Converting International Grades to US GPA

[Alexrey]

I'm in the process of applying to some graduate schools, and am required to list my GPA (I'm assuming a cumulative GPA from year 1 to year 4), but do not want to put down the wrong value in case I mess it up and get disqualified for reporting a "false GPA". I studied in South Africa, where a first class pass (equivalent to a 4.0) is >= 75% and I've calculated a yearly average for each of my four years, coming up with the following numbers: year 1 = 71.6%, year 2 = 71.5%, year 3 = 76%, year 4 = 89.1%. Now, I'd love to be able to add those four numbers up and divide by 4 to get a final mark of 77% which would be equivalent to an overall cumulative GPA of 4.0, but I feel like I may be doing something incorrectly and would be grateful if someone could confirm whether or not such a method is okay. Thanks very much guys.

Edited September 16, 2014 by Alexrey

[Gvh]

In my experience, write your grade in the original format whenever possible. If this is not possible (i.e. they are forcing you to give a GPA) then use WES  as your guideline, since this is the standardized format accepted internationally.

 

Good luck!

[TakeruK]

I agree with Gvh, and if you are still not sure (and/or the form doesn't allow you to report grades in your own system), then just ask the admissions staff in the department. In most cases, they told me to just leave that field blank. Sometimes there is a "notes" field that goes next to the GPA field and I usually say a quick note about how it's computed (i.e. all 4 years, out of /100, out of 4.33, major courses in years 3 and 4 only, etc.)

[music]

I am from the UK where we use a similar system to SA (for us, an A is 70%). I simply submitted in the original format and included our grade descriptors alongside my transcript. References will make it clear where you stand relative to other students too.

[Alexrey]

Great, thank you guys. I think I'll do what music mentioned.

[elveintiocho]

Hello everyone,

 

I have a similar question. My GPA is 8.95/10, i.e. 89.5%. However, I used WES's international GPA calculator (I entered all 44 courses in my undergrad program with their corresponding grade - we don't have credits so this was equal to 1 for every course) and the result was that my GPA was 3.89, which is 97.25% if the total is 4. Does any one know if WES uses a 4.33 scale? That would make both results almost equal. 

 

Thank you!

[Calorific]

Don't. Do. It.

 

You

 

Will

 

Literally

 

Die!

[music]

Hello everyone,

 

I have a similar question. My GPA is 8.95/10, i.e. 89.5%. However, I used WES's international GPA calculator (I entered all 44 courses in my undergrad program with their corresponding grade - we don't have credits so this was equal to 1 for every course) and the result was that my GPA was 3.89, which is 97.25% if the total is 4. Does any one know if WES uses a 4.33 scale? That would make both results almost equal. 

 

Thank you!

They do not equate. Most US schools will specifically tell you to give your home country's GPA score because, unsurprisingly, they have a better handle on what that equates to than any individual applicant does.

[elveintiocho]

They do not equate. Most US schools will specifically tell you to give your home country's GPA score because, unsurprisingly, they have a better handle on what that equates to than any individual applicant does.

 

That makes sense... And you're right, I double-checked and they do ask for my home country's GPA. Thanks!

[rawry0]

You cant do it yourself, its unofficial and will not be accepted by the school. Check the application requirements, some school like NYU/Columbia/Georgetown will specifically tell you that you need to submit a certified equivalence report. Use companies such as Word Educational Services and they will convert it course-by-course.

 

Good luck.