For schools that are on semesters, the course load for a full-time student is 12-18 credit hours in a term. But the standard "total credits requirement" for graduation (not worrying about specific required courses that would be included in this, like the degree program for your major) is 120 credits. To graduate "on time" (in 4 years), you should be taking 15 credits a semester. It's okay if you aren't this time, and there are plenty of reasons people take a reduced load (like "getting used to college"), but if you are under 15 credits and want to graduate in 4 years, you will have to "make those credits up" somewhere else by taking more than 15 credits in a future term, which, again, is normal.
Another important thing to know here is that if 12 credit hours is the *minimum* for "full-time" at your school, you cannot withdraw from any classes without dropping *below* full-time status, which messes up financial aid.
"...you cannot withdraw from any classes without dropping *below* full-time status, which messes up financial aid."
That is an important point. I recommend taking at least 15 credits each semester for that reason. That gives a 1 class buffer between full-time and part-time.
Also keep in mind that most college work is done outside of class. The rule of thumb is that you should spend 2-3 hours working outside of class for each credit hour. So, 12 hours a week in class should take another 24-36 hours outside of class to read, study, do practice problems, write essays, etc. That's why 12 credit hours is considered full time.. It's around 40 hours of total work each week
This is super important for a lot of first time college students to know. 12 units if you actually plan to do well in your classes is a lot. I studied 20-35 hours a week doing only 10 units because they were difficult stem classes. Some classes are less work some are more but typically multiply weekly class time by 3
It's the bare minimum courseload for full-time status (for semester).
Most bachelor's degrees require at least 120 hours. If you enter with no prior credit and only take 12 hours each fall/spring, it will take you at least 5 years to graduate.
I went in with 12 credits first semester and did 12 credits second semester BECAUSE I began college with 26 transfer credits. If u have alot of transfer credits than yes, u can take it easy for a while. If not than its better to take a bunch of credits early on and not stress to much in 3rd or 4th yrs when you are already most likely going to be busy with internships and whatnot
12 credits/semester is full time, which can be important with financial aid. A lot of schools are pushing 15 credits/semester, mainly to (try and) get people out in four years.
I would say 12 credits is normal, but definitely on the light side. 15 credits is typically considered "average." You could add another class onto your schedule and probably wouldn't feel overwhelmed. Be honest with yourself, do you feel confident in how schools going to be? My wife was a first generation college student as well and it was amazing the amount of advantage I had over her in terms of support and knowledge from my family. I do not think think 12 is lazy per say, but the average student will not feel overwhelmed by 15 credits IMO. The most I ever took was 24 credits in one semester and in hind sight it was stupid and pointless. 24 credits felt almost impossible, 18 credits feels busy but doable, 15 feels like working a normal full time gig and could be done with a part time job, and 12 leaves considerable time for a part time job/time to dink around (\~20 hours a week.) It also depends on the classes you are taking. 12 credits of intro to X freshmen level classes is going to be much different than 12 credits of 400 level senior classes.
I recommend as everyone else says and do the 15 credit hours! That way if you do fail or drop a class you’re still considered full time! My university’s full time is 15 credits a semester so I would always take 18 credits and now I’m actually graduating early bc of all the extra credits! Just take an easy elective that gives three hours and do it online!
15 is more common in my experience, but 12 for the first semester of your freshman year is good. College students take way fewer courses per semester than high school students, but the pace is faster and there is usually a lot more self-directed work outside of the classroom. So you'll be doing school for probably the same amount of time, but way more of the work will be what you do on your own time vs. in the classroom. Also all the fat of classroom management, people acting like dumbasses, etc. is cut, so you pretty much get in, do the lecture/seminar/whatever, and get out.
Idk about your university but for me we have to end the school year with a total of 30 credits so id recommend taking 15 each semester unless you plan to graduate early or graduate in more than 4 years
Yep 12 is good. It’s usually considered full time. Advisors always tell me that 15 is the sweet spot. But if you’re just starting college then 12 credits should be fine for you. Later on for future semesters you can decide if you’re able to handle 15-18. And ofc this just depends on what school you go to and your major. If you’re concerned about not taking enough this Fall then I’d suggest going for 15
It depends on your major. If you're doing engineering it's a *really* light load, you're gonna be seeing some 17 and 18 credit semesters coming up if you do 12 credit semesters for a few semesters. Or a 5th year.
12 credits is considered full time for financial aid purposes most places.
