New York Medical College

I. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define the value of academic credit in courses offered by the New York Medical College (NYMC) Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBMS), as required by both federal regulations and accrediting agencies.

Federal regulations define a credit hour as “an amount of student work defined by an institution, as approved by the institution's accrediting agency.” The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), the accreditation agency for the GSBMS, indicates that “institutions may use different methodologies for determining the assignment of credit hours. The methodology for assigning credit hours should accurately represent the level of instruction, academic rigor, and time requirements of a course taken and educational programs should be of sufficient content, depth, and program length appropriate to the objectives of the degree or credential.”

II. Policy

It is the policy of GSBMS that the assignment of credit hours for courses is standardized according to the procedures indicated below.

III. Scope

This policy applies to all courses offered by the NYMC GSBMS.

IV. Procedures

Assignment and Review of Credit Hours for Courses:

A. Faculty proposing new courses or making significant modifications to existing courses must follow protocols for assigning/reassigning credit hours consistent with the guidelines outlined in this policy.
B. The GSBMS curriculum committee will review all applications for new courses and submissions for course revisions in accordance with these guidelines upon receipt of the proposal. In addition, the curriculum committee or dean’s office will re-evaluate ongoing courses periodically or when these guidelines change, to ensure compliance.

General Guidelines:

A. The academic period for most GSBMS courses is one semester, which typically consists of approximately 15 weeks for instruction and exams in the Fall and Spring semesters, or 8 weeks in the Summer term (See Academic Calendar). Courses that follow Medical and Dental School calendars vary with regards to the duration of the course.
B. GSBMS courses are typically delivered in one 2-hour session per week (2 credit courses), one 3-hour session or two 1.5-hour sessions per week (3 credit courses), or two 2-hour sessions per week (4 credit courses). During the Summer term, the number of class sessions per week is doubled so that the same aggregate number of class hours are scheduled during this shorter term’s duration.
C. Time allocated for faculty instruction in these guidelines may also include time used for summative assessment of student performance. Time for such testing should generally not exceed 15% of the class sessions or class time allocated for a course.

Credit Hour Guidelines: Credit for each course is defined in credit hours according to the following credit-hour guidelines:

A. Didactic lecture-based courses: For Fall or Spring semester courses, each credit hour corresponds to 1 hour per week of faculty instruction and a recommended approximate 2 hours per week of out-of-class student work for approximately 15 weeks. For courses offered during the summer term, each credit hour corresponds to 2 hours per week of faculty instruction.
B. Laboratory training courses: Each credit hour corresponds to 2-4 hours per week of laboratory exercises with faculty instruction or oversight.
C. Graduate credit for medical and dental school courses: Each credit hour corresponds to approximately 1 hour per week of faculty instruction including small group, clinical case reviews and/or laboratory/demonstrations, or a total of approximately 13-15 hours per credit of faculty instruction. A minimum of 4 hours per class session is recommended for out-of-class preparation.
D. Seminar–style or Directed Reading-style Courses: Each credit hour corresponds to 1 hour per week of Faculty/Student meeting time with a recommended minimum of 2 hours per week of out-of-class student work.
E. Journal Clubs: Each credit hour corresponds to 1 hour per week of student participation time and a recommended 2 hours per week of out-of-class preparation time. In addition, students are expected to deliver 1-2 journal club presentations/semester, which require significant additional out-of-class preparation time.
F. Seminar/Research Rounds: Each credit hour corresponds to 1 hour per week of student participation time and a recommended 2 hours per week of out-of-class preparation time.
G. Research Rotations and Master’s Thesis Research: Each credit hour corresponds to approximately 15-20 hours per week of laboratory participation with an additional 1 hour per week of faculty and lab meeting discussions.
H. Practicum: Each credit hour corresponds to 70 hours or the equivalent of hands-on experience and apprenticeship, including faculty instruction, skill development, and assessment.
I. Master’s Literature Reviews and Master’s Thesis: These are zero-credit courses used to denote completion and formal approval of the Master’s Literature Review and Master’s Thesis, respectively, on the student’s academic record.
J. Doctoral Dissertation Research:

a. Each credit in this type of course designates a major effort directed towards the doctoral candidate’s original dissertation research project.
b. Each credit of doctoral dissertation research corresponds to a minimum of 35 hours per week of laboratory research with an additional 1 hour per week of faculty and lab meeting discussions and advisement.

V. Effective Date

This policy is effective immediately.

VI. Policy Management