SUNY Geneseo Credit Contact Hour Policy Guidelines

While credit bearing courses at State University of New York at Geneseo broadly follow the SUNY Credit Contact Hour policy, the following is a compilation of local Geneseo policies, procedures, and guidelines pertaining to Credits and the corresponding Contact Hours.

Unit of Credit
Course credit is the unit of contact hour of instruction. One credit requires 50 minutes of class work and two hours of outside preparation, or the equivalent in independent study, each week during a semester. The distribution of that time between class activities (such as lecture, recitation, laboratory, field trip) and outside preparation varies from course to course. Generally, a three-credit course requires 150 minutes of classroom activity and six hours of out-of-class preparation per week. Thus, a normal 15-credit load requires approximately 45 hours per week of the typical student’s time. 

Credit Designation
All courses have a credit designation listed in the student information system and course descriptions in the Undergraduate Bulletin.  The notation used at Geneseo for the credit designation is:

C(A-B), where "C" is the number of credits, "A" denotes the lecture-type contact hours, and "B" denotes Lab-type contact hours.

Lecture-type: Lecture, seminar, or discussion led by the instructor
One credit is earned for fifteen 50-minute sessions of classroom instruction with an expectation of two hours of outside work for each session.  Typically, a three-credit course meets three 50-minute sessions per week for fifteen weeks for a total of 45 sessions.

Lab-type: Supervised group activities like recitation, laboratory, field work, practicum, workshop, or studio
A recitation is structured supervised activity in a classroom setting for fifteen 50-minute sessions with an expectation of two hours of outside work for each session.
For laboratory, field work, practicum, workshop, studio work, a credit is awarded for the equivalent of fifteen periods of such activity, where each activity period is 150 minutes or more in duration with little or no outside preparation expected.  Forty-five 50-minute sessions of such activity would also normally earn one credit.  Where such activity involves substantial outside preparation by the student, the equivalent of fifteen period of 100 minutes duration each will earn one credit. 

The table below lists contact hour information for most commonly credit designations at Geneseo.  The TOTAL TIME (in class + outside preparation) that the student is expected to devote the class for the term is on the rightmost column.

Types of Terms
During the academic year, courses are offered over 15 weeks during the fall and spring semester.  Courses are also offered in an accelerated format during the first half or second half of the fall/spring semesters.  In addition, there are seven different summer terms during which courses are also offered in an accelerated format: Full (12 weeks), Session I (first half, 6 weeks), Session II (second half, 6 weeks), Session IA (first quarter, 3 weeks), Session IB (first third, 4 weeks), Session IIB (second third, 4 weeks), Session IIIB (third third, 4 weeks).  Courses offered during accelerated terms must also meet the total amount of instructional and student work time as indicated in the above table.

Click here for: Summer Class minutes conversion chart

Online Courses
Online courses have the same learning outcomes as the corresponding face-to-face offerings.  For courses offered online, students are expected to actively engage with the instructor and/or materials posted by the instructor for a duration of 50 minutes per credit, each week during a semester.  Online class activities include, but are not limited to, interactive instruction, recorded lectures, discussion boards moderated by the instructor, and other virtual study arranged by the instructor.  Additionally, each credit requires two hours of outside preparation, or the equivalent in independent study, each week during the semester.  The total time (instructional + outside class work) must meet the minimums indicated in the above table.

Hybrid Courses
Courses with a blend of face-to-face and online classes must also meet the total amount of instructional and outside preparation time (rightmost column in above table).

Study Abroad Courses
State University of New York regulations allow one credit to be awarded per week of Study Abroad.

Directed Study Courses
In order to allow the pursuit of special interests or specialized areas in which the College does not cover regular courses, policy provides an opportunity for students to arrange independent or individualized instruction with faculty who share their interests. Instruction covered under such an arrangement is called a directed study course and is at the discretion of the instructor.

Directed Study courses meet according to schedules agreed upon mutually by instructors and students. Students complete work independently under the guidance and supervision of members of the faculty. In directed study courses, students engage in academic pursuits such as conducting research and reporting results, investigating problems and presenting conclusions, reading intensively in a discipline, and/or studying advanced subject matter relating to a selected subject, special topic, or specific area.

Opportunities for directed study are available in most of the content areas and departments listed on the following pages at the discretion of individual instructors. The online Directed Study submission form should include the subject matter of the course, the work required of the student, and the system for evaluation of the student’s work. The levels (i.e., introductory, intermediate, and advanced) at which such study can be undertaken vary, but the numbers of such courses usually end in “99.” The permanent records of students who enroll in these courses are noted with “DS,” followed by a brief, specific title.

Internships
Registration for the internship is completed by the departmental coordinator (or other departmental representative) the first week of classes, upon receipt of the internship contract. The intern will be enrolled under a department course (SUBJ_395).  The INTD prefix is to be used only if the internship is interdepartmental in subject matter.  The student can earn a total of 1-15 credits according to the contact hour chart listed below.

Internship credits will be counted as part of the maximum semester hours allowed within a Department. The maximum number of internship credits which may be applied toward requirements in the major will be six credits or fewer, as determined by the major department. The maximum number of internship credits allowed in a minor will be three credits, unless the internship is a specified requirement in the minor. The maximum number of internship credits allowed for the degree is 15.  We encourage students to register for no more than 16 hrs (including the internship) during a semester in which they are doing an internship.