For all of human history, people have been measuring items of value, from distance to speed to amounts of water in a bottle. Systems of weights and measures help societies function properly and logically, but they vary across the world, most evidently with currency. In keeping with this theme, education systems all over have used units of measurement to describe student performance, knowledge and understanding. With so many countries and cultures in the world, there are many ways to articulate student success in formal schooling; it is the work of a credential evaluation firm like IEE to make foreign achievements make sense to a US audience. This article will share some information about grading and Grade Point Averages, describe various grading methods across the world, and demonstrate how IEE is able to report your converted US GPA.
What is GPA? A Deep Dive into the Basics
The Grade Point Average, or GPA, is one of the most important concepts in US education. It is the broad description of how successful a student was in an academic program. The US GPA comes in the form of a number, usually between 0.00 and 4.00. It involves three important things from each course in the program: credits, grades, and quality points. A credit represents the amount of work expected per course, grades explain how well the individual performed, and quality points are values assigned to each grade for the purpose of creating a total GPA. For more information about how the GPA is calculated, please see our blogpost about accurate grade conversion.
To graduate with a bachelor’s degree, an individual usually needs a minimum 2.0 GPA. For graduate degrees, as well as to keep scholarships at any level of education, an individual must often maintain at least a 3.0 GPA; in other words, make sure you receive at least a B in your classes, so you don’t lose your scholarship!
Why Your GPA is More Than Just a Number
First, the GPA is an essential unit of measurement because it describes in simple terms the performance of individuals in their academic programs. It provides a general profile of how well a student did, and it can indicate competency in a specific subject.
Second, the GPA is a useful tool for helping individuals find their way. It can assist with placing people into undergraduate, graduate and doctoral-level programs. Admissions officers will utilize the GPA to grant admission and even award merit-based scholarships. Moreover, the GPA enhances resumes for job seekers by giving a quantitative metric; this is critical for recent and soon-to-be graduates who need as much help as possible to land their first big break. It also aids recruiters and employers who want to get a better sense of how competent or hardworking a candidate is.
Lastly, for the purpose of international credential evaluation, the GPA shows US-based recipients how successful you were in your program abroad. You devoted so much time to obtaining your diploma or degree before coming to the US, and now you’re looking to use it. But when someone sees a 1.5 Total Result on a Degree Certificate from Germany or an 8.10 Cumulative GPA from an Indian consolidated marksheet, how will an employer, licensing board or admissions officer know that this is considered a pretty good result?
Evaluators are sensitive to the fact that grading scales, standards and systems in other countries are often much different than they are in the US. Therefore, we aim to convert GPAs that both take these differences into account while also providing US recipients and institutions an accurate piece of academic data that they can understand. Let’s look a little deeper at grades and scales across the world.
Grading Styles Around the Globe
In over 40 years of evaluating credentials, IEE has seen all kinds of grading methods: numbers, letters, descriptions, even colors! While seemingly unrelated, all these styles represent an attempt at measuring a student’s success in secondary and post-secondary courses. IEE pays close attention to the submitted documentation and carries out extensive research to verify grading scales used. While variations exist, there are general trends that international credential evaluators have identified throughout countries and regions.
Many countries have scales that closely resemble the United States, often using letter grades from A+ to F, quality points, and even grade points on a 4-point scale; examples include New Zealand, Canada and Jamaica. As a result, it is not too complicated to convert grades to their US equivalents. Countries like Ghana or Bangladesh utilize letter grades and 4-point scales, too, but it is common to find slight differences in the quality points per grade, leading to slightly different outcomes after conversion to the US system.
Some places use a 100-point scale, a concept that a US audience can still understand, as 100-point scales are used at the primary and secondary level, as well as on examinations. The United Kingdom, South Africa and Kenya, for instance, often use a scale out of 100. A grade of 75 is considered a high achievement, while a grade of 40 is usually the passing minimum. It is also common to see ‘class distinctions’; terms like “First Class” or “Second Class Upper Division” appear, and these are essentially a Grade Point Average represented in words rather than as a number. If an individual with a Kenyan Bachelor of Science graduates in First Class, a credential evaluator will expect their US GPA to be high on the 4-point scale.
