Your GPA is a metric that measures your academic performance. In college, your GPA is often a major consideration for scholarships, financial aid eligibility, and program admission. When it comes to defining a good college GPA, the answer depends on your program and academic goals. MassBay, like most colleges, uses a 4.0 scale, on which letter grades correspond to certain numeric equivalents.
You must earn a cumulative 2.0 GPA to maintain good academic standing and stay on track to graduate. In addition, many undergraduate programs require you to hold a minimum GPA to gain admission. For many Massachusetts colleges and universities, you must maintain a 2.5 GPA or higher for transfer.
| Letter Grade | Numeric Grade | Grade Points |
| A | 94-100 | 4.000 |
| A- | 90-93 | 3.700 |
| B+ | 87-89 | 3.300 |
| B | 83-86 | 3.000 |
| B- | 80-82 | 2.700 |
| C+ | 77-79 | 2.300 |
| C | 73-76 | 2.000 |
| C- | 70-72 | 1.700 |
| D+ | 67-69 | 1.300 |
| D | 63-66 | 1.000 |
| F | Failing | 0.000 |
The concept of quality points can be confusing. Put simply, quality points exist to ensure that the size of the course is considered in your overall grade calculation. After all, a four-credit course should count more toward your GPA than a one credit course, right? See below for an example on how to calculate quality points based on a 2 course, 7 credit semester.
Course: Biology (BI 101)
Grade: B
Credits: 4
GPA Point Value: 3
Quality Points: (3x4) = 12
Course: Spanish (SP 101)
Grade: B+
Credits: 3
GPA Point Value: 3.3
Quality Points: (3x3.3) = 9.99
Total
Quality Points: 22.99
Credits: 7
22.99 / 7 = 3.28 GPA
Learn more about calculating your GPA from Tyler Epps at Best College.
Calculating your college GPA allows you to track your academic progress toward meeting requirements for scholarships, transfer, academic probation recovery, selective admissions program, and more. The above checklist provides a framework for determining your GPA by hand. You can use an unofficial GPA Calculator to determine this as well. However, these calculators are not verified by MassBay. Please check with academic and transfer advising if you have questions!