Credit Hour Definition (ACAD 100-015)

1.0 Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define the credit hour in accordance with federal and accreditation standards, ensuring consistency in awarding academic credit across all courses and programs. This policy establishes a uniform framework for credit hour assignment and compliance with regulatory requirements.  

2.0 Definitions

Accreditation Standards - Guidelines and criteria established by accreditation bodies to ensure that educational institutions maintain high-quality programs and services that meet specific academic, administrative, and operational standards.

Clinical/Internship/Practicum - Supervised field experience, where credit hours are determined based on hours worked, generally requiring 40-60 hours per credit hour over a semester.

Condensed Course - A condensed course, also known as a compressed or accelerated course, is a course that delivers the same amount of content as the standard course but in a shorter time frame, often with increased intensity and workload.

Contact Hour - A 50-minute session of direct instruction, laboratory work, or other approved educational activities. 

Credit Hour - Baker College adheres to the Federal definition, which states that an hour of academic credit 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 the following: 

• 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” (34 CFR § 600.2).

Hybrid - A course that combines traditional in-person instruction with online asynchronous engagement.

Laboratory Course - A course requiring significant hands-on experience, where one credit hour consists of two hours of laboratory work and one hour of student work outside the classroom per week (16-week semester). 

Online Asynchronous - Online forms of education, instruction, and learning that do not occur in the same place or at the same time. The instructor provides students with a sequence of units which the students move through as their schedules permit. The instructor guides the students, provides them with feedback, and assesses them as needed. An online asynchronous credit hour provides two hours of direct instruction and four hours of indirect instruction per week over an 8-week session, or one hour of direct instruction and two hours of indirect instruction per week over a 16-week session.

Onground Lecture Course/Online Synchronous (Online Live) - A course primarily delivered through direct instruction, requiring one credit hour to consist of one contact hour of instruction and two hours of student work outside the classroom per week.

3.0 Scope

This policy applies to all credit-bearing courses offered by the institution, including undergraduate and graduate programs, regardless of delivery modality (in-person, hybrid, or online).

4.0 Policy Statement

The college adheres to the federal definition of a credit hour to ensure academic consistency and integrity. A credit hour represents the minimum standard of instructional time and student engagement required to achieve the intended learning outcomes. Each course must be designed to meet the credit hour requirements, whether delivered in-person and/or online.

5.0 Procedures

For each semester hour of credit, onground and Online Live lecture courses must include a 50-minute period in-class and two hours of outside of class work for 15-weeks, totaling 45-hours of instruction.

For each semester hour, Onground and Online Live lecture courses must meet for a 100-minute period in-class and four hours of outside of class work for 8-week course sessions, totaling 48 hours of instruction.

For each semester hour of credit, Onground laboratory courses must include a 100-minute period in-class and two hours of outside of class work for 15-weeks. Courses must include a 200-minute period in-class and four hours of outside of class work for 8-weeks. No more than one credit may be awarded for a lab section without Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs approval.

Courses that do not have the required face-to-face contact time (i.e. Online Asynchronous) meet the credit hour standard by providing two hours of direct instructions and four hours of indirect instruction per week over an 8-week session, or one hour of direct instructions and two hours of indirect instruction per week over a 16-week semester. Online laboratory courses will provide 200-minutes of direct instruction and two hours of indirect instruction per week over an 8-week session or 100-minutes of direct instruction and one hour of indirect instruction per week over a 16-week semester.

Any off-cycle course must be equivalent in both contact and outside work totals as a semester-length course. If outside work is not assigned, lost hours must be made up through additional contact time.

Condensed courses adhere to the same credit hour requirements as traditional semester-length courses. Each credit hour represents an equivalent amount of instructional time and student workload. Condensed courses may utilize intensive scheduling or alternative delivery methods.

Hybrid courses will have reduced in-person (direct instruction) contact hours from the baseline definition and increased asynchronous online engagement as appropriate to the instructional context.

6.0 Responsibilities

Dean
Provides oversight to ensure credit assignments are reflective of the time spent both in-class and out-of-class.

Program Directors
Ensure courses are assigned the appropriate credits and contact hours through the evaluation of in-class and out-of-class time expectations. Schedules courses with the appropriate credit

Vice President for Academic Affairs
Reviews and revises the Credit Hour Definition and Course Content Equivalences document annually. 

7.0 Citations & Related Information

Document A: Credit Hour Definition and Course Content Equivalencies