Marks and GradesThe 10-point grade scale recommended by UGC
Most Indian universities award letter grades on a scale of 10. The scale recommended by the University Grants Commission is below, from its guidelines on the choice based credit system, read on 12 November 2026.
| Letter grade | Meaning | Grade point |
|---|---|---|
| O | Outstanding | 10 |
| A+ | Excellent | 9 |
| A | Very good | 8 |
| B+ | Good | 7 |
| B | Above average | 6 |
| C | Average | 5 |
| P | Pass | 4 |
| F | Fail | 0 |
| Ab | Absent | 0 |
The guidelines say a student obtaining grade F is considered failed and must reappear in the examination.
Which marks earn which grade?
The UGC guidelines do not fix one table of marks for the whole country. They describe two methods and let a university use either.
- Absolute grading: marks are converted to grades by pre-determined class intervals, for example a fixed range of marks for each letter.
- Relative grading: grades are based on the distribution of marks of all the students of the course, using cut-offs or percentiles.
They add one recommendation for absolute grading: the cut-off for grade B should not be less than 50% and for grade B+ not less than 55%, because eligibility for assistant professor posts is tied to 50% and 55% in the postgraduate degree. The guidelines also leave it to universities to decide the grade or percentage required to pass a course and the CGPA required for a degree.
So the same letter can mean different marks
An "A" at one university may begin at 70 marks and at another at 80. This is the root of the confusion about converting CGPA to a percentage: there is no national table to convert with. See CGPA to percentage.
Two universities compared
| VTU, B.E./B.Tech. from 2021-22 | Anna University, Regulations 2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| Letters and grade points | S 10, A 9, B 8, C 7, D 6, E 4, F 0 | O 10, A+ 9, A 8, B+ 7, B 6, C 5, U 0 |
| A course is passed with | Grade point 4 or more | Any of O, A+, A, B+, B, C |
| CGPA to percentage | (CGPA − 0.75) × 10 | CGPA × 10 |
Both follow the UGC's 10-point idea and both compute SGPA and CGPA the same way, yet the letters, the lowest pass point and the conversion to percentage all differ. Details for each are on the pages for VTU and Anna University.
Reading your grade card
- Find the key printed on the card or in the regulations: letter, grade point and, if given, range of marks.
- Check the credits of each course. A low grade in a 4-credit course pulls the SGPA down more than in a 1-credit course.
- Look for courses marked satisfactory, audit or non-credit. They do not enter the average.
The 4-point GPA abroad
Universities in the United States commonly use a 4-point scale. There is no official conversion from an Indian 10-point CGPA to a 4-point GPA. Admissions offices and credential evaluation agencies apply their own methods, usually from your individual course grades. When applying abroad, report your CGPA on its own scale and let the institution evaluate it, unless it tells you how to convert.
Check with your board or university. The rules quoted on this site were read in the official documents on 12 November 2026. Boards and universities revise them, and yours may differ. For anything that decides an admission or a job, use the rule printed on your own mark sheet or in your institution's regulations. This is an independent site.