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WashU gives 4.0 for an A or an A+, 3.7 for an A−, 3.3 for a B+, 3.0 for a B, 2.7 for a B−, 2.3 for a C+, 2.0 for a C, 1.7 for a C−, 1.3 for a D+, 1.0 for a D, 0.7 for a D− and 0.0 for an F. Your GPA is your grade points divided by the letter-graded credits you attempted. Only the F counts as zero, and an I or N that isn’t resolved within 120 days turns into an F. Pass, No Pass, W, I, N, audit grades (L and Z), exam credit and transfer credit stay out. You can retake a course only if you earned a B− or lower or a No Pass. Every attempt stays on your record, but only the highest grade counts; the others get an R.
WashU’s points: A+ 4.00, A 4.00, A− 3.70, B+ 3.30 and so on.
The plus/minus cutoffs Wikipedia lists for US colleges: A+ from 97%, A 93, A- 90, B+ 87, B 83, B- 80 and so on down to D- at 60. It is not universal, so use your syllabus's cutoffs when they differ.Source: Wikipedia, “Academic grading in the United States”.
Your class cutoffs
Letter
Lowest %
Remove
Each letter starts at its lowest percentage and runs up to the next letter.
Rounding and decimal places
Follow your syllabus. A displayed percentage can round up while the unrounded score stays below a cutoff.
Only changes how results are shown. Extra places appear when rounding would push a score over a letter cutoff.
A letter typed as a score counts as the lowest percentage for that letter on this scale. Use the original percentage when you have it.
Only scales that publish GPA points can convert a percentage. Check that your school uses these same points.
Example courses. Change them to yours, or
CourseGradeCredit hours
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 WashU’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.
Line
Course
Read as
This replaces the courses above. You can put them back afterwards.
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.
WashU’s rules checked in its 2026–27 Undergraduate Bulletin. Sources are at the bottom of the page.
Grade points at WashU
WashU 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.
Washington University in St. Louis letter grades and grade points
What W, pass/fail, incomplete, retakes and transfer credit do at WashU
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 WashU counts each code
Code
What it means
In the WashU GPA
A+
Highest quality grade
Worth 4.0, the same as an A, so an A+ can’t lift your GPA above 4.0. The registrar lists quality grades as running from A+ to F. Rule
F
Failure
Counts 0.0 points in your GPA. An Incomplete or an N (no grade reported) that isn’t resolved within 120 days of the last day of the semester becomes an F, or an NP in a Pass/No Pass course. If you miss the drop or withdrawal deadline, you may get a failing grade. An F can be retaken, and if the retake earns a higher grade, the F gets an R and leaves your GPA. In Arts & Sciences, one D, F or NP can put you on Academic Concern. Rule
D+ / D / D−
Passing but low grades
Worth 1.3, 1.0 and 0.7. Arts & Sciences counts them as unsatisfactory grades for academic standing: one can lead to Academic Concern and more than one to Academic Notice. A grade below C− in any major-related course can also put an Arts & Sciences student on Academic Notice. A D can be retaken. Rule
P / NP
Pass / No Pass
Neither counts in your GPA. In Arts & Sciences you may elect one course a semester, typically 3 credits, Pass/No Pass, and at least 96 of your units must be letter-graded. The Pass mark is generally a C−, but an instructor can set it higher. The first-year writing course, the writing-intensive course, the applied numeracy course and courses in your major and minor can’t be taken Pass/No Pass. An NP can be retaken for a letter grade, and counts as an unsatisfactory grade for Arts & Sciences standing. McKelvey allows up to 6 Pass/No Pass units a semester and 18 in total. Rule
W
Withdrawal
Stays out of your GPA but stays on your transcript permanently. A course you drop by the drop deadline doesn’t appear on your record at all; after that, you can withdraw until the withdrawal deadline and get a W. Withdrawn coursework still counts in the federal aid (SAP) review. Rule
I / N
Incomplete / No grade reported
Both stay out of your GPA while the final grade is pending. If the grade isn’t posted within 120 days of the last day of the semester, it becomes an F (or NP in a Pass/No Pass course). You can’t graduate with an Incomplete: one still on your record at degree conferral turns into an F. An Incomplete can trigger Academic Concern, and any outstanding I or N keeps you off that semester’s Dean’s List. Rule
R
Retaken course
Marks every attempt at a retaken course except the one with the highest grade. An attempt with an R loses its credit and stays out of your GPA, but it stays on your record. Rule
L / Z
Successful / unsuccessful audit
Neither affects your GPA, and in Arts & Sciences audited courses earn no credit toward your degree. Rule
Exam, transfer and not-transferred credit
AP, IB and other exam credit; courses from other schools
Listed on your record but ignored in your GPA. In Arts & Sciences, if you later complete the WashU equivalent of a course you have pre-matriculation credit for, those pre-matriculation units no longer count. Rule
