New York Medical College

I. PURPOSE

To define minimum hours of direct instruction and out-of-class student work for awarding of course credit hours.

II. POLICY

All credit-bearing degree and certificate programs in the School of Health Sciences and Practice at New York Medical College are approved by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) and calculation of credit hours for these programs follows NYSED guidelines.

III. SCOPE

This policy applies to all courses taught in the School of Health Sciences and Practice

IV. PROCEDURE

A. The School of Health Sciences and Practice follows a semester system with fall and spring semesters consisting of a minimum of 15 weeks and a summer term between 8- 14 weeks based on the program. All semesters conform to the policy in terms of meeting time and amount of work required.

B. Assignment of credit hours for a course is determined within an academic program based on faculty expertise and course learning objectives. New courses are reviewed by the School of Health Sciences and Practice Curriculum Committee and then presented to the School of Health Sciences and Practice by the Academic Policy Committee (APC) for final approval. The Curriculum Committee is responsible for ensuring that courses follow the policy on credit hours and that the expected student learning for a course meets the credit hour standard.

C. Approved courses are sent to the Registrar's Office for inclusion in the college catalog. The Registrar's Office reviews class schedules to ensure they align with the catalog. It is the responsibility of the faculty to ensure that the minimum hours for the course are appropriate for the credits assigned.

The following examples illustrate how credit hour reflects various instructional methods. These examples do not dictate particular amounts of classroom versus out-of-class student work, but serve only as a guide

Credits	Minimum Contact Time/Week	Minimum Contact Time/Semester	Minimum out of Class Time/Week	Minimum out of Class Time/Semester	Total Instructional Time/Semester
1	50 mins	750 mins	100 mins	1500 mins	2,250 mins (37.5 hours)
2	100 mins	1,500 mins	200 mins	3,000 mins	4,500 mins (75 hours)
3	150 mins	2,250 mins	300 mins	4,500 mins	6,750 mins (112 hours)
4¹	150 mins	2,250 mins	450 mins	6,750 mins	9,000 mins (150 hours)
5²	825 mins	12,375 mins	Variable	Variable	>12,375 mins (>206 hours)
6³	750 mins	8,250 mins	Variable	Variable	> 8,250 mins (137 hours)
10²	1,050 mins	15,750 mins	Variable	Variable	>15,750 mins (>262 hours)

¹Only Doctoral-level courses are 4 credits and carry the expectation of more out-of-class time
²These courses involve Problem-Based Learning (PBL) sessions as well as lecture sessions. PBL sessions are inter-active discussions
³This course combines lecture and gross-dissection laboratory sessions

Table 2. Practicum: Direct faculty instruction and outside work
Credits	Minimum Contact Time/Week	Minimum Contact Time/Semester	Minimum out of Class Time/Week	Minimum out of Class Time/Semester	Total Instructional Time/Semester
Speech-Language Pathology
1	Variable	Variable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Variable
Public Health¹
1	Variable	Variable	Not Applicable	8,400 minutes (140 hours)	8,400 minutes (140 hours)
Physical Therapy
7	Variable	Variable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Variable
8	Variable	Variable	Not Applicable	Not Applicable	Variable

¹Applied Practice Experience requires a minimum of 140 out-of-class hours over not more than a three semester period

D. Independent/Directed Study:
In these courses of study, a faculty member interacts regularly with a student to achieve course outcomes. Minimum credit hours are determined by faculty contact time and student outside work time. The faculty member will keep records of meeting times and student work assigned so that instructional hours can be calculated. The total instructional time must match the minimum required in in Table 1.

E. Internship/Practical/Clinical Placement:
In these courses of study, a faculty member interacts regularly with a student to achieve course outcomes, but the actual learning environment is at an approved, off campus location. The learning experience involves a site supervisor or preceptor and directed learning occurs outside of a classroom setting. Contact time and student outside work requirements must be established and documented and must match the total minimum instructional time in Table 2. The program director or Assistant Dean for Applied Practice Experience is required to keep records of meeting times and student work assigned so that instructional hours can be calculated.

F. Online courses:
These courses are offered entirely online without any on-site, face-to-face meetings. These courses have identical learning outcomes and substance as standard lecture / seminar courses taught on campus. Contact time is satisfied by several means, including: (a) interactive tutorials, (b) discussions moderated by faculty, (c) peer-to-peer discussions monitored by the faculty, (d) virtual study groups and projects. These courses must meet the total minimum instructional and student work time requirements in Table 1.

G. Course time lost to official school closings (holidays and inclement weather):
Refer to School of Health Sciences and Practice Policy on Replacement of Missed Classes

V. EFFECTIVE DATE

This policy is effective immediately.

V. POLICY MANAGEMENT