Converting CGPA to percentage is a basic question in education system. Grading in education is the process of applying standardized percentages of various levels of performance in a course or method. Grades are assigned as letters, range, percentage, number out of a reasonable total.
CGPA referred to Cumulative Grade Points Average. It was introduced in CCE for class X. CCE means a Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation System. CGPA is the average of Grade Points obtained in 5 subjects excluding additional 6th subject or fourth subject as per Scheme of Studies.
CBSE ranks students based on CGPA after 2011. It is calculated on a scale of 10, where the highest is 10, and the lowest is 4. CBSE awards the students’ grade points based on marks they obtain in a subject. The subject wise performance of the students is recorded in the forms of Grades.
The CGPA is used to denote the overall performance of the student in the academic session as grades. The CGPA system was introduced to ease the burden of marks and the examinations’ stress among students. Due to this reason, the CGPA system is also used in some of the bachelor’s and Master’s Degree.
History of CGPA grading system
Yale University historian George W.pierson inscribes, “According to tradition, the first grades were given in 1785 at Yale. President Ezra Slites examined 58 seniors by recording in his diary. The results were in ‘Twenty Optimi, Sixteen Second Optimi, Twelve Inferiores, Ten Pejors.’ Bob Marlin insists that the concept of grading students developed by a tutor named William Farish. In 1792 the University of Cambridge implemented for the first time.
Most nations have their grading system, and different institutions or exam boards in a single nation run different grade systems. To maintain the standards internationally, several international standards of grading have arisen recently, such as European Baccalaureate.
In India, different education boards use varied marking or grade system to award students. Central Board of Secondary Education, simply CBSE, follows a positional trading system. Grades are given based on the position; for example, if the student is in the top 1/8th ranks, the grade is A1, next 1/8th A2, next 1/8th B1, etc. The grade is given based on relative position, not based on actual marks scored by the students.
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education board only gives the students’ mark, where the state board gives either or both marks and grades in the result. And grades are given linearly, for example, A+ >90; A 80-90 for Kerala.
At the school level, above 95% is considered exceptional, while 75-85 are average. At the University level, 60-79 is regarded as exceptional because it is quite challenging to obtain.
Many colleges outside India disallow students from boards except CBSE or ICSE; for example, the University of Oxford required them to write additional examinations, such as the National University of Singapore.
In some instances, a score close to 90% is infrequent. In a university with 90% mark as the distinction, 60% may be the minimum passing mark. The distinction mark with 70% in a university passing mark maybe 45%. In this way, the Grade-Point Average (GPA) is relatively difficult for Indian students. A student having 95% in India will be close to 3.9 on the GPA scale.
Some institutions with a tough scoring and challenging curriculum, give 70% a distinction. Universities like Jamia Millia University have a CPI system for B.Tech degree students. For them, 60% is the first division, and 75% is a distinction/honors.
2011 Grade-point system in India
In India, Universities and Institutes rank their students based on Percentage. And many have their ranking on point. But there are exceptions in some courses such as MBA. Without any exceptional declaration from the Institute, the following table summarizes the grading system’s expected graduation and post-graduation:
Grading
The 7 point GPA introduced by the University of Mumbai from the Academic year 2012 – 2013 is categorized as follows after UGC guideline:
| Letter Grade | Mark | Grade Point |
| O | 80 and above | 10 |
| A | 75 to 79.99 | 9 |
| B | 70 to 74.99 | 8 |
| C | 60 to 69.99 | 7 |
| D | 50 to 59.9 | 6 |
| E | 45 to 49.99 | 5 |
| P | 40 to 44.99 | 4 |
| F(FAIL) | 39.99 and below | 0 |
Grade-point conversion in International acceptance for the Percentages scored in Indian Universities:
Scale U.S. Grade Equiv.
| Scale | U.S. Grade Equivalent |
| 60-100 | A |
| 50-59 | B |
| 40-49 | C |
| <40 | F |
At selected institutions, a lower grade may be considered passing.
Every year lakhs of candidates appear in the CBSE examination. The pressure of examinations results inducing anxiety and stress in the mind of students. In 2011 CBSE replaced the trend of awarding marks to the CGPA grading system.
Some of the most common and reliable methods are:
1. For average CGPA:
The Sum of all the Grade Points (GP) of each subject must be divided by 5.
For instance, if an examinee scores the GP for- Subject 1 is 8, Subject 2 is 9, Subject 3 is 9, Subject 4 is 9.5, and Subject 5 is 7
Then the sum of GPs will be: 8+9+9+9.5+7= 42.5
Dividing 42.5 by 5, we get 8.5, which is the aggregate CGPA.
2. For overall indicative Percentage of marks:
We need to multiply CGPA with 9.5. (9.5*CGPA)
3. To calculate subject wise indicative Percentage of marks
We need to multiply 9.5 with GP of the subject. (9.5x GP of the subject)
OR
How to calculate CGPA to Percentage from subject grade points?
