Course Scheduling and Contact Hours Policy

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Fall and Spring Terms

Section I:  Scheduling Standards

This section of the Course Scheduling Policy regulates the scheduling of Undergraduate, Graduate, Graduate School of Management and Health Sciences Professional courses that meet in a classroom (general pool or restricted) and meet before 4:00 p.m. on Monday-Friday.  Laboratory courses are excluded from this section of the policy.

  1. The academic units and the Office of the Registrar will schedule all three-credit classes that start before 4 p.m., Monday-Friday using the following standard:

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    Monday-Wednesday-Friday (MWF)

    8-8:50
    9:9:50
    10-10:50
    11-11:50
    Noon-12:50
    1-1:50
    2-2:50
    3-3:50

    Monday-Wednesday (MW)

    2-3:15
    3:30-4:45

    Tuesday-Thursday (TTH)

    8-9:15
    9:30-10:45
    11-12:15
    12:30-1:45
    2-3:15
    3:30-4:45

  2. Courses offered for fewer or more than three credits must use the days and corresponding start times listed above, however, the end times may be adjusted to accommodate the contact hours requirements of this policy (Section III, below).

    In this process, the colleges/schools must create a schedule for these courses that utilize the classrooms as intended by the policy.  Example:  three-one credit course = one Monday class offered from 9-9:50 a.m., one Wednesday class of like enrollment, offered from 9-9:50 a.m. and one Friday class of like enrollment, offered from 9-9:50 a.m.
  3. Courses in which the colleges/schools wish to utilize a more consolidated block of time, may do so as long as the required days/start times are utilized (#1 above), the courses meet the contact hours requirements of this policy (Section III below) and the courses utilize classrooms as intended in the policy.  Example:  a three-credit course that meets on Monday only, may meet from 2-4:45 p.m. as long as it is paired with another course of like enrollment, that meets on Wednesday only from 2-4:45 p.m.  NOTE:  in order to accommodate undergraduate students' schedules that cross multiple disciplines, this option is to be used for graduate and professional courses.
  4. Graduate, Graduate School of Management, or Health Sciences Professional courses taught in a restricted classroom, and in which enrollment does not include undergraduate students, are not bound by the time block outlined in #1 above.
  5. Colleges/schools may offer no more than 9% of their courses that meet in general pool classrooms in any one time block.
  6. The Office of the Registrar will factor the pedagogical needs and expected enrollment of courses when scheduling all general pool classrooms.  Once these classrooms are assigned, no course will be moved to another classroom, unless one or both of the following conditions apply:  the enrollment exceeds the classroom capacity or ADA issues of faculty or students.

Section II:  Evening and Weekend Courses

This section of the Course Scheduling Policy regulates the scheduling of Undergraduate, Graduate, Graduate School of Management and Health Sciences Professional courses that meet in a classroom (general pool or restricted) and that meet after 4:00 p.m. on Monday-Friday, or on the weekend.  Laboratory courses are excluded from this section.

  1. Evening and weekend courses must begin on the hour, half-hour or quarter hour.
  2. With the exception of #6 above, evening and weekend courses are not bound by Section1 of this policy.
  3. Evening and weekend courses are bound by Section III of this policy.

Section III:  Contact Hours

This section of the Course Scheduling Policy regulates the scheduling of all Undergraduate, Graduate, Graduate School of Management and Health Sciences Professional courses, regardless of delivery method, and is based on a 15 week semester.  The Law School and School of Dentistry have their own contact hours policies, referenced below and are based on their accreditation.

  1. Undergraduate, Graduate, Graduate School of Management, Health Sciences Professional:

Classroom Based Courses:  must meet a minimum of 50 minutes per credit, per week, and additional workload assigned to equal a minimum of 2 hours of coursework/activity outside the classroom for each 50 minutes of meeting time.

Blended and Non-Classroom Based Courses:  must include some form of instruction, and/or homework, and/or activity that equals the minimum of 170 minutes per credit, per week.

Those courses that meet in a compressed format (i.e., fewer than 15 weeks), must make up these hours within the time frame of the course offering.

Contact Hours Grid

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1 credit = minimum of 2,550 minutes per term = 42.50 hours per term

50 minutes per week (12.50 hours per term) +

120 minutes of additional coursework per week (30 hours per term)

2 credits = minimum of 5,100 minutes per term = 85.00 hours per term

100 minutes per week (25 hours per term) +

240 minutes of additional coursework per week (60 hours per term)

3 credits = minimum of 7,650 minutes per term = 127.50 hours per term

150 minutes per week (37.50 hours per term) +

360 minutes of additional coursework per week (90hours per term)

4 credits = minimum 10,200 minutes per term = 170.00 hours per term

200 minutes per week (50 hours per term) +

480 minutes of additional coursework per week (120 hours per week)

5 credits = minimum of 12,750 minutes per term = 212.50 hours per term

250 minutes per week (62.50 hours per term) +

600 minutes of additional coursework per week (150 hours per term)

 

2.  The Law School is bound by the American Bar Association Standards of Accreditation of Law
     Schools.  The standards require a minimum course of study of 58,000 minutes of instruction time. 
     Of these, 45,000 of these minutes must be by attendance in regularly scheduled class sessions at
     the Law School.  This translates to 700 minutes of instruction per classroom credit, which is the
     standard for the Law School.

