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The Credit Hour Puzzle

Unlike high school, where courses are measured in units, college and university level courses are measured in credit hours.  Originally, the number of credit hours a course was assigned was equal to the number of hours the course met each week, but the designation has changed over time.  Most courses are 3 credit hours.  Many courses with a laboratory component are 4 credit hours. Some courses are 1 and two credits.  It you know how many credit hours a person has taken, divide that number by three to get the approximate number of courses.  In other words, to graduate from LC, you need 124 credit hours.  That’s roughly 41 courses.  To graduate on time, you need to take 15.5 credit hours each semester, or about 5 courses.  The minimum number of hours you can take and still be full-time is 12 hours.  The maximum you can take without paying overload fees is 18 hours.  Since more students don’t graduate on time because they lack credit hours than for any other reason, try to stay between 15-18 hours each semester.

General Education, Majors and Minors

The 124 hours a student needs to graduate are divided into General Education, majors, minors and elective credit.

General education gives all students the knowledge, skills, traits and understanding they need to be successful citizens and professionals throughout their lives.  All students complete the same basic general education courses which total 51 hours.

All students also declare a major by the end of their sophomore year.  Majors are housed in one of six Academic Schools at the college:

Ranging in hours from 30 hours to 69 hours, the major provides intensive in-depth study in one academic area.  The major a student chooses decides whether the student receives a B.A. (bachelor of arts) or a B.S. (bachelor of science) degree.  Most majors require primarily courses in one academic program, but some are interdepartmental, requiring courses in several areas.  Some students choose to complete joint or double majors which include study in more than one academic field.  All majors are listed in the catalogue and are described in the catalogue and on web pages found under the Academic School in which the major is housed.

While not mandatory, many students choose a minor in additional to an academic major.  A minor is provides a less intensive study in one academic area.  All minors at LC are 18 credit hours.  Students use minors to pursue secondary interests and skills or to support a major with additional study in a closely related area. 

Elective credits are courses that count toward the 124 needed for graduation, but are neither general education, major, nor minor courses.  Electives are used to build skills and follow interests. 

The Rules

Academic rules, regulations and procedures are contained in the catalogue.  If you are a freshman, you will follow the catalogue you are issued your freshman year.  An earlier catalogue may apply in the case of a transfer or readmitted student who chooses to be governed by the catalogue applicable to continuous full-time students with the same class standing (e.g., a junior transfer may choose to be governed by the catalogue in effect for the junior class). A student can change to a later catalogue if there is a change in regulations or course offerings that is to the student’s advantage (for interest, if a new major or minor is introduced a student’s sophomore year and the student wants to take advantage of it).  All entering students receive a catalogue, and copies are housed on the Registrar’s web page. Regulations pertaining to student life appear in The Hornet.

Dropping and Adding Classes - A student who wishes to drop or add a course or change to audit (i.e., attend without credit) must obtain the appropriate form from the Registrar’s Office. For the change to be effective, the signature of the advisor and instructor must be obtained, and the form must be filed with the Registrar’s Office within the specified time periods (stated below). If illness or extenuating circumstances preclude a student from personally processing a change form, the Registrar’s Office will process the change when notified in writing of the request. The effective date of all changes is the date the schedule change form is received by the Registrar’s Office. The grade of F is assigned for each course not completed and processed in this manner.
 
Add Period - Prior to the completion of the first full week of the semester, schedule conflicts should be resolved and courses added.

During First Three Weeks - Courses dropped during the first three weeks do not become part of the student’s permanent record. An administrative fee of $5 will be charged for each student-initiated section or course change made after the Add Period. A student who wishes to audit a course (i.e., attend without credit) should apply to the Registrar’s Office. Overload fees are determined on the basis of enrollment at the end of this period.

After Completion of Three Weeks and Before Expiration of Ten Weeks - The grade of W will be assigned for all courses dropped during this period. A course is dropped only when the procedure outlined above is followed. A student may change from credit to audit during this period.

After Ten Weeks - Until the End of Classes for the Semester-A student may not withdraw from a course or change from credit to audit during this period.

Graduation
 
Bachelor’s Degree
To earn a baccalaureate degree from Lynchburg College, a student must
1. Complete a minimum of 124 semester hours of study with at least 62 semester hours, including the senior year, at Lynchburg College.(Fifty percent of all hours applying to the major or minor must be completed at Lynchburg College;
2. Complete all Lynchburg College General Education requirements;
3. Complete the requirements for a major program as outlined in the catalogue;
4. Earn a 2.00 minimum quality point average on all work taken at Lynchburg College;
5. Earn a quality point average of at least 2.00 in the major;
6. Comply with all College standards, regulations, and procedures from the date of enrollment through the date of graduation; and
7. May not include in the 124 hours for graduation more than 12 semester hours of internship courses; 6 semester hours in movement science activities courses; or 12 semester hours in private music lessons;
 A student may wish to satisfy certain specific requirements for admission to a graduate or professional school, for teacher licensure, or for a specialized program of an outside agency. These credits may be included in the 124 hours as electives or may be in addition to graduation requirements.

Second Degree
Candidates for a second baccalaureate degree must have earned their first degree from a regionally accredited college or university. A student pursuing a second degree must meet all major requirements and complete a minimum of thirty semester hours in residence beyond the requirements for the first degree. A comment referencing the first degree and indicating that Lynchburg College General Education requirements have not necessarily been met is applied to the Lynchburg College academic record for the second-degree student. Only transfer credits applicable to the major are applied to the record. Major courses are reviewed and approved by the program coordinator.