How to convert a Turkish GPA to the German grade scale
Use the modified Bavarian formula: German grade = 1 + 3 × (Nmax − Nd) / (Nmax − Nmin), cut to one decimal without rounding. For Turkish degrees, uni-assist takes the degree pass mark, usually in Diploma Supplement section 4.2.1
Written 13 October 2026, updated 22 October 2026. CitedCV. How we write our guides
Convert your grade
Your grade, the top of your scale and the degree pass mark from Diploma Supplement 4.2. Calculated in your browser.
First step: find the pass mark for your degree
The formula needs three numbers, and two of them are easy: the top of your scale (4.00 or 100) and your own final grade. The third, the lowest passing grade, decides the result, and it is the one most people get wrong. uni-assist's notes for Turkey say it ignores the minimum pass mark for individual courses or semesters and uses only the minimum pass mark for the award of the degree, which is usually stated in section 4.2 of the Diploma Supplement.
- Diploma Supplement, section 4.2: the grading scheme of your programme. Start here.
- The grading legend on the back or foot of your transcript, if the supplement is missing.
- Your university's exam regulation (Önlisans ve Lisans Eğitim-Öğretim ve Sınav Yönetmeliği). uni-assist asks for the regulation in force at the time if you graduated before 2005 with a final grade out of 100.
- The target university's own table, if it publishes one for your Turkish university. Use its numbers, not yours.
Course pass mark or degree pass mark
A Turkish transcript can carry two pass marks: the lowest passing grade for a single course (DD, 1.00, in the systems DHBW lists as System 2) and the minimum the degree requires, which the Diploma Supplement states. Those are two different Nmin values, and they produce two different German grades from the same transcript. Write down which one you used every time you quote a converted grade.
How the modified Bavarian formula works
The formula maps your scale onto the German one, where 1.0 is the top grade and 4.0 the lowest pass. In the notation of the Kultusministerkonferenz (KMK):
- X = 1 + 3 × (Nmax − Nd) / (Nmax − Nmin)
- X: the German grade you are looking for
- Nmax: the best grade on your scale, 4.00 or 100
- Nmin: the lowest passing grade, as explained above
- Nd: your grade, for example the cumulative GPA on your degree certificate
Why the result is cut, not rounded
The KMK agreement on foreign entrance certificates (resolution of 15 March 1991 as amended on 12 September 2013) says the grade is determined to one decimal place and is not rounded. In practice 1.57 becomes 1.5, not 1.6. DHBW's Turkey table states the same method (it drops the second decimal), and Göttingen's published Turkish tables match it: 3.50 on a scale with Nmin 2.00 is 1.75 exactly, and Göttingen lists 1.7.
Who uses it
The KMK prescribes the formula for school-leaving certificates from abroad, and Bavaria's admission regulation points to that agreement. For master's admissions, universities apply it through their own rules: TUM, for example, converts grades from abroad by this formula under section 16(6) of its general examination regulations. Where a university works through uni-assist, uni-assist rates your grade in the German system in its preliminary review documentation (VPD), and Hochschule Düsseldorf tells applicants that uni-assist does the conversion and that their own calculation is only a guide.
Worked conversions for the 4.00 and 100-point scales
Every value below was computed with the formula and then cut to one decimal, as the KMK rule says. The exact value is shown so you can check the arithmetic. Two pass marks are shown for the 4.00 scale because both occur in published tables for Turkish universities.
4.00 scale: five sample GPAs
| Turkish GPA (Nd) | Nmin 2.00: 1 + 1.5 × (4.00 − Nd) | German grade | Nmin 1.00: 1 + (4.00 − Nd) | German grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.62 | 1 + 1.5 × 0.38 = 1.57 | 1.5 | 1 + 0.38 = 1.38 | 1.3 |
| 3.41 | 1 + 1.5 × 0.59 = 1.885 | 1.8 | 1 + 0.59 = 1.59 | 1.5 |
| 3.05 | 1 + 1.5 × 0.95 = 2.425 | 2.4 | 1 + 0.95 = 1.95 | 1.9 |
| 2.78 | 1 + 1.5 × 1.22 = 2.83 | 2.8 | 1 + 1.22 = 2.22 | 2.2 |
| 2.34 | 1 + 1.5 × 1.66 = 3.49 | 3.4 | 1 + 1.66 = 2.66 | 2.6 |
With Nmin 2.00 the fraction 3 / (4.00 − 2.00) simplifies to 1.5; with Nmin 1.00, 3 / (4.00 − 1.00) is exactly 1. Note how the cut changes three results compared with ordinary rounding: 1.57, 1.885 and 3.49 would round up to 1.6, 1.9 and 3.5.
