What is GWA (General Weighted Average) and How its Calculated

Have you ever examined your result card and wondered how these were calculated? That’s where the GWA or General Weighted Average comes in. In the Philippines, Colleges and Universities use GWA to measure the student academic record.

Calculating your grade is essential as we all know but every grading system is calculated differently and understanding them is crucial. This is the reason why I am here to solve all the queries related to GWA.

Let’s jump into the guide.

Understanding the General Weighted Average(GWA)

GWA or General Weighted Average is used to calculate the grade or academic performance of students in College or Universities of Philippines. It’s actually the average grade of all subjects whether it’s passed or not.These grades evaluate the overall progress of individual students throughout the academic year or semester.

Unlike other grading systems, GWA is calculated in scale 5.0. It means the grades are evaluated from a grade scale of 1.0 to 5.0 whereas the 1.0 is highest marks, 1.0 is lowest and the 3.0 is accepted as passing marks. 

Following is the table of different ranges of GWA, GWA in Percentage and their remarks

Grade PointEquivalence	Grade LetterEquivalence	Equivalence	Description
1	A+	99–100%	Excellent
1.25	A	96–98%	Very Good
1.5	A-	93–95%
1.75	B+	90–92%	Good
2.0	B	87–89%
2.25	B-	84–86%	Satisfactory
2.5	C+	81–83%
2.75	C	78–80%	Pass
3.0	C-	75.00–77.74%
4.0	–	–	Conditional
5.0	F	Below 60%	Fail
INC	–	–	Incomplete

How GWA is Calculated

To calculate the GWA or General Weighted Average, collect all the subject details including subject, subject grade and credit hours or units.

Now multiply each subject grade with its corresponding unitl. Once, you perform for all the subjects, sum all the subject weights and divide it with all the credit hours.

For example, we have 3 subjects(English, Mathematics and History) to calculate the General Weighted Average or GWA.

Course Name	Course units	Course grade
English	3	2.00
Mathematics	4	1.25
History	2	1.50

Multiplying the subject grade with its unit for weight:

For English: 3(Units) * 2.00(Course Grade) = 6.00

For Mathematics: 4(Units) * 1.25(Course Grade) = 5.00

For History: 2(Units) * 1.50(Course Grade) = 3.00

Now adding all the weightage of subjects:

6.00(English) + 5.00(Mathematics) + 3.00(History) = 14.00

Finally, dividing the total weightage with number of units:

14.00/(3+4+2) = 14.00/9 = 1.5

GWA is 1.5

You can use this calculator to find your overall GWA within seconds. Click here GWA Calculator

Key Differences Between GWA and Other Averages

Feature	GWA (General Weighted Average)	GPA (Grade Point Average)	CWA (Cumulative Weighted Average)
Scope	Represents the overall average grade across all courses taken, with emphasis on more difficult or higher-credit courses.	Represents the average grade for a specific term or semester.	Represents the overall average grade across all terms or semesters.
Calculation	Consider course difficulty/credit hours along with earned grades.	Typically uses a simple numerical scale (e.g., A = 4, B = 3, etc.) without additional weighting.	Averages individual GPA calculations over multiple terms or semesters.
Usage	Common in countries like the Philippines	Common in the United States, Canada, and many other countries.	Often used to track overall academic progress across an entire educational program.

Conclusion:

In nutshell, GWA or General Weighted Average is used in Philippines Colleges and Universities to compute the overall student academic performance. The GWA is calculated through Subject grade and its credit hours or units.

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