Cumulative Grade Point Average, commonly called CGPA, is increasingly becoming the standard for evaluating a candidate’s academic standing. This is especially crucial if you’re seeking admission abroad. Even in India, CBSE schools and institutions affiliated with other boards are adopting this system. Students are now graded using many metrics instead of relying solely on end-of-year pen-and-paper tests.
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Before delving into the calculation of CGPA, it’s worthwhile to explore this system’s numerous advantages.
Table of Contents
Advantages of CGPA
- It looks at students from various angles, not just final exams. Generally, it’s used to understand a student’s overall development and learning experience.
- An added advantage of the system is that it does not explicitly mention the marks obtained, which tends to, to some extent, reduce the stress associated with a typical report card.
- Quite often, students can also be divided into groups based on broad CGPAs. This, in turn, helps focus on the areas where each group may need assistance.
- The fact that these grades are universally accepted is a significant advantage in their favor.
- They also enable an easy, at-a-glance performance comparison since these are standardized scores.
Difference between CGPA and GPA
Often, students use these two terms interchangeably. It’s important to remember that the two terms are distinct and cannot be used interchangeably. Simply put, GPA, or Grade Point Average measures a student’s performance in a single semester, whereas CGPA, on the other hand, evaluates the student’s performance over the entire course duration. CGPA is typically calculated using a 10-point grading system.
How to Calculate CGPA?
Imagine you have marks available for 5 subjects and you’re interested in converting them into CGPA. The process involved is straightforward. Let’s use an example to clarify:
Marks Obtained
| Subject 1 | 95 |
| Subject 2 | 86 |
| Subject 3 | 78 |
| Subject 4 | 89 |
| Subject 5 | 85 |
| Total | 433/500 |
The first step is to convert this into a grade point using the grade point table, which typically appears like this:
| Marks Range | Grade Point |
| 91-100 | 10 |
| 81-90 | 9 |
| 71-80 | 8 |
| 61-70 | 7 |
| 51-60 | 6 |
| 41-50 | 5 |
| 33-40 | 4 |
| 21-32 | – |
| 00-20 | – |
Using the above table, the marks above will convert into Grade Points as under:
| Subject 1 | 10 |
| Subject 2 | 9 |
| Subject 3 | 8 |
| Subject 4 | 9 |
| Subject 5 | 9 |
| Total | 45/50 |
CGPA Formula
After obtaining the Grade Points, the next step is to calculate the CGPA using the following formula:
CGPA= Total Grade Point Obtained/No. of Subjects
In our example, therefore, the CGPA will be 45/5 = 9
How to convert CGPA into percentage?
While the process of converting a percentage into CGPA should now be clear, let’s proceed to the next step: converting your CGPA into a percentage.
This is done using a simple formula:
Suppose your CGPA is 9 on a scale of 10. To convert it into a percentage, you can use the following formula:
Percentage = CGPA x 10
Percentage = 9 x 10
Percentage = 90%
Pro tip – Before converting your CGPA to a percentage, make sure to check the grading scale in use. If a 9-point scale is being used instead of 10, you should multiply your CGPA by 9.5 instead of 10.
You may also come across some universities, particularly American ones, that follow a 4-point GPA scale. For instance, if your CGPA is 7 and that of the top-performing student is 8, you might wonder about your approximate standing within a university that uses the 4-point scale. The formula to determine your relative standing in this case is (7/8) * 4 = 3.5. This formula provides an approximate understanding of your relative standing and, consequently, your likelihood of success.
To sum up
Let’s summarize our key takeaways:
- CGPA stands for Cumulative Grade Points Average, representing the average of grade points achieved by students throughout the course.
- To convert a percentage to CGPA, start by calculating the grade points and then divide the total grade points by the number of subjects.
- To convert CGPA into a percentage, multiply the CGPA score by 9.5 or 10, depending on the grading scale in use.
- Now, you’re fully equipped to calculate your CGPA from your marks and vice versa! While there are many handy CGPA to Percentage calculators and Percentage to CGPA calculators available, having a good understanding of the underlying mechanics will empower you to make these conversions on your own.
Here’s wishing you the very best in your learning journey!
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