Is a 93 an A at Penn State?

Under standard Penn State grading schemes, such as the IST World Campus grading scale, a score of 93% to 100% falls in the A grade range, which earns a 4.000 grade-point equivalent. Instructors outline specific grading cutoffs in course syllabi at the start of each term.

What cumulative GPA is required for good academic standing at Penn State?

Penn State requires undergraduate students to maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 to remain in good academic standing. Falling below a 2.00 cumulative GPA places a student in academic warning or suspension status.

How does a Deferred Grade (DF) affect my Penn State GPA?

A Deferred Grade (DF) is temporarily excluded from GPA calculations while listed on your transcript. However, undergraduate students must complete missing coursework so instructors can submit a final grade within 10 weeks after the course end date, or the DF automatically converts to an F (0.000 grade points).

Do Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (SA/UN) grades count toward my Penn State GPA?

No, courses taken under the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (SA/UN) system are excluded from both semester and cumulative GPA computations under Senate Policy 49-60. Baccalaureate candidates are limited to a maximum of 12 SA/UN credits over their college career.

What happens if an instructor enters No Grade (NG)?

An NG symbol indicates an instructor did not submit a grade by the deadline, displaying an incomplete ('I') indicator on grade reports. The NG must be resolved within five weeks after the grade deadline; otherwise, the Registrar automatically converts it to an F grade, which prevents graduation until resolved.

Penn State GPA Scale: How to Calculate Your Semester and Cumulative GPA

Penn State calculates Grade-Point Average (GPA) on a 4.000 scale using quality letter grades ranging from A (4.000) down to F (0.000). A student’s semester or cumulative GPA is the weighted arithmetic mean of all grade points earned, computed by multiplying each course’s credit hours by the grade-point equivalent of the letter grade received and dividing total grade points by total graded GPA units.

Raw Penn State Course Schedules and Letter Grade Input

When you view your course schedule or academic record in LionPATH at the end of a term, your achievements are recorded as course titles, credit values, quality letter grades, or administrative status symbols. Raw transcripts display course enrollments alongside their official credit allocations and assigned evaluations prior to numerical conversion.

Consider the following representative example of an undergraduate term schedule before applying Penn State’s weighted GPA calculation method:

MATH 140 (Calculus I): 4.0 credits — Assigned Grade: A-
CHEM 110 (Chemical Principles I): 3.0 credits — Assigned Grade: B+
ENGL 15 (Rhetoric and Composition): 3.0 credits — Assigned Grade: C
HIST 20 (American History): 3.0 credits — Assigned Grade: SA (Satisfactory)
PHYS 211 (General Physics I): 4.0 credits — Assigned Grade: DF (Deferred Grade)

In its raw state, this schedule contains a mixture of graded academic courses carrying standard letter grades, non-graded course options, and pending administrative symbols. To compute an accurate GPA, each letter grade must be converted to its official numerical equivalent while non-graded symbols are treated according to University Senate policies.

Transformed Penn State Grade Point and GPA Calculation Output

To transform raw course results into an official grade-point average, each quality letter grade is mapped to Penn State’s grade-point equivalent scale. The number of grade points earned for any individual course is computed by multiplying the credit value of the course by the numerical grade-point equivalent. Courses taken under satisfactory/unsatisfactory grading, audits, or deferred status are excluded from GPA units.

Applying these conversion rules to the raw sample schedule yields the following transformed numerical output:

MATH 140 (4.0 credits, A-): 4.0 credits × 3.670 grade points = 14.680 grade points (Included in GPA)
CHEM 110 (3.0 credits, B+): 3.0 credits × 3.330 grade points = 9.990 grade points (Included in GPA)
ENGL 15 (3.0 credits, C): 3.0 credits × 2.000 grade points = 6.000 grade points (Included in GPA)
HIST 20 (3.0 credits, SA): Excluded from GPA computation = 0.000 grade points / 0 GPA units
PHYS 211 (4.0 credits, DF): Excluded from GPA computation = 0.000 grade points / 0 GPA units

Summary Calculation Steps

Total Graded Credits (GPA Units): 4.0 (MATH 140) + 3.0 (CHEM 110) + 3.0 (ENGL 15) = 10.0 GPA Units
Total Grade Points Earned: 14.680 + 9.990 + 6.000 = 30.670 Total Grade Points
Semester GPA: 30.670 Total Grade Points ÷ 10.0 GPA Units = 3.067 Semester GPA

The raw course list is thus transformed into a single weighted arithmetic mean of 3.067 for the term.

Step-by-Step Breakdown of Penn State Grade Equivalents and Rules

Understanding how raw letter grades convert into numerical grade points requires examining Penn State’s official undergraduate grading scale, standard syllabus percentage ranges, and transcript symbol rules.

