In order to be considered full-time for academic purposes, students must carry the minimum number of credits per semester or summer session as defined below:
| Master's level |
9 credits |
| Doctoral level (pre-comps) |
6 credits |
| Doctoral level (post-comps) |
1 credit |
| Graduate–Professional level |
12 credits |
All graduate assistants are classified as full-time students during the semester (s) of their appointments as long as they are enrolled for the minimum required credits for the assistantship.
Full-time status for doctoral students is defined as a minimum of 1 credit for those students who:
- have successfully completed all comprehensive exams and are actively engaged in dissertation research (DD status); or
- are doing department-approved off-campus fieldwork related to preparation of their dissertation. This off-campus fieldwork (DG status) will be granted for one semester at a time up to a maximum of three semesters. The dean's office of the student's college will request the change of status by the Office of the Registrar at least one month prior to the beginning of the semester for which the status is requested.
Federal agencies such as the Department of Education, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Department of Homeland Security may have separate and distinct full-time status requirements.