Understanding your academic performance often boils down to one key figure. It’s essential for applications, academic comparisons, and setting personal achievement goals.
The Goal: Finding the Overall Performance.
The primary objective when calculating the total percentage of marks is to express your complete academic achievement as a fraction of the maximum possible score, converted into a percentage.1 Think of it as finding out what proportion of the perfect score you actually earned.
The Step-by-Step Approach.
Calculating this crucial number involves a straightforward, two-stage process:
Step 1: Determine the Totals
The first stage focuses on compiling two essential figures: the total marks obtained and the total maximum marks.
Total Marks Obtained: This is the sum of the scores you achieved in every single subject or component you were evaluated on. You must include all relevant scores to get an accurate representation.
Total Maximum Marks: This is the sum of the maximum possible score for every single subject or component. It represents the highest possible score a student could achieve across the entire examination or academic period.
Step 2: The Final Calculation
Once you have both totals, you can move to the final step to find the total percentage of marks.
You take the total marks obtained and divide it by the total maximum marks. This yields a decimal value, often less than one. This decimal represents the fraction of the total score you achieved.
To transform this fraction into a percentage, you simply multiply the resulting decimal value by one hundred.
The final number you arrive at is your total percentage of marks. This figure is always expressed with the percent sign (%) following it.
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Practical Example.
Imagine a student takes three exams: Math, Science, and History.
Math: Scored 70 out of a maximum of 100.
Science: Scored 85 out of a maximum of 100.
History: Scored 45 out of a maximum of 50.
First, you find the totals:
Total Marks Obtained: $70 + 85 + 45 = 200.
Total Maximum Marks: $100 + 100 + 50 = 250.
Second, you perform the final calculation. You divide the total marks obtained (200) by the total maximum marks (250). Then, you multiply the result by one hundred. This calculation reveals the student’s total percentage of marks.
This single, aggregated percentage is a powerful summary of performance, providing a clear and comprehensive measure of overall success.
