How a semester grade is built
Most semesters combine two grading periods (quarters or terms) and a final exam, each carrying a set weight. The semester grade is the weighted average: Σ(grade × weight) ÷ Σ(weight). A common split is 40% / 40% / 20%.
How to use this calculator
Enter each term grade and the final exam grade as percentages, plus their weights from your syllabus. If your school uses different weights, just change them — the totals don't have to be exactly 100. To see what final score you'd need, try the final grade calculator. Category weights work the same way in the weighted grade calculator.
Worked example
Term 1 = 88% (40%), Term 2 = 92% (40%), final = 85% (20%): (88×40 + 92×40 + 85×20) ÷ 100 = 8900 ÷ 100 = 89%, a B+.
Weighting schemes vary more than people expect. Some schools weight each quarter 45% and the final 10%, some waive the final for students above a cutoff, and others average the two quarters first and then blend that result with the exam. Change the weights here to match your own syllabus and the arithmetic stays the same. Roll the finished term into your record with the cumulative GPA calculator.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I calculate my semester grade?
- Multiply each term grade and the final by their weights, add them, and divide by the total weight.
- What if quarters are weighted equally?
- Use the same weight for each quarter (for example 40% and 40%) and give the final the remaining share (20%).
- How much can the final change my grade?
- Only by its weight. A final worth 20% can move a semester grade by at most a few points unless your term grades are extreme.
- Where do I find the weights?
- They're listed on your course syllabus, often as 'each quarter 40%, final 20%' or similar.
- What if I'm exempt from the final?
- Leave the final blank or set its weight to zero, so only the terms are averaged by their own weights. With weights of 40 and 40 that gives you a straight average of the two quarter grades.