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Academic Load for Doctoral Programs 

The following chart shows the enrollment status for a Doctoral student according to the number of hours for which he/she is registered per semester or term.  Doctoral students registering for more than 11 credit hours during any semester must have the approval of the program director and dean.

Enrollment status for financial aid purposes or VA benefits may or may not match enrollment status as defined by the Office of the Registrar. Each student is responsible to know both the Federal Financial Aid requirements and the Academic requirements and make decisions accordingly.  See the “Financial Aid and Academic Load” and/or “VA Academic Load” sections of the catalog for more information.

Doctoral (DR) Academic Enrollment Status:

term

full-time (FT)*

Three-Quarter Time (3/4)

Half-time (HT)

Fall/Spring Semester

6.00 credit hours

4.50-5.99 credit hours

3.00-4.49 credit hours

Summer

3.00 credit hours

2.25-2.99 credit hours

1.50-2.24 credit hours

Special Circumstances:

*Doctoral students enrolled in a 3 credit hour “dissertation” or “treatise” course in any semester/term are considered full-time for enrollment status. Enrollment status is based solely on doctoral level courses; therefore, any graduate or undergraduate level courses taken do not factor into status determination for Doctoral level students.