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Class GradeCALCULATOR

Iowa State GPA calculator

Iowa State uses plus and minus grades: A is 4.00, A− 3.67, B+ 3.33, and so on down to D− at 0.67 and F at 0. A retake swaps your earlier grade for the most recent one, even when the new grade is lower, for up to 18 credits. P, NP, S and T grades stay out of your GPA, and so do grades from other schools.

Looking for Illinois State University? Its grade points and rules are on the Illinois State GPA calculator.

Iowa State’s points: A 4.00, A− 3.67, B+ 3.33, B 3.00 and so on.

Example courses. Change them to yours, or

Include your earlier GPA

Quality points are the more exact input when the displayed GPA has already been rounded. Do not include these same credits again in the course rows.

Raise my GPA: what would it take to reach a target?

These are future credits beyond the courses and earlier record entered above.

Pass/fail or a retake: what would change?

Whether a pass/fail course leaves the GPA and whether a retake replaces the old grade are your school’s rules; the table below shows Iowa State’s.

One grade higher: which course moves your GPA most?

Each line raises one course by one grade on the grade points above and leaves the others as entered, so a course that carries more credit moves the GPA more. A course you haven’t finished can be marked “Planned” in its ⋯ menu: the GPA so far then leaves it out, and the projection counts it at the grade you chose. A grade already on your transcript changes only under your school’s retake or grade-change rules.

Compare with a GPA line (dean's list, scholarship, good standing)
Course groups and equal weights

Set a course's group or term, or mark it planned, in its ⋯ menu. Groups are just your labels: they don’t apply AMCAS or other application-service GPA rules.

Import courses from a transcript or spreadsheet

Copy the courses from your unofficial transcript, degree audit or a spreadsheet and paste them here, one course per line with its grade and credits. Term headings such as “Fall 2025” keep the courses in their terms. Your grades stay in this browser.

Save my courses or compare versions

Nothing is sent to us. Untick the box to forget them.

To compare plans, save the courses as they are now as a version, change them, and save again. Versions stay in this browser until you delete them.

Open a file you saved with “Save the versions to a file”, in this browser or another. It is read in your browser and sent nowhere.

Iowa State’s rules checked in its Iowa State University Catalog 2026–2027. Sources are at the bottom of the page.

Grade points at Iowa State

Iowa State multiplies each course’s grade points by its credit hours, adds them up and divides by the hours that count. Enter your courses above with these points already set.

Iowa State University letter grades and grade points
GradeGrade points
A4.00
A−3.67
B+3.33
B3.00
B−2.67
C+2.33
C2.00
C−1.67
D+1.33
D1.00
D−0.67
F0.00

From Iowa State University, University Catalog, Grading.

What W, pass/fail, incomplete, retakes and transfer credit do at Iowa State

A course left out of the GPA adds no points and no hours. In the calculator, choose its code or “Not counted”; a code that counts as zero lowers the GPA like a failing grade.

How Iowa State counts each code
CodeWhat it meansIn the Iowa State GPA
P or NPPass/Not Pass: P for a D− or better, NP for an FLeft out of your GPA, so an NP doesn’t pull it down the way an F would. You can take up to 9 credits P-NP, electives only, if you aren’t on academic probation when the semester starts. Switching to or from P-NP after the last day to drop (usually the Friday of week 10) needs college approval. Rule
SSatisfactory in a course offered Satisfactory-Fail; also used in R-credit courses and courses numbered 290, 490, 590 and 690An S is left out of your GPA but can count toward your degree. The other outcome on that basis is an F, and an F is worth 0.00 points. A Satisfactory-Fail course can’t be taken P-NP. Rule
TTest-out: you passed a special exam for credit at a C level or betterLeft out of your GPA. The credit goes on your record and can count toward graduation. Rule
WYou dropped the course after the first week (the first five days of classes)A W carries no quality points; the GPA uses only the letter grades A through F. A drop in the first five days leaves no trace on your record, and an administrative drop leaves no W. Rule
IIncomplete: you’re passing, but circumstances beyond your control stop you finishingLeft out of your GPA until a grade is recorded. The final grade then counts in the term you took the course. After one calendar year the I becomes the grade set in your incomplete contract, per the 2026–2027 catalog (the Registrar’s FAQ still says it becomes an F). Retaking the course doesn’t clear an I. Rule
NNo report: your instructor hasn’t submitted a grade yetNot a grade, so it carries no points. If it isn’t fixed within one calendar year, or by graduation, it becomes an F, which counts 0. Retaking the course doesn’t clear an N. Rule
AuditYou enroll with the instructor’s approval but earn no creditNo grade and no credit, and the course doesn’t appear on your permanent record unless you ask. You still pay tuition as if you were taking it for credit. Rule
Repeated courseYou took the same course againWhen you retake a course at Iowa State, only your most recent attempt counts in your GPA, for up to 18 credits of retakes. That holds even if the new grade is lower, and a new F costs you the course’s credit. Past 18 credits, every attempt counts. You can retake a course after an F, an NP or any passing grade. A graded course must be retaken for a grade; a P-NP course can be retaken either way. If the course number or credits changed, you need a Designation of Repeated Course form. A retake at another school doesn’t replace your Iowa State grade and doesn’t count toward the 18 credits. Every attempt stays on your record. If you come back after four or more years away, academic renewal can drop whole earlier terms from your GPA once, after you earn a 2.00 over at least 12 credits. Rule
Transfer creditGrades from another collegeGrades from other colleges don’t count in your Iowa State GPA. Accepted credits are added to your totals, and your transcript shows only the course title and credits. The exception is the Regent Universities Student Exchange Program: grades you earn at another Iowa Regent university that way count. AP, IB, CLEP and other exam credit stays out of your GPA too, and no more than 32 credits can come from exams. Rule

