Workload Estimator
The Workload Estimator tool has been designed to support LMU faculty and instructional designers when calculating the amount of time that it will take students to complete assorted learning activities. This tool can be helpful when mapping student workload, determining fulfillment of credit hours and Carnegie units, and anticipating time spent engaging in various reading and writing activities.
While this tool serves as an estimator for instructional equivalency, credit‑hour calculations are guided by the Carnegie Unit. Under this standard, one credit represents at least three hours of student engagement per week, typically one hour of instruction and two hours of independent work, regardless of how the course is delivered.
For additional support in developing your hybrid/online course, please contact us at ool@lmu.edu.
How to Use This Tool
- Enter Course Basics: Input your course duration and scheduled live meeting times to establish the baseline timeframe.
- Input Assignments: Fill in your planned weekly readings, semester writing assignments, and other activities such as watching videos or completing exams.
- Define Complexity: Use the dropdown options for Reading and Writing to select difficulty; these selections automatically adjust work rates based upon the chosen level of difficulty.
- Review: Check the Workload Estimates for a breakdown of Independent (solo) vs. Contact (instructor-led) hours.
- Fine-Tune: Use the 'Manual adjust' feature to tailor workload rates to your specific discipline if your assignments involve unique technical demands not captured by the standard settings.
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For a deeper look at the data behind these calculations, please refer to the Wake Forest University Estimation Details page.
Reading Rates
Reading time is not a fixed speed; it is a function of Page Density (words per page), Text Difficulty, and Reading Purpose.
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Survey (Skimming): Used for finding main ideas. Rates range from 250 to 500 words per minute (approx. 20–67 pages/hr).
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Understand: Used when students need to comprehend every sentence. Rates drop to 130 to 250 words per minute (approx. 10–33 pages/hr).
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Engage: Used for dense material (like philosophy or complex STEM) where students must solve problems or draw inferences while reading. Rates slow significantly to 65 to 130 words per minute (approx. 5–17 pages/hr).
Writing Rates
Writing time is highly variable and depends on the Genre of the assignment and the expected level of Drafting.
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Reflection/Narrative: Requires less planning or outside research. Estimated at 45 minutes to 1.25 hours per page.
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Argument: Requires critical engagement with content and detailed planning. Estimated at 1.5 to 2.5 hours per page.
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Research: Requires detailed planning, outside research, and critical engagement. These tasks are the most time-intensive, estimated at 3 to 5 hours per page.
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Drafting: Each level of drafting (Minimal vs. Extensive) adds approximately 25–50% more time to the base writing rate to account for revision cycles.
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Course Info
Class Meetings
Videos / Podcasts
Exams
Reading
Discussions
Writing
Other Assignments
Example: presentations, multimedia, etc.
Workload Estimates
Total: 0.00 hours/week
Independent: 0.00 hours/week
Contact: 0.00 hours/week