Credit Information

General Information

IECC operates on the semester system, with classes offered in the fall, spring, and summer semesters. Credits are earned to indicate the student has fulfilled all the requirements of a course. Credits may be earned at the college, transferred from another college, or in some instances, awarded for knowledge and skills previously acquired outside the formal instructional process.

A semester hour is the unit used to measure credit, with one (1) semester credit hour equaling one (1) hour per week of lecture activity or two (2) hours per week of lab activity, over a sixteen-week (16) period. A student is classified as a sophomore after earning thirty-two (32) semester hours or more of credit.

Students are considered full-time when they are enrolled in at least twelve (12) credit hours per semester in the fall and spring terms or six (6) credit hours in the summer term. Students receiving financial aid should check with the Financial Aid Office for specific full-time/part-time guidelines affecting monetary awards.

A normal course load is 16 credit hours in the fall and spring semesters. A student who wishes to carry an overload (more than twenty credit hours in the fall and spring semesters or more than 12 in the summer semester) must obtain the appropriate college official's permission prior to registration. The granting of the overload permission will depend on the student's scholastic record. Students enrolled in developmental courses may not be permitted to take an overload.

Credit Hour Policy

Illinois Eastern Community Colleges defines a credit hour as “An amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that reasonably approximates not less than 45 hours of combined classroom/laboratory and study time for each semester hour.”  This definition is in accordance with commonly accepted practices in higher education and ICCB Administrative Rules Section 1501.309. Courses, regardless of modality or instructional method, will be consistent in the assignment of credits, rigor, quality, assessment, and learning outcomes.

Time Requirements

The following illustrates the semester hours required for one credit hour.

*1 contact hour = 50 minutes

Fall and spring semesters are equal to 15 weeks of instruction; shorter periods of instruction adhere to the same credit hour policy.