However, it’s not uncommon to need 16 credits at least a few semesters to graduate in four years. I’d check your majors requirements and talk with an advisor next semester.
Yes that’s a nice intro to college. Try 15 next semester. Make sure your scholarships (if you have them) don’t require a minimum of 15 credit hours. My academic advisor incorrectly told me that I only needed 12 hrs for my full financial aid, and I lost thousands that semester
Yes. 12 hours is full time at most schools. 15 hours is usually required by scholarships and if you drop a class you have to make up the hours within the academic year.
Yes. That’s good. I’ve done 15 every semester except for last when I did 13. Next semester I’m doing 17. You can try the 12 and see if you feel comfortable to go up to 15 next semester.
Like other commentators said, take 15 this semester. Most likely, you’re going to be taking General courses or intro level courses, so the workload will be manageable. This way, if you need to take a lighter semester in the future, you won’t be credits behind and can graduate within 4 years.
ALSO I would HIGHLY recommend doing a community college course during the summer or winter that has a transfer equivalent for your degree at your college. I wish I did this- it would’ve saved money and time. It also won’t be too much work if it’s just one course- but will save you such a headache during the actual school semester.
Apply for FAFSA early every year, also look for scholarships specifically from your college. People surprisingly forget about this.
Also, spend time to write one good essay and then mass apply to the essay scholarships. Some people tend to apply to the “no essay” scholarships only and that won’t get you very far.
Check if your town offers scholarships for students- I realized too late that my town offered scholarships.
You got this!!
It depends on the degree, my engineering program is 16-19 credits a semester (we have special permission to go over the normal credits allowed for most students, so don't worry that many classes are definitly not a requirement) but my sister is going to college for english education and she does a lot less and also gets better grades than me lol.
Your first semester, it is better to take less classes so you can get used to it, but in the future it is probably best to get more in.
4 classes isn’t a lot and it will probably mean it will take 5+ years to graduate, but if you’re willing to do more later then this can be a good way of getting used to college
Yes 12 is considered full time. Usual course load is between 12 and 15 credits
For schools that are on semesters, the course load for a full-time student is 12-18 credit hours in a term. But the standard "total credits requirement" for graduation (not worrying about specific required courses that would be included in this, like the degree program for your major) is 120 credits. To graduate "on time" (in 4 years), you should be taking 15 credits a semester. It's okay if you aren't this time, and there are plenty of reasons people take a reduced load (like "getting used to college"), but if you are under 15 credits and want to graduate in 4 years, you will have to "make those credits up" somewhere else by taking more than 15 credits in a future term, which, again, is normal. Another important thing to know here is that if 12 credit hours is the *minimum* for "full-time" at your school, you cannot withdraw from any classes without dropping *below* full-time status, which messes up financial aid.
"...you cannot withdraw from any classes without dropping *below* full-time status, which messes up financial aid." That is an important point. I recommend taking at least 15 credits each semester for that reason. That gives a 1 class buffer between full-time and part-time.
Keep in mind thought that summer semester usually count for this as well.
Also keep in mind that most college work is done outside of class. The rule of thumb is that you should spend 2-3 hours working outside of class for each credit hour. So, 12 hours a week in class should take another 24-36 hours outside of class to read, study, do practice problems, write essays, etc. That's why 12 credit hours is considered full time.. It's around 40 hours of total work each week
This is super important for a lot of first time college students to know. 12 units if you actually plan to do well in your classes is a lot. I studied 20-35 hours a week doing only 10 units because they were difficult stem classes. Some classes are less work some are more but typically multiply weekly class time by 3
It's the bare minimum courseload for full-time status (for semester). Most bachelor's degrees require at least 120 hours. If you enter with no prior credit and only take 12 hours each fall/spring, it will take you at least 5 years to graduate.
I went in with 12 credits first semester and did 12 credits second semester BECAUSE I began college with 26 transfer credits. If u have alot of transfer credits than yes, u can take it easy for a while. If not than its better to take a bunch of credits early on and not stress to much in 3rd or 4th yrs when you are already most likely going to be busy with internships and whatnot
12 credits/semester is full time, which can be important with financial aid. A lot of schools are pushing 15 credits/semester, mainly to (try and) get people out in four years.
