Academic Credit

At Soka University of America (SUA), the “credit hour” is defined as “the amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than:

1. One contact hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two contact hours of out-of-class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time; or
2. At least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph (1) of this definition for other academic activities as established by the institution, including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work, and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours.”

SUA offers credit courses in 14-week semesters (fall and spring) and in 15-day fall blocks and 17-day winter blocks. Three-credit lecture courses require a minimum of 45 total contact hours of scheduled face-to-face instruction (or 37.5 total clock hours) whereas four-credit lecture courses require a minimum of 60 total contact hours of scheduled face-to-face instruction (or 50 total clock hours). For every hour of classroom instruction each week, there is a minimum of two hours of student work outside of class.

SUA will review periodically the application of its policy on credit hour across the degree programs to assure that credit hour assignments are accurate, reliable, appropriate to degree level, and that they conform to commonly accepted practices in higher education through new course development, course review and revision, and program review.

A contact hour is 50 minutes and a clock hour is 60 minutes.