Credit Hours Calculator
Work out your course load, tuition cost and time to finish a degree.
Please note: Provided for learning and for checking your own working. Institutions differ in the conventions and rounding they apply, so confirm the method against your own course materials.
What the Credit Hours Calculator does
Credit hours drive almost everything administrative about a degree: enrolment status, tuition, workload and time to graduation. Dividing the credits you still need by the load you can sustain each term gives a realistic finish date, and the two-hours-per-credit rule turns that load into actual weekly hours.
Formula
Progress = (Earned + This term) ÷ Required × 100Terms remaining = ⌈Credits remaining ÷ Credits per term⌉Weekly study = Credits × Study ratioTuition = Credits × Cost per credit
Inputs explained
| Input | Unit | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credits this term | number | Yes | Accepts more than 0. |
| Credits already earned | number | Optional | Accepts 0 or more. |
| Credits required for the degree | number | Yes | Accepts more than 0. |
| Cost per credit hour | selected currency | Optional | Accepts 0 or more. |
| Full-time minimum | credits | Optional | Usually 12 credits for undergraduates in the US. Accepts 1 or more. |
| Study hours per credit | number | Optional | Accepts 0 or more. |
| Terms per year | number | Optional | Accepts 1 or more. |
| Currency | one of 10 options | Optional | — |
How to use it
- Choose Currency.
- Enter Credits this term and Credits required for the degree.
- Optionally add Credits already earned, Cost per credit hour and Full-time minimum.
- Select Calculate.
Worked example
15 credits this term, 60 already earned, 120 needed, at $400 per credit.
- This term
- 15
- Earned
- 60
- Required
- 120
- Cost
- $400
Full time at 15 credits. 45 credits remain after this term, so 3 more terms — 1.5 years. Tuition this term is $6,000, with $18,000 still to come.
Frequently asked questions
How many credits is full time?
Twelve for most US undergraduates, though nine is common for graduate study. Financial aid and visa rules sometimes impose different minimums, so confirm each separately.
How long should a credit hour take each week?
One hour in class plus two to three hours of independent study. A 15 credit load is therefore a 45 to 60 hour week — genuinely full-time work.