L&C complies with the Illinois Community College Board Administrative Rules when determining course credit hours.
Section 1501.309 Course Classification and Applicability
- a) Course Classification. Information on courses for which credit is to be awarded shall be submitted to ICCB on forms provided by ICCB in order for the courses to be classified into appropriate instructional and funding categories and added to the college's Management Information System (MIS) Course Master File.
- b) Course Credit Hour Determination.
- 1) Credit hours for courses for which ICCB credit hour grants are to be claimed shall be determined on the basis of an expected 45 hours of combined classroom/laboratory and study time for each semester hour or 30 hours of such time for each quarter credit hour.
- 2) Courses with students participating in lecture/discussion-oriented instruction will be assigned one semester credit hour or equivalent for each 15 classroom contact hours of instruction per semester or equivalent. It is assumed that two hours of outside study will be invested for each classroom contact hour.
- 3) Courses in which students participate in laboratory/clinical-laboratory-oriented instruction will be assigned one semester credit hour or equivalent for each 30-45 classroom contact hours of instruction per semester or equivalent. It is assumed that one hour of outside study will be invested for each two laboratory contact hours.
- 4) Students who participate in a nonclinical internship, practicum, or on-the-job supervised instruction shall receive one semester credit hour or equivalent for each 75-149 contact hours per semester or equivalent and students who participate in clinical practicums shall receive one semester credit hour or equivalent for each 30-60 contact hours per semester or equivalent. It is assumed that one hour of outside study time will be invested from each two clinical practicum contact hours.
In the upcoming Administrative Rules update, the ICCB will add new language on the determination of course credit for distance education courses. Until those rules are issued, L&C has determined that online course sections which are based on face to face courses share the same learning objectives and student evaluation methods. Student learning outcomes are the same as the face to face courses therefore course credits are the same.