Penn State
GPA calculator
Penn State GPA
How Pennsylvania State University calculates GPA
Pennsylvania State University (Pennsylvania) calculates GPA as a credit-weighted average: multiply each course's grade points by its credits, add them up, and divide by total credits. The detail that matters is the grade scale.
The Penn State grade scale — what makes it specific
A+ rule: Penn State does NOT award A+. Grades are A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, D, F — note there is no C-, D+ or D- either.
Failing grade: Pennsylvania State University uses "F" for a failing grade (0.0).
Repeated courses & grade replacement
Grade forgiveness: a student who earns a D or F and then repeats the course for a better grade may request that the original grade be omitted from the GPA (it stays on the transcript).
Academic standing
Graduate students need 3.0 for good standing; undergraduate Dean's List criteria are set by enrollment and GPA.
Latin honors at graduation
There is no university-wide cut-off at Pennsylvania State University — each college sets its own. The cut-offs are recalculated each year so that each college's top 12% graduate with distinction.
| College or school | cum laude | magna cum laude | summa cum laude |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abington College | 3.85 | 3.94 | 3.99 |
| Agricultural Sciences | 3.83 | 3.92 | 3.99 |
| Altoona College | 3.88 | 3.95 | 4.00 |
| Arts and Architecture | 3.92 | 3.96 | 3.99 |
| Behrend College | 3.83 | 3.92 | 3.98 |
| Berks College | 3.88 | 3.94 | 3.99 |
| Capital College | 3.87 | 3.94 | 3.99 |
| Communications | 3.82 | 3.89 | 3.96 |
| Earth and Mineral Sciences | 3.87 | 3.94 | 3.99 |
| Education | 3.93 | 3.98 | 4.00 |
| Engineering | 3.86 | 3.93 | 3.99 |
| Health and Human Development | 3.86 | 3.93 | 3.99 |
| Information Sciences and Technology | 3.86 | 3.93 | 3.98 |
| Intercollege | 3.82 | 3.93 | 3.99 |
| Liberal Arts | 3.87 | 3.94 | 3.99 |
| Nursing | 3.86 | 3.93 | 3.98 |
| Science | 3.91 | 3.96 | 4.00 |
| Smeal College of Business | 3.87 | 3.93 | 3.98 |
| University College | 3.89 | 3.95 | 4.00 |
These cut-offs are recalculated and apply to 2026-27 (baccalaureate degrees conferred Fall 2026-Summer 2027). Check the registrar for the current year before relying on them.
Cutoffs are recalculated each year to hold the top 12% of each college's graduating class, per: "in the top 12% of a college's graduating class" (minimum 3.5 cumulative GPA and 60 credits, 30 for associate degrees, earned at Penn State). Figures above are for baccalaureate degrees conferred Fall 2026-Summer 2027 only and will change in future years. Associate-degree cutoffs (university-wide, not per-college): cum laude 3.84, magna cum laude 3.92, summa cum laude 4.00.
Dean’s List
Pennsylvania State University names students to its Dean’s List at a term GPA of 3.50 or above with 12 or more credits toward GPA (full-time) or 6 through 11.9 credits toward GPA (part-time).
Academic probation and dismissal
Academic Warning / Academic Suspension / Academic Dismissal: cumulative GPA falls below 2.00 (Academic Warning); student may continue if semester GPA is 2.00 or higher.
Dismissal: a student on Academic Warning who earns a semester GPA below 2.00 is Academically Suspended; a student returning from suspension who does not achieve at least a 2.00 semester GPA is Academically Dismissed.
Sources
Every figure on this page was read on one of these pages, all published by Pennsylvania State University itself. Nothing here comes from a ranking site or an aggregator.
- www.registrar.psu.edu — Latin honors.
- aappm.psu.edu — Dean’s List.
- senate.psu.edu — academic standing.
- www.registrar.psu.edu — grading scale and GPA calculation.
Good to know
Penn State's scale is narrower than most: no A+, and no C-, D+ or D-. Undergraduate grades are A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, D, F. Grade forgiveness lets a repeated D/F be omitted from the GPA on request.
Need to plan ahead? Use the target GPA planner to find the grades you need, or the final grade calculator for a single class. International student? See CGPA to US GPA (WES).