Calculate your science GPA
| Course | Category | Credits | Grade | Retaken | Remove |
|---|
AMCAS letter grade scale (4.0)
| Letter | Points | Range |
|---|---|---|
| A+ | 4.0 | 97-100% |
| A | 4.0 | 93-96% |
| A- | 3.7 | 90-92% |
| B+ | 3.3 | 87-89% |
| B | 3.0 | 83-86% |
| B- | 2.7 | 80-82% |
| C+ | 2.3 | 77-79% |
| C | 2.0 | 73-76% |
| C- | 1.7 | 70-72% |
| D+ | 1.3 | 67-69% |
| D | 1.0 | 63-66% |
| D- | 0.7 | 60-62% |
| F | 0.0 | Below 60% |
AMCAS preserves plus and minus modifiers. AACOMAS uses the same scale but honours grade replacement for retakes at the same institution.
Calculate Science GPA Using the BCPM Methodology
Every centralised health-professions application service computes a science GPA. Most use the same four-letter shorthand: BCPM, for Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Math. AMCAS popularised the term; AADSAS, CASPA, OptomCAS, and VMCAS all adopted near-identical definitions. AACOMAS is the standout exception, both in math-inclusion and in retake handling. The calculator above ships every service\'s rule set as a preset, so you can switch presets and see how the same transcript produces different science GPA figures depending on where you are applying.
The arithmetic is straightforward. List every BCPM course from every undergraduate transcript, attach a letter grade and credit hours to each one, and weight by credit. The wrinkles are in the classification, not the math: biochemistry, biostatistics, neuroscience, and medical terminology all sit on borderlines that AMCAS reviews after submission. Cross-reference the AAMC Course Classification Guide before you submit, because reclassification after the fact can shift a competitive science GPA by tenths of a point.
Calculate science GPA for med school using AMCAS rules
The science GPA calculator med school workflow follows AMCAS exactly. Every biology, chemistry, physics, and math undergraduate course from every institution counts toward the science figure. Every attempt of a repeated course counts; AMCAS does not honour grade replacement. Pass/fail grades drop out entirely. Plus and minus modifiers are preserved (A- = 3.7, B+ = 3.3, not rounded to whole letters). Graduate-level science coursework reports separately as graduate or post-bacc science GPA, never folded into the undergraduate science figure.
Run the calculator above on the AMCAS preset. Enter every BCPM course with its category, credit hours, and letter grade. The science GPA, AO GPA, and cumulative GPA update on every change. The figure you see matches what the AMCAS verification team will publish on the transmitted application, with two caveats: AMCAS reviewers can reclassify courses you bucketed differently, and any transcript correction after submission shifts the official figure.
Calculate science GPA for dental school using AADSAS rules
AADSAS, the centralised dental application, uses BCPM nearly identically to AMCAS. The science gpa calculator dental school output on this page reproduces the rolled-up AADSAS science GPA. Every BCPM course counts; every attempt counts; pass/fail excluded. AADSAS issues a five-bucket breakdown on the official report (Biology, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Other Sciences) but rolls them up to a single science GPA that admissions committees read first. For per-subject splits, run the calculator multiple times with one category at a time.
Calculate science GPA for PA school using CASPA rules
CASPA, the PA-school centralised application, applies the BCPM core plus health-science prerequisites. Each PA programme publishes its own prerequisite list, so the CASPA science GPA includes whatever the school treats as a prereq when it is taught by a science department. Anatomy, physiology, microbiology, and medical terminology often qualify. Set the calculator above to CASPA, and use the Prereq category for any health-science prereq your target school flags. Every attempt counts, like AMCAS. PA admissions committees weight the science figure heavily, often more than the overall GPA, so calculate science gpa for pa school early and compare it against the matriculant medians published in PAEA\'s annual report.
Science GPA Calculator Med School: AMCAS Compared with AACOMAS
The science gpa calculator med school result differs between AMCAS and AACOMAS in two specific places. First, AACOMAS excludes Math from its science GPA: Biology, Chemistry, and Physics count, but Math contributes to a separate quantitative figure. Second, AACOMAS honours grade replacement when a student retakes a course at the same institution, so the older attempt drops out and only the newer grade counts. AMCAS does neither: Math is in, and every attempt counts.
The difference is rarely cosmetic. An applicant who earned a D in organic chemistry and then an A on retake sees roughly 0.10 to 0.20 higher science GPA on AACOMAS than on AMCAS, because AACOMAS drops the D and AMCAS keeps it. Toggle between the two presets in the calculator above to see your own delta. Plenty of applicants apply to both MD and DO programmes; knowing the two science GPA figures in advance shapes which schools to prioritise.
How AACOMAS treats grade replacement for repeated courses
AACOMAS allowed full grade replacement until the 2019-2020 cycle, when it shifted to a more limited policy: the newer attempt replaces the older one only when both are taken at the same institution and the original grade was below the passing threshold. In practice, most retakes still qualify. To use the calculator\'s AACOMAS preset correctly, check the Retaken box on the older attempt and enter the newer attempt as a normal row. The calculator drops the older row from the calculation. AMCAS users can leave the box unchecked entirely; the AMCAS preset ignores it.
BCPM GPA Calculator: Four Subject Areas Counted Toward Science
The bcpm gpa calculator on this page buckets undergraduate coursework into four subject areas: Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Math. The bcpm gpa calculation rolls them up into a single figure, but the AMCAS report breaks out the buckets for admissions committees that want a per-area view. Biology covers anatomy, physiology, cell biology, genetics, ecology, microbiology, and entomology. Chemistry covers general, organic, inorganic, analytical, and biochemistry when listed in the chemistry department. Physics covers every physics course. Math covers calculus, linear algebra, discrete math, statistics, and biostatistics when listed in the math department.
