Guidelines for Credit to Contact Hours

Purpose: To provide clarity for the determination of appropriate contact hours per credit hour based on Colorado Commission on Higher Education recommendation. 

Federal Credit Hour Definition 

Morgan Community College (MCC) shall follow the Federal Credit Hour Definition: A credit hour is the amount of work represented in intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement that is an institutionally established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than: 

  1. one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out of class student work each week for approximately fifteen weeks for one semester; or
  2. at least an equivalent amount of work as required for other activities including lab work, internships, practical, studio work or other academic work leading towards the award of credit Higher Learning Commission 

Base Contact Hour 

Base Contact Hour: The base contact hour consists of the number of scheduled minutes of instructional activity involving direct contact of faculty with students in a given term utilizing a particular method of instruction. 

One base contact hour is equivalent to a minimum of 750 minutes, in a general education course, which equates to a minimum of fifteen 50-minute hours per semester. This represents a 1:1 ratio, where 1 credit hour equals 750 minutes of instruction. The base contact hour does not include the time students are expected to spend studying and preparing for class. 

The ratio shall be adjusted based on the instructional activity. These definitions are derived from CDHE. 

Lecture is a 1:1 ratio, whereas lab ratios vary depending on the type as described below: 

Instructional Activity  Definition of Instructional Activity  Base Contact hours for 1 credit hour Ratio of Base Contact Hours to Credit Hour
Lecture Formal presentation/communication by faculty  15 1:1 
Laboratory: Academic/Clinical  Instructional activities conducted by faculty requiring student participation, experimentation, observation, or practice. An academic lab or clinical experience is a hands-on educational exercise that reinforces and deepens the content in a subject of study. Faculty must have direct oversight with this instructional activity, the faculty member is present at all times and engaged in assessing the work done by the student.  30 1:2 
Laboratory: Vocational/Technical  Instructional activities involving training for employment in a   work-like environment with an active faculty teaching role. A vocational or technical lab delivers specific skills as part of workforce training in an instructor-led environment.  22.5  1:1.5 
Practicum Credit hours for placement in business and industry environments that offer students seeking a certificate or degree, professional-level experience, and responsibility. College faculty are actively involved and present in the field. The faculty member will also collect artifacts and assess achievement of the learning objectives.   45 1:3 
Internship Credit hours for placement in business and industry environments that offer students seeking a certificate or degree, professional-level experience, and responsibility. The internship is to be supervised and carefully structured, based on learning objectives that are related to the student’s academic discipline. The objectives are to be established in cooperation with the student, employer, and faculty. The immediate oversight and feedback provided is primarily by the business or industry employer, with occasional oversight by the faculty member.   45 1:3 
Music: Studio  Bands, ensembles, music labs and the like conducted by faculty.  37.5  1:2.5 
Physical Education/Recreation  Physical education and recreation activities conducted by faculty designed for the development of skill proficiencies.   30 1:2 
Art Studio  Painting, sculpture, and other lab type activities conducted by the faculty.  30 1:2 

It is to be noted the above table refers to instructional contact hours and may not be directly correlated to faculty workload. 

Scheduling Information

“Instructional Type” and “Schedule Type” are separate concepts. Instructional type refers to the above descriptions for various activities used to delivery content/experience. Schedule type refers to the designation in Banner for each course that aligns with the instructional type. Banner includes the expected contact hours per credit hours (based on instructional type) for the course whereas the schedule refers to actual hours based on the Carnegie unit of 750 minutes per credit. 

Instructional Activity  Ratio Actual Contact Hours per Credit Hour (in Banner) Banner Schedule Type
Lecture 1:1  12.5 (15)  LEC
Laboratory: Academic/Clinical 1:2  25 (30)  Lab CLI
Lecture + Laboratory: Vocational/Technical (CTE) 1:1.5  18.75 (22.5) LLB
Lecture and Academic or Clinical Combination  Lecture 1:1
Laboratory 1:2
Lecture 12.5 (15)
Lab 25 (30)
LEL
Practicum 1:3  37.5 (45)  PRA
Internships 1:3  37.5 (45)  INT
Music Studio  1:2.5  31.25 (37.5) SMU
Physical Education  1:2  25 (30)  LAB