Frequently Asked Questions

For the purpose of calculating your “excess hours," the credits earned toward either a dual degree or a dual major are all included in the total. It might be possible to separate your credit, but only in cases where documentation exists that the credit in question counts only to the second major or dual degree and cannot be used to satisfy degree requirements for the primary program. If you anticipate pursuing a dual major or degree and think you may encounter this situation, you are encouraged to talk with your academic advisor about your Excess Credit Hour situation.

Second bachelor's degrees are not excluded from the Excess Credit Hour law.

A university will exclude college internship hours automatically from your excess credit total whenever possible. However, it is not always possible to identify college internships on the academic record of a student, especially when taken at another institution. Cooperative educational experiences, directed individual studies and other one-on-one instructional courses are not considered a college internship program under this law.

Courses that are part of the class instruction preparation for a professional certification exam, may be excluded from your excess credit total. Examples of these might be a computer science class that prepares you for Microsoft certifications exam, or a foundational education class that prepares you for a teacher certification exam. In these cases, the one specific course that prepares you for the exam may be excluded from your total, but not all courses in the degree program.

All active duty military credits are exempt from the Excess Credit Hour law.

At the first term advising session, an advisor will review your placement scores and recommend appropriate courses for you to take in your first and second terms. You will learn about the academic degree planning process that helps you plan out additional semesters of coursework.

Graduate classes are included in your Excess Credit Hour count if they are being used toward your bachelor’s degree. Credit that is only used for the graduate degree will be excluded.

No, an institution cannot waive the fee. The language of the statute is mandatory.