Credit Hours
Amount of Credit
Credit hours are determined by the amount of interaction between students and the course/credit bearing activity and are based on a normal 15-week semester. Expected student academic activity is extrapolated from full semester expectations for academic pursuits that take place in May, summer, and other compressed terms. For purposes of the application of this policy and in accord with federal regulations, a credit hour 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:
1. Not less than one hour (50 minutes + 10-minute break) of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours (100 minutes + 20 minutes break) out of class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time, or
2. At least an equivalent amount of work as required outlined in item 1 above for other academic activities including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours and based on the following considerations:
Regular classroom courses - One credit hour for each 50-minute class session throughout the semester – most commonly, three-credit hour courses meet 150 minutes each week throughout the semester.
Laboratory courses - One additional credit hour for each course related, weekly laboratory session throughout the semester.
Private music lessons - One credit hour for each 30-minute private music lesson and 3 hours practice time weekly throughout the semester - additional credit hours are associated with appropriate incremental lesson and practice expectations.
Fine arts ensembles/theatre production - One credit hour for participation in music ensemble or theatre production throughout the semester (may vary according to ensemble expectations).
Internships - One credit hour for every 3 hours spent in internship site weekly throughout the semester.
Physical activity courses - One credit hour for two 50-minute sessions weekly throughout the semester.
Individualized study - One meeting weekly throughout the semester with faculty supervisor. The extent of related individualized assignments is based on credit hours enrolled.
Senior study - One meeting weekly with faculty supervisor throughout the semester with required individualized student research activity related to topic.
Honors - An additional credit hour option added to regular course based on significant and advanced work beyond the normal scope of the course – Permission required.
Maryville College Life Enrichment Program (Portfolio) - One credit hour for completion of each approved activity – Restrictions apply (See this Catalog for a full description of this program).
Online and Hybrid Courses - Whereas a traditional face-to-face class has 750 classroom minutes and 1,500 minutes of expected out-of-class academic engagement per credit hour for a total of 2,250 minutes of academic engagement, an online course also has 2,250 minutes of expected academic engagement per credit hour.
Online and hybrid courses corresponding to courses offered in a traditional, face-to-face format must meet the same content requirements and student learning outcomes as courses offered in the traditional format. For these courses, academic credit is equivalent to the amount of academic credit awarded for the corresponding face-to-face courses. For online or hybrid courses with no corresponding face-to-face courses, course expectations and student learning outcomes are based on national expectations and accrediting standards for the degree. Academic credit is awarded based on student attainment of these course expectations and learning outcomes.
In hybrid courses, the classroom minutes are reduced by either 33% or 50%, and the online/out-of-class academic engagement is increased by the same percentage, as noted in the examples below. Students achieve the same learning outcomes regardless of delivery method.
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Academic Engagement Time for Three-Credit In-Class and Hybrid Courses
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Total number of classroom minutes scheduled per week
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Total number of classroom minutes scheduled per term
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Minimum total number of minutes of out-of-class student academic engagement expected per term
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Minimum total number of minutes of expected student academic engagement
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In-class seat time
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150
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2,250
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4,500
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6,750
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33% reduced seat time
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100
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1,500
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5,250
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6,750
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50% reduced seat time
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75
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1,125
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5,625
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6,750
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Level of Credit
The level at which a course is aimed, and for which credit is awarded, is signified by the course number. Courses numbered 101-199 are primarily for first year students, 201-299 for sophomores, and 300-399 for juniors and seniors. A few courses numbered 401 and higher are intended primarily for seniors. Courses numbered at the 500-699 are for graduate level courses. MTH 105 Fundamentals of Mathematics is a remedial math course that does not carry academic credit toward the minimum hours needed for graduation, is not used in the calculation of grade point average, but the hours will count in the calculation of full-time/part-time status.