Can someone explain to me the concept of credit/hours

[axorb]

I am going to attend Texas A&M Uni for my master's . I am not from the US and I am unable to understand the credit system . I also need to calculate the exact fees that I will be paying. If I finish my masters in 18 months , how much will it cost ?

[ranlo]

I am going to attend Texas A&M Uni for my master's . I am not from the US and I am unable to understand the credit system . I also need to calculate the exact fees that I will be paying. If I finish my masters in 18 months , how much will it cost ?

Alright, basically the number of "hours" is equal to the number of credits you earn.

Ex. classes with labs (Chemistry, Biology, most Mathematics) will be 4 credits.
Some classes (English, History, things without labs) will usually be 3 credits.
Some will be as few as 1 or 2 like Physical Education.

How fast you graduate will not change your hours or credits. You pay the same regardless.

When you look at your classes you need, they will tell the number of credits. Add those up and multiply by the cost per credit/hour.

[dwdoc]

Won't Texas A&M just charge 3 semesters of tuition for 18 months?

[ranlo]

Won't Texas A&M just charge 3 semesters of tuition for 18 months?

Depends on course load. I don't know what "18 months" means in course load. You can take anywhere from 1-24 credits a semester. So it depends on what courses they need.

[Atruk]

I am going to attend Texas A&M Uni for my master's . I am not from the US and I am unable to understand the credit system . I also need to calculate the exact fees that I will be paying. If I finish my masters in 18 months , how much will it cost ?

For a graduate degree 6 to 12 credit hours per semester is normal and 9 credit hours is typical. Each individual class is usually 3 or 4 hours, but things like labs can make a class longer. Undergraduates in a normal semester typically take 12 to 18 hours a semester, but graduate courses typically consume more of your personal time outside of the classroom to keep up with the course work. A full time load of courses is considered 12 or more hours a semester, but as a graduate student if you can find an assistantship it will reduce the load you need to take to be considered full time to 9 hours with a quarter time assistantship and 6 hours with a half time assistantship.

Most master's degrees the program takes a minimum of 30 hours, but some programs go longer taking 40-60 hours of credit.

Credit hours are a regulatory construct schools adhere to for billing purposes. Each one is supposed to be equivalent to 50 minutes of classroom time per week per credit hour.

[ranlo]

Credit hours are a regulatory construct schools adhere to for billing purposes. Each one is supposed to be equivalent to 50 minutes of classroom time per week per credit hour.

TIL each credit is equal to about 50m a week. Oddly enough I did not know that, but looking at my previous schedule, it correlates! Wow, lol.

[Atruk]

Credit hours are a regulatory construct schools adhere to for billing purposes. Each one is supposed to be equivalent to 50 minutes of classroom time per week per credit hour.

TIL each credit is equal to about 50m a week. Oddly enough I did not know that, but looking at my previous schedule, it correlates! Wow, lol.

It's what the US Department of Education makes schools use for compliance with financial aid rules so it is pretty much universal in the US.

[ranlo]

Credit hours are a regulatory construct schools adhere to for billing purposes. Each one is supposed to be equivalent to 50 minutes of classroom time per week per credit hour.

TIL each credit is equal to about 50m a week. Oddly enough I did not know that, but looking at my previous schedule, it correlates! Wow, lol.

It's what the US Department of Education makes schools use for compliance with financial aid rules so it is pretty much universal in the US.

I knew it related to the classes themselves, but I thought each school chose how long the classes must be. The way I see it, if you can learn something in 30m instead of 3 hours, there's no reason to be forced to stick around the other 2.5 hours!

[worldinacoin]

I think most Masters are 48 Semester hours.   At least in the university I am teaching.   For us each module is about 3 Semester hours.  If you take your time and study leisurely, there should be additional fees for each year that you delay.  But that is again depending on the university.

[ranlo]

I think most Masters are 48 Semester hours.   At least in the university I am teaching.   For us each module is about 3 Semester hours.  If you take your time and study leisurely, there should be additional fees for each year that you delay.  But that is again depending on the university.

I'm almost positive the degree determines how many credits it takes.

The best thing to do, OP, is to call the school and ask for more information. They can help.

[Atruk]

I knew it related to the classes themselves, but I thought each school chose how long the classes must be. The way I see it, if you can learn something in 30m instead of 3 hours, there's no reason to be forced to stick around the other 2.5 hours!

In practice there's variance here, but it comes from the instructors. In the eyes of the University Registrar's office 1 credit hour always equals 50 minutes of classroom contact time. A 3 credit hour class doesn't necessarily mean it meets for 3 hours at a time, many classes meet multiple times a week. At the graduate level though classes that meet once a week for the full duration are very common (this is how most of my grad classes were).

[ranlo]

I knew it related to the classes themselves, but I thought each school chose how long the classes must be. The way I see it, if you can learn something in 30m instead of 3 hours, there's no reason to be forced to stick around the other 2.5 hours!

In practice there's variance here, but it comes from the instructors. In the eyes of the University Registrar's office 1 credit hour always equals 50 minutes of classroom contact time. A 3 credit hour class doesn't necessarily mean it meets for 3 hours at a time, many classes meet multiple times a week. At the graduate level though classes that meet once a week for the full duration are very common (this is how most of my grad classes were).

Got ya. Thanks for the clarification!

[axorb]

Thank you everyone for the clarifications 

[ranlo]

Thank you everyone for the clarifications 

No problem! Hope you enjoy A&M, . It's a good school.