Classification of Students
The following guidelines are used to determine class level:
- First Year—satisfaction of entrance requirements;
- Sophomore—24 earned credits;
- Junior—57 earned credits;
- Senior—87 earned credits
Full-Time Status. Degree-seeking students who carry an academic load of 12 or more credit hours are considered full-time students, charged at the full-time student rate, and eligible for financial aid as full-time students. Audited courses are excluded from the academic load calculation for full-time status. Exceptions are made for students whose disabilities are confirmed by the Office of Academic Accessibility (OAA) as requiring consideration of this policy. OAA will recommend an adjusted standard of “full-time” for a particular student based on knowledge and documentation of the student’s disability.
Note: In order to maintain financial aid eligibility, all students must meet the standard of Satisfactory Academic Progress outlined elsewhere in this catalog and available on the Financial Aid Office’s web site.
Part-Time Status. Students who carry an academic load of less than 12 credit hours are considered part-time students, charged at the part-time student rate per credit hour, and eligible for any financial aid open to part-time students.
Students admitted for limited or special programs designed to meet their particular needs but not leading to graduation are considered non-matriculated, unclassified, or visiting students, depending on the nature of their program.
Overload. Any student taking more than 18 credits per semester must first obtain the approval of the student’s academic advisor and the Registrar. Moderate requests for overloads are generally granted if the student has a grade point average of 3.0 or better. Students must complete an Academic Policy Petition available on the Registrar’s Office web site to request such overload. Additional tuition will be charged by the credit hour at the overload rate for each credit above 18.