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Science GPA Calculator (BCPM)

Pre-med? Tag each course as biology, chemistry, physics, math or other to get your science (BCPM) GPA, your all-other (AO) GPA and your overall GPA, the three numbers medical schools see.

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Biology, chemistry (including biochemistry), physics and math (including statistics) count toward BCPM. Everything else is "Other".

Science (BCPM) GPA

Pick a letter grade for at least one course.

How to use the science GPA calculator

  1. Enter every college course with its letter grade and credit hours, including summer classes and community college courses.
  2. Set the subject. Biology, chemistry (including biochemistry and organic chemistry), physics, and math (including calculus and statistics) count toward BCPM. Set everything else to Other.
  3. Read your three GPAs. The result shows your BCPM GPA, your all-other (AO) GPA, your overall GPA, and a GPA for each science subject.

The science GPA formula

BCPM GPA = Σ(grade points × credit hours) ÷ Σ(credit hours), science courses only

It's the same credit-weighted average as your regular GPA, just limited to biology, chemistry, physics and math. Grade points follow the 4.0 scale: A and A+ are 4.0, A- 3.7, B+ 3.3, B 3.0, and so on down to F at 0.

Worked example

A pre-med's first year

Biology A (4 credits), Chemistry B (4), Physics B+ (4), Calculus A- (3), English A (3), Psychology A- (3).

BCPM: (4.0×4 + 3.0×4 + 3.3×4 + 3.7×3) ÷ 15 = 52.3 ÷ 15 = 3.49.

All other: (4.0×3 + 3.7×3) ÷ 6 = 23.1 ÷ 6 = 3.85. Overall: 75.4 ÷ 21 = 3.59.

This student's science GPA trails their overall GPA, the pattern admissions committees look at first.

Why medical schools look at your science GPA separately

Medical school coursework is mostly science, so a science GPA predicts how you'll handle it better than your overall GPA does. AMCAS reports BCPM, AO and total GPAs for each year of college, so committees can also see whether your science grades improved over time. An upward trend in BCPM can soften a weak first year.

What counts toward BCPM

  • Biology: general biology, anatomy, physiology, genetics, microbiology, cell biology.
  • Chemistry: general, organic and physical chemistry, and biochemistry.
  • Physics: all physics courses.
  • Math: calculus, statistics, linear algebra and other math courses.

Psychology, sociology, English, and most public health and nutrition courses count as All Other. Classification follows each course's content, so an unusual course may land differently than you expect.

Raising a low science GPA

Because every attempt counts for AMCAS, retaking a course adds a new grade rather than replacing the old one. Many applicants instead take additional upper-level science courses, for example in a post-baccalaureate program, to build a strong recent trend. To see how many credits it takes to reach a target, use the raise GPA calculator with your science GPA and science credit hours. For your regular semester GPA, use the GPA calculator.

Frequently asked questions

What is a BCPM GPA?

BCPM stands for biology, chemistry, physics and math. It's the science GPA that AMCAS, the application service for most U.S. MD programs, reports alongside your overall GPA and your GPA in all other courses (AO).

How do you calculate science GPA?

Use only your biology, chemistry, physics and math courses. Multiply each course's grade points by its credit hours, add them up, and divide by the total science credit hours. A in a 4-credit biology course and B in a 4-credit chemistry course gives (16 + 12) ÷ 8 = 3.50.

Does biochemistry or statistics count as science?

Biochemistry counts toward BCPM. Statistics is usually classified as math, so it counts too. Application services classify each course by its content, not its department, so check how your courses are classified when you apply.

What is a good science GPA for medical school?

Students who enter U.S. MD programs average a science GPA of about 3.7 in recent AAMC data. A science GPA below about 3.4 is generally considered a weak point that a strong MCAT or upward trend needs to offset.

Do retaken classes replace the old grade?

Not for AMCAS. It counts every attempt, even when your college replaced the old grade on your transcript. Enter each attempt as its own row to match what medical schools will see.

Is this the same science GPA dental and PA schools use?

Not exactly. Dental school applications (AADSAS) use a BCP science GPA without math, and PA (CASPA) and DO (AACOMAS) applications have their own science GPA definitions. Set math courses to Other to approximate BCP.

Last reviewed by Muhammad Shahid. See how we calculate.