The Credit Hour
Historically, the CSU has used the equivalent of the Carnegie Unit for measuring and awarding academic credit that represents student work and achievement. The credit hour measure has also been consistent with requirements of the accreditor, the WASC Senior College and University Commission.
Federal law requires all accredited institutions to comply with the federal definition of the credit hour. CSU policy is consistent with this federal definition, and states that:
- 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.
Credit hours, classroom time, and minimum expectations for out-of-class work correspond to different course modes as follows:
|
Course Mode |
Weekly Hours of classroom or direct faculty instruction per unit | weekly minimum hours of out-of-class student work per unit |
|---|---|---|
|
Lecture/Seminar |
1 |
2 |
|
Activity |
2 |
1 |
|
Laboratory |
3 |
0 |
Courses offered in shorter time frames (less than ten weeks) must provide the equivalent required number of classroom or direct faculty instruction.
The credit hour policy applies to all instructional modes and modalities, as well as to courses at the bachelor's and master's levels.
Review Processes. The application of this policy across the institution, to ensure that credit hour assignments are accurate, reliable, appropriate to the degree level, and conforming to commonly accepted practice in higher education, is assured by the following existing review processes:
- the New Course Proposal form, which, in order to "maintain accreditation standards and quality curricular control," asks the proposer to specify the number of hours of face-to-face, direct synchronous, and/or asynchronous instruction, and the number of hours of out-of-class work;
- the curricular review process as supervised by the faculty, in which the approval of any course includes evaluations by the department, college, and Academic Senate curriculum committees of the course credit hours assigned;
- the course scheduling process as instituted quarterly by the Office of the Registrar, which specifically checks and confirms the correspondence between credit hour assignment and class meeting times.
Faculty are encouraged to acknowledge this policy in course syllabi so that students understand conventional expectations for work outside the classroom.
Departments are encouraged to design their own policies for the review of current courses and their adherence to credit hour policy.
[APP note: The credit hour policy refers to quarter and semester calendars. As such, the number of credit hours, classroom time, and minimum expectations for out-of-class work will not change as part of the semester conversion process.]
Source:
Academic Senate Resolution: AS-922-21 "Resolution on How Credit Hour Policy Adherence is Assessed and Assured" (PDF). Approved 7 June 2021.
References:
WSCUC (WASC Senior College and University Commission): "Credit Hour Policy" (PDF). Revised November 2020.
California State University: AA 2011-14 "CSU Definition of a Credit Hour" (PDF). Reviewed 22 August 2023.
Cal Poly Curriculum Handbook: “Course Policies and Guidelines”. N.d.
Updated 6/30/2025