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How does CASPA calculate GPAs?


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So after reading these I want to make sure I have this correct. My "Science GPA" is all of my sciences that I have taken right? It isn't just the sciences that my school requires and those GPAs figured right? I got a little confused on one of the posts from a while back, so I wanted to make sure. 

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So after reading these I want to make sure I have this correct. My "Science GPA" is all of my sciences that I have taken right? It isn't just the sciences that my school requires and those GPAs figured right? I got a little confused on one of the posts from a while back, so I wanted to make sure. 

 

Here is a link to the list of all the classes CASPA considers to be apart of the Science GPA:, 

https://portal.caspaonline.org/caspaHelpPages/frequently-asked-questions/academic-history/course-subjects/

 

 

To save you a click, I've copied and pasted it below for you:

 

The topics in GREEN are science classes. The topics in PURPLE are non-science classes.

 

BIOCHEMISTRY:

  • Biochemistry
  • Biological Chemistry
  • Biomolecules
  • Metabolism
  • Physiological Chemistry

INORGANIC CHEMISTRY:

  • Analytic Chemistry
  • Armchair Chemistry
  • Basic Chemistry
  • Chemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • Intro to Chemistry
  • Medical Chemistry
  • Pharmaceutical Chemistry
  • Physical Chemistry

PHYSICS:

  • Electricity
  • Electricity & Light
  • Heat
  • Light
  • Magnetism
  • Mechanical Heat
  • Physics
  • Thermodynamics

ORGANIC CHEMISTRY:

  • Bio-organic Chemistry
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Structure and Bonds
  • Structure and Reaction

 BIOLOGY/ZOOLOGY:

  • Anatomy
  • Bacteriology
  • Biodiversity
  • Biology
  • Biomedical Science (BIMS)
  • Biophysics
  • Botany
  • Cellular & Molecular Biology
  • Cellular Biology
  • Cellular Physiology
  • Ecology
  • Embryology
  • Endocrinology
  • Entomology
  • Eukaryotics
  • Evolution
  • Genetics
  • Genomics
  • Hematology
  • Histology
  • Immunology
  • Microbiology
  • Micro-Organisms
  • Molecular Biology
  • Neuromechanisms
  • Neurobiology
  • Neurology
  • Neuroscience
  • Parasitology
  • Pathology
  • Pathophysiology
  • Physiological Science
  • Physiology
  • Prokaryote Physiology
  • Virology
  • Zoology

OTHER SCIENCE:

 

  • Acupuncture
  • Aerospace Studies
  • Animal Behavior
  • Animal Science
  • Astronomy
  • Athletic Training (not PE courses)
  • Atmospheric Science
  • Audiology
  • Biobehavioral Health (BBH)
  • Bioengineering
  • Bioethics
  • Biological Anthropology
  • Biomechanics
  • Biomedical Engineering (BME)
  • Biotechnology
  • Chinese Internal Medicine
  • Chiropractic Medicine
  • Clinical Sciences (Clinical Lab Sci)
  • Conservation
  • CPR
  • Cytology/Cytotechnology
  • Dental Hygiene
  • Dentistry
  • Dietetics
  • Disease
  • Earth Science
  • Electronics
  • Emergency Med-Tech (EMT/EMS)
  • Engineering (Civil, Electrical, etc.)
  • Environmental Science
  • Epidemiology
  • Exercise Physiology
  • Exercise Science
  • First Aid
  • Food Science
  • Forensic Sciences
  • Geology
  • Gynecology
  • Health
  • Health Science
  • Health Services
  • Health Technology
  • Herbology
  • Human Geography
  • Human Movement
  • Kinesiology
  • Limnology
  • Locomotion Studies
  • Marine Biology
  • Marine Science
  • Mechanics
  • Medical Technology (Med Tech)
  • Medicine
  • Meteorology
  • Motor Control
  • Movement Science
  • Natural Resources
  • Natural Science
  • Nuclear
  • Nursing
  • Nutrition
  • Occupational Therapy
  • Oceanography
  • Optics
  • Optometry
  • Oriental Medicine
  • Other Health Professions
  • Paramedic
  • Pharmacology
  • Pharmacy
  • Phlebotomy
  • Physical Anthropology
  • Physical Geography
  • Physical Sciences
  • Physical Therapy
  • Physical Therapy Assistant
  • Physician Assistant (PA)
  • Plant
  • Plant Sciences
  • Podiatry
  • Population Biology
  • Public Health
  • Radiology
  • Rehabilitation
  • Respiratory Therapy
  • Sonography
  • Speech and Hearing Science (SPHS)
  • Sports Medicine
  • Sports Sciences
  • Surgery Tech
  • Therapeutic Exercise
  • Toxicology
  • Veterinary

 

BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE:

