Policy
The credit value assigned to any course or instructional activity offered by Clover Park Technical College is determined following the standards provided by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges in the SBCTC Policy Manual Chapter 4.10.00. The SBCTC has defined the credit hour as "the unit by which an institution measures its coursework. The number of credit hours assigned to a course is defined by the number of hours per week in class and the number of hours per week in out-of-class preparation." Clover Park Technical College supports this policy, and uses the SBCTC's rules to establish credit for its course offerings, as follows:
- Lecture/discussion: 1:1, one credit hour equals one hour per week of direct teacher instruction in lecture/discussion, and approximately two hours of out-of-class student work (time spent on studying, working on assignments, etc.). For example, a 5-credit course would involve five hours of in-class direct instruction and approximately 10 hours of additional work by students outside of the classroom per week.
- Laboratory/applied learning: 2:1, one credit hour equals two hours per week of laboratory work under the supervision of the instructor and approximately one additional hour for out-of-class student work on assignments.
- Work site educational experience: 3:1, one credit hour equals three hours per week of autonomous study or related work activity under the intermittent supervision of the instructor. This mode includes working with or under the direction of professional practitioners. In the case of work site educational experiences, a one-hour per week discussion group activity is required.
- Other educational experience: 5:1, one credit hour equals five hours per week of internship or community involvement projects where minimal supervision is provided. In this case, work site experiences have no related seminar or discussion activity.
To ensure consistency and accuracy, it is required that any change in credit hour determination must be reviewed by the Dean and approved by the Curriculum Committee prior to implementation.
This policy complies with the U.S. Department of Education's Federal Credit Hour Policy Sections 600.2 (Code of Federal Regulations, Title 34, Part 600).
