Credit Hour Definition Policy
Credit Hour Definitions
Policy Statement
Georgia College uses the Carnegie standard to determine the appropriate amount of credit awarded for undergraduate and graduate course work. Academic credit is awarded in semester credit hours.
Semester credit hours will be granted as follows:
Lecture, seminar, and recitation courses:
A minimum of 750 minutes of instruction (excluding final examinations), with a minimum of 1500 minutes of out of class work, for each semester credit hour earned.
Laboratory and studio courses:
A minimum of 1500 minutes of instruction (excluding final examinations), with a minimum of 750 minutes of out of class work, for each semester credit hour earned, OR A minimum of 2250 minutes of instruction (excluding final examinations), for each semester credit hour earned.
Supervised independent study, research, individual studio, private lessons:
The amount of effort required for one unit of undergraduate academic credit is determined by the supervising faculty and the department chair of the discipline in which credit is awarded . Instructors should make adjustments so that the total hours of work required by students is equivalent to that of a traditional class.
Practicums, internships, student teaching:
A minimum of forty hours of supervised , discipline – appropriate academic activity for each semester credit hour earned. Courses conducted through alternative delivery methods, including, but not limited to, online, hybrid, and distance education, should be structured so that the total number of minutes of instruction and out of class work is equivalent to that of a traditional face – to - face class. Fully and partially distance classes must be approved through a formal institutional faculty review process and must demonstrate that the learning outcomes and level of student achievement are equivalent to a traditionally delivered course. Hybrid courses need to undergo the standard course review process. Courses offered in a n abbreviated format are expected to contain the same number of minutes of instruction and out of class work as classes scheduled for a full term. At its discretion, Georgia College will award semester credit hour s for proficiency demonstrated through credit – by - examination, including Advanced Placement, College Level Proficiency
Examinations, International Baccalaureate, and course challenges. Credit provided will be equivalent to the hours of credit currently assigned to the course in which the student demonstrates proficiency. Decisions regarding credit – by - examination will be made by the academic department responsible for the subject matter addressed in the examination. Departments may present educational justification for departures from this policy to the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs.
This policy is consistent with Federal Guidelines established in 34 CFR 600.2, as well as
University System of Georgia Policy 3.4.1.
Policy Purpose
Georgia College’s accrediting body, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS), requires each accredited institution to have a policy defining how credit hours are awarded. In the past, Georgia College has deferred to the University System of Georgia’s (USG) credit hour policy. The USG policy alone is no longer sufficient documentation for SACS. As a result, we must update and implement a policy prior to our reaccreditation review in 2014.
This policy does not make any changes to current practice regarding classroom instruction. It
does, as required by SACS, clarify how credit hours will be determined when instruction is not
provided in a face to face classroom format.
Current Policies
University System of Georgia, Board of Regents Policy Manual, 3.4.1
All USG institutions shall be on the semester system (BoR Minutes, December, 1995). The academic year shall consist of two (2) regular semesters, each not to be less than fifteen (15) calendar weeks in length, excluding registration. A minimum of 750 minutes of instruction or equivalent is required for each semester credit hour.
Georgia College, Undergraduate Catalog, 2012
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2013
Academic credit assigned to a course is expressed in semester credit hours. A passing grade on a subject that requires three one hour meetings a week (or the equivalent) for one semester earns three semester hours credit. A laboratory period of two to three hours is equivalent to one class hour. When a student exempts a course requirement at Georgia College, the exemption includes only the subject matter, not the credit hours. The credit hours have to be made up by passing other non-exempt courses. 34 CFR 600.2 Regulations of the Offices of the Department of Education, Institutional Eligibility under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as Amended. A credit hour for Federal programs, including the Federal student financial assistance programs, [is]: An amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than:
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 amount of time; or At least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph (1) 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.