Is a Cumulative GPA Weighted? (Answered 2024)
The GPA system is very confusing as you need to know whether it is a weighted or unweighted GPA. A weighted GPA is one, which will values the subjects which are hard in nature that as honor or AP courses. Whereas unweighted GPAs do not value them. There is a great confusion that the cumulative GPA is a weighted GPA. But is that really true? To find out, whether is a cumulative GPA weighted or not, you must go through this guide.
Quick Takeaways
1. Confuse the grade point with the credit hours
- Cumulative GPA is the one that is calculated as the total GPA score in all of the semesters you have studied.
- Your weighted and unweighted GPA both can be considered as a Cumulative GPA.
- Some of the mistakes that students make while calculating the cumulative GPA are-
2. Not including all courses
3. Using the wrong point value
4. Not including + and – grades
5. Rounding mistakes
However, you must read till the end so that you get a better understanding of is a cumulative GPA is weighted or not.
Is a cumulative GPA weighted?
Cumulative GPA is the one that is calculated as the total GPA score in all of the semesters you have studied. Therefore we can say that the cumulative GPA can be both weighted and unweighted GPA. Suppose you are in a high school your cumulative GPA will be calculated on the basis of the grades you get in all the semesters of it.
How to get a cumulative GPA?
You can calculate CGPA, the total number of grades in the courses you have taken and divide them by the total number of credits you have received. Suppose your total points are 22 on the basis of your unweighted GPA and your spring semester total points are 21 (based on your unweighted GPA)and also your total classes are 12 then your total cumulative unweighted GPA will be (22+21) / 12. This means your cumulative unweighted GPA will be equal to 3.58 GPA.
On the other hand, according to the weighted GPA, if you have received 25 and 23 semesters and total classes are only then then your cumulative weighted GPA will be equal to (25+23)/10. It means your cumulative weighted GPA will be equal to 4.8 cumulative weighted GPA.
What are the common mistakes to avoid while calculating your cumulative GPA?
Following are the common mistakes to avoid while calculating your cumulative GPA-
1. Confuse the grade point with the credit hours
Grade point is the value assigned to the letter great you get in a subject. Whereas credit hour is the number of hours the course is worth it. There is a huge difference between both of them and you must not get confused. When you get confused between both of them, your GPA will definitely not get properly.
2. Not including all courses
The next biggest to include the courses that they have taken. You may forget to add one or two courses which may make a difference. Usually, you will forget to add the courses you take in other institutions or the courses you have taken outside your major. Further, there are many times you will be taking a course again to increase your grade. You may also forget to add them. Thus you must make sure that you have a list of all the courses you have taken so far.
3. Using the wrong point value
Every school has its own point value that is assigned against a great. You must know what point values your school gives to the letter grades. Suppose there are institutions that give A for 3.7 instead of a standard 4.0 grade. In such a scenario you must make sure that you know the correct point value.
4. Not including + and – grades
The next big mistake that most students make is not considering the positive and negative grades. Suppose you get an A- grade it may be a 3.7 GPA. Whereas if you have received an A+ grade it will be considered a 4.0 GPA. Therefore when you are adding a cumulative GPA, you know what grades you are getting.
5. Rounding mistakes
When you calculate the cumulative GPA, you will need to round up them. For this, you must understand the round of policy of your institution. Suppose some schools may round up to the closest tenth Whereas, others might round up to the closest 100. Further, there may be institutions that do not round up the grades overall.
How can you improve your cumulative GPA?
Following are the ways to improve your cumulative GPA-
1. Going to the classes regularly
When you attend a class regularly, it helps you to stay ahead of the other students. Thus you must make a habit to attend your classes regularly and you must pay attention to lectures you are attending.
2. Managing time effectively
You must try to make a timetable properly so that you can manage the time for studying different subjects. Try to find the subjects you feel are hard so that you can give them more time.
3. Take proper breaks
If you study full time and do not take any breaks, it will get confused in your mind. You will start forgetting the content you have studied so far. Therefore you must keep proper breaks in between your studying timetable. Make sure that you are refreshing your mind properly during the break time. Take a walk or do some extracurricular activity during this time.
4. Online tutoring
If you find it hard for some of the subjects then you must try to get a private online tutor or an online tutor. Generally, the online tutors have an expertise in the subjects you are studying. They usually have more knowledge than the in-person tutors.
5. Eat healthy
As a student, it is important for you to get good health. It is because having good health will not only keep you away from diseases but will also help in learn the concepts easily. You must eat healthy food and take a balanced diet. When you stay healthy, you will easily remember the content and get good in your exams.
6. Take notes
When you are in a lecture take proper notes. Obviously, when you are in the lecture you cannot remember everything taught in the class. Therefore you must take notes so that you can read them again at the time of exams. Also, you could easily understand the concepts and can use them during the revision time.
Conclusion
Cumulative GPA is the one which is calculated on the basis of the total GPA you have scored in the semesters you have studied. You can calculate your cumulative GPA by dividing the total grades by the total number of credit hours. Cumulative GPA can be both weighted and unweighted and thus you will need to calculate it separately. Some of the common mistakes that you may make while calculating the cumulative GPA are confusing the grade points with the credit hours, not including all the courses, etc.
