Academic Policies
Academic Classification of Students
According to the number and type of semester credit hours completed, students are classified as freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors, post-baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral students.
When a student transfers from another college or university, classification is determined by the number of semester credit hours accepted for transfer.
FRESHMAN: has completed 0-29 semester credit hours.
SOPHOMORE: has completed 30-59 semester credit hours.
JUNIOR: has completed 60-89 semester credit hours.
SENIOR: has completed 90 or more semester credit hours but has not graduated.
POST-BACCALAUREATE: has earned the baccalaureate degree and is taking only undergraduate courses. Post-baccalaureate status prevents enrollment in any graduate course and under no circumstances will post-baccalaureate work be counted as graduate work.
MASTER’S DEGREE STUDENT: has earned the baccalaureate degree and has been accepted in a master’s level program.
DOCTORAL STUDENT: holds the master’s degree or its equivalent and is seeking a doctoral degree.
Academic Load Rules and Enrollment Certification
Enrollment verification and loan deferments are completed in the Registrar’s Office and are based upon a student having registered and paid tuition and fees according to the following course load rules:
Undergraduate Level
| Semester | Hours |
|---|---|
| Fall & Spring | |
| Full-time | 12 semester credit hours |
| Half-time | 6-11 semester credit hours |
| Less Than Half-time | 1-5 semester credit hours |
| Summer (cumulative across all summer sessions) | |
| Full-time | 12 semester credit hours |
| Half-time | 6-11 semester credit hours |
| Less than Half-time | 1-5 semester credit hours |
Student teaching and internships will be certified as full-time if enrolled in six or more semester credit hours, and half-time if enrolled in 3-5 semester credit hours.
Only TWU enrolled semester credit hours can be certified by the TWU Registrar’s Office. Concurrently enrolled semester credit hours at a different institution must be certified separately by that institution.
Enrollment load rules for VA certification purposes are defined by the VA and may differ from what is reflected in the above table.
Academic Major
An academic major is an approved group of courses leading to a bachelor's degree in an academic discipline. All groups of courses leading to degrees assume four or more years of study. Each group includes a major subject, consisting of 30 or more semester credit hours, one-half of which must be at the 3000 or 4000 levels. The major subjects are listed in the chart at the beginning of the catalog and under the Areas of Study sections of this catalog. A minimum of a 2.0 grade point average (GPA) must be maintained in major courses; a higher GPA may be required by the academic component. Half of the upper-level courses planned for the major must be taken at TWU (residency requirement). Degree plans list all requirements for the majors. See respective components for academic programs.
Students wishing to pursue more than one major should indicate both majors on the Change of Undergraduate Academic Program form. In order to avoid accumulating excess semester credit hours resulting in higher tuition, students should notify the Registrar’s Office and the office of Curriculum & Strategic Initiatives of the total number of semester credit hours they will be completing for both majors. For graduation requirements regarding double majors and dual degrees, please see the Graduation Requirements section of this catalog.
Academic Minor
An academic minor is an approved group of courses required for focused study in an academic discipline. The academic minor is not a university-wide requirement. Academic components may establish or abolish a minor requirement for their students.
The number of credits required to earn an academic minor can vary depending on the academic component and the specific minor program. On average, academic minors require around 15 to 18 credit hours of coursework. However, this can range from as few as 12 credits to as many as 24 credits or more, depending on the area of study. A minor includes a minimum of 6 semester credit hours at the upper level.
The major and minor subjects must be chosen from separate academic components except in the components of Visual Arts; Biology; Business and Economics; Communication Sciences and Disorders; History and Government; English, Speech, and Foreign Languages; Fashion; Mathematics and Computer Science; and Sociology and Social Work. No more than three semester credit hours may be applied to requirements for both the major and minor in single-content minors (i.e. Biology); and no more than eight semester credit hours may be applied to requirements for both the major and minor in interdisciplinary minors (those comprised of content from two or more content areas, i.e. Neuroscience). Half of the upper-level courses planned for a minor must be taken at TWU (residency requirement). Interdisciplinary minors are listed below in this section. See academic components for degree plans.
Course Numbers
Each course offered by the University is assigned a four-digit number. The first digit indicates the level (year) at which the course is offered; the fourth digit reflects the number of semester credit hours assigned to the course. In indicating the level or year of the course, 1 is used for freshman, 2 for sophomore, 3 for junior, 4 for senior, and 5 and 6 for graduate.
For example, the course ENG 1013 is a freshman-level course (first digit) that carries three semester credit hours’ credit (fourth digit). The two middle digits (second and third) simply identify it as a specific course in the academic components of English, Speech, and Foreign Languages. The number in parenthesis to the right of the TWU course number and long title is the course number assigned for the Texas Common Course Numbering System (TCCNS), a designation used only for undergraduate courses.
