Course Information

Courses of Instruction — General Information

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• Courses of Instruction — General Information
  • Catalog Numbers
  • Prerequisites
  • Credit
  • General Education Code
  • Lecture and Laboratory Hours
  • Repeat/Retake Information
  • Terms Typically Offered
  • Fees

This section outlines general information about courses offered at Ohio University. The courses listed in the Course Description section are all courses as approved by the University Curriculum Council. Please check the quarterly Schedule of Classes to determine if a course is being offered.

Catalog Numbers

The catalog number indicates the student classification for which the course is primarily intended:

The alphabetical catalog–number suffixes I, O, and X generally are not used.
Other alphabetical suffixes have specific meanings:

Course prerequisties indicate minimum requirements for the course. If you have any doubts about whether you have fulfilled prerequisites due to changes in the numbering system over the past several years, check the course titles and consult with your advisor and the student services office of the dean. If you have not met the prerequisites, you may petition departments/schools or instructors offering the course to obtain permission to override the prerequisite. If permission is obtained then a class permission slip must be completed by the instructor/department/school and processed accordingly. Once you have completed an advanced course, you may not subsequently enroll in a prerequisite course for credit. The following information will assist you in reading prerequisites:

Credit is indicated for each course in quarter hours. A course with one quarter hour of credit (1) is the equivalent of one recitation or two or more laboratory periods per week throughout a quarter. In a course carrying variable credit, the credit may be expressed “1 to 4”, indicating that one hour is the minimum and four hours the maximum amount of credit allowed for the class in one quarter.

Lecture, laboratory, and recitation hours are respectively abbreviated “lec,” “lab,” and “rec.”

Repeating a course. A repeatable course is defined as a course taken for additional hours of credit toward graduation requirements (i.e., MUS 340, PSY 490). Some departments place limits on the total number of credits that may be earned in repeatable courses. The maximum number of hours permitted to be earned is identified if there is a limit.

Retaking a course. A regular undergraduate course with fixed content can be retaken to affect your accumulative grade point average. Undergraduate courses that are retaken to improve a grade will be automatically identified at the time you register. Retaking the course removes the hours and the effect of the earlier grade from the calculation of the grade point average. However, all grades are printed on the student’s academic record (transcript). Please note that the later grade is the one calculated in the grade point average even if it is lower than the first and that the course credit hours duplicated by retaking coursework are not accepted toward the credit–hour requirement for graduation. The maximum number of times a course may be retaken is identified if there is a limit.

Graduate courses cannot be retaken to improve a low grade on the first attempt. All grades received are calculated into the graduate grade point average.

As a rule, a course designated as a prerequisite may not be retaken to affect the grade point average after you have completed higher–level coursework in the same subject area. Also, courses taken at Ohio University and retaken at another University are not eligible for grade point adjustment under this policy. You should be aware that some departments place limits on the number of times a course may be retaken, so check with the student services office in your college regarding restrictions.

Please note that retaking a course after graduation will not change your graduation grade point average, honors status, or rank in class. Some graduate and professional schools include all grades in their calculations of grade point averages while determining eligibility for admission even though Ohio University calculates only the last grade in a retaken course.

Some departments/schools identify in the catalog the quarter in which the course is typically offered. To determine if a course is being offered check the online quarterly Schedule of Classes. Some courses may not be offered during the quarter which you intend to take them. Students should contact the department/school offering the course for more specific scheduling information. The fall quarter Schedule of Classes does include a tentative listing of courses being planned for the upcoming winter and spring quarters.

Some courses require fees in addition to the instructional and general fees. The online quarterly Schedule of Classes identifies sections of courses that require additional fees. Ohio University reserves the right to make, without prior notice, any fee adjustments that may become necessary.