100-point scale: five sample grades
| Turkish grade (Nd) | Nmin 50: 1 + 0.06 × (100 − Nd) | Exact | German grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| 92 | 1 + 0.06 × 8 | 1.48 | 1.4 |
| 85 | 1 + 0.06 × 15 | 1.90 | 1.9 |
| 78 | 1 + 0.06 × 22 | 2.32 | 2.3 |
| 71 | 1 + 0.06 × 29 | 2.74 | 2.7 |
| 64 | 1 + 0.06 × 36 | 3.16 | 3.1 |
Here 3 / (100 − 50) = 0.06. Each result matches DHBW's published table for a Turkish university on the 100-point scale with 50 as the lowest pass (Mersin University). If your regulation names a different minimum, recompute with that number instead.
One conversion by hand
- Read Nd from the degree certificate: 3.41.
- Read Nmin from Diploma Supplement 4.2: 2.00. Nmax is 4.00.
- Subtract: 4.00 − 3.41 = 0.59, and 4.00 − 2.00 = 2.00.
- Divide and multiply: 0.59 / 2.00 × 3 = 0.885.
- Add 1: 1.885. Cut after the first decimal: 1.8.
What a 2.5 cut-off means in Turkish GPA
Some programmes set a German grade limit. Hochschule Mainz's MSc Business Administration, for example, asks for a grade no worse than 2.5 when the degree shows no ECTS grade. Working backwards with the one-decimal cut, a converted 2.59 still counts as 2.5:
| Pass mark used | Lowest GPA that gives 2.5 | Check | One step lower |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nmin 2.00 | 2.94 | 1 + 1.5 × 1.06 = 2.59, cut to 2.5 | 2.93 gives 2.605, cut to 2.6 |
| Nmin 1.00 | 2.41 | 1 + 1.59 = 2.59, cut to 2.5 | 2.40 gives 2.60 |
Proof: one Turkish university, two German grades
The tables below come from two German universities and were read on 12 October 2026. They show why the pass mark matters more than the formula: both convert Istanbul University grades, with different values for Nmin.
| Published by | Turkish university | Nmin used | 3.50 becomes | Stated date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DHBW (System 2) | Istanbul University and others | 1.00 | 1.5 | June 2026 |
| University of Göttingen | Istanbul University, bachelor | 2.00 | 1.7 | 9 January 2023 |
| University of Göttingen | Middle East Technical University, bachelor | 0.50 | 1.4 | 9 January 2023 |
| DHBW (System 1) | Istanbul Kültür University | 0.70 | not listed; 3.30 becomes 1.6 | June 2026 |
DHBW notes that Turkey has several grading systems and that each of its tables applies only to universities with that scale and pass mark. uni-assist's rule for applicants who studied in Turkey (the degree pass mark from Diploma Supplement 4.2) is the one to follow when your application goes through uni-assist.
Rules and tables change. Check the linked uni-assist page and your target university before you quote a converted grade.
How to write the grade on a German CV
Write the original grade with its scale. Add a converted grade only when the university or form asks for it, and then name the basis. Heidelberg's own calculator page warns that a grade entered in its form is checked against the documents and adjusted if needed, so a converted figure on a CV is a claim the reader will verify.
| Situation | English CV line | German CV line |
|---|---|---|
| Default | B.Sc. Mechanical Engineering, GPA 3.41/4.00 | B.Sc. Maschinenbau, Abschlussnote 3,41 von 4,00 |
| The programme asks for a German grade | GPA 3.41/4.00 (1.8 by the modified Bavarian formula, Nmin 2.00) | Abschlussnote 3,41 von 4,00 (entspricht 1,8 nach modifizierter bayerischer Formel, Nmin 2,00) |
| You have a uni-assist VPD | GPA 3.41/4.00; German grade 1.8 according to the uni-assist VPD | Abschlussnote 3,41 von 4,00; Note laut VPD von uni-assist: 1,8 |
| Not yet graduated | Current GPA 3.38/4.00 after 7 of 8 semesters | Aktueller Notendurchschnitt 3,38 von 4,00 (7 von 8 Semestern) |
Decimal comma and scale
A German reader expects a decimal comma: 3,41, not 3.41, in a German-language CV. Always show the scale. A bare 3,41 means nothing to a reader used to 1,0 being the top grade.
When a converted grade does not belong on the CV
Leave it out when nobody asked, when you are unsure of Nmin, or when you apply for a job rather than a study place. Employers read the original scale fine once it is shown. CitedCV writes the education line from the grade you enter, in English, Turkish or German, so enter the original grade and add the converted one only for applications that want it.
Limits of a grade you calculate yourself
- It is not binding. Hochschule Düsseldorf calls it a guide only; the decision is uni-assist's or the university's.