Some countries use a 5-point scale, such as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Colombia. Credential evaluators take extra care to make sure that the 5-point GPA is converted correctly to a 4-point scale. Students may think their result is being downgraded, but it’s simply translated to the US style.
Countries of the former Soviet Union, such as Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, also use a 5-point scale along with general descriptions. A ‘5’ is considered “Excellent,” a ‘4’ is “Good,” and a 3 is “Satisfactory.” These will often correspond with a US A, B and C grade respectively.
Moreover, there are 5-point scales that dramatically differ from this. In Germany and Philippines, contrary to popular practice in the US, the lower number indicates a better result. A 1.00 in both countries is considered high performing; however, a 3.00 in Germany is considered an average grade, while a 3.00 in the Philippines is the bare minimum passing grade. Despite similar scales, the same number in each country can have two different perceptions of competency.
In certain systems, students are graded out of 20. Venezuela, Iran, Portugal and Francophone-style countries use this system of measurement. A 10 is usually the minimum passing grade, so this will correspond with a US C or D.
Evaluators have also found 10-point scales across many countries, such as Greece, Vietnam, the Netherlands, India, Brazil and Spain. There is some variation in what the numbers mean. Some 10-point Greek scales consider a 5.00 a “Good” score, while a 5.00 in Netherlands could actually be a failing grade.
Some countries may not use number scores out of 4, 5, 10 or 100. Instead, a transcript from countries like Egypt or Australia will utilize descriptors, such as “Excellent”, “Very Good,” “Distinction” or “Pass,” to articulate degrees of student achievement. Despite the lack of numerical grades, evaluators at IEE are trained to understand these descriptors and accurately convert them to their numerical equivalents.
Regardless of region, IEE is committed to understanding education systems and grading methods so that the accomplishments can be fairly converted to US terms. We recognize that not all systems follow the same weights, measures or standards. When translating a foreign grading scale to the US grading scale, we take into account the descriptors, passing minimums, graduating distinctions and standards of the home country. For example, if a 40 is a minimum passing grade, a credential evaluator will map it to a minimum passing grade in the US. On the other hand, if an 8/10 is understood to be a good score, it will likely be converted as a higher grade in the US scale.
Standards vary across systems, but to explain how an individual was able to complete a program with grades so drastically different from the US standard, IEE factors this difference of understanding into its conversion. This applies to both individual courses, whose grades are the result of exams, projects, or participation, and to the overall program performance. While transcripts from many countries may now have a Cumulative GPA, Graduating Classification, or Overall Performance quantified or expressed, IEE provides this on US credential evaluations, as is often expected by recipients.
IEE: Your Partner in GPA Conversion and Credential Evaluation
IEE has established itself as a reliable provider of credential evaluations. With respect to calculating and reporting GPAs, we have plenty of solutions available.
There are several product offerings that calculate and report your GPA. Specifically with education admission, employment and perhaps more, a GPA on a credential evaluation can help individuals break barriers and find opportunities in a new country. In addition to a standard course-by-course evaluation, IEE also provides a “Document+GPA” report, which shows standard program information and equivalency, as well as the US equivalent GPA.
Select institutions have begun receiving reports that only contain the GPA. This is the most important information for them, so we have catered to their wishes.
Lastly, our website has a GPA calculator. This tool can help you extract a rough estimation of what your grades translate to in the United States. It is not a guarantee, as the official evaluation will always be more accurate and take precedence, but it can give you a preview of what to expect. Simply select your country and a scale that matches your results. It will reveal your local grades and their equivalents in US terms. Feel free to give it a try!
Grades are among the most essential components of both educational histories and credential evaluations. While the result seen on your credential evaluation may look much different than what is customary in the country of your education, it is simply the translation of your accomplishment into terms understood in the US; we apply a comprehension of what your result means in your home country and provide a GPA that simultaneously makes sense to an American audience.
The grading style of your home country may be drastically different than what you are used to. Do not worry though! The credential evaluation is meant to reveal the US equivalent of your achievement. It’ll have a fresh new look, but a US audience will know what to do. Order a credential evaluation today to see what your grades convert to in a new scale!
