Academic Credit & the 4-4 Curriculum

Students typically take four 4-credit courses each semester (a 4-4 curriculum). Saint Michael's also offers a number of half-courses (two credits each), along with a small selection of courses with other credit values. Full-time tuition allows students to enroll in a maximum of 18 credits each semester. Students who take at least 12 credits are considered full-time students. Students must successfully complete a minimum of 128 credits to graduate. The 4-4 curriculum presents a focused and in-depth experience that emphasizes critical and careful reading, writing, research, and various kinds of experiential learning.

Students are expected to devote a minimum 2.5 hours per week, per credit of coursework. For each traditional 4-credit course, this means spending an average of 10 hours of effort per week, per course throughout the 15-week semester. In traditional classroom-based courses, just over three of these hours (190-195 minutes) are spent in class. Consequently, for this type of course, students should expect to spend at least an additional 7 hours of effort per week (on average) outside of class on readings, homework, writing papers, research, take-home exams, studying for in-class quizzes and exams, and meetings with fellow students and the instructor. In courses that are not primarily based in a classroom, students are expected to complete at least an equivalent amount of work (10 hours/week/4-credit course), which may include laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other forms of academic work. In half courses (2 credits), there is an expectation of at least 5 hours of work per week, including in-class time.

Courseloads

Full-Time Student Status

An undergraduate student who is actively enrolled in 12-18 credits is considered to be a full-time student during the fall and spring semesters.

Part-Time Student Status

Undergraduate students enrolled in fewer than 12 credits during the fall and spring semesters are considered part-time students.

Course Overloads

An undergraduate student with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher may be permitted to enroll in more than 18 credits, but not more than 21 credits in a single term. The student must submit a Course Overload Request Form to the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Education. The course overload may only be added during the Drop/Add Period. Course overloads incur additional tuition costs which may be waived for overload credits in music lessons, music ensemble courses, purposeful learning (course), and for students in the Honors Program.