The individual engineering curricula are comprised of appropriately sequenced course groupings referred to as "regular semester course loads." Each semester can have a different credit and course load. Students may not take more than 19.5 credits in a semester without approval. More than 19.5 credits is considered a course or credit overload. An overload is generally approved for a maximum of one course or four credits provided that:
- A first-year student has permission from the office of the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs. Normally, only second-semester first-year students with a GPA of at least 3.5 are permitted to overload, or
- An upperclassman has approval from their advisor and Department Chair. A GPA of at least 3.0 is required in this case.
In addition to the requirements above, an overload is generally only approved for the pursuing of a minor or second major, ROTC purposes, and for adjusting schedules to accommodate study abroad, if needed.
Students wishing to request permission to overload must complete the Course Overload Request form. The form can be found on the Current Engineering Undergraduate Students Intranet site.