<p>I'm really confused about what credit hours are, what they mean, and how you are supposed to take them into consideration when factoring them into your course selections. What exactly do they mean and how many credit hours does a freshman usually take for a semester?</p>
<p>An average college student typically takes probably 15-16 credit hours, with fluctuation of course… some more, some less. I think you’re required to take at least 12 at UM to be considered full time for tuition purposes. As a freshman, I personally don’t plan on taking more than around 15.</p>
<p>Credits are earned individually from the classes you take in college. Usually to complete your bachelors degree you need 120 credits to graduate. Most classes you take in college are either 3 or 4 credits individually. For your freshman year I would suggest you take 15 credits of classes which means you would basically be taking 5 classes your first semester. It would also be easier to take 15 credits per semester which will total up to 120 at the end of your senior year. You could take more if you ever decide to.</p>
<p>Some schools have slightly different variations but I believe if say you’re taking a 3 credit hour course, you will meet 3 times a week for 50 minutes normally (or sometimes 2 times a week for 75 minutes). So your main courses are going meet 2-3 times a week and are going to be 3 credit, but something like a lab, is only going to be 1 credit and is only going to meet once a week.</p>
<p>Some labs are 2 credits, and others are included in the 3 credits of the course itself. There are also discussion periods that can be factored into your schedule.</p>