How to calculate BCPM GPA when courses sit on the boundary
Biochemistry, biostatistics, neuroscience, and computer science with mathematical content are the four that AMCAS reclassifies most often. The rule is the department, not the title. A biochemistry course listed as CHEM 3310 lands in Chemistry. The same content as BIOL 4100 lands in Biology. Biostatistics offered through a Math department counts as Math; the same content through Public Health does not count at all. Computer science with heavy proof content sometimes counts as Math, depending on the department\'s own course catalogue. When the department code on the transcript is ambiguous, the AAMC Course Classification Guide takes precedence over both intuition and the school registrar\'s preference.
Determine Science GPA Thresholds for Health Professions Programmes
The science GPA figure opens or closes specific doors in health-professions admissions. Use the matriculant medians below to determine science GPA targets for the most common pathways. All figures come from the most recent AAMC, AACOMAS, ADEA, PAEA, AAVMC, and ASCO annual application cycle reports.
| Programme | Matriculant median science GPA | Service |
|---|---|---|
| MD (allopathic medical) | 3.72 | AMCAS |
| DO (osteopathic medical) | 3.55 | AACOMAS |
| DDS / DMD (dental) | 3.55 | AADSAS |
| PA (physician assistant) | 3.55 | CASPA |
| OD (optometry) | 3.45 | OptomCAS |
| DVM (veterinary) | 3.60 | VMCAS |
| PharmD (pharmacy) | 3.30 | PharmCAS |
Medians, not minimums. Plenty of matriculants sit below the median in any given cycle, especially when the rest of the application (clinical hours, research, MCAT, DAT, GRE, references) is strong. The medians are a sanity check: if your science GPA is two or more tenths below the matriculant median, the rest of the application has to carry more weight.
Science GPA Formula
- Grade Points = 4.0-scale value of the letter grade (A = 4.0, A- = 3.7, B+ = 3.3, B = 3.0, ..., F = 0.0)
- Credit Hours = semester credit hours for the BCPM course
- BCPM = Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Math undergraduate courses. AACOMAS excludes Math from this set.
- Every attempt of repeated courses counts under AMCAS, AADSAS, CASPA, OptomCAS, VMCAS. AACOMAS honours grade replacement.
How to Find Science GPA on Your Transcript or Degree Audit
University degree audits almost never compute a separate science GPA. It is a health-professions application concept, not a graduation requirement. To find science GPA before AMCAS, AACOMAS, AADSAS, CASPA, OptomCAS, or VMCAS verify your transcripts, you generally have to run the calculation yourself. The calculator above is the fastest path: pull every BCPM course off your transcript, enter the grade and credit value, and the science GPA returns in seconds.
Some pre-health advising offices will run the calculation on request and issue a letter confirming the figure. This is useful in early-application season when the centralised services have not yet finished transcript verification (typically 4 to 6 weeks during the June to August peak). For most applicants, the live science gpa calculator output above is close enough to plan school list strategy and post-bacc decisions.
How to calculate prerequisite GPA separately from BCPM
Some PA, optometry, and dental programmes publish prerequisite GPA cut-offs separately from the science GPA. Prerequisite GPA covers only the specific courses the programme requires for admission. The list varies by school: typical PA prereqs include anatomy, physiology, microbiology, biochemistry, statistics, and medical terminology. To compute prerequisite GPA in the calculator above, switch to Custom mode and enter only the prerequisite courses (use the Prereq category). The science GPA cell then reads as your prerequisite GPA against the cohort medians published by each programme.
Tips for the Science GPA Calculator and What Often Trips Applicants Up
- Classify by department, not by course title. The transcript\'s department code is what AMCAS and the other services read. Biochemistry can land in any of three buckets depending on which department offers it.
- Enter every retake attempt unless you are on AACOMAS. AMCAS, AADSAS, CASPA, OptomCAS, and VMCAS all count every attempt. AACOMAS is the only service with grade replacement.
- Track post-bacc science GPA separately. Courses taken after the first bachelor\'s degree report as post-bacc science GPA on the centralised application. Admissions committees read them as an improvement signal alongside, but separately from, the undergraduate science GPA.
- Confirm transcripts match what the service will receive. Late grade changes, incomplete-to-letter conversions, and corrected entries from the registrar all shift the official science GPA. Always rerun the calculator after any transcript update.
- Use the AAMC guide for ambiguous courses. Biostatistics, medical terminology, biological anthropology, and computer science are the four most-reclassified subjects. Cross-reference before you submit.
Program-specific science GPA calculator variants
Different programmes maintain their own variants of this calculation. The aacomas science gpa calculator and the amcas science gpa calculator differ in math-inclusion and retake handling; the aamc science gpa calculator bcpm logic is what AMCAS publishes. The aadsas science gpa calculator covers dental, the vmcas science gpa calculator covers veterinary, and the cumulative science gpa calculator combines every term you have completed. For pre-med applicants, the pre med gpa calculator and the math and science gpa calculator surface the same underlying figure with cosmetic differences in the output labels. The math science gpa calculator and prerequisite gpa calculator search variants all land here as long as you set the right preset.
Source citations: AAMC AMCAS Applicant Guide and Course Classification Guide define BCPM and the AMCAS science GPA methodology. AACOMAS, AADSAS, CASPA, OptomCAS, and VMCAS publish parallel guides on their respective application portals. The matriculant medians cited above come from each service\'s most recent annual application cycle report. Always verify with your target programme\'s admissions office before relying on any science gpa calculator output for application decisions.