Purdue University Northwest (PNW) GPA Calculator

PNW grades on a plus/minus letter scale running from A+ down to D-, plus two failing marks, E and F. Instructors assign whichever grades are offered in a given course.

A+ and A are both described as the “highest passing grade,” and D- is the “lowest passing grade, indicating achievement of the minimum objectives of the course.”

E is a “conditional failure,” distinct from an outright F: it means minimum course objectives were missed, but only to a limited extent, and credit can still be earned by examination or otherwise without repeating the whole course. An E reverts automatically to a failing grade unless resolved within one semester — and even then, it can only ever become a D, never a higher grade. F means the student must repeat the course and complete it satisfactorily to earn credit.

Courses can also be taken under a Pass/Not Pass option: instructors report P (work that would have earned A+ through C-) or N (work that would not have passed), and neither P nor N counts toward GPA. A student may use this option for no more than 20 percent of the credit hours required for graduation, and must register for it in the first four weeks of a semester (first two weeks of a summer session).

Zero-credit courses (including thesis research) use a separate S/U scale — Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory — plus AU (audit) and NS (not submitted).

An incomplete — I for a credit course, PI under the pass/not-pass option, SI for a zero-credit course — is recorded when passing work was interrupted by unavoidable absence or a similar cause beyond the student's control. It must be resolved to a permanent grade within one year, or it automatically reverts to a failing grade: IF for an unresolved I, IN for an unresolved PI, IU for an unresolved SI.

PNW tracks two scholastic averages, computed the same way: a semester GPA and a cumulative (overall) GPA. Each grade earned is multiplied by the semester hours of credit in the course to produce that course's index points; index points are summed and divided by the total semester hours that counted toward the average.

The grades that count toward GPA are A+/A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, E, IF, and F. A+ is tracked as its own quantity in PNW's own GPA formula, separate from A, even though both carry the same 4.0 value. Grades of P, N, I, PI, W, WF, WN, IN, IU, AU, and NS are not included in either average.

If a student repeats a non-repeatable course (with academic-advisor guidance, up to three times), only the most recent grade counts toward the cumulative GPA — and if a conditional E was later improved by examination, the grade from that examination is what counts. Transfer credit from another college or university can fulfill degree requirements, but it can never be used to remove a Purdue-recorded grade from a GPA calculation.

A graduate student's cumulative GPA is computed the same way, using graduate-level courses (numbered 500 or higher) taken since entering the graduate program, plus any undergraduate-level courses taken as part of the graduate plan of study; foreign-language reading-knowledge courses required by the Graduate Council are excluded.

This framework is set by University Senate Document 7-5 (April 21, 2008).

A student is considered in good standing unless they have been dismissed, suspended, or academically separated from the University and not yet readmitted.

Academic notice is triggered if a student's fall or spring semester GPA, or their overall/cumulative GPA, falls below 2.0 at the end of any fall or spring semester (summer sessions aren't assessed). A student is removed from notice at the end of the first subsequent fall or spring semester in which both their semester and overall GPA reach 2.0 or higher.

A student already on academic notice is separated from the University at the close of any fall or spring semester in which their semester and overall GPA is still below 2.0. Any grade change caused by a reporting error triggers a recalculation of GPA and standing.

Readmission after separation: a student separated for academic reasons for the first time may not re-enroll for at least one fall or spring semester; a second academic separation carries a one-year wait. Readmission requires an application (with a processing fee) and is not guaranteed; a readmitted student returns on academic notice, subject to any conditions set at readmission.

Academic Renewal lets a student re-entering or readmitted after at least five years away petition the Registrar to recalculate their Scholastic Indices: prior Purdue University System graded courses are then excluded from the GPA and credit-hour totals going forward, though the original grades remain visible, unchanged, on the transcript. It requires being in good standing, at least 12 completed credit hours after re-entry, a petition within one year of the readmission semester, and can only be granted once per student.

PNW requires a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00 to graduate, for both associate and bachelor's degrees. A student who has met every other requirement but falls short on GPA may, with the dean's approval, register for additional courses (up to 10 credit hours for an associate degree, up to 20 for a bachelor's) to bring their record up to the required standard; those extra credits must be completed within three years (associate) or five years (bachelor's) of the date all other requirements were met.

Degree candidates must also satisfy a residency requirement: at least two semesters of resident study and at least 32 semester hours completed on a PNW campus, normally at junior level or above, with at least 50 percent of coursework in the major concentration area completed in residence (a college/school/program may require more). Courses completed 10 or more years before graduation can be refused for credit at the dean's discretion (the “Ten Year Rule”).

Graduation with Distinction requires at least 65 hours of PNW credit in the overall GPA computation for a bachelor's degree (35 hours for an associate degree). The minimum GPA for distinction in each college is set at the 90th percentile of that college's spring graduating class, with a floor of at least 3.30; that threshold then also applies to the following summer and fall. The top three-tenths of distinction-qualifying spring graduates, ranked by overall GPA across all colleges, earn highest distinction instead.

At the end of each fall or spring semester (not summer sessions), PNW recognizes two undergraduate academic-honors categories:

• Semester Honors List — at least six credit hours counted in the semester GPA, a semester GPA of at least 3.5, and an overall GPA of at least 2.0.
• Dean's List — at least 12 hours counted in the cumulative GPA, at least 6 hours counted in the semester GPA, a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5, and a current semester GPA of at least 3.0.

It's possible to make both lists in an outstanding semester. Pass/no-pass grades and credits don't count toward the hours totals for either category.

Dean's List students may request to take more than 18 credit hours the following semester, and a full-time Dean's List student may audit one class free of charge with the instructor's permission.

Separately, students certified by the Honors College as having completed its requirements receive a notation on their academic record when their degree is completed.

Credit transferred in from another college or university can be used to fulfill degree requirements, but it can never be used to remove a Purdue-recorded grade from a student's GPA calculation — the original PNW grade stays in the average regardless of what a transfer course later covers.

Bachelor's degree candidates admitted Fall 2017 or later must normally complete one experiential-learning course to graduate. Transfer students are exempt from that requirement, at the dean's or department head's discretion, if they have no more than two semesters of enrollment remaining and no more than 32 credit hours needed to complete their degree.