1. Add Grade Points (GPs) for all the five main subjects.
2. Now divide the number obtained by 5
3. The resultant number is your CGPA.
For example, if your grade points for the 5 main subjects are: Subject 1: 8, Subject 2: 9, Subject 3: 7, Subject 4: 9, and Subject 5: 9
Step 1: Add the grade points: 8+9+7+9+9 = 42
Step 2: Divide it by 5 42/5 = 8.5
So, your CGPA is 8.5
How to convert Percentage to CGPA?
Just divide your Percentage by 9.5, and the result will be your CGPA. For example, to convert 68 percent to CGPA, we divide it by 9.5, and the resulting number 7.2 is the CGPA. To calculate CGPA, add the grade-points of five subjects, excluding the additional subject, and divide the total by 5. The result will be your CGPA. For example, if you got 10 in Maths, 9 in English, 10 in Science, 7 in Social Studies, and 8 in Hindi, your CGPA will be (10+9+10+7+8)/5 = 8.8.
Why multiply with 9.5 only?
The Board took the result of the last five years and calculated the average marks of all candidates who had scored between 91 and 100. That average turned out to be close to 95 marks. Since the equivalent Grade Point for the 91-100 bands (A1 grade) of marks is 10, it then divided the average result of 95 by 10. The result was 9.5.
There are some problems and some advantages while using CGPA. Those are as follows:-
Advantages:
• The CGPA system has reduced the pressure of scoring high marks as it doesn’t mention marks.
• Students can give priority or attention to a subject based on the grade allotted to the subject.
• Grade system helps teachers to pay attention according to categories a student belongs to.
• Students themselves can understand their strengths and weakness.
Problems:
• The CGPA systems eliminate the competition among students, as they don’t need to score high, the range is enough to be excellent.
• The CGPA results don’t show marks, so the result is not accurate. Grades don’t show the performance of the students accurately. In the CGPA system, 91 marks are also A1, and 100 marks are also A1. Similarly, a score of 89 is A2, and 92 are A1, which is a big difference in the grade but only differs by 3 marks in reality.
• In the CCE system, a student can score the highest rank by performing well in the activities and projects and not in exams.
International views and opinions on CGPA
- Various grading systems around the world are similar to the CGPA system used by the CBSE in India.
- In England and Wales, the GCSE board uses a grading system where grades range from 9(highest) to 1(lowest). Generally, a 4 and above is considered as pass and 3 and lower as fail.
- Most colleges and universities in the United States have a grading system where grades are awarded as A to F. These grades are converted to GPA.
- In Japan, 90-100 marks are equal to grade AA or T, 80-89 are equal to A, 70-79 are equal to B, 60-69 are equal to C, and below that F, which is Fail.
- CGPA to Percentage conversion system is a robust inclusion in education system.
CGPA to Percentage Chart
| CGPA | Percentage |
| 10 | 95 |
| 9.9 | 94.05 |
| 9.8 | 93.1 |
| 9.7 | 92.15 |
| 9.6 | 91.2 |
| 9.5 | 90.25 |
| 9.4 | 89.3 |
| 9.3 | 88.35 |
| 9.2 | 87.4 |
| 9.1 | 86.45 |
| 9 | 85.5 |
| 8.9 | 84.55 |
| 8.8 | 83.6 |
| 8.7 | 82.65 |
| 8.6 | 81.7 |
| 8.5 | 80.75 |
| 8.4 | 79.8 |
| 8.3 | 78.85 |
| 8.2 | 77.9 |
| 8.1 | 76.95 |
| 8 | 76 |
| 7.9 | 75.05 |
| 7.8 | 74.1 |
| 7.7 | 73.15 |
| 7.6 | 72.2 |
| 7.5 | 71.25 |
| 7.4 | 70.3 |
| 7.3 | 69.35 |
| 7.2 | 68.4 |
| 7.1 | 67.45 |
| 7 | 66.5 |
| 6.9 | 65.55 |
| 6.8 | 64.6 |
| 6.7 | 63.65 |
| 6.6 | 62.7 |
| 6.5 | 61.75 |
| 6.4 | 60.8 |
| 6.3 | 59.85 |
| 6.2 | 58.9 |
| 6.1 | 57.95 |
| 6 | 57 |
| 5.9 | 56.05 |
| 5.8 | 55.1 |
| 5.7 | 54.15 |
| 5.6 | 53.2 |
| 5.5 | 52.25 |
| 5.4 | 51.3 |
| 5.3 | 50.35 |
| 5.2 | 49.4 |
| 5.1 | 48.54 |
| 5 | 47.5 |
| 4.9 | 46.55 |
| 4.8 | 45.6 |
| 4.7 | 44.65 |
| 4.6 | 43.7 |
| 4.5 | 42.75 |
| 4.4 | 41.8 |
| 4.3 | 40.85 |
| 4.2 | 39.9 |
| 4.1 | 38.95 |
| 4 | 38 |