3.  The School of Dentistry, consistent with other U.S. Dental Schools and accreditation,
     lecture/seminar courses are 50 minutes per credit, per week; labs are 2 hours per credit, per week;
     and, clinics are 3 hours per credit, per week.

Section IV:  Exceptions

Any exceptions to this policy must be approved by the Provost.


Summer Term

Summer classes must meet the required contact hours, as outlined in the Course Scheduling Policy.  In order to verify this and allow students to take more than one class, without conflicts, the following are approved meeting times for the Undergraduate, Graduate, Graduate School of Management and Health Sciences Professional summer classes.  The only exceptions to the scheduling patterns listed below are study abroad and field experience classes (student teaching, internships/co-ops, clinicals, practicums); however, the contact hours policy applies to all classes. 

5 week session - 3 credit class

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Monday - Wednesday (MW) or Tuesday - Thursday (TTH)

Start Time                End Time
1:30 p.m.                  5:15 p.m.
5:30 p.m.                  9:15 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday (MTWTH)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                  9:50 a.m.
10:00 a.m.                11:50 a.m.
12:00 p.m.                  1:50 p.m.
  2:00 p.m.                  3:50 p.m.
  4:00 p.m.                  5:50 p.m.
  6:00 p.m.                  7:50 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday (MTWTHF)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                  9:30 a.m.
  9:45 a.m.                11:15 a.m.
11:30 a.m.                  1:00 p.m.
  1:15 p.m.                  2:45 p.m.
  3:00 p.m.                  4:30 p.m.
  4:45 p.m.                  6:15 p.m.

5 week session - 4 credit class

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Monday - Wednesday (MW) or Tuesday - Thursday (TTH)

Start Time                End Time
1:00 p.m.                  6:00 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday (MTWTH)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                 10:00 a.m.
10:15 a.m.                 12:15 p.m.
12:30 p.m.                   2:30 p.m.
  2:45 p.m.                   4:45 p.m.
  5:00 p.m.                   7:00 p.m.
  7:15 p.m.                   9:15 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday (MTWTHF)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                10:00 a.m.
10:15 a.m.                12:15 p.m.
12:30 p.m.                  2:30 p.m.
  2:45 p.m.                  4:45 p.m.
  5:00 p.m.                  7:00 p.m.
  7:15 p.m.                  9:15 p.m.

6 week session - 3 credit class

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Monday - Wednesday (MW) or Tuesday - Thursday (TTH)

Start Time                End Time
1:30 p.m.                   4:45 p.m.
5:00 p.m.                   8:15 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday (MTWTH)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                 9:35 a.m.
  9:45 a.m.               11:20 a.m.
11:30 a.m.                 1:05 p.m.
  1:15 p.m.                 2:50 p.m.
  3:00 p.m.                 4:35 p.m.
  4:45 p.m.                 6:20 p.m.
  6:30 p.m.                 8:05 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday (MTWTHF)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                  9:15 a.m.
  9:30 a.m.                10:45 a.m.
11:00 a.m.                12:15 p.m.
12:30 p.m.                  1:45 p.m.
  2:00 p.m.                  3:15 p.m.
  3:30 p.m.                  4:45 p.m.
  5:00 p.m.                  6:15 p.m.
  6:30 p.m.                  7:45 p.m.
  8:00 p.m.                  9:15 p.m.

 6 week session - 4 credit class

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Monday - Wednesday (MW) or Tuesday - Thursday (TTH)

Start Time                End Time
1:30 p.m.                   5:45 p.m.
6:00 p.m.                 10:15 p.m.
.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday (MTWTH)

Start Time                 End Time
  8:00 a.m.                10:05 a.m.
10:15 a.m.                12:20 p.m.
12:30 p.m.                  2:35 p.m.
  2:45 p.m.                  4:50 p.m.
  5:00 p.m.                  7:05 p.m.
  7:15 p.m.                  9:20 p.m.

Monday - Tuesday - Wednesday - Thursday - Friday (MTWTHF)

Start Time                   End Time
  8:00 a.m.                    9:45 a.m.
10:00 a.m.                  11:45 a.m.
12:00 p.m.                    1:45 p.m.
  2:00 p.m.                    3:45 p.m.
  4:00 p.m.                    5:45 p.m.
  6:00 p.m.                    7:45 p.m.


All other sessions/credits

Classes must be scheduled according to the Days and Start Time patterns listed above.  Note:  1 or 2 credit classes may meet 1 day per week; however, must also be scheduled according to the start time listed above.

Classes must meet the following Contact Hours.  Note:  the contact hours needed for each credit will determine the End Time of each class.

  • 1 credit = 12.5 hours per session
  • 2 credits = 25 hours per session
  • 3 credits = 37.5 hours per session
  • 4 credits = 50 hours per session
  • 5 credits = 62.5 hours per session

The study abroad/field experience scheduling patterns exception is in effect for these sessions as well; however, the contact hours policy applies to all classes.