CREDIT HOUR POLICY
1 Definitions
1.1 The following words and expressions shall have the meanings hereby assigned to them:
1.1.1 Academic Members: Faculty Members and Instructional Members.
1.1.2 Academic Unit: An entity within the University that delivers Courses for Programs or for entry into Programs.
1.1.3 Academic Year: Means the 12-month period defined in the University's Academic Calendar, as approved by the Board of Trustees.
1.1.4 Academic Calendar: A representation of the periods associated with the University’s operations, containing the teaching periods, exam and holiday dates, and key deadlines, which is approved by the University’s Board of Trustees.
1.1.5 Academic Council: The academic governance advisory body at the University which plays a substantial and critical role in advising on the setting of the academic direction of the University.
1.1.6 Accreditation: Official certification that an Academic Unit, Program, or Course has met specific educational standards set by external regulators.
1.1.7 Clinical Practice: Clinical Practice is conducted in the learning environment at the University but may include online and out-of-class assignments. It offers an experience-based instruction for the purpose of developing skills related to the discipline focused on “real world” activities that may be offered in a simulated “real world” environment generally in healthcare or service occupation programs. Clinical practice instruction is conducted under the supervision of an Academic Member.
1.1.8 Contact Hour: An hour of scheduled instruction given to Students and, normally, based on 50 minutes of delivery time, whether through lecture, laboratory sessions, clinical/workshop delivery, or other approved delivery format.
1.1.9 Course: A set of Learning Sessions in a particular subject, with a defined scope and duration, and specific Learning Outcomes.
1.1.10 Course Learning Outcome: The specifications of what the Student should learn as the result of the specified and supported study in a given Course.
1.1.11 Credit Hour: The assigned value of a Learning Session’s hours, granted upon a Student's completion of a Course, as maintained by the University's official transcripts or records.
(1) Not less than one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours out of class Student work each week (didactic to for approximately fifteen weeks for one Semester of Credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different amount of time , or
(2) At least an equivalent amount of required work as outlined in item 1 above for other academic activities as established by the institution including Laboratory work, internships, practice, and other academic work leading to the award of Credit Hours.
1.1.12 Faculty Members: Members of the teaching and/or research staff, whether part-time or full -time, holding the following titles: Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Senior Lecturer/Senior Technical Instructor, or Lecturer/Technical Instructor.
1.1.13 Field Work: Any practical work carried out by Students in the field as opposed to the classroom or Laboratory, which provides Students with the opportunity to apply theory learned in class in a real world environment.
1.1.14 Internship/Work Term: The opportunity to develop Students’ job skills by providing them with a structured employment situation that is directly related to, and coordinated with, their Program.
1.1.15 Instructional Members: Members of the teaching staff, whether on part- or full-time, holding the following titles: Assistant Lecturer/or Workshop/Lab/Clinical Instructor, Assistant Technical Instructor, Trades Technical Instructor, or Teaching Assistant.
1.1.16 Laboratory: Type of instruction that focuses on experimentation in a classroom or a laboratory under the direct supervision of an Academic Member.
1.1.17 Lecture: A standard classroom instruction focusing on theory under the direct supervision of a Faculty Member.
1.1.18 Learning Session: Classes, labs, placements or work term prescribed by a Course.
1.1.19 Program: A prescribed set of Courses leading to a qualification, including a Certificate, Diploma (2 years), Advanced Diploma (3 years), Bachelor, Master, or Doctorate, in accordance to the Qatar National Qualifications Framework.
1.1.20 Placement: A period spent by Student(s) for the purposes of Clinical Practice or Work Term.
1.1.21 Semester: A division of an Academic Year where a Student is enrolled in a Course(s) followed by an examination period.
1.1.22 Seminars: Seminars are conducted in the context of a Course under the supervision of a Faculty Member. A Seminar covers advanced topics related to the Student's Program.
1.1.23 Student: A person who is presently enrolled at the University in a Credit Course or who is designated by the University as a Student.
1.1.24 University: University of Doha for Science and Technology established by Emiri Resolution No. 13 of 2022.
1.2 Where the context requires, words importing the singular shall include the plural and vice-versa.
1.3 Where a word or phrase is given a particular meaning, other parts of speech and grammatical forms of that word or phrase have corresponding meanings.
2 Policy Purpose
2.1 The purpose of this policy is to:
2.1.1 Establish standards for assigning Credit Hours to Learning Sessions based on expected number of hours of direct instruction by Academic Members, and Student work;
2.1.2 Provide guidance to Academic Units in determining the amount of Credit Hours that academic Programs award for Learning Sessions as defined in this policy;
2.1.3 Ensure that the assignment of Credit Hours at the University is consistent and conforms to the Qatar National Qualifications Framework.
