Many US high schools report grades by quarter and combine them into a semester grade with a semester exam. A common pattern is 40% for each quarter and 20% for the exam, but districts use others: 45/45/10, 37.5/37.5/25, or no exam at all. Because the semester grade is what goes on the transcript and into GPA, it helps to know exactly how the pieces combine. This semester grade calculator takes two quarter or term grades, the exam, and the weights from your handbook. It returns the semester average and, if you haven't taken the exam yet, the score you need for each letter grade.
For a single class with several categories, use the grade calculator. For a class whose last piece is a final exam weighted against a running grade, use the final grade calculator.
How to use the semester grade calculator
- Enter the two quarter (or term) grades as percentages from your report card or portal.
- Enter the weights from your school’s grading policy, such as 40, 40 and 20.
- If you have taken the exam, enter your score. If not, choose "Not yet" to see the table of scores needed.
- Weights that don’t add up to 100 are rescaled automatically.
Formula
Worked example
Q1 = 86%, Q2 = 91%, exam = 78%, weights 40/40/20.
- Weighted points: 86 × 40 + 91 × 40 + 78 × 20 = 3,440 + 3,640 + 1,560 = 8,640.
- Semester grade: 8,640 ÷ 100 = 86.4%.
- Before the exam, the two quarters averaged (3,440 + 3,640) ÷ 80 = 88.5%.
- An A (90%) would have needed (90 × 100 − 7,080) ÷ 20 = 96% on the exam; a B (80%) needed (8,000 − 7,080) ÷ 20 = 46%.
Letter-averaging vs percentage-averaging
Some districts don't average percentages at all. They convert each quarter and the exam to a letter or a point value (A = 4, B = 3…), average those, and convert back, sometimes with a rule that two quarters of the same letter can't be pulled down more than one step by the exam. Under such a system, an 89.4% quarter and an 80% quarter are both a B, so percentage maths overstates the difference. If your report card shows only letters for quarters, ask how the semester grade is computed before relying on the percentages here. Our letter grade calculator converts between the two.
How much can the exam move the grade?
An exam weighted 20% can move the semester grade by at most 20 points in either direction compared with scoring 100% or 0%. In practice, each 10 points on the exam moves the semester grade by 2 points (10 × 0.20). That is why students near a boundary often have a realistic shot at the higher letter. In the example, the student needed 96% for an A. If the exam weight were 25%, raising the exam score by 10 points would move the grade by 2.5. Semester grades feed into GPA; see the high school gpa calculator.
Caveats and assumptions
- Districts set their own semester formulas; your student handbook is the authority.
- Some schools apply exam exemptions, minimum grades (for example no quarter below 50%) or letter-averaging rules that this calculator doesn’t model.
- Needed scores above 100% are shown as not reachable.
- Teacher rounding of the final semester percentage may differ.
Frequently asked questions
How is a semester grade calculated?
Usually as a weighted average of the quarter grades and the semester exam, such as 40% + 40% + 20%. Multiply each by its weight, add, and divide by the total weight.
What do I need on my semester exam to get an A?
Subtract your weighted quarter points from 90 × the total weight and divide by the exam weight. With quarters of 86 and 91 at 40% each, you need 96% for a 90% semester grade.
What if there is no semester exam?
Set the exam weight to 0 and give each quarter 50%. The semester grade is then the average of the two quarters.
Can a bad exam drop my grade a whole letter?
Yes, if you are near a boundary. With a 20% exam weight, each 10 points below your quarter average lowers the semester grade by 2 points.
Do semester grades or quarter grades go on my transcript?
In most US high schools, semester (or final) grades are recorded on the transcript and used for GPA, while quarter grades are progress reports. Check with your school.
Sources
- Indiana University — Grading scales and curving (IUSO Teaching Toolkit) — weighted components in course grades
- College Board BigFuture — How to Calculate Your GPA on a 4.0 Scale — how class grades become GPA points
- NCES — High School Transcript Study — how course grades and credits are recorded on transcripts
This calculator gives estimates for planning and education. Check measurements, local codes, supplier specs and your school's official policy before relying on a result. See our disclaimer and how we build and check calculators.