Course Load Calculator
Out of roughly 112 waking hours a week, assuming 8 hours of sleep a night.
This number tells you how much. It doesn't tell you when — and that's where plans usually break. Focusity imports your timetable and assignments, and lays those study hours onto the board in the time that's genuinely free, around your classes and shifts.
Build my plan — freeHow it's calculated
One credit is roughly one lecture hour a week. That's the easy part. The part people tend to forget is what's demanded outside the classroom — reading, problem sets, submissions and review:
credits × (1 + multiplier) + commute + work = weekly commitment
The accepted rule of thumb for self-study is 1x to 2x the classroom hours. A theoretical course with a final exam leans to the low side; a course with a project and weekly submissions to the high side. The default here is 1.5x, the common average — but that's a starting point, not a fact. Two weeks into the semester you'll know your real number, and it's worth coming back to update.
The common numbers, translated
By the same calculation, at a 1.5x multiplier with no commute and no job:
One thing to check before you read the table: these credit figures follow the Israeli system, where one credit is roughly one weekly classroom hour and 18–24 credits is an ordinary full load. On the US credit-hour system the same table sits lower — 15 credits is full-time there, and 18 is an overload that usually needs an advisor's sign-off. The hours-per-credit arithmetic is identical either way, so the calculator works on both; it is only the row you should be aiming at that moves.
| Credits | Weekly hours | Who it fits |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | ~30 | Reduced load. Often below the full-time threshold — check first |
| 15 | ~38 | Reasonable for someone working a substantial part-time job |
| 18 | ~45 | The standard pace Israeli programs are built around; an overload on the US system |
| 20 | ~50 | Full load. Possible, but with little margin for error |
| 24 | ~60 | Very high. Works only if some of the courses are genuinely light |
Notice what happens when you add a job. A full-time position is about 42 hours; together with 18 credits that reaches 87 hours a week, out of 112 waking. That's not a number you can hold for a whole semester, and it's exactly the kind of thing better discovered in September, not in November.
What this number doesn't tell you
It doesn't distinguish between courses. 20 credits of theoretical courses are not 20 credits with two projects and weekly submissions. The multiplier above is an average across all your courses; if your mix leans hard one way, move it.
It doesn't spread the load. 45 hours a week sounds reasonable until you discover three submissions land in the same week. The weekly average hides the peaks, and in most cases the peaks are what break the semester.
And it doesn't generalize across institutions. The full-time threshold, scholarship terms and degree totals are set by each institution separately. Your exact number has to come from your program's handbook, not from here. The full guide to credits explains where to look and what to check before dropping a course.
Frequently asked questions
How many hours a week do 18 credits take?
Roughly 45 hours, before commuting. The credits themselves are the classroom hours — 18 credits are about 18 hours in class — and on top of them comes self-study at a common ratio of 1.5x, meaning about 27 more hours. Commuting and paid work add on top of that.
How many credits can you take while working full-time?
A full-time job is about 42 hours a week, and out of roughly 112 waking hours that leaves about 70. At a pace of 2.5 hours per credit, that puts the limit around 12 credits — and only if the commute is short and no free time is needed. Most students working full-time take less than that.
Where does the 1.5x multiplier come from?
It's an accepted rule of thumb: for every lecture hour, one to two hours of self-study. A theoretical course with a final exam leans to the low side, a course with a project and weekly submissions to the high side. Two weeks into the semester you'll know your real number — and then it's worth coming back and updating the multiplier here.
Is the data I enter stored on your servers?
No. The whole calculation runs in your browser, and the inputs are saved only in your browser's local storage so you don't lose them on refresh. Nothing is sent to our server, and no account is needed.
From the number to a plan
Knowing 45 hours are waiting for you is useful in September. By November the question is different: exactly when to sit down for the submission that opened today.
Focusity imports your timetable and assignments from Moodle, a spreadsheet or a PDF, finds the free time left after classes and shifts, and lays out study blocks there by deadline and difficulty.
Build my plan — free