Summer Bridge 2006 Reading 2

Grading (what it means and how it’s done in College)

It is important that you understand how your college grades are calculated and to get the best grades possible! A strong college grade point average (GPA) will open the door to scholarships, internships, jobs, awards, leadership opportunities, and many other opportunities not available to students with a “good” GPA.

A. Differences in grading. Temple University grades on a 4 point grading system, where A=4.0, B=3.0, C=2.0, D=1.0, F=0. Every course you take will be averaged together during your entire college career at Temple. That means if you get all A’s, your grade point average (G.P.A.) will be a 4.0 (equivalent to a 100 in high school). Conversely all F’s equals a 0.0 (equivalent to a 0 in high school). This is extremely important to understand because every semester and every course counts toward your G.P.A.

B. How to calculate your GPA. To calculate your GPA, multiply the grade points (see above) corresponding to grades you earned by the number of credits for each course – this gives you the number of quality points earned. Then divide the quality points earned by the total number of credits. Let’s take some examples. Your first semester you take 4 courses (all worth 3 credits) and receive: B, C, C, and A:

You then divide the number of quality points you earned by the number of credits you attempted, this will give you your semester GPA or

Now let’s consider what happens when you have a bad semester. You take 4 courses (all 3 credits) and get a D, C, C, and F

You then divide the number of quality points you earned by the number of credits you attempted, this will give you your semester GPA or 12 credits attempted divided into 15 Quality points = 1.25 GPA. Although you “passed” your courses, you will end up on probation, which happens when you fall below 2.0 – more on that later).

To calculate your total average or CUMULATIVE GPA (your GPA for all your semesters averaged together) you add all of your attempted credits and divide them into your total quality points earned. For the examples above:

C. Now that you understand how to calculate your GPA, how does it fit into the grading system?

Dean’s List. The Dean’s list is special recognition of a high achieving full time student (12 or more credits) who has earned a particular GPA; visit your school at http://www.temple.edu/bulletin/ugradbulletin/deans_list.htm. to see the required GPA.
Honors. Chi Alpha Epsilon (XAE) is a National Honor Society that you could be eligible to join. Any Russell Conwell Center Student who earns two consecutive cumulative full-time semesters GPA’s of 3.0 or better is invited to be a part ofXAE. Nomination to, and participation in, an honor society such as XAE is something worthwhile to pursue and an honor that the University, Graduate Schools, and future employers recognize. This year alone the Center had 77 students eligible for induction in XAE. You can join this elite group too!
Satisfactory Academic Progress. In order to be in good standing with the university, you must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 (C average). HOWEVER, most schools and colleges within the university have minimum requirements that are HIGHER than 2.0 that you must keep to remain in that department. Please refer to your particular school or college for details. For example the minimum GPA for a student in the Fox School of Business for graduation is 2.3, and in the School of Education it is 2.8.
Academic Probation Any student who earns less than a 2.0 in a given semester, or whose cumulative GPA is below a 2.0 regardless of the semester GPA is placed on academic probation. Two consecutive semesters on probation may result in dismissal from the university.

Summer Bridge Program 2008

Reading # 2