Michigan State grad invents GPA calculator app

We have all been there. During some point throughout the semester you are trying to determine what percent you need on an exam to get a 3.5 in the class. Or maybe you’re trying to figure out how much the homework from your bio class is worth compared to the test. During this panic, you turn to the trusted Desire to learn, or d2l, website in hopes of finding a GPA calculator somewhere. Unfortunately this tool is no where in sight. And unless you want to try to calculate that shit yourself, you kind of just has to hope you did well enough to get the grade you needed to pass, Until now.

Jon Gardocki is the creator and founder of Spartan GPA. An app designed specifically to determine your GPA. The recent MSU graduate was frustrated with the typical GPA calculations so he worked hard to make an app so you don’t have to be frustrated anymore. Luckily, I was able catch up with Jon and ask him a couple questions about his creation.

Why did you create the app? 

Considering this is my first app, I wanted to create something useful with a relatively new and basic coding skill set. I toyed with numerous ideas; most were either too complicated or too pointless. Thankfully, having just graduated from the greatest university of all time(MSU), I slowly came to the realization that I could, and should, develop a GPA calculator for the student body after knowing my own frustration, semester after semester, looking for the one that would be able to handle our somewhat unique 4.0 grading scale.

Did you have help from anyone?

I have a few entities I must thank for development of Spartan GPA. First off, I owe most of my knowledge to the online IOS developer program and community known as Bitfountain (https://www.bitfountain.io/dashboard). Secondly, the online community at stack overflow. Any distinctive coding questions I had were directed to this site. Lastly, I have to thank my close friends and willing participants of the MSU free and For sale Facebook page and MSU computer science communities in providing assistance to achieve the overall look and feel of the app today!

What is your goal for the app?

As straightforward as it may be, I’m looking to provide current and future MSU students with a quick and painless way to calculate their semester GPAs. Unless you’re a perfect 4.0 student, you’re commonly going to have a decimal GPA. In my instance, I always wanted to know if I was going to make the Dean’s List off my current academic achievements; will I reach it or will I have to work harder? Considering the alternatives: modifying a letter-based GPA calculator or manually doing the math myself, I wanted to create Spartan GPA to help ease this burden.

How do you want to see the app grow in the coming years?

Aside from increased downloads and user retention rates, I have a few developer minded milestones I’m looking to reach. Currently under review for near-future release, I’m adding a few more features. My next update (2.1) will bring larger buttons and text fields to enhance ease of use, iPad support, and most important, an optional cumulative GPA calculator. Secondly, I would love to parter with a fellow MSU developer (past or present) who would be able to bring Spartan GPA to android devices. Lastly, and this is a long shot, have MSU officially (or unofficially) adopt Spartan GPA as a tool for students.

Jon graduated from MSU with a food industry management degree and since graduating in December has been working on development and looking for jobs within the food and technology sectors. His dream job would to be work for ifixit in California. They create repair guides from electronics to automotive to appliances. He said “The position I’m looking at involves disassembling new technology products, creating detailed yet entertaining photo repair/tear-down guides to help others like myself who aren’t afraid to open things up and have some fun in the process.”

Thanks to Jon’s genius mind, we all no longer have to suffer through the pain of hoping we did the correct math in trying to calculate our GPA’s. The app is currently available in the app store and like he said, the 2.1 version is to come out soon and hopefully to androids as well. Thanks again Jon!