Academic Load and Enrollment Designations
All academic credit is given in semester credit hours. Full- and half-time student status is determined by the number of credit hours in which a student is enrolled during a given term. In credit hours, the academic load designations for graduate students are as follows:
Semester Programs
Full-time Enrollment
- Doctor of Education students - six to eight credit hours
- Graduate and Specialist students - nine to fifteen credit hours
Half-time Enrollment
- Doctor of Education students - three to five credit hours
- Graduate and Specialist students - six to eight credit hours
Less than Half-time Enrollment
- Doctor of Education students - two or fewer credit hours
- Graduate and Specialist students - five or fewer credit hours
Five-term Programs
Full-time Enrollment
Half-time Enrollment
- Three to five credit hours
Less than Half-time Enrollment
- Two or fewer credit hours
Notes: (1) In order to remain in compliance with U.S. visa regulations, students on an F1 visa must maintain full-time enrollment status by enrolling in a minimum of six credit hours per term in the five-term program or nine credit hours per term in semester programs.
(2) Course extensions (including culminating project extensions, capstone extensions, and thesis extensions) are not counted among a student’s hours enrolled. For this reason, students who are only enrolled in the completion of a thesis, capstone experience, or culminating project are considered less than half-time students.
(3) Active duty military personnel pursuing certain online graduate programs in the semester format may qualify for full-time enrollment status at six credit hours. Such students should contact the VA certifying official for more information.