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Academic Calendar Guidelines

Academic Calendar Guidelines

Guidelines and policies for the IUPUI academic calendar

As you develop your courses, keep in mind these guidelines that govern the academic calendar at IUPUI.

Instruction days

Fall and spring terms have 15 weeks of instruction (75 days excluding weekends).

Summer terms have 12 weeks of instruction (60 days excluding weekends). Most summer classes are scheduled in one of two major summer sessions of 6 weeks each (30 days excluding weekends).

Final exams

The fall and spring terms are each followed by six days for final exams. Each final exam period is two hours long.

Fall term final exams must end no later than December 21 for there to be sufficient time for grade submission and transcript availability.

Spring term final exams must end at least one day before Commencement. When the normal Monday start of the term in January would result in finals ending the same day as Commencement, Weekend College classes are scheduled to start on Saturday two days before the Monday start of the term.

Summer terms have no special days for final exams.

Class lengths

Lecture classes offered for 3 credit hours must meet for a minimum of 2,250 minutes (excluding the final exam).

During fall and spring terms, 3 credit hour lecture classes meet either:

Twice a week (Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday) in 75-minute classes for a total of 2,250 minutes
Once a week (Monday through Thursday evening or Friday during the day) in a 160-minute class for a total of 2,400 minutes (including a 10-minute in-class break during each meeting)

Explore IUPUI’s standard time modules

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Students walk by the IUPUI Campus Center on a snowy day.

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Term start, end, and break dates

During fall, spring, and summer terms, each day of the week meets an equal number of times.

Classes do not meet on Labor Day.

Fall terms begin on a Monday to accommodate a fall break scheduled in mid-October. Fall break is scheduled on a consecutive Monday and Tuesday following the first 8 weeks of the term and prior to the beginning of the second 8 weeks.

Thanksgiving break begins after the last class on Tuesday before Thanksgiving Day. Classes resume on the following Monday.

Fall classes will end on a Monday to accommodate Labor Day, which falls on a Monday.

Spring terms begin on a Monday and end on a Monday to accommodate the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, which falls on a Monday. Classes do not meet on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Spring break (Monday through Sunday) is scheduled after the ninth week of the spring term.

Summer terms begin on a Tuesday and end on a Monday.

Classes do not meet on Memorial Day. During first summer session, Memorial Day classes are made up on the last Tuesday of the session.

During second summer session, classes do not meet on Independence Day (the 4th of July) when the holiday falls during the week.

If the holiday falls on a Saturday, classes do not meet on Friday, July 3.
If the holiday falls on Sunday, classes do not meet on Monday, July 5.

Independence Day classes are made up on the last Monday of the session.

About the common calendar

Before 2014, IU did not have a common calendar shared across all campuses. As a result, campuses had different rules and deadlines resulting in many inefficiencies.

The IU Board of Trustees approved these common calendar dates in April 2014 for implementation in the fall 2014 term and beyond:

Term begin date: Start of the semester. To accommodate the required number of class meetings, campuses may need to adjust the term begin date for weekend and/or nonstandard sessions.
Census date: The official date of record for reporting is Sunday at 11:59 p.m. following the first week of classes.
Refund 100 percent: End of first week (as set by Trustees policy).
Refund 75 percent: End of second week (as set by Trustees policy).
Refund 50 percent: End of third week (as set by Trustees policy).
Refund 25 percent: End of fourth week (as set by Trustees policy).
End of automatic withdrawal (W on transcript): End of ninth week of class (Sunday).
Classes final end date: Date includes the last weekend plus Monday. Classes could end earlier but must be completed by this date.
Exams final end date: Exams must be completed by the Sunday after the classes final end date (includes last weekend).
Summer class start date: The common calendar includes a common start date for the summer session. Other summer dates are flexible to permit innovation and variety in summer offerings. While the summer start date is very close to the spring end date, the campus can schedule spring classes or exams to end before the common end dates in order to create a greater gap between spring and summer terms.

What dates are still unique to individual campuses?

Sessions within the semester
Fall and spring breaks
MED, DENT, LAW, and GRD1 careers
Nonstandard and weekend class sessions may begin earlier or end later than the common semester dates, as determined by the individual campus

Read the official policy

Fall and spring terms have 15 weeks of instruction (75 days of instruction excluding weekends) followed by a week of final examinations. Both fall and spring terms have six days for final examinations. The final examination period is two hours in length. Effective fall 2014 both the fall term and the spring term will have 6 days for final examinations.
The fall term final examinations must end no later than December 21 in order to have sufficient time for grade submission and transcript availability around the Christmas holiday.
The spring term final examinations usually end one week before Commencement, but must end at least one day before Commencement. When the normal Monday start of the term in January would result in having finals ending on the same day as Commencement, the Weekend College classes are scheduled to start on the Saturday two days before the Monday start of the term so that finals can end on Friday before Commencement on Sunday.
The summer term has 12 weeks of instruction (60 days of instruction excluding weekends); most summer classes are scheduled in one of two major summer sessions of 6 weeks each (30 days of instruction excluding weekends). The summer term begins on the Tuesday following the end of the spring term and has no special days for final examinations.
Lecture classes offered for 3 units must meet for a minimum of 2,250 minutes excluding the final examination. During fall and spring terms, 3 unit lecture classes meet either twice a week (on Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday) in 75-minute classes (2,250 minutes), or once a week (on Monday through Thursday evenings or Fridays during the day) in a 160-minute class (2,400 minutes including a 10-minute in-class break during each meeting).
Each day of the week meets an equal number of times during the fall, spring and summer terms.
1. The fall term will begin on a Monday to accommodate the fall break (Monday and Tuesday) scheduled in mid-October. Thanksgiving break begins on the Wednesday prior to Thanksgiving and runs through Sunday of that week. Fall classes will end on a Monday to accommodate the Labor Day holiday (Monday).
2. The spring term, which begins on a Monday, ends on a Monday to accommodate the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday (Monday).
3. Effective summer 2017: The summer term begins on a Tuesday and ends on a Monday. During first summer session, the Memorial Day classes are made up on the last Tuesday of the session; during second summer session, the July 4th classes are made up on the last Monday of the session. Change approved: IFC Executive Committee (December 2015).
Classes do not meet on Labor Day, Memorial Day, or Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Fall break is scheduled on a consecutive Monday and Tuesday in October following the first eight weeks of the term and prior to the beginning of the second eight weeks of the term.
Thanksgiving break begins after the last class on Tuesday before the holiday, classes resume on the Monday after the holiday.
Spring break (Monday through Sunday) is scheduled after the ninth week of the spring term.
Classes do not meet on the Fourth of July when the holiday falls during the week. Classes do not meet on Friday, July 3rd when the holiday falls on Saturday; classes do not meet on Monday, July 5th when the holiday falls on Sunday.

Approved: APPC (Nov, 2012); Academic Affairs (Nov, 2012)