What do I need on the final? Required exam grade calculator
Enter each part of the grade with its weight and grade. Whatever weight is left up to 100% belongs to the exam. Tick "shield" if a part only counts when it raises your grade.
course grade = Σ(weight × grade) + exam weight × exam grade
How it works
The course grade is the sum of the components, each times its weight, plus the exam weight times the exam grade. Solve for the exam grade and you get the one that brings the course exactly to your target.
The target is set to 60 by default. Check your course syllabus for its passing grade.
Shield grades
A shield component counts only if it helps. If it does not, its weight moves to the exam. The calculator tries both options for every shield component and gives the lowest exam grade that is enough under either.
An example
Homework worth 20% at 90, a midterm worth 20% at 40, and the exam worth 60%. To pass at 60 without a shield you need (60 − 18 − 8) ÷ 0.6 = 56.67 on the exam.
If the midterm is a shield, its weight moves to the exam, now worth 80%: (60 − 18) ÷ 0.8 = 52.5. The weak midterm simply stops counting.
Notes
Many courses require a minimum exam grade to pass, even when the average is enough. If yours does, enter it in that field.
Rounding rules differ between courses, so the calculator shows the grade you need to two decimal places.