I Have a 60 in the Class — What Do I Need on the Final?
Going into the final with a 60%: if the final is worth the typical 20%, you need more than a perfect score (an A isn't reachable). Every common weight is below — or set your exact numbers in the calculator.
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What you need at every final-exam weight
| Final worth | For A | For B | For C | For Pass (D) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | Not possible | Not possible | Not possible | 60% |
| 15% | Not possible | Not possible | Not possible | 60% |
| 20% | Not possible | Not possible | Not possible | 60% |
| 25% | Not possible | Not possible | 100% | 60% |
| 30% | Not possible | Not possible | 93.3% | 60% |
| 40% | Not possible | Not possible | 85% | 60% |
| 50% | Not possible | 100% | 80% | 60% |
Reading this table
"Locked in" means even a zero on the final keeps that grade. "Not possible" means a perfect final still wouldn't get you there — with a 60% and a heavily weighted final, your ceiling is 80% (50% weight) to 64% (10% weight). The math: needed = (target − current × (1 − weight)) ÷ weight.
Worth knowing
Confirm the scale in your syllabus
The 90/80/70/60 letter cutoffs used here are the most common US scale, but plenty of courses curve, use plus/minus bands differently, or set an A at 94. The syllabus — not any calculator — is the contract that counts.
Percent and points are different animals
In a points-based course (600 points total), losing 12 points early costs the same as losing 12 late. In a weighted course, identical scores can move your grade differently depending on the category. Know which system you're in before doing mental math.
The A is gone — spend the time where it still moves
At 60% with a 20%-weighted final an A is out of reach, and that is genuinely useful information: it means these hours are worth more spent on a course where the letter can still move. Rank your courses by how much a grade can shift per hour before you open a book — the finals-week triage guide is a method for doing exactly that.
We keep free study resources for 13 subjects — what specifically loses students marks in that course, free courses and open textbooks worth the time, and separate plans for whether you have a week or one night. Algebra, Precalculus, Calculus, Statistics, General Chemistry, or all 13 subjects.
Common questions
Is a 90 an A or an A-?
In plus/minus systems, 90–92 is typically an A- and 93+ is an A, which affects GPA (3.7 vs 4.0). In straight-letter systems, everything from 90 up is simply an A. This calculator shows the plus/minus convention because it's the most common — your syllabus decides which applies to you.
Do professors round up borderline grades?
Entirely at their discretion, and policies vary wildly: some round anything above .5, some round at .45, some never round, and some round only for students who attended office hours or showed improvement. If you're within half a point of a boundary, it is always worth a polite question — before finals week, not after grades post.