Course Credit

Course credit is measured in credits. A credit represents academic work equivalent to one hour per week in class plus two hours per week of outside studying for a semester. Class periods at East Stroudsburg are generally 50 minutes in length and are regarded as class hours. A semester is 15 calendar weeks. A credit is also equivalent to 15 weeks of full-time study whether in class or outside of class. In some courses two hours of laboratory per week for a semester earns one credit, while in other courses three hours of laboratory or fieldwork per week for a semester earns one credit. For example, CHEM 353 Physical Chemistry (4) is a course in Chemistry which earns four credits.

Academic Credit Hour Policy

The credit hour serves as ESU’s common measure of instruction based on the expected number of contact hours of coursework during the semester/term. All credit hours awarded by East Stroudsburg University will conform with the definitions and guidance outlined by the U.S. Department of Education (CFR, Title 34: Education, Part 600 – Institutional Eligibility under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, Subpart A-General, Section 600.2), the Pennsylvania State Board of Education Curricular Credit Policy (22 Pa. Code Chapter 31, §§ 31.21) and the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (Verification of Compliance with Accreditation-Relevant Regulations, 2016). One credit hour of instruction equals 15 hours over the term, forty-five hours for a three credit course. Please note that not all of this instruction is necessarily conducted face-to-face with an instructor. Different types of courses require different amounts of contact time and may be delivered in multiple formats to students including but not limited to distance education, face-to-face, hybrid and interactive media.

A semester hour of contact time is defined as at least fifty minutes of contact each week in a standard semester. East Stroudsburg University follows the Pennsylvania System of Higher Education Academic Calendar (Board of Governor’s Policy 2002-04). The standard semester – fall and spring – includes 16 weeks where 14 weeks are used for instruction, one week is assigned for final examinations each semester and once week used for non-teaching days in the fall semester and spring break in the spring semester. In the absence of a Common Calendar, ESU will follow the USDOE guidance that defines a semester as having 15 weeks inclusive of 1 week for final examinations.

The following standards are intended to specify the minimum contact time for the assignment of one (1) semester / credit hour. Some courses may exceed these minimum standards.

 *calculated based on an actual work week.

Additional information regarding the Academic Credit Hour policy can be found online at www.esu.edu/provost/faculty_resources.cfm

Dual-Level Courses

Graduate students who enroll in dual-level courses as graduate credit should be aware that dual-level courses commonly require more advanced work and additional requirements than required of undergraduate students taking the same course. Dual-level courses with graduate credit taken while a student was an undergraduate may be approved for the graduate program if the course did not count toward the requirements for the baccalaureate degree.

Course Auditing

Graduate students may audit a course if permission has been granted by the course instructor (Permission to Audit card). Auditors must pay normal tuition and related fees. A change of registration from credit to audit or from audit to credit may occur only during the first week of the semester.

An auditor will, with permission from the instructor, participate in class discussion, do practicum work, take examinations, and share generally in the privileges of a class member. If the student completes all course requirements, an "audit" notation is posted to the student’s academic record.

No student who is required to carry a certain number of credits may count among those credits the credit for an audited course.

Grade Reports

Student grade reports are available at mid-semester and at the end of the semester. Only the semester grades are entered on the student’s permanent records (transcript). Semester grade reports are available through the student portal myESU. Specific information about access to the student portal is mailed to each student upon his or her initial enrollment at East Stroudsburg University.

It is the responsibility of each student to check grade reports at mid-semester and at the end of the semester. Students are expected to check grade reports as they are available to be aware of academic performance in each course, to register for courses for the next semester, and to address issues related to course grades immediately. Grade reports are an important tool for assessing academic progress.

Quality Point System

In addition to meeting course and credit requirements for graduation, students must maintain a specified academic level throughout a given curriculum as measured by quality points. The minimum number of quality points required for graduation is twice the number of credits attempted. Pass/fail courses are not used in the computation of the quality point average. Work completed at other colleges and accepted as transfer credit is not considered in computing the quality point average. The required quality point average for graduation is 2.00 or higher. Some degree programs require a higher cumulative quality point average.

Each credit grade is calculated as follows:

The following grades are not counted in calculating a student GPA:

F                      Failure (Pass/Fail)
I                       Incomplete
L                      Audit – Complete
M                    Military Leave of Absence
ML                  Military Leave of Absence Completed
N                     Academically forgiven [appears before grade being forgiven]
O                     Ongoing
P                      Pass (Pass/Fail)
R                      Repeat (used prior to fall 2011)
S                      Satisfactory
T                      Transfer Course
U                     Unsatisfactory
X                      No Grade Reported
Y                      Audit – Incomplete
W                    Withdrew Passing
Z                      Withdrew Failing

Calculating Grade Point Average

Calculating of grade point average is done using the steps below.

1. Grade symbols are translated into quality points per credit as listed above.
2. The university recognizes that a good grade in a three-semester-hour course requires more work than in a two-semester-hour course. Owing to this, the university follows a system which recognizes both the quality and quantity of a student’s work. Under this system, the number of quality points for each letter grade (e.g. four points for an A) is multiplied by the number of semester hours of credit for the course. For example, an A in a three-semester-hour course earns a total of 12 quality points. To find out a student's quality point average, divide the total number of quality points by the total number of semester hours scheduled. This average considers both the quality and quantity of work. 
3. Quality points are awarded only for work completed at East Stroudsburg University. Work completed at other colleges and accepted as transfer credit is not considered in computing the quality point average.

Incompletes

The maximum time for completing course requirements to remove incomplete grades is one semester from the end of the session in which the “I” grade was assigned. After that time, the “I” grade will automatically be converted by the Registrar to an “E,” “F,” or “U,” based on the grade mode for the course. The student can then only earn credits for the course by registering for it again in another semester.

If a student applies for graduation in a session before the one semester period has expired, the course requirements must be completed by the end of that session, or the “I” grade will be converted by the Registrar to an “E,” “F,” or “U” based on the grade mode for the course.

Students who cannot complete the required coursework during the specified time period should notify the faculty member as soon as possible. A faculty member who chooses to deviate from this policy will require the student to sign a contract specifying conditions necessary for course completion, which may include a time period for completion of less than one year or other conditions. The faculty member will also notify the Registrar of any changes to the completion date.

Ongoing Grades

Students registered for thesis credits will be assigned the letter "O" (Ongoing) instead of "I" while completing their research.

Course Repeats

Graduate students are required to earn a grade of “C” or higher in all coursework in order to progress in their program of study and in Graduate & Extended Studies, with a maximum of three grades of “C” across the program.

Students may repeat only one course for grade improvement for each graduate program. The course may be repeated one time, for a total of two attempts. If a student has not earned a grade of “C” or higher after a second attempt, then the student will be dismissed from the graduate program and Graduate & Extended Studies.

Credits for a repeated course will be counted only once, and the hours and grade earned when the course was last taken will be used to compute the grade point average. However, all attempts will continue to appear on the transcript. Some graduate programs may have more stringent requirements for course grades and course repeats.