Academic grading system varies across countries. If you are an international student in Australia and have completed a course already, you must have observed a difference in the grading system between your home country and Australia. Here is an overview of the Australian grading system from school to university.

But, you may want to note that the grading system is not the same across Australia. Being a vast country, each of its states has its own system of grading. So, if you are planning to do your next course in another state or from a different university in Australia, take a look at the following tables.

The basic grading scale looks like this for most universities. However, based on which university you study in and which state it is in, the grading system may slightly differ.

For Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​	​GPA ​
HD	​High Distinction	​100 - 85	​A+
D	​Distinction	​84 - 75	​A
​C	​Credit	​74 - 65	​B
​P	​Pass	​64 - 50	​C
​F	​Fail	​49 and below	​F

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For Honours Degree

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​H1	First Class Honours​	​100 - 80
​H2A	​Second Class Honours	79 - 75​
​H2B	Second Class Honours​	74 - 70​
​H3	​Third Class Honours	​69 - 65​
​P	​Pass​	​64 - 50
​N	​Fail​	​​49 and below

For Vocational and Trade Courses

Grading for vocational courses is binary. You either pass by achieving the required competency or fail.

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​C/S	​Competent/Satisfactory	​100%
​NYC/NS	​Not Yet Competent/ Not Yet Satisfactory	​0

Grading system across the Australian States

Each Australian state is home to a handful of world-class universities. Due to their diversity and needs, they follow their own, unique grading system.

Australian Capital Territory​

University of Canberra, Australian National University, Charles Sturt University, UNSW Canberra, Australian Catholic University are the notable institutions in the capital territory and here is their grading system.

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​A	​Extremely High Standard of Achievement​​	​100 - 85​
​B​	​High Standard of Achievement​	​84 - 70​
​C​	​Acceptable Standard of Achievement​	​69 - 50​
​D​	​Limited Standard of Achievement​	​49 - 25​
​E​	​Very Limited Performance​	​24 - 0​

​New South Wales

The east coast state, New South Wales, houses the University of New South Wales, University of Sydney, University of Newcastle, Macquarie University and La Trobe University.  

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​A​	​High Distinction​	​100 - 85​
​B​	​Distinction​	​84 - 70​
​C​	​Credit​	​69 - 50​
​D​	​Pass​	​49 - 25​
​E​	​Fail​	​24 - 0​

​Northern Territory​

With Darwin as the capital city, this beautiful state of Australia has Charles Darwin University and Flinders University to its name.

​Grade​	​Scale 1​	​Scale 2​
​A​	​5​	​17 - 20​
​B​	​4 - 4.99​	​14 - 16.99​
​C​	​3 - 3.99​	​11 - 13.99​
​D​	​2 - 2.99​	​8 - 10.99​
​E​	​1 - 1.99​	​0 - 7.99​

Queensland

The second-largest state of Australia takes pride in being home to some of the renowned institutions such as the University of Queensland, Bond University, Griffith University and James Cook University.

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​HD​	​High Distinction​	​7​
​D​	​Distinction​	​6 - 6.99​
​C​	​Credit​	​5 - 5.99​
​P​	​Pass​	​4 - 4.99​
​F​	​Fail​	​1 - 3.99​

South Australia

South Australia is a wildlife haven of the continent and home to Kangaroo Island. The state has the University of South Australia, University of Adelaide, Torrens University, to name a few.

​Grade​	​Grade Name​	​Grade Scale %​
​HD​	High Distinction​​	​85 -100​
​D​	​Distinction​	​75 - 84​
​C​	​Credit​	​65- 74​
​P1​	​Pass Level 1​	​55 - 64​
​P2​	​Pass Level 2​	​50 - 54​
​F1​	​Fail Level 1​	​40 - 49​
​F2​	​Fail Level 2​	​30 - 39​

 Tasmania

Tasmania is an island state known for its richest history and the cleanest air in the world. University of Tasmania is the only university in the state.

​Grade​	​Grade description​	​Grade scale %​
​EA​	​Excellent Achievement​	​4.00​
​HA​	​High Achievement​	​3.50 - 3.99​
​CA​	​Commendable Achievement​	​3.00 - 3.49​
​SA​	​Satisfactory Achievement​	​2.50 - 2.99​
​PA​	​Preliminary Performance​	​2.00 - 2.49​

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 Victoria

With Melbourne as capital, this industrious state of Australia features some of the best government and private universities in the country: Monash University, RMIT, Swinburne University, Deakin, University of Melbourne, Victoria University etc

​Code​	​Grade​	​Mark​
​HD​	​High Distinction​	​80-100​
​D​	​Distinction​	​70-79​
​C​	​Credit​	​60-69​
​P​	​Pass​	​50-59​
​N​	​Fail​	​0-49​

Primary, Secondary, and Senior Secondary Grades in Australian schools

In Australia, the schooling system comprises primary, secondary and senior secondary levels. Similar to that of universities, the school system also has a grading system and it varies between states and territories.

​Grade	​Grade Description	​Percentage
​A	​Excellent	​85% and above
​B	​Good	​70% to 84%
​C	​Satisfactory	​51% to 69%
​D	​Limited	​31% to 50%
​E	​Very Low	​26% to 30%
​F	​Fail	​Below 25%

Before you join your next course, research your favourite universities, understand their grading systems. Also, check the university website to find if the grading system has gone through any change or update.

Talk to our counsellors if you need further support in the research of your next course and university.

Application of the Australian Tertiary Admission Ranks (ATAR) and the GPA Scores 

GPA scores may not be prevalent in Australia but are occasionally used for law and medicine courses. Calculating the score requires multiplying the total of every grade point by the so-called course unit value and doing a division between it and the total credit points. 

The GPA Formula:

GPA = Total of (Grade Point × Credit Points) ÷ Total of (Credit Points)

The term ATAR refers to a number that dictates the admission of a student into a university. It is a key element of the education system in Australia. If you have an ATAR score of 95, it would mean that you have fared better than 95% of your fellow students with the same stream.

If you exceed a particular ATAR level, you would be provided with opportunities sponsored by the Government. Keep reading to know more about Australia's grading system. 

Frequently Asked Questions About Australian Academic Grading System 

How Much Is A Good Grade Point Average In Australia?

Universities in Australia regard 6 and 7 as top scores. Employers may also recruit students within that GPA range. If you have 6 as your GPA score, you would have got a distinction in your overall course. On the other hand, a grade point average of 7 would mean that you completed the course with the highest possible achievement. It raises this question: Is a 5.5 GPA Good?

Is 5.5 Too A Good Grade Point Average?

It is regarded as a good GPA at Australian universities. It comes in the higher or upper range than the average grade point average in Australia.

How Much Is Australia's Highest GPA?

While 7 represents the highest GPA in Australia, 0 represents the lowest. The word GPA alludes to the average result of all your grades, and it works on the basis of a seven-point academic grading scale. Hopefully, now you will be able to tell what GPA is a distinction and which one is not.

Does 75 Represent An A Grade In Australia?

When it comes to several universities, getting a GPA grading score that ranges from 70 to 84% means a distinction, and it is regarded as a good GPA score.

What Grade Represents 60 Percent In Australia?

Getting a 60 percent in the GPA system means that the student has done just enough to pass their course with an average Australian score. 

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