Works out a weighted grade point average from your courses, their grades and their credit values, on a 4.0, 4.3 or 10-point scale.
The average is weighted by credits, not by course count: each grade is converted to points, multiplied by that course's credits, and the total is divided by the total credits. That is what makes a poor grade in a four-credit module hurt more than the same grade in a one-credit one. The three scales are offered because institutions genuinely differ — the 4.0 scale is standard in the United States, 4.3 adds an A+ above it, and the 10-point scale is common in India. Converting between them is not reliable, which is why the scale is chosen rather than inferred.
Reading a GPA
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Credits do the weighting:
a low grade in a heavy module moves the average far more than the same grade in a light one. Course count is irrelevant.
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Scales are not interchangeable:
an 8.0 on a 10-point scale is not simply a 3.2 on a 4.0 scale. Institutions publish their own conversion tables and admissions offices use those.
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Plus and minus grades vary:
some institutions award 4.0 for both A and A+, others distinguish them. The 4.3 scale here is for the latter.
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Cumulative and term GPA differ:
this calculates whatever set of courses you enter. Whether that is one term or a whole degree depends on what you type in.
Credits do the weighting, not the number of courses
Each grade in the [msm_tool slug="gpa-calculator"] is converted to points, multiplied by that course's own credit value, and the sum of those is divided by total credits — a genuinely weighted average rather than a simple mean of grades. That structure is exactly what makes a poor grade in a four-credit module pull the overall figure down far more than the identical grade would in a one-credit course; course count on its own plays no part in it.
Three scales exist because institutions genuinely differ
The 4.0 scale is the standard across the United States, the 4.3 scale adds a distinct value above it for an A+, and the 10-point scale is common in India — three real conventions rather than one preferred and two legacy options. The scale is chosen directly rather than inferred from the numbers entered, since the same figure means something different depending on which convention it belongs to.
Scales do not convert into each other reliably
An 8.0 on a 10-point scale is not simply equivalent to a 3.2 on a 4.0 scale — the relationship between the two is not linear, and institutions publish their own specific conversion tables that admissions offices actually use rather than a proportional approximation.
A failed course still counts its credits
An F contributes zero points to the total while its credits still count fully towards the divisor, which is exactly why a single failure can pull an average down sharply rather than merely nudging it. Whether a retake replaces the original grade or both remain on record varies by institution, so the local rule on that point is worth checking directly.
A close match to the official figure, not a guaranteed one
The standard weighted method used here should land close to what a registrar calculates, but institutions differ in how they treat pass/fail courses, transfer credits, retakes and withdrawals, and any of those local rules can shift the final result. The registrar's own figure remains the authoritative one for anything that actually depends on it.