Iowa State GPA lines

These are Iowa State’s published undergraduate lines, each with the other conditions its catalog sets. Your college or program may set its own, higher lines.

Published GPA lines at Iowa State
GPA lineWhat it meansAlso required
Below 2.00 semester or cumulative ISU GPAAcademic Warning or Academic ProbationGood standing needs a 2.00 in your latest fall or spring semester and a 2.00 cumulative ISU GPA. A semester of 1.00–1.99 with your cumulative still at 2.00 means Warning, as does 1.00–1.99 in your first semester. A semester below 1.00, a cumulative GPA below 2.00, or a second semester under 2.00 while on Warning means Probation. Summer doesn’t change your standing, and winter session grades count in spring. Full rule
Below 2.00 semester GPA while on Academic ProbationAcademic DismissalA 2.00 semester with your cumulative still under 2.00 keeps you on Probation. After dismissal, you can be reinstated only once at least one fall or spring semester has passed. You also need a 2.00 cumulative GPA to earn a bachelor’s degree. Full rule
3.50 semester GPA or higherDean’s ListAt least 12 credits of graded or S-F courses that semester. P-NP courses, test credit, incompletes and non-reports don’t help you reach 12. No list in summer. A 4.00 over your two most recent fall and spring semesters, on at least 24 graded or S-F credits, puts you on the President’s List. Full rule
3.50 cumulative GPA or higher at graduationGraduation with distinction: cum laude 3.50–3.69, magna cum laude 3.70–3.89, summa cum laude 3.90 or higherAt least 60 credits at Iowa State, including 50 graded or S-F credits. Your GPA after you finish all degree requirements decides it, and it appears on your transcript and diploma. Full rule

To see how far you are from one of them, enter it under “Compare with a GPA line” in the calculator, or as your target in the target GPA planner.

A worked example

A retake counts even when it’s worse. A 3-credit course with a C, retaken for an F, plus a 3-credit A and a 4-credit B: only the F counts, (0.00 × 3 + 4.00 × 3 + 3.00 × 4) ÷ 10 = 2.40, and you lose the course’s credit. If the C had stayed, it would be (2.00 × 3 + 4.00 × 3 + 3.00 × 4) ÷ 10 = 3.00.

The calculator gives an estimate from the grades you enter. Your official GPA is the one on your Iowa State academic record.

Sources: Iowa State University, University Catalog, Grading; Iowa State University, University Catalog, Academic Standing; Iowa State University, University Catalog, Registration; Iowa State University, University Catalog, Admissions; Iowa State University, Office of the Registrar, Schedule Changes; Iowa State University, Office of the Registrar, Grades in Workday; Iowa State University, Office of the Registrar, GPA Calculator; Iowa State University, Office of the Registrar, Transfer Credit; Iowa State University, Office of the Registrar, President’s and Dean’s Lists and Honoraries; Iowa State University, Admissions, Credit by Exam (Iowa State University Catalog 2026–2027).