grades French to America standard
FRENCH GRADES EXPLANATION (UNIVERSITY LEVEL)
Grades in France are awarded on a scale of 1-20, but the tradition is such that grades higher than 16 are seldom awarded. The passing grade for a single subject is usually 10/20, although grades of 8 and 9 indicate satisfactory performance. A student is considered to have passed the year when the combined weighted average of all his
1
or her grades for that year comes to at least 10.
Interpretation of the French 0-20 scale in terms of American grading standards: (taken from the Web site of the
World Education Services, WES, www.wes.org, member of the National Council for the Evaluation of Foreign
Educational Credentials)2.
French Scale
16 - 20
14 - 15.9
12 – 13.9
10 – 11.9
8 – 9.9
0-7
European ECTS grading system
Mentions / Honors
Très bien (very high honors)
Bien (high honors)
Assez Bien (with honors)
Passable (pass)
U.S. equivalents
A+
A
B
C
3
Ajourné (failed)
F
4
The ECTS grading scale is based on a statistical distribution curve. For a given course, letter grades are distributed among students as follows:
A best 10% (outstanding)
C next 30% (good)
B next 25% (very good)
E next 10% (sufficient)
D next 25% (satisfactory)
A distinction is made between the grades FX and F that are used for unsuccessful students. FX means: “failsome more work required to pass” and F means: “fail – considerable further work required”. The inclusion of failure rates in the Transcript of Records is optional.
1 Reference: Assefa, A. Mariam. France: A Study of the Educational System of France and a Guide to the Academic Placement of Students in
Educational Institutions of the United States, Washington, D.C.: American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers,
1988.
2
The International Grade Conversion Guide for Higher Education “provided by [and available on the Web site of] World Education Services, contains suggested grade conversions for higher
Grades in France are awarded on a scale of 1-20, but the tradition is such that grades higher than 16 are seldom awarded. The passing grade for a single subject is usually 10/20, although grades of 8 and 9 indicate satisfactory performance. A student is considered to have passed the year when the combined weighted average of all his
1
or her grades for that year comes to at least 10.
Interpretation of the French 0-20 scale in terms of American grading standards: (taken from the Web site of the
World Education Services, WES, www.wes.org, member of the National Council for the Evaluation of Foreign
Educational Credentials)2.
French Scale
16 - 20
14 - 15.9
12 – 13.9
10 – 11.9
8 – 9.9
0-7
European ECTS grading system
Mentions / Honors
Très bien (very high honors)
Bien (high honors)
Assez Bien (with honors)
Passable (pass)
U.S. equivalents
A+
A
B
C
3
Ajourné (failed)
F
4
The ECTS grading scale is based on a statistical distribution curve. For a given course, letter grades are distributed among students as follows:
A best 10% (outstanding)
C next 30% (good)
B next 25% (very good)
E next 10% (sufficient)
D next 25% (satisfactory)
A distinction is made between the grades FX and F that are used for unsuccessful students. FX means: “failsome more work required to pass” and F means: “fail – considerable further work required”. The inclusion of failure rates in the Transcript of Records is optional.
1 Reference: Assefa, A. Mariam. France: A Study of the Educational System of France and a Guide to the Academic Placement of Students in
Educational Institutions of the United States, Washington, D.C.: American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers,
1988.
2
The International Grade Conversion Guide for Higher Education “provided by [and available on the Web site of] World Education Services, contains suggested grade conversions for higher