I just graduated from a program at a top university here. When I got my diploma, it listed that I had 40 credit hours. It kinda made me feel like I didn’t study much.
Will people think I didn’t take my course seriously because it only says 40 hours even though I studied for 6 months?
40 credit hours in 6 months sounds off. If it wasn’t a super intensive program, that doesn’t seem right. Most university semesters range between 12 to 19 credit hours.
EducationExpert4 said:
40 credit hours in 6 months sounds off. If it wasn’t a super intensive program, that doesn’t seem right. Most university semesters range between 12 to 19 credit hours.
It was about 5 hours a day, Monday through Friday, give or take.
@zane
Does that include the time you spent studying? Even if it’s just class time, that’s only around 25 hours a week for a semester.
EducationExpert4 said:
@zane
Does that include the time you spent studying? Even if it’s just class time, that’s only around 25 hours a week for a semester.
If it’s purely class time, it makes sense. My MBA classes were around 6 hours per week for a quarter and that earned me 5 credits. OP’s schedule could definitely add up to 40 credits with the amount of class time and length.
@MAC
Yeah, if we’re talking about a full 6 months and there’s a good amount of work outside the classroom too, then 40 credits isn’t far off. But if it’s more like just a semester, that would be weird.
I don’t think it’s something to worry about. Most diplomas don’t even mention the hours. I doubt many people will care enough to notice it.
It actually helps make your diploma more transferable. Some schools give credits per course, while others give credits per class within a course. At my school, a 1-semester class for 3 hours a week over 12 weeks gave me 0.5 credits. My degree was worth 20 credits, but compared to a school that requires 100 credits to graduate, it looks like I didn’t do much. Credit hours are easier to compare since they’re based on time in class, so they’re a bit more universal.
Honestly, saying 40 credit hours sounds better than saying you studied for 6 months. It gives it more weight.
Credit hours typically refer to the number of hours per week you were in class for the entire term. But don’t confuse that with clock hours, which can be different.
Sometimes employers want to know how much time you spent learning skills that apply to the job. It’s like in the classical music world where musicians would claim to have studied with a master after just one lesson or a single workshop. It’s all about padding their resume without putting in the actual work.