4.3 GPA: Is this Good? Colleges that Accept 4.3 GPA

Are you a student with a 4.3 GPA who is wondering – ‘is a 4.3 GPA good enough to get into highly competitive universities? Then you have come to the right place. In this article, we will cover topics like:

• What does it mean to have a 4.3 GPA?
• Is a 4.3 GPA good?
• Differences between weighted and unweighted GPA.
• Is a 4.3 unweighted GPA good?
• Colleges that give admission to students with a 4.3 GPA.

What is a GPA, and why is it so important?

Grade Point Average or GPA is a numeric representation of your performance and scores you secured in different courses. Your GPA determines how good or bad you are with your coursework. Various universities and colleges judge your compatibility with the degree you have opted for according to your high school GPA.

As your professors provide you with a grade according to your progress in a course, your GPA is a score that evaluates your performance of success throughout the course. The average GPA is a number that represents what they typically scored in their classes throughout the term. The GPA scores of students keep varying throughout the course. Therefore, students must remain focused on their goal to graduate with a good GPA.

Your GPA is one of the most crucial factors colleges consider while offering admission. Students who don’t meet the average GPA requirement get immediately rejected by the admission committee. Thus, it is highly recommended that students score and maintain GPAs per the colleges they want to get into.

What does it mean to have a 4.3 GPA?

Students with a 4.3 GPA have a great chance of getting into the top-ranked colleges. The national average GPA is estimated to be around 3.0 GPA. Almost 50% of the national universities accept candidates with a GPA above 3.0. Therefore, if you are speculating – if a 4.3 GPA is good, you should know that most top universities have their average GPA around this score.

Is a 4.3 GPA good?

Having a 4.3 GPA means that the school follows a weighted method to calculate GPA. 4.3 GPA is generally given to students who secure a B or B+ in the AP courses and A or A+ in mid-level courses. 

How is GPA calculated?

All the grades a student receives, whether a letter-grade system, number system, or percentage, correspond to a point. The point is rated on a scale that varies between 0 to 4. A student’s highest point equals the highest number or grade of that scale.

As per the US grading system, an A is the highest grade awarded to students. Moreover, A is equal to 4 or a multiple of 4, i.e., 8 or 16. When students take several classes, the points secured by students are added up and divided by the summation of course credit. The result gives the GPA of students.

This can better be understood with an example. Let’s assume you took 4 courses:

Subject	Credit	Your grade	Your points
English	3	A	4
Science	2	B	3
Math	2	C	2
Foreign language	2	B	3

Now we need to multiply your points of each course to the credit of that course. After multiplication, we will get 12 grades for English, 6 grades for Science, 4 grades for Math, and 6 grades for Foreign language. The total grade secured by you will be (12+6+4+6=26). Lastly, you need to divide the total grade by the summation of all the credits (26/9). Thus, 2.8 will be your GPA.

Differences between weighted and unweighted GPA

The primary difference between both the GPA is the method used to calculate them.

Weighted GPA	Unweighted GPA
While calculating a weighted GPA, the school considers the difficulty level of courses taken by students.	While calculating an unweighted GPA, the school does not consider the challenge or difficulty of the courses taken by the students.
Calculating GPA with this method is comparatively tricky and complex.	Calculating GPA with this method is simple and convenient.

Is a 4.3 unweighted GPA good?

A 4.3 GPA is higher than the normal range of unweighted GPA. An unweighted GPA is calculated on a scale of 4. This is because the course credit is not taken into account. However, the scores can be confusing sometimes. 

Generally, an unweighted GPA above 4 means that you have secured A+ in all your courses. On the other hand, it can also be possible that your school is following a weighted GPA calculation method.

Whatever might be the case, if you are a student with a 4.3 unweighted GPA, who wants to know ‘is a 4.3 unweighted GPA good?’, remember your score is higher than the national average GPA. This means that you can get admission to the most highly selective universities.

How can I maintain a good GPA score?

Students who think: ‘is a 4.3 GPA good‘, or ‘is a 4.3 unweighted GPA good‘, need to understand that getting a high GPA in one semester and maintaining it throughout the academic year are two different things. Students who have a 4.3 GPA currently can have lower grade points at the end semester of school. Many students feel confused and insecure about how they can maintain their GPA throughout the term or school life.

The following table demonstrates how much GPA students need in each semester to maintain a 4.3 GPA throughout the entire high school:

Semester	Required GPA	Course necessity
Freshmen Semester-1	4.3	AP course
Freshmen Semester- 2	4.3	AP course
Sophomore Semester- 1	4.3	AP course
Sophomore Semester- 2	4.3	AP course
Junior Semester- 1	4.3	AP course
Junior Semester- 2	4.3	AP course
Senior Semester- 1	4.3	AP course
Senior Semester- 2	4.3	AP course

Maintaining a 4.3 GPA is not possible by taking regular credit courses or repeating a previously failed course. Instead, students need to be focused each semester so that their score does not fall below their target point.

What does it mean to have a 4.3 GPA in different years of high school?

If you are a high school student wondering, “Is a 4.3 unweighted GPA good“, you should remember that it completely depends on which year you have completed. 

• Freshmen: If you are a first-year student with a 4.3 GPA, you have started very well. However, you need to remain focused and consistent in the coming years to maintain this score.
• Sophomore: If you are a sophomore student with a 4.3 GPA, you have successfully maintained your first-year GPA. At this time, your Grades won’t fluctuate a lot if you keep taking challenging courses.
• Junior: This year, your GPA is much solidified, and there is little chance of any changes before college application. Students can start their search for colleges they want to apply to next year.
• Senior: This is the last year of high school, which means you have been able to keep your GPA consistent each year. With a 4.3 GPA, you stand a great chance of getting into the most prestigious and highly selective colleges.

Colleges that accept 4.3 GPA

Students with a 4.3 GPA have a great chance of getting into the top-ranked universities. Some of the highly competitive colleges that accept applicants with a 4.3 GPA include the following:

College	Location of college	Average SAT	Average ACT	Average GPA
Columbia University	New York	1505	34	4.12
Harvard University	Cambridge	1520	34	4.18
University of Chicagoy	Chicago	1520	34	4.48
Brown University	Providence	1485	34	4.08
Dartmouth College	Hanover	1500	34	4.11
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Cambridge	1535	35	4.17
Yale University	New Haven	1515	34	4.14

Listed below are some colleges that are moderately competitive for applicants with a 4.3 GPA:

College	Location of college	Average SAT	Average ACT	Average GPA
Northeastern University	Boston	1465	34	4.04
College of William and Mary	Williamsburg	1415	32	4.27
University of Maryland	College Park	1380	31	4.32
University of California, Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara	1355	29	4.12
Clemson University	Clemson	1310	30	4.43
University of California, Davis	Davis	1280	28	4.03
Tufts University	Medford	1465	33	4.04
University of Virginia	Charlottesville	1430	32	4.32
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Chapel Hill	1395	30	4.39
University of Florida	Gainesville	1360	30	4.42
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo	San Luis Obispo	1335	29	4.0

GPA is a crucial factor considered by colleges when offering you admissions. Therefore, you must maintain a consistent and high GPA throughout your high school. However, it is also important to focus on your weighted GPA, including the course difficulty.  We hope you know how a 4.3 GPA can be in securing a seat in your preferred college. Although your GPA is not the only factor for getting admission, it does provide you with an edge over your competitors.