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All About GPA and CGPA: Definition and Differences...

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All About GPA and CGPA: Definition and Differences

You have scored well in your Bachelor's and have been able to grab a seat at one of the prestigious universities in the world. Yet, there's an underlying fear. The transition from college to university is a major one. Even the brightest students find it hard to understand the rules and regulations and often fail to keep up with the process. One of the major problems students face is with understanding the grading system universities follow. 

GPA and CGPA happen to be the two most confusing terms used by universities to grade students. While some ignore learning about these terms, others are curious to know about them for better academic performance. In this comprehensive post, we have curated a detailed guide on what is GPA and CGPA and how they are different.
Let’s dive in!

What is GPA?

Grade Point Average (GPA) can be defined as the score reflecting your success during the degree programme. It is used to understand your score in each class during a specific semester, term, or year. Your performance affects the score, and you will notice changes when you perform well in some classes or fail to keep up with others. Colleges and universities in the US use GPA as a standardised method of assessing students. They evaluate students on a scale of 0-4.

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What is CGPA?

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) means the overall academic performance of a student. Calculating CGPA is a bit tricky. You have to find the mean of the GPA you achieved each semester and divide the result by the total credit points. The CGPA system follows a rule where the allotment of grades can be interpreted to a range of marks. For example, a Grade Point 9 will mean 90-95 marks. Academic institutions follow their unique CGPA conversion table to grade students. Knowing how CGPA can be converted into a percentage is important, as some institutions ask for percentage to grant admission. 

Now, let’s understand the major differences between GPA and CGPA.

It is tough to be on track and score well if you don’t know what GPA is and the meaning of CGPA. So, what is the difference between CGPA and GPA? Let’s take a look:
In addition, learning how to calculate GPA and CGPA is necessary to understand the differences properly. Despite there being automated GPA to CGPA calculators online, you need to know the formula and learn how to convert CGPA to marks. On that note, let’s understand ways to calculate GPA and CGPA:

How to Calculate GPA?

You have selected three courses, namely, English (2 credits), Chemistry (2 credits), and Physics (3 credits), and have scored:

• English – B (3 on grading scale)
• Chemistry – C (2 on grading scale)
• Physics – A (4 on a grading scale)

Now, multiply the grades by the credits of each course:

• English – 3*2 = 6
• Chemistry – 2*2 = 4
• Physics – 4*3 = 12

So, the total here is 22. Now, you must divide the total by the total credits (22/7=3.14). So, your GPA is 2.4 for the first semester, and you scored 25 in the next with a GPA of 3.57. 

How to Calculate CGPA?

To calculate CGPA, you have to consider the average score of subjects in each semester, add them and divide the total by the number of semesters. So, based on the example above, here’s how you calculate CGPA:

1st semester
Average score: 22/3 = 7.3
2nd semester
Average score: 25/3 = 8.3
Total of average score: 7.3+8.3 = 15.6
CGPA: 15.6/2 = 7.8

These examples will help you understand the difference in the calculation of GPA and CGPA.

Few Interesting Facts on CGPA

Before we end this post, here are a few interesting facts on CGPA and the way countries across the world use the system:

• The GCSE board in England and Wales defines grades as 9 being the highest and 1 being the lowest. Students with grades 4 and above are considered a pass and 3 or lower is a fail. 
• The United States follows an A to F grading system that can be converted to GPA.
• Japan defines 90-100 as AA, 80-89 as A, 70-79 as B, 60-69 as C, and below that is F or fail. 
• The grading system is different for each country. India follows a 10-point grading system, whereas the UK and the US follow a 4-point grading system. 

Pursuing higher education anywhere in the world without understanding the grading system is a big mistake. Maximum universities across the world follow GPA and CGPA system making it the most important grading system. 

Final thoughts,

Despite being the two most common terms in education, many students are still not aware of CGPA's full form in education. Adding on to it, maximum students fail to make a mark because they don’t understand how to calculate CGPA in university and are unable to keep up with the process. So, to be on top of the process and be ahead in the competition, know about all the elements mentioned above and understand what you need to do to have a good GPA and CGPA.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. How to convert CGPA to GPA?

Most institutions ask for 10 point CGPA. However, there are some that ask students to share their 4-point GPA. Converting CGPA to GPA can be done online using automated tools, but you can do the calculation using the following formula: 

Suppose you have an 8-point CGPA, and the class topper has a 9-point CGPA; you can calculate your GPA by:
(8.0/9.0) X 4 = 3.5

Q2. How is CGPA calculated?

CGPA is the score that appears in your final result making all the difference. You can calculate your CGPA by multiplying your overall grade score by each subject's credit score divided by the total credit score. Students can use calculators available online to get things done easily. 

Q3. What is CGPA in engineering?

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) is defined as the total of SGPAs of all semesters or an academic year. The formula for calculating CGPA is as follows:

Sum of all SGPA/Total credit hours of the programme

CGPA in engineering is calculated in the same way and is of equal importance as all other academic courses. 

Q4. How to find CGPA from marks?

You need to follow these steps to calculate CGPA from marks:

• Add all the grade points
• Divide the result by the number of subjects
• The result is your CGPA

Students must know the correct methods of calculating CGPA to avoid confusion and apply to colleges for their higher education. 

Q5. What is cumulative GPA?

Cumulative GPA is the overall grade students obtain after an academic year. The CGPA is based on the average of all grades one receives in each semester. CGPA plays a crucial role in college/university admissions and job interviews. Students must know how to calculate CGPA and ensure they score a good GPA each semester to have a good CGPA. 

Q6. How to calculate the overall CGPA in engineering?

To calculate CGPA, you need to know the credit points. Generally, students need to multiply the credits by 10 to get SGPA and calculate CGPA based on the SGPA and the number of semesters. CGPA in engineering is calculated by adding the SGPA in each semester and dividing the result by the number of semesters. 

• Sagar Kumar
• April 27,2023