How the major GPA calculator works
Your major GPA and your overall GPA come from the same grades. The only difference is which classes go into the average. So the calculator takes one list: every graded class, its letter grade, its credits, and a checkbox for whether it counts toward your major.
From that list it computes three averages. The overall GPA uses every row. The major GPA uses only the ticked rows. The GPA outside the major uses the rest, which shows you where your strong and weak grades actually sit. Open “Plan a target major GPA” to see what you’d need in your remaining major classes to reach a number you have in mind.
The formula
Both averages are weighted by credits, the same way a regular GPA is:
Overall GPA = Σ(grade points × credits, all classes) ÷ Σ(credits, all classes)
The target planner uses the same algebra as the raise GPA calculator, limited to major credits: (Target × (Major credits + Major credits left) − Major quality points) ÷ Major credits left.
Worked example: a psychology major
These are the classes preloaded in the calculator:
| Class | Grade | Credits | Quality points | In major? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intro to Psychology | A | 3 | 12.0 | Yes |
| Research Methods | B+ | 4 | 13.2 | Yes |
| Statistics for Psychology (MATH) | B | 3 | 9.0 | Depends |
| Cognitive Psychology | A- | 3 | 11.1 | Yes |
| Calculus I | C+ | 4 | 9.2 | No |
| Spanish II | B- | 4 | 10.8 | No |
| Expository Writing | A | 3 | 12.0 | No |
Overall, that’s 77.3 quality points over 24 credits, a 3.22. Count statistics as a major class and the major GPA is 45.3 ÷ 13 = 3.48. Leave it out and it’s 36.3 ÷ 10 = 3.63.
Same student, same grades, and the major GPA moves by 0.15 depending on one decision about one class. That decision isn’t yours to make. It’s your school’s, which is why the next section matters more than the math.
What the gap between the two numbers tells you
In the example, the GPA outside the major is 2.91, so the major classes are carrying the record. That’s the usual picture when the weakest grades sit in required classes outside your field, and it’s the case where reporting a clearly labeled major GPA helps you.
It can run the other way. A student who does well in writing and languages but struggles in upper-level major classes can have a major GPA below the overall one. Catch that early, because a minimum in the major can hold up graduation even when the overall GPA looks fine.
The major GPA is also the jumpier of the two, since it rests on fewer credits. With 13 major credits, one more 3-credit C would pull the example from 3.48 to (45.3 + 6) ÷ 16 = 3.21. With 40 major credits at a 3.48, the same C would only bring it to about 3.38.
Which classes count toward a major GPA?
There’s no national rule. Two schools show how far apart the definitions can be:
| Question | Claremont McKenna | Lafayette |
|---|---|---|
| Who calculates it? | You do. The registrar’s system doesn’t | The catalog sets it as a graduation requirement |
| Which classes? | Every class that counts in the major, plus any that could count | Normally all classes in the major subject area |
| Classes from other departments | Included if they could count toward the major | Collateral courses normally excluded; interdisciplinary majors differ |
| Left out | Transfer, study abroad, AP or IB credit, CR/NC classes | Not listed for the major GPA |
| Two majors | One major GPA per major, never combined | Not addressed |
| Minimum to graduate | Not stated on that page | 2.00 in the major |
The Claremont McKenna column comes from its registrar’s calculating major GPA page, which also says half- and quarter-unit courses are weighted by a half or a quarter. The Lafayette column comes from the GPA requirements in its 2026–2027 catalog. We read both in October 2026.
Under Claremont McKenna’s wording, the statistics class above goes in, because it could count. Under a subject-area rule like Lafayette’s, a MATH-prefix class probably stays out. If your school computes major GPA for you, your degree audit usually lists which courses it used. If it doesn’t, ask your advisor before you report a number.
When your major GPA matters
Graduation is the obvious one: Lafayette, for example, requires a 2.00 average in the major on top of a 2.00 overall. Some majors set their own minimums for admission into the major or for departmental honors. Job and internship applications sometimes ask for it, usually next to your cumulative GPA. The guide to listing a GPA on your resume covers when the major GPA is the better number. Medical schools look at yet another subset, your science (BCPM) GPA. If you aren’t sure what that cumulative number includes, what is cumulative GPA? breaks down term, cumulative and major GPA. To update your overall number across several semesters, use the cumulative GPA calculator.
Limits of this calculator
- You decide what counts. The checkbox is only as accurate as your reading of your catalog.
- Standard 4.0 scale. Grades use the common plus/minus scale (A- = 3.7, B+ = 3.3). If your school gives an A+ 4.3 or skips minus grades, small differences are normal.
- Pass/fail and withdrawals. Leave them out. They don’t carry grade points at most schools.
- Repeats and transfer work. Enter them the way your school counts them. Claremont McKenna excludes transfer courses from the major GPA entirely.