quite seriously.
They expect to see it on a resume, or you can expect to be asked about its absence within the first few minutes of an interview - if your resume gets you to an interview in the first place.
GPAs in non-technical fields are not as scrutinized, though of course, it can depend on the individual employer.
Other Qualifications on the Resume If you've held at least one full-time job for a year or more, and that job has particular relevance to the career path you've chosen, then GPA - indeed much of your educational background - can take a backseat.
In this example, that job will be detailed in the "experience" section which will be placed above the "education" section.
The GPA Itself The average college GPA is in the neighborhood of 2.
7.
That figure is not exactly a ringing endorsement of academic prowess.
If this is your neighborhood, leave if off.
The typical rule of thumb is to include an overall GPA of 3.
0 or higher.
Struggling here? Then consider your GPA in your major courses alone.
If this figure is higher than your overall grade point average, include your major GPA and skip the overall if it is below 3.
0.
One last creative twist for those with lousy overall GPAs.
Consider your scores during the last two years of college.
Are they better than the overall? Many times this is the case, as students tend to find their footing and buckle down the final half of their college term.
If this is your case, and you've determined that your resume needs a number, highlight the GPA for your last two years and skip the overall.
Let's round up this information into a happy 1 2 3 summary.

1. If your overall GPA is less than 3.
   0 do NOT put it on your resume
2. If your major GPA is 3.
   0 or higher, while your overall is less than 3.
   0, include your major GPA only.
   
3. You can include both your overall and your major GPA on your resume if both are 3.
   0 or higher, and your major GPA is stronger than your overall (say, two to three tenths of a percentage point higher).
   

Finally, remember that experience trumps GPA.
As you progress through your career and the years begin to add up, your GPA - and other educational details - can be gently phased off your resume.