Calculate your quarter grades based on assignments, tests, and other assessments. Our calculator helps you track your academic progress and plan for success in the quarter system.
Enter your grade items, scores, and weights below. Make sure your weights add up to 100%. The calculator will automatically compute your quarter grade.
Good - You have a solid understanding of most concepts.
The quarter system divides the academic year into four terms, typically lasting 10-11 weeks each, compared to the semester system's two 15-16 week terms. This accelerated pace offers both advantages and challenges for students.
Material is covered more quickly, requiring students to stay consistently engaged with coursework.
Students typically take 3-4 courses per quarter, allowing for exploration of more subjects annually.
Exams and major assignments occur more frequently, with less time between them.
Quarter credits are typically worth 2/3 of a semester credit when transferring between systems.
Understanding how grades are calculated in the quarter system is essential for academic success. With less time to recover from poor performance, tracking your progress throughout the quarter becomes even more critical.
Collect all your graded assignments, quizzes, tests, and projects for the quarter with both scores and total possible points.
Check your syllabus to find the weight of each category. The weights should add up to 100%.
For each category, divide earned points by total possible points, then multiply by 100 to get a percentage.
Multiply each category average by its weight (as a decimal), then add all weighted scores together.
| Category | Your Score | Total Points | Percentage | Weight | Weighted Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homework | 85 | 100 | 85% | 20% | 17.0 |
| Quizzes | 78 | 100 | 78% | 15% | 11.7 |
| Midterm | 82 | 100 | 82% | 25% | 20.5 |
| Project | 90 | 100 | 90% | 20% | 18.0 |
| Final Exam | 88 | 100 | 88% | 20% | 17.6 |
| Final Grade | 100% | 84.8 |
Final Grade: 84.8% (B) = (85 × 0.20) + (78 × 0.15) + (82 × 0.25) + (90 × 0.20) + (88 × 0.20)
Create a detailed weekly schedule that allocates specific time blocks for each course. The fast pace of quarters requires disciplined time management.
Study in shorter, more frequent sessions rather than cramming. Review material daily to keep pace with the accelerated quarter schedule.
Start assignments as soon as they're assigned. With only 10 weeks, deadlines approach quickly, and multiple courses will have overlapping due dates.
Engage actively in class discussions and ask questions. The condensed format means each class covers more material, making attendance and participation crucial.
A structured weekly plan is essential for quarter system success. Here's a sample template:
| Time | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Weekend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morning | Class A Review notes | Study for Class B Start Assignment C | Class A Review notes | Study for Class B Continue Assignment C | Class A Review notes | Catch up on readings Review week's material |
| Afternoon | Class B Class C | Work on Project A Office hours | Class B Class C | Work on Project A Study group | Class B Class C | Work ahead on upcoming assignments Project work |
| Evening | Review B & C notes Reading for Class A | Reading for Class B Assignment A | Review B & C notes Reading for Class A | Reading for Class B Finish Assignment C | Plan next week Relax | Prepare for upcoming week Self-care |
Quarter grades are calculated by multiplying each assignment's percentage score by its weight, then adding all weighted scores together. For example, if you scored 85% on an assignment worth 20% of your grade, it contributes 17 points (85 × 0.2) to your final grade.
The formula is: Final Grade = Σ(Assignment Score × Assignment Weight)
In quarter systems, each quarter course typically carries fewer credits than semester courses, but you take more courses per year. Your GPA calculation remains the same: multiply each course grade point by its credit hours, add them together, then divide by total credit hours.
For example, if you earned an A (4.0) in a 3-credit course, a B (3.0) in a 4-credit course, and a C (2.0) in a 3-credit course, your GPA would be:
GPA = [(4.0 × 3) + (3.0 × 4) + (2.0 × 3)] ÷ (3 + 4 + 3) = 3.0
Since quarters move quickly (typically 10 weeks), start strong and stay consistent. Create a weekly study schedule, begin assignments early, and review material regularly. Don't procrastinate, as there's less time to recover from a poor start compared to semester systems.
To convert quarter units to semester units, multiply by 2/3 (or 0.667). To convert semester units to quarter units, multiply by 3/2 (or 1.5). This conversion is important when transferring between schools with different academic calendars.
Quarter to Semester
5 quarter units × 2/3 = 3.33 semester units
Semester to Quarter
3 semester units × 3/2 = 4.5 quarter units
Your grade weights should always total 100%. If they don't, either adjust the weights or normalize them by dividing each weight by the total sum and multiplying by 100. Our calculator will alert you if weights don't sum to 100%.
For example, if your weights add up to 90%, you can normalize them by dividing each weight by 0.9:
For missing assignments, you have several options:
Our calculator allows you to enter hypothetical scores for missing assignments to see how they would affect your final grade.
Unweighted grades treat all assignments equally, regardless of their importance. Your grade is simply the total points earned divided by total points possible.
Weighted grades assign different importance (weights) to different categories. Most college courses use weighted grades to emphasize the importance of exams, projects, etc.
Example:
A student has the following scores:
Unweighted: (90 + 80 + 75 + 85) ÷ 4 = 82.5%
Weighted: (90 × 20%) + (80 × 15%) + (75 × 30%) + (85 × 35%) = 82.75%
To predict your final quarter grade:
Remember that in the quarter system, each assignment carries more weight due to the compressed timeline, so staying on top of all assignments is crucial.
| Letter Grade | Percentage | GPA |
|---|---|---|
| A | 90-100% | 4.0 |
| A- | 87-89% | 3.7 |
| B+ | 84-86% | 3.3 |
| B | 80-83% | 3.0 |
| B- | 77-79% | 2.7 |
| C+ | 74-76% | 2.3 |
| C | 70-73% | 2.0 |
| C- | 67-69% | 1.7 |
| D+ | 64-66% | 1.3 |
| D | 60-63% | 1.0 |
| F | 0-59% | 0.0 |
With only 10 weeks per quarter, each graded item has a greater impact on your final grade. Missing even one assignment can significantly affect your standing.
Quarter systems often have fewer total assignments than semester systems, making each assignment worth more. Expect 2-3 major exams and 5-8 assignments per course.
Midterms typically occur around weeks 4-5, giving you less time to prepare compared to semester systems where midterms might be in weeks 7-8.
The compressed timeline means less opportunity to recover from poor performance. Start strong and maintain consistency throughout the quarter.
Calculate grades for semester-based courses
Calculate your Grade Point Average
Calculate what you need on your final exam
Calculate grades with different category weights
Calculate curved grades based on class performance
Calculate the grade needed on remaining assignments
Quarter systems divide the academic year into four parts, while semester systems use two longer terms. Quarters are typically 10 weeks long compared to 15-16 weeks for semesters.