General Overview

Through the Correspondence Course Division, Sam Houston State University provides the opportunity for qualified individuals to obtain college credit through correspondence course study.

Correspondence courses offer a challenging and rewarding opportunity to earn credit for college courses without attending an organized class. Students may study at their own rate and at the time and place of their choosing. This service has proven highly beneficial for those who desire to continue their college work; to teachers who wish to take courses leading toward additional certification or who are in the need of additional study in the disciplines they teach; and to citizens who wish to broaden their learning.

Unless otherwise specified, each correspondence course carries three semester hours of college credit and includes an amount of work similar to that required for a course taken in residence. Correspondence courses are not offered at the graduate level.

To receive credit by correspondence, locate a course that interests you or fits your needs, apply for the course(s), pay tuition, receive and submit completed, self-paced coursework to us, apply for the final exam, complete exam.
See Policies and Procedures under Enrollment Procedures and Submitting Your Lessons

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Grades

The Registrar's Office will issue a grade report as soon as the student's instructor has assigned a grade. With a touch-tone telephone, students may access SamInfo at (936) 294-3900 to obtain their grades. Use your Personal Identification Number (PIN), social security number, and enter the semester the final exam was completed. To obtain your correpondence grades via computer through Sam Houston's secure web page, click here.

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Transcripts

Official transcripts must be obtained from the University Registrar. Be sure to include your social security number with your request and indicate that you took the course by correspondence.

Information about the Office of the Registrar can be found online at: www.shsu.edu/~reg_www. They are located on the ground floor of White Hall and are open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday with the exception of University holidays.

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Assignments

Once the student enrollment in a correspondence course is completed, the student receives the course packet which contains all the needed materials in order to purchase the textbook(s) and other specified materials and start working on the course.

Each course consists of a series of assignments (lessons) that are to be completed and submitted to the Correspondence Course Division for computer entry processing and forwarding to the grader. Graded lessons are returned to this office for processing and then are returned to the student.

All lessons for a course must be received by this office before a student is allowed to take the final exam. Students should retain a copy of each lesson assignment to avoid additional work and delay if a lesson assignment is lost in the mail. The Correspondence Course Division Office is not responsible for lost mail.

A correspondence course student should not submit more than two lessons a week without written permission from the grader. Permission forms are included in course packet materials or may be obtained from the Correspondence Course Division Office.

Best results are obtained when lessons are completed and submitted at regular intervals. Correspondence course graders will grade each lesson as soon as possible. Students who are certain of their progress need not wait until a lesson has been graded before submitting the next lesson.

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Textbooks

Textbooks for correspondence courses must be purchased or acquired by the student. Four local bookstores are: