The WAEC grading system is considerably different from the grading system used in some school abroad destinations such as the US. When considering schooling abroad, one of the things that Nigerian students are concerned about is converting their WAEC exam scores to GPA versions of the university abroad.
You can convert your WAEC score to GPA by making the calculations yourself; multiply your grades by the number of credits for each course, add the results and divide the number of grade points by the total number of credits the courses. Alternatively, you can use an online calculator or use a credential evaluation service.
This conversion is very important especially for Nigerian or West African students who intend to further their education abroad. In this guide, I’ll teach you how to convert your WAEC score to GPA and provide alternative ways to do the same calculation to make your life easier. Continue reading below.
What is GPA and how to calculate it
GPA is an abbreviation for the term Grade Point Average. GPA simply means a number that explains the performance of a student over a course or a particular exam.
In universities today, GPA is what students focus on, as this will just give them their estimated grades over some time.
Moreover, two popular GPAs are widely used in the world today. They are 4.00 GPA and 5.00 GPA scale.
While using a GPA of 4.00 or 5.00, there is some basic knowledge you need to have.
For instance, scores are being calculated on grades A – F or 1 – 100, as the case may be. When your results are being scored, GPA will be used to evaluate the average grade for all the scores gotten from your various courses.
In the academic section, your scores may be graded in numerical format (for example, grade 1 to 100), percentage-based (like 1% to 100%), and letter-grade system (example A – F).
Depending on the format that is being used to grade your score, your GPA can be calculated on a scale of 4.00 or 5.00. This GPA grading system depends on your school or your country.
Using Nigeria, for instance, grading in Nigeria is majorly based on A to F and 1 to 100.
This is also measured on an average of 4.0 or 5.0.
What is CGPA and how to calculate it
CGPA is an abbreviation for Cumulative Grade Point Average. CGPA simply means the sum of your GPA up to the present (this could be for a semester or term).
Moreover, GPA and CGPA are quite two different terms altogether. As CGPA calculates a score for a short period, it is usually used for semester result calculation, session, or term, as the case may be.
Whereas the overall GPA is used to calculate the whole grade average of students in their entire stay in the academic sector.
It is seen as the overall average of all the students’ grades throughout all the semesters.
Do I need to calculate my GPA or CGPA as a secondary school student?
Today majority of all high schools make use of the GPA grading system. Also, higher institutions by default use this method to grade the score of their students.
Moreover, the use of GPA grading has been accepted globally as it makes grading students’ scores very easy and understandable.
In Nigeria today, a lot of high schools are now making use of the GPA grading system while scoring their students.
Although this helps students to learn how to convert their scores to GPA as this will be needed by higher institutions when processing admission for new students.
How to convert your WAEC scores to GPA
#1. Calculate it yourseful
To convert your WAEC scores to GPA, you need to, first of all, understand how the credit points are being graded for each course.
For instance, if you sit for the examination for three subjects as follows: Subject 1 (2 credits), Subject 2 (2 credits), and Subject 3 (2 credits).
Below is how your GPA will be calculated.
- Subject 1 – grade C (C is 2.0 using 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject 2 – grade B (B is 3.0 using 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject 3 – grade A (A is 4.0 using 4.0 GPA scale)
To get the CGPA from the above grades, follow the below steps:
- Multiply those grades listed above with the respective credit numbers allocated to each Subject.
- Sum up the evaluated results
- Now you will need to divide the result gotten from step 2 above by the total credits allocated to each course.
In the subsequent sections, we elucidated how to convert your WAEC score to GPA using a simple example.
Taking a look at the practical method of converting your WAEC scores to GPA
Note: we are using the GPA of 4.0 in this calculation detailed below.
List of courses to be calculated:
- Subject Alpha ( 2 Credit)
- Subject Bravo ( 3 Credit)
- Subject Charlie ( 2 Credit)
- Subject Delta ( 3 Credit)
- Subject Echo ( 4 Credit)
- Subject Foxtrot ( 3 Credit)
- Subject Golf ( 4 Credit)
- Subject Hotel ( 4 Credit)
- Subject India ( 1 Credit)
Then now, let’s take a look at the grades scored for each of the subjects listed above
- Subject Alpha (C is 2.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Bravo (B is 3.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Charlie (A is 4.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Delta (A is 4.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Echo – (A is 4.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Foxtrot (C is 2.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Golf (A is 4.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject Hotel (C is 3.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
- Subject India (C is 3.0 by using the 4.0 GPA scale)
Now coming to the real calculation, we have the information below:
Note: To get the exact GPA, you should multiply the grades of each subject by the credit number that is attached to the subject.
See below for more understanding:
- Subject Alpha = 4
- Subject Bravo = 9
- Subject Charlie = 8
- Subject Delta = 12
- Subject Echo = 16
- Subject Foxtrot = 6
- Subject Golf = 16
- Subject Hotel = 12
- Subject India = 3
At this stage, you’ll need to sum up the grades we got above.
When you add them up, you should obtain a Total of 86.
Now to get the GPA, all you need to do is to divide the total number of grades (86) by the total number of credits (which is 26)
We have a total number of grades = 86
Total number of credits for those subjects = 26
Our GPA will be 86/26 = 3.3
With this, we have gotten the GPA for all the nine subjects listed above, and it is 3.3.
#2. Use an Online Calculator
The process of calculating and converting your WAEC to GPA explained above can be a little confusing.
In this digital age, you don’t have to rack your brain trying to do this calculation when online tools can do these calculations for you. Best part, they are FREE.
Scholaro is an international GPA calculator intended to help you calculate the United States Grade Point Average (GPA) based on grades or points from almost any country in the world.
- Ensure Nigeria is the country selected or the country of the source of your WAEC result.
- Select West African Senior School Certificate as the grading scale. (WAEC is also known as WASSC)
- Add more roles to enter yout courses if required
- Click/tap calculate GPA
- View your score.
You can save your result as a PDF but that’s a premium feature that you’ll have to pay for.
#3. Use a Credential Validation Service
Some Universities might do the conversion on their own or ask you to send your degree certificate and transcript to a credential evaluator like World Evaluation Services or Foreign credits.
In this case, your transcripts must be sent to the organizations that offer such services, as most schools have their own preferences. The most common body that carries out the credential evaluation (conversation of transcripts to American 4.0 scale standard) for international students is World Education Services (WES).
In such a case, your school will transfer your transcripts to WES in the United States. Many universities in the United States don’t accept an evaluation report directly from the applicant.
After the evaluation, WES then sends the documents to the school of your selection in the United States. They evaluate the reports and overhaul the transcripts into a US equivalent.
You can apply directly to WES by applying online. If you need to transfer funds, you can do that on their website, or you can make the payment via bank transfer.
The process is quite long and comes with a lot of expenses.
You can use a DHL courier to send your document to WES from Nigeria. It can take up to four working days to conclude the evaluation when they receive the documents.
I recommend paying a little extra to get a copy to be sent to you in Nigeria.
Everything is likely to costs between $250 and $350. You can check their website for more information World Education Services: International Credential Evaluation
Final words
In this article, I explained the process of converting your WAEC to GPA, which requires some calculations, but I introduce other easier ways to do the same thing through online tools and using education evaluation services.
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