Course Load

Undergraduate Students

A normal undergraduate course load is 15 credit hours of academic credit in each semester. This information may vary during the summer term; students should check the Registrar's Website (www.registrar.unco.edu) for correct information. Undergraduate students are allowed to enroll for a maximum of 18 credit hours before the beginning of the semester.

Financial aid and verification of enrollment. Full-time enrollment is considered 12 credit hours for undergraduate students.
Half-time classification. Undergraduate students enrolled in six to eleven credit hours are classified as half-time. Part-time enrollment is five credit hours or less.
Overload. More than 18 credit hours per semester for undergraduate students is considered an overload
Undergraduate students who have lower than a 3.00 GPA but have extenuating circumstances may petition for an overload from the program advisor and school director.

Graduate Students

Course load limitations for graduate students apply to any combination of all courses taken on-campus, off-campus, or on-line while an individual is enrolled as a graduate student in a graduate degree program, a nondegree certification program, or any combination thereof. The maximum load for a graduate student is 17 hours per semester. This information may vary during summer terms; students should check the Registrar's Website (www.registrar.unco.edu) for correct information.

Financial aid and verification of enrollment. Full-time enrollment is nine credit hours for graduate students.
Half-time classification. Graduate students enrolled in five to eight credits hours are classified as half-time. Part-time enrollment is four credit hours or less.
Overload. More than 17 credit hours per semester for graduate students is considered an overload.
Graduate students receive overload approval from their academic advisor. Students who have lower than a 3.00 GPA but have extenuating circumstances may petition for an overload to the dean of the Graduate School. All approvals must be forwarded to the Graduate School.

Full-Time and Part-Time Enrollment Status

Full-time status for health insurance requirement and verification of enrollment for health insurance purposes is nine credit hours for undergraduate and graduate students. (Some health insurance carriers require enrollment in a minimum of 12 credits. Check with your health insurance company for their minimum enrollment requirement.)

Full-time for financial aid purposes and enrollment verification (other than health insurance) is 12 credit hours or more for undergraduates and 9 credit hours or more for graduates. Undergraduates enrolled in 6 to 11 credit hours and graduates enrolled in 5 to 8 credit hours are classified as half-time.
Part-time is 5 credit hours or less for undergraduates and 4 credit hours or less for graduates.

Overloads

Students requesting overload credits must have a 3.00 or higher cumulative grade point average.

In addition, specific colleges, schools and programs may have additional conditions regarding overloads. It is the student's responsibility to meet these conditions.
Overloads of more than 21 hours require approval by the student's major advisor and school director. All approvals must be forwarded to the Registrar. The Registrar will assure that these procedures have been followed.

30-Credit Policy for Undeclared Students

The 30-Credit Policy directs students towards successfully completing a degree at the University of Northern Colorado. Typically, 120 credits are required to complete a degree at Northern Colorado. A student who has earned 30 credits should have completed one quarter of the requirements for earning a degree. Usually students reach 30 credits after either their second or third semester. Ensuring that students have a clear path for degree completion is of utmost importance to Northern Colorado, and the 30-Credit Policy illustrates this commitment to student success.

The 30-Credit Policy requires students who have earned 30-credits to declare a major. Credits used in calculating earned hours at Northern Colorado include all applied transfer credit, college credit earned in high school, and Northern Colorado credit hours. A No-Major Hold is applied to undeclared students' accounts upon the completion of 30 credits. Once a student has completed the appropriate paperwork and met any admission requirements for declaring a chosen major, the No-Major Hold is removed from the student's account.