Brazil Grading System Explained
Numerical Scale (0–10) · pass mark 5.0
How do grades from Brazil convert to US GPA?
A Bachelor's / first-degree grade — for graduate (Master's) admission or employment
Got a school-leaving qualification instead — A-levels, Class 12, WASSCE, the Abitur? Here's what actually happens to those.
Hover or tap a band to see what it means.
Hover or tap a band to see what it means.
Enter a grade above to see what it means in the United States
You'll get the classification it corresponds to, the range it falls in rather than a single false-precise number, and how firm that answer is.
How does the Brazil grading system work?
Brazilian universities use a 0–10 scale with 5.0 as the pass mark. Grading varies between public and private institutions.
Brazilian universities mark on a 0–10 scale, with the pass mark typically 5, 6 or 7 depending on the institution — there is no single national threshold, so the same mark can pass at one university and fail at another.
Some institutions use letter concepts (A to E) or a 0–100 scale instead, and federal, state and private universities differ in their conventions.
A 9.0 and above is Excelente, and Brazilian marks are commonly reported to one decimal place for each discipline, so the histórico escolar shows considerably more detail than a single average would.
What does each grade mean in Brazil?
| Range | Classification | ≈ US GPA |
|---|---|---|
| 9.0 – 10.0 | Excelente | 4.0 |
| 7.0 – 8.9 | Muito bom | 3.3 |
| 6.0 – 6.9 | Bom | 2.7 |
| 5.0 – 5.9 | Regular | 2.0 |
| 0.0 – 4.9 | Reprovado (Fail) | — |
What does a good grade actually look like in Brazil?
The variable pass mark is the detail that matters most: a 6.5 means something quite different at an institution passing at 5 than at one passing at 7, so the number alone under-describes the result. On top of that the 0–10 scale is used conservatively at the upper end, with 9s uncommon and 10s rare, so a 7.5 is a solid degree rather than the mediocre 75% it becomes under direct conversion. Send the grading key from your transcript, because it states your university's own pass mark.
How do WES and other evaluators read grades from Brazil?
WES evaluates Brazilian credentials case-by-case. Course-by-course evaluation recommended.
Credential-evaluator source: Scholaro — Brazil grading system (credential-evaluation database) · cross-checked against Ministério da Educação (MEC), Brazil · grading data verified 2026-07-24 · how we convert · report an error
Is a degree from Brazil accepted abroad?
Brazilian bacharelado degrees run four to five years, longer than most Latin American equivalents, which meets the 16-year expectation of US graduate schools comfortably. Engineering, law and medicine run longer still.
What do people get wrong about grades from Brazil?
- Multiplying by ten to get a percentage. A Brazilian 7.5 is a good result, not the modest 75% it appears to be in US terms.
- Assuming a national pass mark. It varies by institution between 5 and 7, which changes what any given grade means.
- Omitting the histórico escolar. Evaluators want the full academic record rather than the diploma alone.
What grade do you need to study abroad from Brazil?
Each destination below publishes its own typical entry requirement for a taught master's — a one-to-two-year postgraduate degree made mostly of classes. The last column restates that bar in Brazil's own grading terms, so you can hold it against your actual transcript instead of converting in your head.
The last column is a double conversion — the destination's bar onto the US 4.0 scale and then onto Brazil's, so its uncertainty is wider than a single conversion and it is shown as a range for that reason. Treat it as orientation, and check the course page for the bar that actually binds. How this is worked out.
Only destinations whose entry requirement we have read and cited appear here. Several countries publish no numeric bar at all — France admits on the dossier, Japan by entrance examination — and others we simply have not researched yet. An absent row never means “no requirement”.
The last column links the organisations that maintain each country's programme data — we hold none of it ourselves, and none of them can tell you whether you will be admitted. Several countries have no single national directory for postgraduate study at all: master's applications go straight to the university, so the course page is the authoritative source.
How do grades from Brazil compare, side by side?
Each of these sets Brazil against one destination in detail — the two grading cultures, the traps specific to that direction, and the converter preset for the route:
- Brazil vs United States grading system
- Brazil vs United Kingdom grading system
- Brazil vs Canada grading system
- Brazil vs Germany grading system
- Brazil vs Australia grading system
Applying to the US or Canada? Read the WES credential evaluation guide before you order — choosing the wrong report type is the most common (and costly) mistake.
What do these grading terms mean?
- Percentage scale
- A 0–100 marking scale — but the numbers are not comparable across countries: 70% is an outstanding result in the UK and a modest one in India.
- GPA (Grade Point Average)
- The US way of expressing an overall grade, on a 0–4.0 scale where 4.0 is the top — so a 4.0 is roughly what a 90–100% or a First Class would be elsewhere.
- Transcript
- The official document from your university listing every subject you took and the grade you got — not the same as your degree certificate, and universities abroad want both.
- Credential evaluation
- A paid report from an approved company that restates your foreign qualification in local terms, which many US and Canadian universities require before they will assess you.
Frequently asked questions
Is a good grade in Brazil still good abroad?
The variable pass mark is the detail that matters most: a 6.5 means something quite different at an institution passing at 5 than at one passing at 7, so the number alone under-describes the result. On top of that the 0–10 scale is used conservatively at the upper end, with 9s uncommon and 10s rare, so a 7.5 is a solid degree rather than the mediocre 75% it becomes under direct conversion. Send the grading key from your transcript, because it states your university's own pass mark.
Is a degree from Brazil accepted for a master's abroad?
Brazilian bacharelado degrees run four to five years, longer than most Latin American equivalents, which meets the 16-year expectation of US graduate schools comfortably. Engineering, law and medicine run longer still.
What grade do you need to study abroad from Brazil?
It depends on the destination, and the spread is wide. Stated on Brazil's own scale, the typical taught-master's bar works out at roughly: Australia 5.6–6.3 / 10, Netherlands 5.6–6.3 / 10, New Zealand 5.6–6.3 / 10. Across the 12 destinations whose entry requirements we have read and cited, the lowest bar is Australia at about 5.6–6.3 / 10. These are typical requirements, not guarantees — selective programmes ask for more, and each figure is a conversion, so treat it as orientation and check the course page.
Can you study abroad with a low grade from Brazil?
Often yes, but be specific rather than hopeful about it. The lowest published bar among the destinations we hold data for is Australia at roughly 5.6–6.3 / 10 on Brazil's scale, so a result below that clears no destination on our list on grades alone. Below the bar the route is not closed — conversion, qualifying and pre-master's programmes exist in most countries and are designed for exactly this — but expect to need one, and expect grades to matter more where the programme is competitive. Convert your own grade above to see which bars it actually clears.