Physical education
Grades in physical education courses (Arts & Sciences)
Arts & Sciences leaves physical education grades out of your GPA. Rule
Repeated course
You took the same course again
You may retake a course only if you earned a B− or lower or a No Pass. Every attempt stays on your record, original grade included, but only the attempt with the highest grade keeps the credit and counts in your GPA. The other attempts lose credit and GPA impact and are marked R on your transcript. That means a worse retake can’t lower your GPA. In Arts & Sciences, a letter-graded course must be retaken for a letter grade, and a No Pass may be retaken for one. Transfer or exam credit that matches a WashU course counts as an attempt. McKelvey adds that dropping the first grade won’t reopen a past academic standing decision. For federal aid, retakes still count in the SAP review. Rule
Transfer credit
Grades from another college
Transfer courses are listed on your WashU transcript but carry no grades or grade points, so they never count in your GPA. A course transfers only with a quality grade of C or better. Arts & Sciences takes at most two courses, typically 6 credits, per summer, accepts no online courses, and leaves grades from other schools out of the GPA lines for Latin Honors. Olin accepts up to 60 credits for transfer students, and grades don’t come with them. One Olin page differs: for Beta Gamma Sigma it counts coursework taken out of residence in your cumulative GPA. Rule
WashU GPA lines
These are WashU’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 WashU
GPA line
What it means
Also required
2.0 semester and cumulative
Good academic standing and the graduation minimum
The university-wide policy sets 2.0 as the minimum semester and cumulative GPA and calls it the minimum to graduate. Arts & Sciences also requires at least 12 credits a semester and a 2.0 overall GPA for the BA. Olin also needs a 2.0 professional (business) GPA. Full rule
About 2.0 to 2.5
Academic Concern (Arts & Sciences)
A semester or cumulative GPA in this early-risk range can put you on Academic Concern. You stay in good standing, and it isn’t on your transcript. Full rule
Below 2.0 semester
Academic Concern the first time, Academic Notice after that
That’s the university-wide rule. The Arts & Sciences page says a semester or cumulative GPA below 2.0 can lead straight to Academic Notice. Full rule
Below 2.0 cumulative
Academic Notice
You’re no longer in good academic standing. Full rule
Notice twice in a row, or a third time
Academic Time Away
Earning no degree credit in a semester also counts. Becoming eligible for Time Away a second time makes you eligible for Academic Dismissal. Full rule
3.6 semester
Dean’s List
Arts & Sciences and Olin require at least 14 quality-graded units that semester; McKelvey requires at least 12 letter-graded units. No I or N can be outstanding. Full rule
3.6 cumulative
BA with College Honors (Arts & Sciences)
Awarded to Arts & Sciences graduates with a 3.6 or better who don’t receive Latin Honors. Full rule
3.65 throughout
Eligibility for Latin Honors (Arts & Sciences)
You also need your department to accept you as a candidate and to finish its honors work. Among candidates who finish, the top 15% by GPA graduate summa cum laude, the next 35% magna cum laude and the next 50% cum laude. Transfer students need at least 48 letter-graded WashU units. Full rule
Three-year average cutoffs
Latin honors (McKelvey and Olin)
McKelvey sets its lines from three-year averages: the top 10% for summa cum laude, the next 10% for magna and the next 10% for cum laude. At Olin, the top 5% graduate summa cum laude and the top 6% to 15% magna cum laude. Full rule
4.0 cumulative
Special recognition at graduation (McKelvey)
Only for students who entered as first-years, earned only A and A+ grades (not a 4.0 reached by upward rounding) and never used the retake policy. Full rule
C average (2.0)
Federal financial aid (SAP)
Student Financial Services requires at least a C average, and the Bulletin sets 2.0 for all undergraduate programs. You must also earn credit for at least 67% of the credits you attempt. SAP is checked once a year, at the end of the spring semester. 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
WashU counts your best attempt, not your latest. Say you earn an A+ in a 3-credit course, an A− in a 4-credit course, a B in a 3-credit course and a C in 3-credit chemistry. The A+ counts 4.0, the same as an A. Since a C is at or below a B−, you may retake chemistry, and you earn a B+. The C stays on your transcript with an R and drops out: (3 × 4.0 + 4 × 3.7 + 3 × 3.0 + 3 × 3.3) ÷ 13 = (12 + 14.8 + 9 + 9.9) ÷ 13 = 45.7 ÷ 13 = 3.52. If both attempts counted, you’d have 51.7 ÷ 16 = 3.23. If the retake went worse, say a C−, the C would keep the credit and the C− would get the R: 41.8 ÷ 13 = 3.22.
The calculator gives an estimate from the grades you enter. Your official GPA is the one on your WashU academic record.
For any other college, the college GPA calculator starts on the common plus/minus 4.0 points and takes your school’s own. Cumulative GPA combines terms you already have, and the GPA guide answers what a GPA means.