  • Abnormal Psychology
  • Adolescent Psychology
  • Anthropology
  • Behavioral Sciences
  • Biological Psychology
  • Child Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Community Health
  • Counseling
  • Criminal Justice
  • Criminology
  • Cultural Geography
  • Cultural Studies
  • Death & Dying
  • Developmental Biology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Educational Psychology
  • Ethnic Studies
  • Family Studies
  • Growth & Development
  • Human Behavior
  • Human Development
  • Human Sexuality
  • Lifespan Development
  • Marriage and Family
  • Multicultural Studies
  • Psychobiology
  • Psychology
  • Sensorimotor Development
  • Social Ecology
  • Social Psychology
  • Social Sciences
  • Social Welfare
  • Social Work
  • Sociology
  • Sports Psychology

 ENGLISH:

  • Basic Composition
  • Composition
  • Creative Writing
  • English
  • English as a Second Language
  • Journalism
  • Literature
  • Medical Terminology
  • Poetry
  • Rhetoric
  • Technical Writing
  • Writing

  MATH:

  • Algebra
  • Analytical Geometry
  • Behavioral Statistics
  • Biometry/Biometrics
  • Biostatistics
  • Calculus
  • Chemical Math
  • Computer Programing
  • Computer Science
  • Linear Algebra
  • Math Analysis
  • Mathematics
  • Statistics
  • Trigonometry

 OTHER NON-SCIENCE:

  • Accounting
  • Acting
  • Agriculture
  • American Sign Language (ASL)
  • American Studies
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Art History
  • Banking
  • Bible Literature
  • Business
  • Classics
  • Communications
  • Dance
  • Debate
  • Drama
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Ergonomics
  • Ethics
  • Excel
  • Film/Media
  • Fire Aid/Firefighting
  • Folklore
  • Food Management
  • Foreign Languages
  • Forestry
  • Geography
  • Gerontology
  • Government
  • Health Education
  • Health Science Administration
  • History
  • Honors Core
  • Horticulture
  • Humanities
  • Hygiene
  • Informatics
  • Information Technology
  • Internet
  • Law
  • Law Enforcement
  • Library Science
  • Linguistics
  • Logic
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Massage
  • Medical Assistant/Receptionist
  • Medical Ethics
  • Military Science
  • Music
  • Personal Health
  • Philosophy
  • Physical Education (PE)
  • Political Science
  • Public Administration
  • Public Affairs
  • Public Policy
  • Public Relations
  • Public Speaking
  • Qualitative Analysis
  • Quantitative Analysis
  • Range Management
  • Reading
  • Recreation
  • Religion
  • Special Topics
  • Sports Administration
  • Teaching Science
  • Theater
  • Theater Literature
  • Theology
  • Typing
  • Urban Planning
  • Western Civilization
  • Wildlife
  • Women’s Studies
  • Word Processing
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  • 1 month later...

Im still waiting to see how caspa calculates my cumalitve and science GPAs. I had rougly a 3.3 in my first bachelors which was moderate in science courses (kinesiolgy), but I received a 4.0 for my degree in Respiratory Therapy. I'm curious as to which courses of my respiratory therapy degree will be listed as science. Oh the waiting game. Best of luck to everybody! I'll make sure and update so that any future RT applicants will have this information.

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  • 1 month later...

@Dr Peppa - what you are looking for is basically a breakdown of which subjects were switched during verification; unfortunately that isn't recorded anywhere. The only way to tell is if you'd printed out your coursework pre-verification and then printed it again post-verification. The course subjects on your actual coursework/PDF are what CASPA verified, which whatever changes they may have made included.

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  • 1 month later...

Hello everyone. I had a question about the "other science courses" on CASPA.I looked through the entire thread but could not find anything related to this, although similar. I took "behavioral neuroscience," "experimental neurobiology" and "neuroscience of memory" which were all psychology courses, not biology, but they were all geared towards the anatomy and physiology of the nervous system. The "experimental neurobiology" used to be a BIO course in my school but they made it into a psychology course since my school gave a neuroscience degree through the psychology department but the material was the same.

 

My question is, can these three fall under the "other science courses" in caspa since they are very science dense courses even though they were given by the PSYCH department and not BIO? 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have a question. I have gone to both semester and quarter schools. Some of the classes I took at a semester school were converted to quarters on my quarter school transcript. When I recalculate them as quarters, they end up being less. Do I attach all the school transcripts (community college on semester system) or just my main one (university on quarter system)? My university transcript contains ALL my classes after transferring.

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  • 5 months later...

Im still waiting to see how caspa calculates my cumalitve and science GPAs. I had rougly a 3.3 in my first bachelors which was moderate in science courses (kinesiolgy), but I received a 4.0 for my degree in Respiratory Therapy. I'm curious as to which courses of my respiratory therapy degree will be listed as science. Oh the waiting game. Best of luck to everybody! I'll make sure and update so that any future RT applicants will have this information.

