Semester GPA Calculator
Enter only this term's courses. The result is the credit-weighted GPA for the semester, before it is blended into your cumulative record.
What belongs in a semester GPA
A semester GPA is the credit-weighted average of the grades on this term's transcript only. Everything before this term is someone else's problem — or rather, it belongs in your cumulative GPA.
- Include: every graded course this term, including electives, labs and physical education.
- Leave out: courses graded pass/fail, incomplete, withdrawn (W) or in progress. They carry no grade points in most systems.
- Do not average semesters together. A term GPA is one number for one term; mixing two terms needs the cumulative calculator.
The formula
Semester GPA = Σ(grade point × course credits) ÷ Σ(course credits)
Credits are the weight, so a 4-credit course counts twice as much as a 2-credit course. Number of courses is irrelevant: five 3-credit courses and three 5-credit courses are both 15 credits of evidence.
Worked example
| Course | Grade | Points | Credits | Quality points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calculus I | A | 4.0 | 4 | 16.0 |
| Physics | B+ | 3.3 | 4 | 13.2 |
| English Composition | A− | 3.7 | 3 | 11.1 |
| Chemistry | C+ | 2.3 | 3 | 6.9 |
| First-Year Seminar | A | 4.0 | 1 | 4.0 |
| Total | — | 15 | 51.2 |
51.2 ÷ 15 = 3.41. The C+ in a 3-credit course costs more than three A's in 1-credit seminars can repair, which is the pattern that surprises students most in their first year.
Semester credits vs quarter credits
If your school runs on quarters, the credits are smaller: a full-time quarter load is roughly 15 quarter credits per term, three terms a year. One quarter credit is about two thirds of a semester credit, so a 5-credit quarter course is roughly 3.3 semester credits.
Do not convert by hand before entering data if the transcript already reports both. Enter the credits exactly as they appear on the document you are working from, and let the school's own conversion govern the official number.
Mid-term estimates
Halfway through the term, most courses have no final grade yet. Two honest options:
- Enter the letter grade each course is currently tracking toward, and treat the result as an estimate with error bars.
- Enter only the courses that are finished, and treat the result as a floor.
Either way, the number is a projection, not a record. The final grade calculator is the better tool for the per-course question of what the remaining work has to deliver.
Common questions
Should I include a course I am retaking?
Follow your registrar. If the retake replaces the old grade, use the new grade once and drop the old attempt. If both attempts stay on the transcript and both count, enter both rows. The two policies give very different GPAs, and only your catalog knows which applies.
Why is my semester GPA lower than my cumulative GPA?
Because the cumulative number is the credit-weighted average of every term, and older, better terms are still in it. One bad term inside 90 credits moves the cumulative figure by only a few hundredths; the same term standing alone moves the semester figure by a lot.
Does a W or an incomplete affect the semester GPA?
A withdrawal carries no grade points, so it does not change the GPA — but it does change your credit load, which can affect full-time status, financial aid and on-time graduation. An incomplete usually becomes a grade later; until then it is not counted.
How do I add this semester to my cumulative GPA?
Enter your existing cumulative GPA, the credits already behind it, then this term's courses in the cumulative GPA calculator. It does the same weighting over the combined credit total.