Full-time students must be enrolled for at least twelve credit hours on a letter grade or pass/fail basis. As an exception, the advisor and school chair may allow up to three hours out of the minimum twelve to be taken on an audit basis in fall and spring semesters; in summer semesters, the advisor and school chair may allow up to six hours out of the twelve minimum to be taken on an audit basis. Hours in excess of the required twelve may be taken on any basis. Full-time students working exclusively on thesis research should be registered for eighteen or more hours of 7000 or 9000 level courses (Master's or Doctoral Thesis) in fall and spring semesters, and for up to sixteen hours during summer semesters.

The maximum load for graduate students in good standing is twenty-one hours in fall/spring and sixteen hours in summer. The minimum load is three hours except for the semester of graduation. A student may register for only one hour of Master's or Doctoral Thesis (7000 or 9000) during the semester of graduation. This exception may be used once for each degree.

Students with fellowships, assistantships, traineeships, tuition waivers, or student visas and those assigned to the Institute by the armed forces for the purpose of pursuing a degree are required to enroll full time. Part-time doctoral students engaged in research for their Ph.D.s should register for the number of 9000 level hours consistent with the time they and their faculty advisors spend on the dissertation research.