 

Hi, Im in a similar boat as you, I'm curious to know if caspa calculates our respiratory therapy classes and how many of them did they take?

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  • 1 month later...

I couldn't find the answer to my question in the CASPA Q&A. Are grades that are over 10 years old calculated into CASPA? If a course, like medical terminology, is identified by the institution as a health class, does that fall into the science GPA? Do natural sciences fall into the science GPA?

 

Thank you in advance for your kind responses.

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All of this is answered in the FAQs.  Look under "Transcript Entry: How To Enter Coursework" to start.  i.e., All grades are calculated - everything post high school for which you received any form of college credit hours or appear on ANY transcript.  

REQUIREMENTS
  • REPORT ALL COURSES ON YOUR TRANSCRIPT, NOT JUST PREREQUISITES. Be sure to include courses from which you withdrew, repeated courses, ungraded labs, test credits, gym courses, orientations or other non-graded courses.
  • COURSEWORK MUST MATCH YOUR OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS EXACTLY.  Be certain to list your courses under the correct term, year, and class level at which they were taken. Department prefixes and course numbers must be precise replicas of those on your transcripts.
  • REPORT TRANSFER COURSES UNDER THE SCHOOL AT WHICH THEY WERE ORIGINALLY TAKEN. Coursework must be reported under the actual school, and in some cases, the specific campus, it was taken at. Do NOT list coursework under the schools which the credit was transferred to; report all classes under the schools at which they were originally taken, and list them as they appear on the transcript from the original school. Do NOT list these courses again as transfer credits.

Medical Terminology falls under English.  See "CASPA Course Subjects".  Look here for answers to questions about all course subjects and where CASPA reflects them.  

 

Your best bet for being familiar with CASPA is to read ALL of the FAQ, not just look for the answers to random questions.  The answer to your questions may not be where you expect them to be.  And once you've read it, read it again.  You'll find stuff you missed the first time through. 

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This has been posted somewhere on the forum.. but here is the list for non science

BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE:

  • Abnormal Psychology
  • Adolescent Psychology
  • Anthropology
  • Behavioral Sciences
  • Biological Psychology
  • Child Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Community Health
  • Counseling
  • Criminal Justice
  • Criminology
  • Cultural Geography
  • Cultural Studies
  • Death & Dying
  • Developmental Biology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Educational Psychology
  • Ethnic Studies
  • Family Studies
  • Growth & Development
  • Human Behavior
  • Human Development
  • Human Sexuality
  • Lifespan Development
  • Marriage and Family
  • Multicultural Studies
  • Neuropsychology
  • Psychobiology
  • Psychology
  • Sensorimotor Development
  • Social Ecology
  • Social Psychology
  • Social Sciences
  • Social Welfare
  • Social Work
  • Sociology
  • Sports Psychology

 ENGLISH:

  • Basic Composition
  • Composition
  • Creative Writing
  • English
  • English as a Second Language
  • Journalism
  • Literature
  • Medical Terminology
  • Poetry
  • Rhetoric
  • Technical Writing
  • Writing

  MATH:

  • Algebra
  • Analytical Geometry
  • Behavioral Statistics
  • Biometry/Biometrics
  • Biostatistics
  • Calculus
  • Chemical Math
  • Computer Programing
  • Computer Science
  • Linear Algebra
  • Math Analysis
  • Mathematics
  • Statistics
  • Trigonometry

OTHER NON-SCIENCE:

  • Accounting
  • Acting
  • Agriculture
  • American Sign Language (ASL)
  • American Studies
  • Archaeology
  • Architecture
  • Art
  • Art History
  • Banking
  • Bible Literature
  • Business
  • Classics
  • Communications
  • Dance
  • Debate
  • Drama
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Ergonomics
  • Ethics
  • Excel
  • Film/Media
  • Finance
  • Fire Aid/Firefighting
  • Folklore
  • Food Management
  • Foreign Languages
  • Forestry
  • Geography
  • Gerontology
  • Government
  • Health Education
  • Health Science Administration
  • History
  • Honors Core
  • Horticulture
  • Humanities
  • Hygiene
  • Informatics
  • Information Technology
  • Internet
  • Law
  • Law Enforcement
  • Library Science
  • Linguistics
  • Logic
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Massage
  • Medical Ethics
  • Military Science
  • Music
  • Orientation
  • Organizational Studies
  • Personal Health
  • Philosophy
  • Phonetics
  • Physical Education (PE)
  • Political Science
  • Public Administration
  • Public Affairs
  • Public Policy
  • Public Relations
  • Public Speaking
  • Qualitative Analysis
  • Quantitative Analysis
  • Range Management
  • Reading
  • Recreation
  • Religion
  • Special Topics
  • Sports Administration
  • Teaching Science
  • Test Credit – No Subject
  • Theater
  • Theater Literature
  • Theology
  • Typing
  • Urban Planning
  • Western Civilization
  • Wildlife
  • Women’s Studies
  • Word Processing

To see the list of other courses click this link and scroll down https://portal.caspaonline.org/caspaHelpPages/frequently-asked-questions/academic-history/course-subjects/

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  • 1 month later...

