What is the average GPA in high school and college?
The average high school unweighted GPA in the US is approximately 3.11, while the average college undergraduate GPA is roughly 3.15 to 3.20.
Key Takeaways & Data Points
- ✓National high school average: ~3.11 unweighted GPA.
- ✓National 4-year college average: ~3.15 public / ~3.30 private.
- ✓STEM majors typically grade on stricter median curves (2.8–3.0) than humanities disciplines.
Detailed Breakdown
Over the past two decades, high school GPAs have trended upward due to grade inflation and increased participation in weighted advanced coursework. According to the NCES Transcript Study, the mean overall high school GPA rose from 2.68 in 1990 to 3.00 in 2009, and sits at roughly 3.11 today.
In undergraduate higher education, private colleges tend to report higher average GPAs (~3.30) than large public state research universities (~3.10). Grading curves also diverge sharply by department: chemistry and mathematics historically award lower class medians than education or literature departments.
Understanding your school’s average is crucial for setting personal benchmark goals. If your institution’s average is 3.10, maintaining a 3.50 puts you comfortably into the top quartile of your class.
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