The system that most American
colleges (and
high schools) use to measure
students' academic performance.
The most common scale is:
A+ = 4.0
A = 4.0
A- = 3.666667
B+ = 3.333333
B = 3.0
B- = 2.6666667
C+ = 2.3333333
C = 2.0
C- = 1.6666667
D+ = 1.3333333
D = 1.0
F = 0.0
Thus, if John received two B's and a D one semester, with the B classes
being 3 credits each and the D class being worth 4 credits, then John's
grade point average for the semester would be (((3.0*3) + (3.0*3) + (1.0*4))/(3+3+4))
= 2.2 GPA.
At most universities and colleges, a GPA of under 2.0 is sufficient
grounds for a student to be placed on academic probation or expelled.
There are numerous variations, such as basing it on a 5.0 scale instead
of 4.0 or moving down by increments of 0.2 instead of 0.33333.