Policy on the Definition of a Credit Hour

The University of Maine and the University of Maine at Machias acknowledge and adhere to the federal definition of a credit hour with respect to courses offered face to face, in hybrid format, and online, as developed in 2010 and published in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Title 34, Part 600.02:

[A] credit hour 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

(1) 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 the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time; or

(2) 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 awarding of credit hours.

Rev. September 2018