The formula is a simple weighted average. As a student, you earn points depending on the letter grade you receive for a class as well as the number of credits received for that class. Each grade corresponds to a number out of 4.0. To get the number of points for one class, multiply the corresponding points for the grade you received for the class by the number of credits that course is worth. Then, take the sum of all your points, and divide that sum by the total number of credits in order to get your GPA. The schedule for points and formula are given below:
Where:
- CoursePoints = number of points earned for each class
- CourseCredits = number of credits earned for each class
| Grade | Points |
|---|---|
| A | 4.0 |
| A- | 3.6 |
| B+ | 3.3 |
| B | 3.0 |
| B- | 2.6 |
| C+ | 2.3 |
| C | 2.0 |
| C- | 1.6 |
| D+ | 1.3 |
| D | 1.0 |
| D- | 0.6 |
| F | 0.0 |
GPA Example:
So how does this formula work? It’s relatively simple. The numerator (the top part of the equation) is just the sum of all your points earned for each class. The denominator (the bottom part of the equation) is the sum of all your credits. Say you earn a B+ in a 5-credit class, an A- in a 3-credit class, and a C+ in a 4-credit class. You would multiply the credits for each class by their point equivalency using the chart above. Then sum those point totals and divide that total by the total number of credits. The work for our example is shown below:
Keep in mind that this example is similar to what you would do to calculate your GPA for a semester. If you want to calculate your cumulative GPA, you would take the same steps, yet you would include every class that you have taken since you started school.