CREDIT ALLOCATION AND CONVERSION POLICY: WORKLOAD-BASED ECTS AND US CREDIT EQUIVALENCE

Policy number	EULER-QA-CR-2025-01 — Academic Programs & Records
Version	1.0
Approved by	University Foundation Governing Board and University Executive and Academic Board
Effective date	06/25/2026
Next scheduled review	[effective date + 3 years]
Policy owner	Global Academic Chairman with the QA / IQA Office
Responds to	AAC Expert Report (June 12, 2025), Standard 4, Condition 1 (Condition 12 of 34)
Publication	University website (Policies page) and EGNYTE — “Current and Active Policies”

 

1.  Purpose

This policy establishes a clear, workload-based, and internationally accepted methodology for assigning credit to all courses and programs offered by EULER, and documents precisely how student workload in hours corresponds to credit allocation. It directly responds to AAC Condition 12 (Standard 4, Condition 1):

“Credit Allocation: The current conversion formula of US Credit x 2 = 2 ECTS does not align with internationally accepted credit conventions. The institution must revise and clearly document how the student workload (in hours) corresponds to credit allocation in accordance with the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) or equivalent frameworks.”

The central revision made by this policy is a change of direction in how credit is assigned. EULER no longer converts US credits into ECTS by a multiplier. Credit is now allocated ECTS-first: every course is assigned an ECTS value directly from its measured total student workload, at the ECTS Users’ Guide standard of 25–30 hours per ECTS credit, and the US-style semester credit shown on EULER records is a derived equivalence for international legibility. Workload in hours is therefore the primary basis of credit at EULER, exactly as the ECTS framework requires.

2.  Scope

This policy applies to all academic programs offered by EULER — including the LL.M. (Master of Laws — International Law), the Master in International Relations and Global Development, and the PhD in International Relations and Global Development — and governs course syllabi, program handbooks, transcripts, diploma supplements, the institutional catalog, the University website, and any institutional communication regarding credit values.

3.  Definitions

Term	Definition
ECTS credit	The credit unit of the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (Bologna Process). One ECTS credit represents 25–30 hours of total student workload; 60 ECTS credits represent one year of full-time study (1,500–1,800 hours).
US semester credit	The credit unit of the US system. A full-time academic year is nominally 30 semester credits. On EULER records the US credit value is a derived presentation equal to the ECTS value divided by two.
Total student workload	All learning activities required to achieve the learning outcomes of a course or program — directed instruction, structured self-study, assignments, projects, assessments, and supervision — measured in hours.

4.  The Allocation Rule and the 2:1 Equivalence

4.1  ECTS allocated from workload

Every EULER course is assigned an ECTS credit value such that its total student workload falls within the band of 25–30 hours per ECTS credit. A standard EULER course of 6 ECTS therefore represents 150–180 hours of total student workload. Credit values are proposed by the course’s principal professor from the documented workload table (Section 5), verified by the QA / IQA Office, and approved by the University Executive and Academic Board.

4.2  The derived US credit value

For international legibility — EULER serves a global student body and its graduates transfer to and from institutions in both systems — EULER records also present a US-style semester credit value, derived as:

US credits = ECTS ÷ 2    (equivalently, ECTS = US credits × 2)

This 2:1 equivalence is anchored in the full-time academic year, which requires no rounding: one year of full-time study is 60 ECTS credits under the Bologna Process and nominally 30 semester credits in the US system — the same year of study, so 60 ECTS ≡ 30 US credits, i.e., 2 ECTS per US credit. The same ratio is the published practice of internationally respected institutions operating across both systems, including Central European University, the University of Amsterdam, Cornell University, Emory University, and Michigan State University, and is the standard identified in international credit transfer guidance.

4.3  Standard mapping

ECTS credits	Total workload hours (25–30 h/ECTS)	Derived US credits
3	75–90	1.5
4	100–120	2
6	150–180	3
8	200–240	4
10	250–300	5
12	300–360	6
30	750–900	15  (full-time semester)
60	1,500–1,800	30  (full-time year)

5.  Documenting Workload in Hours

Every course syllabus must state the course’s ECTS value, its derived US credit value, and a workload table accounting for the total hours within the 25–30 hours-per-ECTS band, broken down under the following headings:

• Directed instruction and guided learning (video lectures, live sessions, tutorials, guided discussions);
• Structured self-study (assigned readings, preparatory work);
• Assignments, papers, and projects;
• Assessments (quizzes, examinations, oral defenses) and their preparation;
• Other components where applicable (research, fieldwork, supervision meetings).

The mandatory syllabus workload template is annexed to this policy (Annex A). The stated total must equal the ECTS value × 25–30 hours; a syllabus whose workload table does not support its credit value is returned for correction before publication in the LMS.

6.  Program-Level Application

All degree programs must satisfy the European standard for their cycle: master’s degrees no fewer than 60 ECTS (nominally 30 US credits), including a thesis or equivalent capstone; doctoral programs sized by their research requirement and documented on the same workload basis. Program credit totals, with the underlying course workload tables, appear in each program handbook. The restructuring of the LL.M. program to no fewer than 60 ECTS is enacted under Condition 13 (Program Structure) consistently with this policy, and the master’s thesis requirement under Condition 15.

7.  Transcripts and Diploma Supplements

All official academic records issued by EULER present credit values in both ECTS and US credits, accompanied by the following standard note:

“Credit at EULER is allocated in ECTS credits on the basis of total student workload, at 25–30 hours per ECTS credit, in accordance with the ECTS Users’ Guide. US-style semester credit values shown on this record are derived at the equivalence of 2 ECTS = 1 US semester credit, reflecting the equivalence of one full-time academic year (60 ECTS ≡ 30 US semester credits).”

8.  Quality Assurance and Monitoring

• Approval: the University Executive and Academic Board approves every course and program credit assignment on the documented workload basis; the QA / IQA Office verifies the workload tables before approval.
• Annual syllabus audit: the QA / IQA Office audits all syllabi annually for the presence and arithmetic consistency of the workload tables, reporting results to the University Executive and Academic Board.
• Measured workload: the student course feedback survey asks students to report actual hours spent; the workload-accuracy indicator of the Quality KPI Schedule flags any course whose reported workload deviates by more than 20% from the syllabus band, triggering review of the course’s credit value or design.
• Deviations: any deviation from this policy requires prior written approval of the University Executive and Academic Board and is reported to the AAC in the annual quality assurance update.

Annex A — Mandatory Syllabus Workload Template

Field	Entry
Course title / code	[title] · [code]
ECTS credits	[value]
US credits (derived)	[ECTS ÷ 2]
Total student workload	[ECTS × 25 to ECTS × 30] hours
— Directed instruction / guided learning	[hours]
— Structured self-study	[hours]
— Assignments, papers, projects	[hours]
— Assessments and preparation	[hours]
— Other (specify)	[hours]
TOTAL (must fall within ECTS × 25–30)	[hours]