Credit Hour Requirements Rule or "The 120/48/30/18/9 Rule": Five different credit hour requirements to complete a bachelor's degree are listed below.
- 120 = All students must complete 121 credit hours to complete program completion and graduation. However, completing 121 credit hours without meeting all degree requirements for the discipline will not entitle the student to program completion and degree conferral.
- 45 = Out of the required 121 credits required for graduation, a minimum of 45 hours must be upper-level courses (300 – 499) - this is inclusive of any coursework completed or will be completed outside of your major.
- 30 = Also referred to as Leighton Residency Requirement, a student is expected to complete 30 credit hours of their last 61 hours at Leighton University.
- 18 = Of the 121 credit hours required for degree completion, a maximum of 18 credit hours are eligible for the P/F options. Any student record with less than 18 credit hours earned at Leighton will not be considered for the P/F opportunity. Also, no course completed to meet the CORE requirement is excluded for a P/F grade assignment. However, most courses in the University CORE Program may meet eligibility for the P/F grade.
- 9 = This policy is also referred to as the Summer Rule. Students entering Leighton with fewer than 60 transferred credit hours must earn at least nine semester hours during one or more summer Terms at Leighton University. Courses taken at a community or another university/college, while on residence, will not count towards this requirement.