Credit Hour Definition and Federal Regulations for Knowledge Base
Federal Definition
All accredited universities must adhere to the federal definition of credit hour for all courses, independent of the type of course and modality.
The Code of Federal Regulations 34 CFR 600.2 provides the following definition for Credit Hour:
Credit hour: Except as provided in 34 CFR 668.8(k) and (l), a credit hour is an amount of student work defined by an institution, as approved by the institution's accrediting agency or State approval agency, that is consistent with commonly accepted practice in postsecondary education and that—
(1) Reasonably approximates not less than—
(i) One hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out-of-class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester or trimester hour of credit, or ten to twelve weeks for one quarter hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different period of time; or
(ii) At least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph (1)(i) of this definition for other academic activities as established by the institution, including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours; and
(2) Permits an institution, in determining the amount of work associated with a credit hour, to take into account a variety of delivery methods, measurements of student work, academic calendars, disciplines, and degree levels.
Credit Notations in the Catalog
Beneath the course number and course title in the Catalog, you will find the credit notations for the course. There are 5 types of notations:
Fixed
Variable
Lecture Only
Lab Only
Lecture and Lab
Within the Credit Configuration field, the total credits are followed by “Cr.” If a course has an associated lab, the “Cr.” is preceded by two numbers separated by a “+”. The first number refers to the lecture periods for the course, and the second to the lab periods. In general, the Credit Notation follows this rule, with a period consisting of 50 minutes:
1 Credit = [1 period of lecture per week] OR [2-3 periods of lab per week]
Examples from Catalog Course Descriptions
Fixed Credits
BIO 205 - Fundamental Nutrition
Credits: 3
This course will meet for 3 periods in a week and has no lab associated with it.
Variable Credits
BIO 290 - Biological Topics
Credits: 2
Maximum Credits: 4
This course will meet for 2 to 4 periods in a week, depending on the topic. The specific topic title and the credits for a semester will be shown in the schedule of classes for that semester. The credits will be fixed for a topics course section, an independent study section, or an internship section.
Lecture and Lab Credits
CHEM 340 - Forensic Chemistry
Credits: 3
Credit Configuration: 2+3, 3 Cr.
This course includes a laboratory component but does not require registration in a separate lab course section.
CHEM 121 - General Chemistry I
Credits: 4
Credit Configuration: 3+3, 4 Cr.
CHEM 121L - General Chemistry I Lab
Credits: 0
The 3-hour laboratory component for CHEM 121.
CHEM 121 has an associated lab, listed separately in the catalog as CHEM 121L. When a student registers for CHEM 121, they are required to register for a lab section (CHEM 121L) for the same semester. One week of coursework includes 3 periods of lecture and 3 periods of lab. The 4 total credits are computed by adding the 4 lecture credits (3 periods of lecture) plus the 0 lab credits (3 periods of lab).
Lecture Only Credits
PHYS 112 - Essentials of Physics
Credits: 3
Credit Configuration: 3+0, 3 Cr.
This course has an associated lab, which is listed separately in the catalog as PHYS 112L. When a student registers for this course, they are not required to register for the lab in the same semester. The credits shown are only for the lecture. Lab credits are tied to the lab section in the schedule of classes.
Lab Only Credits
PHYS 112L - Essentials of Physics Laboratory
Credits: 1
Credit Configuration: 0+3, 1 Cr.
The title and course number indicate that this is a lab and that it is associated with the PHYS 112 lecture. A lab course listed in this way can be taken independently of the associated lecture. The associated lecture, or an equivalent lecture, is usually a requisite for the lab. The credits shown are only for the lab. Lecture credits are tied to the lecture section in the schedule of classes.
Memo by Rick Gillman
Dated April 21, 2016, Effective Fall 2016
Definition of Non-Traditional Delivery Formats
Non-traditional delivery formats include online, blended (hybrid), and compressed-time courses (including short-term study abroad).
Initial Determination of Credit Hours
The university uses the Carnegie unit of definition for a semester credit hour.
The initial assignment of student credit hours to these courses will be determined by either the Educational Policy Committee (EPC) or the Graduate Educational Policy Committee (GEPC) according to regular university practices. That is, these bodies will approve the course description, the learning outcomes, and student credit horus for each new course. Approval requires that the three mentioned items are in alignment with each other and in alignment with the university’s historical determination of these matters for existing courses.
Estimating Time on Task for Non-Traditional Sections
The university recognizes that courses delivered in non-traditional formats may or may not be able to require the same activities, assignments, and assessments as traditionally delivered courses. These courses are required, however, to have the same learning objectives as the traditional version of the course (or comparable learning objectives for those courses without traditional versions). Instructors must also be able to demonstrate that they apply assessment measures appropriate for demonstrating student mastery of the learning objectives.
The university also recognizes that courses delivered in non-traditional formats will likely account for student time-on-task in ways different from the traditional “one hour of seat time and two hours of work” for 15 weeks. Assuming that one (1) student credit hour requires approximately forty-five (45) clock hours of work, instructors of non-traditional courses are expected to document on their syllabi estimates of total student time on task by assigning average student completion times to activities such as, but not limited to:
Synchronous and asynchronous contact time with the instructor
Synchronous and asynchronous contact time with other students (e.g., group projects)
Test preparation and test-taking time
Time spent on assignments, including, but not limited to:
Reading
Writing
Computation
Exploration/research
Creative arts and rehearsals
Required experiential activities
Time spent reflecting on the academic experience, independent of other activities
Time spent on administrative tasks (e.g., learning software, uploading files)