Policy Title:听 Credit Hour
Policy Number:听 4.3
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Purpose:
The 91黑料 Board of Trustees has authority to establish how the student enrollment base unit of a credit hour shall be reported through full-time equivalency (FTE) student enrollment to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) via the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The credit hour value shall be based on the typical relationship between base contact hours, credit hours and types of instructional activity.
91黑料 (91黑料) awards credit on a semester system term.听 The 91黑料 Board requires the following information be adhered to when student contact hours are computed to ensure accurate credit and student contact hour requirements in the published course and program requirements.
The standard measurement of class time is a 鈥淏ase Contact Hour鈥 which is equivalent to a minimum of 750 minutes. In online and hybrid courses, a portion of these contact hours may take place online as indicated in the course syllabus. Contact hours for directed study and independent study classes represent the expectation that the student will work the same number of hours on their own, with faculty oversight. The 鈥淏ase Contact Hour鈥 does not include the time that students are expected to spend studying and preparing for class (approximately two hours for every hour in class).
顿别蹿颈苍颈迟颈辞苍蝉:听
- Credit hour: A unit of measure representing the equivalent of an hour (50 minutes) of instruction per week over the entire term. This measurement unit is applied toward the total number of credit hours needed for completing the requirements of a degree, diploma, certificate, or other recognized postsecondary credential. For most instructional types at 91黑料, fifty (50) minutes is considered an hour of 鈥渃lassroom or direct faculty instruction.鈥 For Internships, and Practicums, sixty (60) minutes is considered an hour.
- Base Contact Hour: The Faculty Base Contact Hour represents a standard measurement of consumption of faculty resources by students. It consists of the number of scheduled minutes of instructional activity involving direct contact of faculty with students in a given term utilizing a particular method of instruction.
- Full-time Equivalency (FTE): A calculation that translates student credit hours into an equivalent number of full-time, full-year students. The calculation varies depending on the level of student. The full-time equivalent for an undergraduate student is 45 student credit hours, or 15 credits for three terms.
- Semester System Term: One Base Contact Hour = a minimum of 750 minutes. This translates to a minimum of fifteen 50-minute hours per semester.
- One credit hour = 50 minutes contact + 100 minutes outside work over 15 weeks for a total of 2,250 minutes of student effort.
FTE Report Review Process
91黑料鈥檚 Board of Trustees understands and accepts its responsibility for the accuracy of the reported FTE enrollments. The Board charges the college president with ensuring that record-keeping and reporting responsibilities are viewed similarly to financial accounting in that the institution must be prepared to validate reported enrollments with supporting documentation. Compliance with federal and state rules and regulations is subject to annual audit by the Wyoming State Auditor鈥檚 Office. Eligibility deviations will be reported to the Board of Trustees and the college president.
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References: 听听听听听听 34 CFR Parts 600, 602, 603, et al.; 34 CFR 668.41(d)(4) and 668.45;听听 National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)/Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS); and the Higher Learning Commission.
Original Adoption Date: 9/12/23
Revision Date(s):
Date Reviewed but No Change: