Guide to Implementing a Student Grade Calculator in C++

If you're new to C++ and looking for a practical, beginner-friendly project, building a Student Grade Calculator is a great place to start. It combines basic programming concepts like variables, loops, conditionals, and functions—all while solving a real-world problem.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to create a simple program that:

• Asks for a student’s name and scores
• Calculates the average
• Assigns a letter grade (A, B, C, etc.)

Let’s code step by step!

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Step 1: Plan Your Program

Before writing code, think about what your program should do:

1. Get the student’s name.
2. Ask for a few subject scores (e.g., 3 subjects).
3. Compute the average.
4. Determine the letter grade based on the average.
5. Display the results.

This keeps things simple and manageable for beginners.

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Step 2: Set Up the Basics

Start with the standard C++ structure:

#include <iostream>
#include <string>
using namespace std;

int main() {
    // Your code will go here
    return 0;
}

We include <iostream> for input/output and <string> to handle the student’s name.

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Step 3: Get Input from the User

Ask for the student’s name and three subject scores:

string name;
double score1, score2, score3;

cout << "Enter student name: ";
getline(cin, name);

cout << "Enter score for Subject 1: ";
cin >> score1;
cout << "Enter score for Subject 2: ";
cin >> score2;
cout << "Enter score for Subject 3: ";
cin >> score3;

Step 4: Calculate the Average

Add the scores and divide by 3:

double average = (score1 + score2 + score3) / 3.0;

Using 3.0 (instead of 3) ensures the result is a decimal (double), not an integer.

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Step 5: Assign a Letter Grade

Use if-else statements to convert the average into a letter grade:

char grade;
if (average >= 90) {
    grade = 'A';
} else if (average >= 80) {
    grade = 'B';
} else if (average >= 70) {
    grade = 'C';
} else if (average >= 60) {
    grade = 'D';
} else {
    grade = 'F';
}

This follows a common grading scale (you can adjust it as needed).

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Step 6: Display the Results

Show the student’s name, average, and grade:

cout << "\n--- Report Card ---" << endl;
cout << "Student: " << name << endl;
cout << "Average Score: " << average << endl;
cout << "Grade: " << grade << endl;

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Full Code Example

Putting it all together:

#include <iostream>
#include <string>
using namespace std;

int main() {
    string name;
    double score1, score2, score3;

    cout << "Enter student name: ";
    getline(cin, name);

    cout << "Enter score for Subject 1: ";
    cin >> score1;
    cout << "Enter score for Subject 2: ";
    cin >> score2;
    cout << "Enter score for Subject 3: ";
    cin >> score3;

    double average = (score1 + score2 + score3) / 3.0;

    char grade;
    if (average >= 90) grade = 'A';
    else if (average >= 80) grade = 'B';
    else if (average >= 70) grade = 'C';
    else if (average >= 60) grade = 'D';
    else grade = 'F';

    cout << "\n--- Report Card ---" << endl;
    cout << "Student: " << name << endl;
    cout << "Average Score: " << average << endl;
    cout << "Grade: " << grade << endl;

    return 0;
}