What Is a GPA?
GPA stands for Grade Point Average. It's a single number from 0.0 to 4.0 (or higher in some scales) that summarizes your overall performance across every course you've taken. Most US colleges use the 4.0 scale.
The 4.0 scale
Each letter grade maps to a number. A = 4.0, B = 3.0, C = 2.0, D = 1.0, F = 0.0. Plus and minus modifiers shift these by 0.3 or 0.4 in most schools (A- = 3.7, B+ = 3.3). Your GPA is the weighted average of those numbers across your classes, weighted by credit hours.
Worked example
Take three courses. Calculus II is 4 credits and you got an A (4.0). English Comp is 3 credits and you got a B+ (3.3). Intro Psych is 3 credits and you got an A- (3.7). Multiply each grade by credits: 16 + 9.9 + 11.1 = 37. Add credits: 4 + 3 + 3 = 10. GPA = 37 / 10 = 3.70.
Term GPA vs cumulative GPA
Term GPA is just one semester. Cumulative GPA is your running average since you started college. Cumulative GPA is what graduate schools, employers, and scholarship committees look at. A bad semester pulls cumulative down but doesn't erase prior good ones.
Why it matters
Med schools, law schools, and most graduate programs have GPA cutoffs. Most employer recruiting programs filter resumes by GPA, often at 3.0, 3.3, or 3.5. Scholarships and honors program eligibility usually require maintaining a specific GPA. Once your cumulative GPA settles after your first few semesters, moving it requires lots of high-grade credit hours.
Try it on your own grades
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Current grade
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Track everything in GradePathFrequently asked questions
Is a 4.0 GPA the highest you can get?
On a standard unweighted 4.0 scale, yes. Some high schools use weighted scales up to 5.0 or 6.0 for AP and honors classes, but at the college level the cap is almost always 4.0. A few schools allow A+ to count as 4.3, which can push cumulative slightly above 4.0.
What's a good college GPA?
Above 3.0 is solid. 3.5 is competitive for most professional jobs. 3.7+ is competitive for med, law, and top graduate schools. Anything below 2.0 puts you on academic probation at most schools.
How is GPA different from your grade in a single class?
Your grade in a class is a percentage (say, 87%). That percentage maps to a letter (B+) which maps to a GPA point (3.3 in most schools). GPA is the credit-weighted average of those points across all your classes. The percentage in any single class doesn't directly affect your GPA — only the letter that percentage rounds to does.
Does my high school GPA carry over to college?
No. College GPA starts fresh. Your high school GPA matters for college admissions and some scholarships, but the moment you start college, you're building a new GPA from scratch.