Overview

The Target GPA Calculator works backward from your graduation GPA goal: enter your current GPA, credits earned, target GPA, and remaining credits, and it computes the average grade you need across your remaining coursework. It also shows the maximum GPA you could still reach if you aced every remaining credit, so you can immediately tell whether a goal is realistic. All three common Korean scales (4.5, 4.3, 4.0) are supported, and entering your remaining semesters breaks the plan down per term.

Formula

Required GPA = (target GPA × total credits − current GPA × earned credits) ÷ remaining credits
(total credits = earned credits + remaining credits)

Maximum reachable GPA = (current GPA × earned credits + scale max × remaining credits) ÷ total credits

Example: 4.5 scale, current 3.5 over 90 credits, target 3.8, 45 credits left
→ required = (3.8 × 135 − 3.5 × 90) ÷ 45 = (513 − 315) ÷ 45 = 4.40

If the required GPA exceeds the scale maximum, the target cannot be reached with the remaining credits alone.

How to Use

1. 1Select your school's grading scale (4.5, 4.3, or 4.0).
2. 2Enter your current cumulative GPA and the credits you have completed, as shown on your transcript.
3. 3Enter your target graduation GPA and the credits you still need — remaining credits = graduation requirement minus credits earned.
4. 4The required average GPA, the maximum reachable GPA, and a simulation of your final GPA at several grade levels are calculated automatically.

Examples

Background

Korean universities compute the cumulative GPA as a credit-weighted average: each course grade is multiplied by its credit hours, summed, and divided by total graded credits, most commonly on a 4.5 scale (A+ = 4.5) with some universities using 4.3. Because the GPA is credit-weighted, the more credits you have completed, the less influence each remaining credit has — which is why the required grade climbs steeply for upper-year students chasing the same target. Graduation GPA matters for graduate school admission (typically 3.0–3.5 minimums), national and institutional scholarship criteria, and some employer screening, so setting a target early pays off.

Tips

• ✔If the required GPA exceeds about 90% of the scale maximum (roughly 4.05 on a 4.5 scale), you effectively need straight A grades — break the goal into per-semester milestones instead of one big jump.
• ✔Course retakes replace low grades already in the denominator, lowering the required GPA far more efficiently than new credits — but grade caps on retakes (e.g. A0 maximum) and retake limits vary by university.
• ✔Adding summer/winter session credits increases your remaining credits and lowers the required average — worth considering when the calculator says your target is unreachable.
• ✔Pass/Fail courses are usually excluded from the GPA, so count only graded credits when entering your remaining credits.

FAQ