Points of Academic Credit | Minimum hours of teaching and learning per week (for a 6 week term and a 50-minute classroom hour, including final exams) | |
---|---|---|
In class | Minimum semester total | |
1 | 2.5 | 45 |
2 | 5 | 90 |
3 | 7.5 | 135 |
Students are required to register for a minimum of 12 points to maintain full-time status, and may register for no more than 18 points (CC students)/ 21 points (SEAS students). The average course load for Columbia College/SEAS students is 15 points/credits (4-5 classes).
A full-time course load is defined as an academic program carrying 12-18 points per semester. All Columbia College students are required to be full-time students and must therefore be registered for a minimum of 12 points of credit per term.
Columbia College students may take a maximum of four courses for credit offered by the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science on a space-available basis. This four-course limit does not apply to courses offered by the Computer Science Department, nor does it apply to students in the 3-2 Combined Plan program .
In general, Columbia College students may not take courses toward the B.A. degree during the summer at another college or university outside Columbia University except in the case of approved study abroad programs.
Courses at Teachers College are usually taken for 1 to 3 credits, with 3 credits as the standard number of credits for a regular semester-long academic course. Full-time students take 9 credits of courses or the equivalent every semester.
Columbia points is the university's cutesy name for credits. You get 3 of them for an average class, although a single course can be anywhere from 0.5-9.0 points. A point roughly corresponds to one hour of instructional time per week.
Credit points are a basic measure of study load. Each subject is usually worth three credit points and a normal full-time study load for one year is 24 credit points (eight subjects).
The contact hours should be calculated on a per week basis. For example, one contact hour per week of lecture for 15 weeks equals one credit hour (e.g., a three semester credit hour course meets for 45 contact hours). VSU categorizes course section offerings by the teaching approach employed.
The cumulative GPA is determined by dividing the total quality points earned by the total credit hours attempted at Columbia College. Courses that are repeated or taken on a pass/fail (S/U grade) basis are not considered when determining a semester or cumulative GPA. See section Repeating a Course.
Columbia uses credit hours to measure the amount of work required in order to complete its courses. Each unit of credit represents at least three hours of work per week for approximately 15 weeks.
Each credit hour corresponds to a minimum of 3 hours of student engagement per week for a traditional 14-week course or 6 hours per week for a 7-week course. This time may be spent on discussions, readings and lectures, study and research, and assignments.
One semester credit hour is defined as a weekly minimum of 1 hour in class (or other required educational meetings like labs, studios, etc.) plus 2 hours of out-of-class work. Formally, therefore, a 4-credit course should require 4 classroom hours and 8 hours of out-of-class hours each week in a fifteen week term.
An A- in a 3-credit course earns 3×3.7=11.1 points.)
College courses are measured in credit hours. A 3-credit course meets for 2.5 hours per week. Balancing the course load is vital to academic success.
Contact and Non-Contact Hours per TermCourse UnitsContact HoursNon-Contact Hours112.52522550337.575437.5*112.5
Typically, a three semester credit hour course meets for three contact hours (three 50-minute sessions or two 75-minute sessions) per week for the 14 weeks of a semester.
Points of Credit. Every student must complete 124 points of academic credit. The last two semesters must be taken while enrolled in the College for study on this campus or on one of the Columbia-sponsored international programs. Courses may not be repeated for credit.
Most Columbia College students graduate with a single program of study — i.e., one concentration or major. It is possible to declare a maximum of two programs of study — e.g., two concentrations, two majors, a concentration and a major, a concentration and a special concentration, or a major and a special concentration.
Advising deans in the James H. and Christine Turk Berick Center for Student Advising (CSA) , located in 403 Lerner, guide and support undergraduates at Columbia College and Columbia Engineering as they navigate their academic and co-curricular lives at Columbia University.
To graduate from Columbia College, all transfer students must successfully complete the following:#N#124 points in academic credit,#N#an overall GPA of 2.0 or higher,#N#all Core Curriculum courses and requirements, and#N#one major or concentration.# N#Upon admission to Columbia College, transfer students should familiarize themselves with the regulations pertaining to their special status (see Academic Regulations —Regulations for Transfer Students ).
Rather, a Columbia College liberal arts education - through the breadth of the Core Curriculum and the depth of the concentration or major - will provide students with the knowledge and skills that will serve them well throughout their professional and personal lives.
