Abstract
Excess hours laws are among credit-based accountability measures implemented by several state legislatures in the United States since 1993 to incentivize students to complete their baccalaureate degree programs with fewer excess credit hours. An analysis of the nature and scope of similar educational policies in the national context is provided in order to compare and contrast the use of the policy across different states. In 2009, the Florida legislature adopted Fla. Stat. § 1009.286 creating a tuition surcharge and requiring undergraduate students to pay for each credit hour exceeding a specific threshold based on the minimum number of credits required for completion of their baccalaureate degree. While this type of educational policies should be monitored to ensure their effectiveness, only two legislative reports and few empirical studies on excess hours laws are available. This researcher found that what appears to be missing from relevant literature are studies on the relationship between the Florida excess hours law and transfer students’ efficient baccalaureate degree completion. Analysis of the data collected on transfer students who completed a baccalaureate degree from a regional public university since academic year 2008-2009 will be analyzed using a correlation analysis approach as well as, descriptive statistics, independent t-test, ANOVA and multiple regression. This study is guided by the conceptual framework developed by the researcher based on the review of literature. Findings from this quantitative study will contribute to scholarship on higher education policy analysis as well as to higher education leadership practice. Keywords: policy analysis, excess hours, higher education, transfer student, accountability, efficient degree completion