3 Policy Scope
3.1 This policy applies to all Programs that award academic credit counting towards graduation requirements regardless of the mode of delivery of the Course.
3.2 This policy is applicable to:
3.2.1 Academic Units;
3.2.2 Academic Members and related Committees;
3.2.3 Admissions and Registration Directorate;
3.2.4 Program Development and Accreditation Department; and
3.2.5 Students.
4 Policy Statement
4.1 The University operates on a Semester system including the Fall, Winter, and the Spring Semesters.
4.1.1 Fall and Winter Semesters normally consist of fifteen (15) weeks, including fourteen weeks (14) of direct instructional time followed by final examination week.
4.1.2 The Spring Semester consists of seven (7) weeks, including six (6) weeks of direct and extensive instructional time followed by final examination week.
4.1.3 In some Programs of study, Courses may be scheduled for parts of terms different from a normal Semester.
4.2 All curriculum committees within the University at the colleges, or University levels are charged with the application of this policy in their review and recommendation for approval of all Courses and for certifying that the expected Course Learning Outcomes for the Course meets the Credit Hour standard, as per this policy and its relevant procedure.
4.3 A Credit Hour provides the basis for measuring the amount of work expected of a Student enrolled in a Learning Session during the Semesters,
4.4 One Credit Hour requires one Contact Hour of Learning Session time per week during the Semester, or the equivalent amount of work during a different amount of time such as during the Spring Semester.
4.5 In Placements, such as Internship/Work Term, an equivalent amount of time and work as specified in this policy is required.
4.6 The assignment of Credit Hours depends on the type of instruction and academic activities being used, and in accordance with the Course Approval Procedure.
4.7 The following seven general categories represent the main types of Learning Sessions that are awarded Credit Hour at the University:
4.7.1 Lecture;
4.7.2 Laboratory;
4.7.3 Internship/Work Term;
4.7.4 Field Work;
4.7.5 Clinical Practice;
4.7.6 Seminar;
4.7.7 Workshop.
4.8 The Credit Hour definition and requirements as specified in this policy represent a minimum standard, in compliance with the Qatar National Qualifications Framework.
4.9 Exception to the standards set by this policy
4.10 The amount of Credit Hours assigned to a Course is to be determined based on the Course Approval Procedure, based on the amount of work a Student is expected to complete within a specified amount of academically engaged time to achieve the intended Course Learning Outcomes.
4.11 Determination of Credit Hour is proposed by the Academic Unit when a new Course or a revision to an existing Course is proposed. The submitted Course details are to approved in accordance to the Course Approval Procedure.
4.12 Learning Sessions that have less structured classroom schedules, such as Seminars, Work Terms, or other types of Learning Sessions leading to the award of Credit Hours, at a minimum, must state in the syllabus the learning objectives and expected Course Learning Outcomes and Student workload expectations that meet the standards defined in this policy.
4.13 Credit Hours may not be divided into less than one.
4.14 Table 1 indicates the minimum amount of time and work required for the assignment of one Credit Hour during a regular 15-week Semester. The same amount of time and work is required of Courses delivered in the Spring Semester.
Table 1
Type of Instruction / Academic Activity | Minimum Required Time for the Assignment of (1) Credit Hour | ||
Classroom Instruction Time | Out of Class Time | ||
Lecture | 50 min | per week/15 week-Semester | 2 h 00 min |
Laboratory/Workshop | 2 h 00 min | per week/15 week-Semester | - |
Capstone Course- Lecture | 50 min | per week/15 week-Semester | 2 h 00 min |
Capstone Course- Project | 50 min | per week/15 week-Semester | 2 h 00 min |
Internships /Work Term | 35-40 h (per Semester) in instruction and/or out of class time | ||
Field Work | - | 3 h (per week or equivalent) | |
Studio Work | 2 h 00 min | per week/15 week-Semester | 2 h 00 min |
Clinical Practice | 2 h 00 min | per week/15 week-Semester | - |
Seminars | 50 min | per week/15 week-Semester | 2 h 00 min |
5 Procedures
5.1 The Vice-President, Academics will ensure that relevant procedures are developed and implemented in accordance with this policy.
6 Related Documents
6.1 PL-AC-16: Program Accreditation Policy.
6.2 PR-AC-21: Course Approval Procedure.
6.3 PR-AC-26: Credit Hour Procedure.
6.4 Qatar National Qualifications Framework.