Normal Course Load for Enrollment and Financial Aid

Normal Course Load. A normal course load is 13-17 credits for fall and spring semesters. In the summer semester, a normal course load is 1-6 credits. A deviation from a normal course load in any semester is possible only with the permission of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. In no event will such deviation result in a student taking more than 18 credits per regular semester or 7 credits in the summer semester. Except as authorized by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, no student will be permitted to take less than 12 credits in a fall or spring semester unless the student needs fewer than that to graduate or when it is necessary to accommodate a student's disability.

The normal course load for students on scholastic probation is 14-16 credits per regular semester. Deviations for students on probation are allowed only for students in their last semester when they lack fewer than 14 credits to graduate or when it is necessary to accommodate a student's disability.

A normal course load for dual-degree students is between 13-17 credits per regular semester, which includes law courses and courses from the other discipline. A dual-degree student may take more than 17 credits in a regular semester. Up to 18 credits in law courses may be taken, but only with the permission of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. Dual-degree students enrolled in any law school course during the summer semester are subject to the same credit limits as other law students. If dual-degree students are enrolled only in courses from the other disciplines, they are subject to the credit limits of the Graduate School. The credits in law courses and in courses from the other discipline combined in any semester cannot exceed 20 percent of the total credits required for the dual-degree program.

Advanced Required Courses. Except as authorized by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, students must take at least 14 of the 26 semester credit hours of advanced required courses in their second year (see the Graduation Requirements Policy for a list of required courses). This requirement applies also to transfer students to the extent practicable. The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will determine the number of advanced required credits which each transfer student must take in his or her first year at the law school.  

Summer School Status Definitions for Aid Eligibility. Students enrolled for 4 credits or more in the summer semester are defined as full-time students. Students enrolled for 2 or 3 credits in the summer semester are defined as half-time students.