Quality Letter Grades and Grade-Point Equivalents

Instructors assign quality letter grades based on their informed and professional judgment of a student’s scholastic achievement. Under Senate Policy 47-40, letter grades carry the following fixed numerical values:

A: 4.000 grade points
A-: 3.670 grade points
B+: 3.330 grade points
B: 3.000 grade points
B-: 2.670 grade points
C+: 2.330 grade points
C: 2.000 grade points
D: 1.000 grade point
F: 0.000 grade points

Percentage Ranges and Syllabus Grading Schemes

Instructors must provide written notification of the basis for grades in the course syllabus on or before the first class meeting. Standard academic grading schemes at Penn State (such as those used in IST World Campus courses) define percentage cutoffs as follows:

93% – 100%: A (4.000)
90% – 93%: A- (3.670)
87% – 90%: B+ (3.330)
83% – 87%: B (3.000)
80% – 83%: B- (2.670)
77% – 80%: C+ (2.330)
70% – 77%: C (2.000)
60% – 70%: D (1.000)
Below 60%: F (0.000)

Under this published percentage scale, achieving a score of 93% in a course corresponds directly to an A grade, translating to 4.000 grade points per credit hour.

Non-Graded Options and Special Transcript Symbols

Not all transcript symbols carry grade points or enter into GPA calculations:

Satisfactory / Unsatisfactory (SA / UN): Governed by Senate Policy 49-60. Passed courses receive SA and failed courses receive UN. SA and UN symbols are excluded from GPA calculations. Baccalaureate degree candidates are limited to a maximum of 12 SA/UN credits per college career, associate candidates to 6 credits, and no more than 2 SA/UN courses may be taken per semester. General Education requirements cannot be taken under this option.
Non-Credit Courses: Graded as NCP if passed or NCF if failed, carrying no credit and no GPA effect.
Deferred Grades (DF): Governed by Senate Policy 48-40. If circumstances beyond a student’s control prevent completion within the term, students may request a DF prior to the final exam period with instructor approval. Courses with DF are excluded from initial GPA calculations. For undergraduate students, all coursework must be completed and grades posted in LionPATH within 10 weeks following the course end date. If not updated by the deadline, the DF automatically converts to an F (0.000 grade points).
No Grade (NG): Governed by Senate Policy 48-50. If an instructor does not report a grade by the deadline, an NG symbol appears with an incomplete (“I”) indicator. If unresolved within five weeks following the grade-reporting deadline, the University Registrar automatically converts the NG to an F. Students with an active NG symbol on their transcript cannot graduate.
Other Administrative Symbols: Withdrawal (W), Late Drop (LD), Research (R), Credit by Examination (CRX), Audited Satisfactory (AUS), and Audited Unsatisfactory (AUU) are recorded on transcripts but are excluded from GPA computations.
Failing Grades (F) and Attendance: A grade of F carries 0.000 grade points. Instructors recording an F must report the student’s Last Date of Attendance (LDA) to ensure compliance with federal Return to Title IV financial aid regulations.

How to Calculate Your Own Penn State Semester and Cumulative GPA

To compute your semester or cumulative GPA manually from your own academic record, follow this four-step mathematical procedure:

Step 1: Identify Your Graded GPA Units

Locate your courses in LionPATH under “Units Taken Toward GPA” on your unofficial transcript. Include only courses assigned standard letter grades (A through F). Exclude courses taken as SA/UN, audited classes, pass/fail options, non-credit courses, or active DF/NG administrative symbols.

Step 2: Multiply Course Credits by Grade-Point Values

For each graded course, multiply its credit value by the grade-point equivalent assigned to your letter grade. For example, a 3-credit course with a B- (2.670) yields 3 × 2.670 = 8.010 grade points.

Step 3: Calculate Total Grade Points Earned

Add together all grade points calculated in Step 2 across all relevant courses for the specific semester (for Semester GPA) or across all Penn State enrollment history (for Cumulative GPA).

Step 4: Divide Total Grade Points by Total GPA Units

Divide your total grade points by total graded GPA units. Carry the result out to three decimal places as reported on official university records.

To save time on these calculations, you can use our free GPA Calculator to estimate semester grades and project your cumulative GPA instantly.

Calculating Academic Recovery Points

Penn State defines good academic standing as maintaining a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00. If your cumulative GPA drops below 2.00, your academic difficulty is measured using recovery points. Recovery points represent the quantitative number of credits you must complete with a grade of B (3.000) or higher to restore your cumulative GPA to 2.00.

Use the following official formula to compute recovery points: Recovery Points = GPA Units × (2.00 - Cumulative GPA)

Worked Example: Suppose a student has completed 45.0 GPA Units with a cumulative GPA of 1.60. Their recovery points calculation is: Recovery Points = 45.0 × (2.00 - 1.60) = 45.0 × 0.40 = 18.0 Recovery Points

This output indicates that the student needs to complete 18.0 credit hours with grades of B (3.000) or higher to return to a 2.00 cumulative GPA and regain good academic standing.

If you repeat a course or qualify for academic renewal, your cumulative GPA calculations follow Senate Policy 47-80 (for repeated courses) or Senate Policy 54-90 (for academic renewal).