How many credits per semester do you take in grad school?

[MPHPeaceCorps17]

Hello,

This will be my first semester in grad school. I am pursuing an MPH while participating in the Peace Corps. 6 credits will be awarded towards my MPH degree requirement.

I am told I have to take between 30-33 credits the year prior to Peace Corps. And my last semester when I return I'll complete the remaining credits (no more than 6 credits).

I thought oh that's easy: 15 credits each semester. But many of the courses are 1-2 credits and as expected some courses are not offered all year. So now I'm looking at 17 credits for Fall 2016 and 16 credits for Spring 2017.

Is this too much? Is it doable? (I won't be working) The enrollment director of the Public Health Department at UVA said most students who combine the Peace Corps do this.

The numbers initially did intimidate me.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[eteshoe]

Sounds doable. Grad courses don't tend to be structured w/ the same intensity as UG ones. Many of the courses tend to be discussion and project-based so it's not impossible to do well while taking that many credits.

 

[wholeheartedly]

I dunno, it really depends on the school and program setup.

My MPH program recommends 9-12 credits a semester. With classes like Epidemiology and Biostatistics you don't really want to be trying 17 credits at once.

One thing about MPH classes is they tend to be very project heavy and writing lots of papers. Having 5-6 classes with lots of papers can get a bit crazy, especially if you're doing other things.

Now if you can split those credits over fall, spring, and summer that would probably be a better way to go.

 

[QofQuimica]

Agree that it depends on what the classes are. But if the program director is telling you that most students can handle that course load, odds are good that they're right.

 

[DrMikeP]

It depends on the program and even the courses within the program. The advisor is likely right.

 

[MPHPeaceCorps17]

Thank you all for your responses.
I will be meeting with the lead professor for the program and hopefully by the first week of class, I'll have this straightened out.