Grades
Most US colleges use a combination of a 4.0 grade point average (GPA) scale and a letter grading system from A to F. Grades often look like:
A = 4.0 Best
B = 3.0
C = 2.0
D = 1.0
F = 0.0 Worst
Many American universities will also use different categories — A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, and F — and the +/- will have a different value on the 4.0 scale (e.g., A- = 3.7, B+ 3.3). Some universities offer classes with Pass/Fail or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grades, but these will not impact a student’s GPA.
Credits
Students usually take between three and six classes each academic term, and each class is given a certain number of academic credits. As long as you pass a course (i.e., a D grade or better) you will get full credit for that course.
Most university classes are worth between three and five credits. The number of credits per class varies by the hours of instruction each week. For example, if you have a course that meets a total of three hours a week over the course of a 16-week semester, that course will typically be worth three credit hours. If you have three hours of instruction plus an hour lab section each week, the course will likely be a four-credit class.
So, over one semester, let’s say you have five classes worth three credits each. If you pass each course, you will receive 15 credits. If, over eight semesters (or four academic years), you took that same number of credits each term and passed each class, you would have 120 credits and the end of your program. Most bachelor’s degrees require 120 to 133 credits, depending on the field of study.
How Successful Are International Students Studying in the USA?
More international students choose to study in the USA than in any other country. According to the Institute of International Education (IIE) 2019 Open Doors Report, foreign students make up 5.5% of all college students in the US, and for the fourth year in a row, more than one million students from overseas studied at American colleges and universities.
For international students who complete degrees in the United States, roughly 60-65% choose to stay in the US for work opportunities. For F-1 student visa holders, that means one to three years of potential paid employment in your field of study, depending on your major. This work permission is called Optional Practical Training (OPT). If you enroll in a STEM major, you can have three years of OPT for each degree level (bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral) you complete in the United States.
Of the million-plus international students in the United States in the 2018-19 academic year, more than 20% were in OPT. Over the last five years, the number of F-1 students on OPT has increased by more than 85%.
A recent international student satisfaction survey from World Education Services revealed that 92% of current international students and 89% of recent alumni believe their US education was a good investment, and 85% of students and 88% of alumni feel positive about their career prospects.
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