A concentration consists of intensive study in one academic program achieved by fulfilling a series of requirements; a major typically provides even more depth through additional requirements and possibly a senior capstone experience such as a thesis.
They include general education requirements in major disciplines and, except for Physical Education, must be taken for a letter grade ( i.e., the Pass/D/Fail option may not be applied): Students are required to complete Literature Humanities , University Writing, and Frontiers of Science in the first year.
Students are required to register for a minimum of 12 points to maintain full-time status, and may register for no more than 18 points (CC students)/ 21 points (SEAS students).
As a CC/SEAS Visiting/Exchange Student, you will have access to many courses within the Division of Columbia College, SEAS (engineering school), and Barnard College, as long as those courses are “open to” Columbia College/SEAS Students.
In addition to the undergraduate divisions, there are 16 graduate/professional divisions within (or affiliated with) Columbia University ( full list here ). CC/SEAS Visiting & Exchange Students may have the opportunity to enroll in some of these courses.
As you search courses through SSOL, you may come across undergraduate courses that are "restricted". Please keep in mind that all academic departments have the right to determine the registration parameters for their courses.
A full-time course load is defined as an academic program carrying 12-18 points per semester. All Columbia College students are required to be full-time students and must therefore be registered for a minimum of 12 points of credit per term.
In order to receive the Columbia College degree, transfer students must complete a minimum of 60 points while enrolled in the College (including credits earned on Columbia-sponsored study abroad programs). Transfer students may apply a maximum of 64 points taken elsewhere toward advanced standing at the College. Credit granted on the basis of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and other standardized examinations is counted toward the 64-point maximum, as are credits earned on study-abroad programs outside of Columbia. Credit is not granted for college courses taken while in high school.
Students are normally permitted eight Fall and Spring semesters in which to earn the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree at Columbia College. Students may continue to work for the degree past the eighth semester only with permission from the Committee on Academic Standing, after first discussing such requests with their advising deans in the Berick Center for Student Advising. Study beyond the eighth term is only granted for students who have found themselves in emergent circumstances beyond their control which have prevented them from completing the degree in eight terms. Study beyond the eighth term is not granted for the purposes of changing or adding a major or concentration.
To return to Columbia College, students must notify the Berick Center of Student Advising by June 1 for the Fall term or November 1 for the Spring term.
Students who fail to improve after being on academic probation, as well as students with extremely poor records during a single term, may be suspended and required to withdraw from Columbia College for at least one year. Conditions for readmission are specified at the time of suspension.
degree from Columbia College. To complete this number of credits over 8 semesters, students will need to complete an average of 15.5 credits per semester , which typically represents 4 to 5 academic courses per term.
Students are expected to attend all class meetings, laboratory periods and other required events for each course in which they are registered. Instructors may take attendance into account in assessing a student’s performance, and if students accumulate multiple absences, it is possible that they may not pass a course that has certain attendance requirements. Students are accountable for absences that result from enrolling a course after the semester begins. For related information about attendance, see Columbia University Policies —Religious Holidays.
The grade point average is determined by dividing the total number of semester grade points earned by the total number of semester hours attempted for credit (excepting hours carried on a Pass-Fail or audit basis). No grade points are assigned to the symbols F, S, U, WF, W, I, AUD, T, or NR. Course Grade Forgiveness.
The credit value of each course is usually determined by the amount of formal instructional time per week for one semester. At least 700 minutes of instruction (and at least twice that for laboratory time) can be expected per credit hour. The semester hour credit for each course is included in each course description.
Any student withdrawing within the scheduled refund period (see academic and refund calendars on the registrar’s Web site) can expect to receive a refund through the mail in approximately four to six weeks (see “Refund Procedures”).
The transfer course was occupational or technical in nature (examples: welding, paralegal, or radiography courses). A grade lower than 2.0 on a 4 point scale, or equivalent, was earned in the transfer course.
Alternatively, the student may elect the degree requirements under the bulletin in effect at the time of return. If the period of absence is longer than three years , the student will be subject to the curricular requirements in force at the time of return.
Applicabilityof credit toward a degree refers to the prerogative of academic divisions to count specific credit toward the fulfillment of a student’s degree requirements. The student’s college or school of enrollment is responsible for determining applicability.