American universities employ a system of continual assessment and assign grades for each course taken. Almost everything you do for a class will influence your final grade. Examinations and tests, essays or written assignments, laboratory reports, laboratory or studio work, class attendance, and class participation may all be used to determine your final grade. This means it is essential to keep up with the reading and course work and to attend classes on a regular basis.
The following is a general percentage/letter grade scale for classes taken at U.S. colleges:
| Percentage | Grade |
| 100 – 90% | A |
| 89 – 80% | B |
| 79 – 70% | C |
| 65-70% | D |
| Below 65% | F |
GPA GRADING SYSTEM IN USA
The GPA is a system of judging a student's performance and is followed throughout the United States. The GPA system is on a maximum scale of 4.0
Grade | Equivalent | |
>4 | >A | High Achievement |
>3 | >B | Satisfactory |
>2 | >C | Minimum Passing |
>1 | >D | Failure |
Each student completes his or her degree with a grade point average (GPA). A cumulative grade point average is the GPA for all courses taken throughout the degree program. Most universities use a GPA scale of 4.0, but a few universities use a scale of 5.0. To work out your GPA, take the numerical value assigned to the letter grade you achieve for each course (typically 4 points for an "A," 3 points for a "B," and so on), then multiply this number by the number of credits each course is worth. Finally, add these numbers together and divide by the total number of credits for all courses.
For example:
Letter Grade | Numerical Value | Number of Credits | Total |
A | 4.0 | 3 | 12 |
B | 3.0 | 3 | 9 |
C | 2.0 | 3 | 6 |
27 divided by 9 = 3.0 GPA
Students are required complete their degrees when they have accumulated a certain number of "credits." It generally takes anywhere between 130 and 180 credits to graduate. Sometimes the terms "semester/quarter hours" or "units" are used instead of credits. Each individual course you take in each semester earns a specified number (usually three or four) of credits/hours/units.Students should consult academic adviser for planning credit formalities.
