Registration - Overloads Petition Process

Undergraduate Students

Most undergraduate students maintain a course load of 12 to 18 credit hours per semester during their time at Rice. A student is considered to have full-time enrollment status when they are enrolled in 12 or more credit hours. In rare and exceptional circumstances, a student may request and petition to overload and register for more than 18 semester credit hours.

The Office of Academic Advising manages the registration overload petition process to take more than 18 credit in any semester. Information on the registration overload petition process can be found on the Office of Academic Advising Overloads webpage.

Graduate Students

The maximum number of credit hours allowed for a graduate student is 18.

If graduate students wish to take more than 18 credit hours in the upcoming semester or term, they must obtain written permission from their graduate program and the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. International students also need approval from OISS (oiss@rice.edu).

It is advisable to first consult with your graduate program administrator. You can find a list of program contacts at https://graduate.rice.edu/admissions/program-contacts.

For further assistance, please direct your inquiries to the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies at graduate@rice.edu or 713-348-4002.