University Curriculum Committee
Credit Hour Definition
Last updated March 2016
Background and Process
In Fall 2013 the University Academic Senate (UAS) charged the University Curriculum Committee (UCC) to
develop a university-wide definition of a credit hour in anticipation of a request by GVSU’s accreditation body,
the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). UCC began its work that same semester by analyzing credit hour
definitions at peer institutions, as well as seeking guidance from the Associate Vice President for Academic
Affairs who has responsibilities for our accreditation at GVSU. UCC affirmed that the federal government’s
definition for typical lecture-based courses was in place at GVSU and that we will continue to use that
definition. Existing definitions at other institutions seemed to define an acceptable range of contact hours per
credit hour for other course types. This information provided a framework for a credit hour definition: a range
of acceptable contact hours for each activity type.
UCC’s next step was to ask units to provide the number of contact hours for each activity type for courses in
their units. UCC collected the contact hour responses and developed a set of average ranges, noting those
courses that fell outside the average ranges. UCC also noted that many units didn’t respond to the initial
request, so in Winter 2014 UCC sent out a second request. In Fall 2014, based on the new information
received, UCC slightly revised the average ranges to create the first draft of a credit hour definition. At the
same time, UCC asked those units that had courses outside the definition ranges to provide a rationale. Most
cited accreditation or discipline-specific best practices.
In Winter 2015, UCC finalized the definition of a credit hour. In the Summer 2015, UCC drafted this document,
and forwarded it to ECS/UAS in the Fall 2015.
GVSU Credit Hour Definition
Courses at GVSU are categorized into one of several course “activity” types. For each course activity type, the
university has identified the number of hours students are expected to devote to the course per semester per
credit. The definitions do not include homework, reading, studying, or other student preparatory activities.
Furthermore, the definitions do not cover faculty workload expectations. In the definitions below, a semester
is assumed to be a typical 15 week instructional semester. Courses offered in other time frames can be scaled
accordingly.
As an example, the most common course is a 3 credit lecture/discussion. According to the definition below, the
university expects 45 student contact hours per semester for this course.
Classroom-based Activities
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Lecture/Discussion: 15 student contact hours per semester per credit
Lecture: 15 student contact hours per semester per credit
Discussion: 15-30 student contact hours per semester per credit
Seminar: 15-30 student contact hours per semester per credit
Lab: 30-45 student contact hours per semester per credit
Studio: 15-30 student contact hours per semester per credit
Rehearsal: 15-30 student contact hours per semester per credit
1
Independent Learning Activities
● Directed Readings
● Independent Study
○ These activities are 45-75 student learning hours per semester per credit
● Research (e.g., Project/Thesis/Dissertation)
○ These activities are 45-90 student learning hours per semester per credit
Experiential Learning Activities
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Co-op
Internship
Clinical Placement
Field Study
Practicum
○ These activities are 45-75 student learning hours per semester per credit
Online/Hybrid
The number of contact hours for an online or hybrid course should be in line with the number of contact hours
normally expected in a traditional course. Hours for completing homework assignments, working on projects,
studying for examinations, etc., should be considered outside the contact hour requirements for the course
(adapted from Charleston Southern University 1).
Discipline-Specific Requirements
The university recognizes that some disciplines must differ from the university definitions above, either due to
disciplinary accreditation or discipline-specific best practices. A unit may request that a course differ from the
university definition by sending a memo to UCC with the following information: course number, course name,
number of credits, course activity type, the number of contact hours desired, and a rationale for the number of
contact hours. If the rationale is based upon disciplinary accreditation standards, please include
documentation from the accrediting body. UCC will consider the request and notify the unit of its decision. If
approved, Records will be notified to allow the unit to schedule the course with the new number of contact
hours.
Approved Requests
Approved requests will be listed on UCC’s website (and catalog copy). A sample is given below.
● ABC 123 Introduction to the Discipline. 3 credits. Lecture/Discussion. Meets 4 hours per week due to
accreditation requirements by the AB&C accreditation body.
1
http://www.csuniv.edu/facultyandstaff/curriculmcommittee/determiningcredithours_online_courses.pdf
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2