When Jeffery Schmidt heads out the door in the morning, continuing his path to a 4.0 GPA, he makes sure to have his pens, paper and textbooks. When he steps out the door at night to make the city a safer place, he makes sure to have his badge and gun.
While it's true that many college students don't achieve the perfect 4.0, there are some that are able to make it happen. Whether it is through studying every night, getting extra help from professors, or taking detailed notes in class, the students who get the highest grade point averages demonstrate that such a thing really can be done.
Amilyn Corliss, Jacqueline Krajacic, and Schmidt are three juniors from the school of management with outstanding grades.
Schmidt is a 29-year-old junior business administration major with a 3.965 GPA. After receiving his associate's degree in criminal justice from Erie Community College, he is now a police officer for the Cheektowaga Police Department working the midnight shift.
After graduating from ECC, Schmidt joined the Marine Corps for four year until deciding to go back to school.
"I decided to go back to school because I didn't take it too seriously the first time. If I had, I wouldn't have had to come back," Schmidt said.
As a fulltime student, police officer, husband, and father of two young children, Schmidt manages to juggle his busy life all while achieving an outstanding grade.
"Apply yourself to your studies now, so you can relax more later on in life," Schmidt said. "Have fun while you're here, but find a good balance between enjoying yourself and learning a skill set."
Schmidt picked up most of his study habits while serving in the Marine Corps. He recommends always keeping up with weekly assignments and to never cram. He also encourages a strong use of textbooks.
"Since I'm paying so much [money] for them, I may as well use them," Schmidt said.
Corliss is a 20-year-old accounting major entering her junior year with a 4.0 GPA. She began her journey at UB as a pre-pharmacy major only to change to undecided by her second semester. With the influence of her sister, an accountant, Corliss was inspired to switch to accounting her sophomore year.
Corliss' path in life took her southbound, less than an hour from the Mexican border. She attended the University of Texas at El Paso the second semester of her sophomore year, and married her husband after the semester was over. She returned to UB while her husband was deployed overseas to Iraq.
Corliss admits that she sometimes feels stressed, but classes are manageable. One way she maintains her high GPA is by completing extra credit assignments.
"Anytime there was extra credit, I did it. Even if I had the points. You never know, you might bomb something and [the extra points] might save you," Corliss said.
Corliss is a commuter; she didn't dorm in order to save money but feels that most commuters are disconnected from the campus community.
"If I could recommend anything to younger students, [it would be] that if you commute your freshman or sophomore year, maybe get a little more involved [on campus] than I did; because it's harder to make friends when you commute too, because you're only going to your classes," Corliss said.
She is considering joining Beta Alpha Psi, an on campus accounting fraternity. Corliss dedicates weekdays to school and weekends to herself. In her spare time she likes to unwind by watching her favorite sitcoms and cheering on the Indianapolis Colts.
Krajacic is also a junior accounting major with a 4.0 GPA. Krajacic's advice for other students was simple.
"That's my secret, go to class," Krajacic said.
She admits to rarely speaking up in class, not going to office hours, and not always keeping up with the assigned readings, but she says that if students go to class and take notes, they will do just fine.
"I have a rule where I don't do homework past 8:30 at night… I think that's time for you to relax, just let the mind do its own thing," Krajacic said.
Krajacic tries to complete all of her homework on weekdays so that she can have her weekends free. She is drawn to art and fashion, but feels that art can't pay the bills. She plans to become an accountant, but would love to work for a museum or a boutique.
Mary Ann Rogers, an adjunct assistant professor in the school of management, recognizes the hard work from students trying to maintain the desired GPA.
"These types of students make the teaching environment a real pleasure, in my view. It's gratifying, to say the least, to have students engaged in my coursework to such a high degree and I can always count on them to make a contribution to the topic at hand," Rogers said.
Rogers attended UB for her undergraduate degree graduating with honors, but her GPA fell short of a 4.0.
"To this day, I still feel a sense of admiration toward those who were able to pull off such an accomplishment," Rogers said. "My advice to anyone who is currently shooting for a 4.0 is to keep aiming for the distinction, because it is so rare."
Krajacic, as well as other students who strive for a high grade, understand the level of work ethic that is needed to remain academically conditioned.
"It is challenging but you have to meet those challenges…laziness isn't an option," Krajacic said.
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