- Letter grades need numbers first. Heidelberg suggests giving each step a number and entering the best and the lowest passing step as Nmax and Nmin.
- If your transcript does not explain the scale, Hochschule Mainz asks for information on the grading system of your university. Without it, nobody can choose Nmin.
- Grade conversion is not degree recognition. Whether a Turkish degree is comparable to a German one for work or a visa is a separate question; see the page on the Blue Card and degree recognition.
Next steps
- Applying for a master's: the tabular CV, the Motivationsschreiben and the uni-assist upload are covered on the master's CV page.
- Applying for a DAAD scholarship: the scholarship CV checklist has its own page.
- Translating your diploma and transcript: the page on German application documents lists what needs a sworn translation.
Questions people ask
How do I write my German grade on a CV?
Write your original grade with its scale first, for example 3,41 von 4,00, and add the German equivalent in brackets only if the programme asks, naming the formula and the pass mark you used.
How do I write my GPA on a German CV?
Put it on the degree line as GPA 3.41/4.00 in English or Abschlussnote 3,41 von 4,00 in German, with a decimal comma in the German version.
What is the modified Bavarian formula?
It is the linear conversion the KMK prescribes for foreign grades: German grade = 1 + 3 × (Nmax − Nd) / (Nmax − Nmin), determined to one decimal without rounding.
Which Nmin should I use for a Turkish university?
Use the minimum pass mark for the award of the degree, usually in Diploma Supplement section 4.2. uni-assist says it ignores pass marks for single courses or semesters.
Does uni-assist convert my grade?
Yes, for universities that use its review. The VPD states how uni-assist rates your grade in the German system, based on the ZAB evaluations, and takes about 4 to 6 weeks.
Is a 3.00 out of 4.00 good in Germany?
It depends on the pass mark: 3.00 converts to 2.5 with Nmin 2.00 and to 2.0 with Nmin 1.00. Both are passing grades on the German scale.
Why do two universities give me different German grades?
They use different pass marks for the same Turkish scale. DHBW uses 1.00 for Istanbul University and Göttingen uses 2.00, so 3.50 becomes 1.5 at one and 1.7 at the other.
Should I round the converted grade?
No. The KMK rule determines the grade to one decimal and says it is not rounded, so 1.885 is written as 1.8, not 1.9.
Sources
- KMK: Vereinbarung über die Festsetzung der Gesamtnote bei ausländischen Hochschulzugangszeugnissen (as amended 12.09.2013)www.kmk.org/fileadmin/pdf/ZAB/Hochschulzugang_Beschluesse_der_KMK/GesNot05.pdf
- uni-assist: Info country by country, Turkey (grade conversion and translations)www.uni-assist.de/en/tools/info-country-by-country/details-country/country/tr/
- uni-assist: VPD (preliminary review documentation)www.uni-assist.de/en/how-to-apply/plan-your-application/vpd/
- Bavarian admission regulation (BayHZV), Annex 2: average grade for foreign certificateswww.gesetze-bayern.de/Content/Document/BayHZV-ANL_2
- DHBW: Notenumrechnung Türkei (June 2026)www.dhbw.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Dokumente/International/Notenumrechnungen/Notenumrechnung_Tuerkei.pdf
- University of Göttingen: Istanbul University bachelor conversion tablewww.uni-goettingen.de/de/document/download/f19f649ff86f9fa47004baabcb57354d.pdf/T%C3%BCrkei%20Istanbul%20Universit%C3%A4t%20Bachelor%20-%20T%20-%20PDF.pdf
- University of Göttingen: Middle East Technical University bachelor conversion tableglobal2001.uni-goettingen.de/de/document/download/2dcfed02f56a900186fbc4d7e1002a1a-en.pdf/T%C3%BCrkei%20Ankara%20Orta%20Dogu%20Teknik%20Universit%C3%A4t%20Bachelor%20-%20T%20-%20PDF.pdf
- Hochschule Düsseldorf: Grade conversion using the Bavarian formulawww.hs-duesseldorf.de/studium/internationales/Documents/GPA.pdf
- Heidelberg University: Notenumrechnung mit der modifizierten bayerischen Formelbackend.uni-heidelberg.de/de/dokumente/modifizierte-bayerische-formel-0/download
- Hochschule Mainz: MSc Business Administration, foreign academic qualificationswww.hs-mainz.de/en/academics/degree-programs/business/business-administration-msc/how-to-apply/foreign-academic-qualifications/
- TUM: Conversion of grades earned outside of Germany (modified Bavarian formula)www.international.tum.de/fileadmin/w00bwe/www/Wege_ins_Ausland/Studierende/TUMexchange/EN-Bayerische_formel.pdf