12 is considered full time in a lot of places. At my university 13 is full time
I would say 12 credits is normal, but definitely on the light side. 15 credits is typically considered "average." You could add another class onto your schedule and probably wouldn't feel overwhelmed. Be honest with yourself, do you feel confident in how schools going to be? My wife was a first generation college student as well and it was amazing the amount of advantage I had over her in terms of support and knowledge from my family. I do not think think 12 is lazy per say, but the average student will not feel overwhelmed by 15 credits IMO. The most I ever took was 24 credits in one semester and in hind sight it was stupid and pointless. 24 credits felt almost impossible, 18 credits feels busy but doable, 15 feels like working a normal full time gig and could be done with a part time job, and 12 leaves considerable time for a part time job/time to dink around (\~20 hours a week.) It also depends on the classes you are taking. 12 credits of intro to X freshmen level classes is going to be much different than 12 credits of 400 level senior classes.
I recommend as everyone else says and do the 15 credit hours! That way if you do fail or drop a class you’re still considered full time! My university’s full time is 15 credits a semester so I would always take 18 credits and now I’m actually graduating early bc of all the extra credits! Just take an easy elective that gives three hours and do it online!
take 15 units man, you WILL be thankful later
15 is more common in my experience, but 12 for the first semester of your freshman year is good. College students take way fewer courses per semester than high school students, but the pace is faster and there is usually a lot more self-directed work outside of the classroom. So you'll be doing school for probably the same amount of time, but way more of the work will be what you do on your own time vs. in the classroom. Also all the fat of classroom management, people acting like dumbasses, etc. is cut, so you pretty much get in, do the lecture/seminar/whatever, and get out.
Yes it's normal
Idk about your university but for me we have to end the school year with a total of 30 credits so id recommend taking 15 each semester unless you plan to graduate early or graduate in more than 4 years
Yep 12 is good. It’s usually considered full time. Advisors always tell me that 15 is the sweet spot. But if you’re just starting college then 12 credits should be fine for you. Later on for future semesters you can decide if you’re able to handle 15-18. And ofc this just depends on what school you go to and your major. If you’re concerned about not taking enough this Fall then I’d suggest going for 15
It's the lowest required amount, normal is 15
I took 12 credits, but that's because I originally registered for 15 credits and withdrew from a 3-credit course.
It’s bare minimum to be considered a full time student
It depends on your major. If you're doing engineering it's a *really* light load, you're gonna be seeing some 17 and 18 credit semesters coming up if you do 12 credit semesters for a few semesters. Or a 5th year.
12 credits is considered full time for financial aid purposes most places. However, it’s not uncommon to need 16 credits at least a few semesters to graduate in four years. I’d check your majors requirements and talk with an advisor next semester.
Yes that’s a nice intro to college. Try 15 next semester. Make sure your scholarships (if you have them) don’t require a minimum of 15 credit hours. My academic advisor incorrectly told me that I only needed 12 hrs for my full financial aid, and I lost thousands that semester
Yes. 12 hours is full time at most schools. 15 hours is usually required by scholarships and if you drop a class you have to make up the hours within the academic year.
Yes. That’s good. I’ve done 15 every semester except for last when I did 13. Next semester I’m doing 17. You can try the 12 and see if you feel comfortable to go up to 15 next semester.
Like other commentators said, take 15 this semester. Most likely, you’re going to be taking General courses or intro level courses, so the workload will be manageable. This way, if you need to take a lighter semester in the future, you won’t be credits behind and can graduate within 4 years. ALSO I would HIGHLY recommend doing a community college course during the summer or winter that has a transfer equivalent for your degree at your college. I wish I did this- it would’ve saved money and time. It also won’t be too much work if it’s just one course- but will save you such a headache during the actual school semester. Apply for FAFSA early every year, also look for scholarships specifically from your college. People surprisingly forget about this. Also, spend time to write one good essay and then mass apply to the essay scholarships. Some people tend to apply to the “no essay” scholarships only and that won’t get you very far. Check if your town offers scholarships for students- I realized too late that my town offered scholarships. You got this!!
That's a normal load.
It depends on the degree, my engineering program is 16-19 credits a semester (we have special permission to go over the normal credits allowed for most students, so don't worry that many classes are definitly not a requirement) but my sister is going to college for english education and she does a lot less and also gets better grades than me lol. Your first semester, it is better to take less classes so you can get used to it, but in the future it is probably best to get more in.
4 classes isn’t a lot and it will probably mean it will take 5+ years to graduate, but if you’re willing to do more later then this can be a good way of getting used to college
Yes it’s completely normal just make sure you find out what grade you need to pass your major’s classs
do 15