Credit Hours and Course Load
Whether you're registered for a traditional campus course, a hybrid course (with content delivered both in the classroom and online) or an online course, you can use these metrics as general rules of thumb:
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2 hours of out-of-class study per hour of instruction time |
15 hours of instruction time per credit |
30 hours of out-of-class study per credit |
The first semester of enrollment generally requires more time for adjustment and developing time management skills. Your advisor will work with you to consider how many credits you should register for each semester, in light of family, work, ministry, and other responsibilities.
Enrollment Levels
To be eligible for financial aid, a student must attend at least half-time.
The minimum number of credits in order to be considered half-time is as follows:
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3+ credits per semester for Advanced Programs half-time status |
4+ credits per semester for Master's Programs half-time status |
Full-time status is defined as follows:
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6+ credits per semester for Advanced Programs full-time status |
8+ credits per semester for Master's Programs full-time status |
Note: Advanced Degree students actively enrolled in the dissertation/thesis phase are considered to be enrolled half-time until they have completed their required dissertation/thesis credit. If they must continue enrolling in dissertation/thesis credits beyond those required for graduation, they will not be considered to be enrolled half-time.
Time Budgeting Tool
We suggest that you take a few minutes to use our Time Budgeting Tool to consider your course load in light of your schedule.