I made a stupid mistake as a freshman and got an F in philosphy for cheating. I later retook the class and recieved an A-. Just want to know what they will think about this. I also withdrew from 2 classes during my time as a college athlete because of a stupid teacher and then one just being difficult. (Obviously I was a bit immature.) I want to know what they would think about the class I retook, even though that class isn't related to PA school at all. Also one of the classes I withdrew from I received an A in later on.

 

My undergraduate GPA was a 3.46, and my Science GPA is currently on the border of a 3.0. I have yet to complete all my pre reqs so I definitely plan on increasing this.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Quick question - if I've been taking MUS133X (Advanced Piano) for 2 units every quarter, does that count as a repeated class? I receive a letter grade each time, but will that just be averaged out to one course and one grade? Thanks!

 

No, it doesn't count as repeated, though that makes no difference at all from a GPA perspective since CASPA counts everything. From the CASPA Instructions:

 

Repeated Classes

Courses retaken at the same school for a higher grade are considered “Repeated.” Withdrawn courses, courses taken at different schools, or courses taken repeatedly but not retaken for a better grade (i.e. school band, gym courses, etc.) are NOT considered repeated. If you have repeated a course, select “yes” and then check off each attempt at the class to mark it as “Repeated.”

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  • 1 month later...

If I have already have a BS in Biology, and then go back to do a 2 year RN program (technically an associates degree), will CASPA count those nursing courses as science courses taken at the undergraduate level? My Science GPA is 2.86 (so close!) so I am planning on going back to do this. Any advice/information would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

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  • Administrator

If I have already have a BS in Biology, and then go back to do a 2 year RN program (technically an associates degree), will CASPA count those nursing courses as science courses taken at the undergraduate level? My Science GPA is 2.86 (so close!) so I am planning on going back to do this. Any advice/information would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Yes.  But unless you need to refresh prerequisites due to age, that may look better on paper than Adcoms would consider it.  The sciences you did in your BS for biology are likely far more difficult than the 'for nurses' science overview courses.  BUT, getting to work as an RN is an awesome way to get HCE while making good money.

 

To clarify, a sGPA of 2.86 is not "so close" to getting in, just "so close" to minimum at many places, which is nowhere near good enough to actually get an interview.

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Yes.  But unless you need to refresh prerequisites due to age, that may look better on paper than Adcoms would consider it.  The sciences you did in your BS for biology are likely far more difficult than the 'for nurses' science overview courses.  BUT, getting to work as an RN is an awesome way to get HCE while making good money.

 

To clarify, a sGPA of 2.86 is not "so close" to getting in, just "so close" to minimum at many places, which is nowhere near good enough to actually get an interview.

 

I appreciate that advice. I have taken a multitude of science courses, from o-chem to genetics, which I have done well in. My plan is to retake gen chem (my weakest science GPA courses) while in nursing school to keep up with the year requirement (I took my bio classes 2012-2015) and to help boost my GPA/show that I have improved academically. I have 2000 hours logged as a medical assistant, and will have around 3700 by the time I go to nursing school. I also plan on working (at least part time) as an MA while in school to keep increasing my HCE. Also, yeah that was my plan (making enough money to support myself and get killer HCE) through this new degree.

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  • 6 months later...

Your "undergrad" GPA already includes the post-bacc, because its undergraduate level work. Your "Total" (the GPA the row below Senior) is your freshman-senior work. Then it lists post-bacc, then undergraduate, which is total plus post-bacc. The "Overall" GPA will always be the same as your undergrad GPA unless you took graduate work. That's confusing to write out, but I hope it makes sense. :)

Online Grade Calculator 

 

I had a question about my CASPA calculated GPA. It shows the post bacc GPA and undergrad GPA but a few rows below, the overall GPA is the same as the undergrad GPA in all three categories (science, non-science, total). It's as if they didn't actually combine the two postbacc and undergrad GPAs together. Is this normal or should I contact CASPA to possibly correct that? 

Thanks for any help

Online Grade Calculator is the tool can help you calculate and manager grade in your classes.

is the tool can help you calculate and manager grade in your classes. You can refer.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Hello everyone. If you took courses after graduating which are considered post-bac but they were undergrad level would they be calculated in your overall and science as well? or would they be a separate GPA?

 

Yes and Yes - see the CASPA FAQ and the explanation and example.  

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