Weighted and unweighted GPAs are two different ways of calculating a student's grade point average (GPA). Here are the main differences between the two:
- Unweighted GPA : This type of GPA is calculated on a scale of 0 to 4.0 and does not take the difficulty of a student's coursework into account
. It treats all grades the same, regardless of the level of the class or the course content
. For example, an unweighted GPA of 3.4 means that you have an average grade of 3.4 out of 4.0, whether the grade was earned in a regular class, an honors class, or an Advanced Placement (AP) class
- Weighted GPA : This type of GPA takes both the grades and the difficulty of a student's coursework into account
. It is often used by high schools to differentiate between students who have taken more challenging courses and those who have not
. Weighted GPAs can be calculated in various ways, with some common methods being adding extra points for honors-level courses or using a specific scale for advanced classes
Colleges consider both weighted and unweighted GPAs during the admissions process, but they may convert them to their own system for comparison purposes
. They also take into account the context of the coursework a student has taken and the opportunities available to them in their high school
. In summary, neither weighted nor unweighted GPA is inherently better, as colleges consider both types of GPAs in their admissions decisions.
