academic advising – academic year – dean
admissions office – career planning – bursar –
bachelor’s degree – associate professor – AP
certification – cashier – doctorate –department
College Terms
course withdrawal – credit by examination
cooperative education – drop/add – instructor
intercollegiate – full time student – electives
financial aid – humanities – financial aid form
greeks – major – registrar – president – minor
president – terminal degree – wait list – thesis
university – rush – fraternity – academic year
David N. Gaudino, Ed. D.
© 1990 All rights reserved
Revised 2010
baccalaueate degree – board plan – humanities
interdisciplinary – school – undergraduate
Academic Advising
The process by which students are provided information on recommended courses,
programs of study, policies and procedures.
Academic Advisor
A member of the college staff (usually in the student’s major) who is assigned by the
school to provide information concerning courses, programs of study, and other aspects
of college life.
Academic Probation
The initial warning given a student whose grade point average drops below a certain
college standard (usually 2.0).
Academic Year
The college or university school year consisting of two 16 week semesters, (usually fall
and spring on a semester system.
Adjunct
A professor or instructor not regularly employed by a college or university on a full time
basis.
Admissions Office
The office where prospective students can receive information and applications for a
college or university.
Advanced Placement
(AP) Credit granted by a college or university for satisfactory scores attained by a high
school student through participation in the nationally standardized program organized by
the College Board.
Assistant Professor
A full time college or university instructor, usually with a doctorate, and less than five
years of college or university teaching experience.
Assistantship
Part-time employment by a university of selected graduate students by academic
departments to assist with teaching and research.
Associate Degree
A two year degree that may be technical or general in nature.
Associate Professor
A full time instructor, usually with a doctorate, and usually having at least five years of
college teaching experience.
Audit
Enrollment in a class for which no grade or credit will be received.
B.A.
Bachelor of Arts Degree – A degree conferred with requirements defined by the
academic department, college unit or university.
Baccalaureate Degree
The first academic degree conferred by a four-year university or college upon completion
of a program of study on the undergraduate level.
Bachelors Degree
(See Baccalaureate Degree)
Bid
The formal invitation for a student to join a social fraternity or sorority.
Board Plan
Food service provided by the college or university. Can be for 10-21 meals per week.
B. S.
Bachelor of Science – a degree conferred with requirements defined by the academic
department, college or university. (usually a four year degree)
Bursar
An officer of the college or university in charge of the university’s cash funds (see also
cashier).
Career Planning
The development of a students curricular and extra-curricular activities in order to
prepare for a vocation.
Certification
Formal licensing of a student in a professional field following completion of a series of
requirements.
Cashier
The university official usually designated to college all university fees.
CLEP
College Level Examination Program – a testing program at the college level administered
by the Educational Testing Service. Successful completion often results in college level
credit.
College
An adademic unit offering curricular programs leading to a baccalaureate or advance
degree.
College Catalogue
A book (or online source) that includes all major information about a college or
university such as: general information, specific requirements for graduation in individual
degrees, and often brief descriptions of specific courses and their prerequisites.
Conditional Admission
Admission to a college or university for students who have not completed all
requirements for formal entry into a college or university.
Cooperative Education
Rotating the student’s academic curriculum with related work experience in the students
area of academic study and career interest.
Core Courses
General education classes required for all studentsin order to fulfill basic educational
requirements (See general educational requirements.)
Course Load
The total number of semester hours for which a student is registered in any semester.
Usually 16-18 semester hours.
Course Withdrawal
Formal dropping of an individual course.
Credit by Examination
Credit earned in selected courses by taking a test of knowledge already possessed
without previous course enrollment.
Credit Hours
Units acquired for completed course work which are applied towards a degree (See
Semester Hours)
Dean
The head of a division, college or school of a university.
Dean’s List
Recognition given to a student who has attained a determined average for at least twelve
hours of course work for a particular semester. (Some requirements vary by college or
university but approximately 3.3-3.5.)
Department
Academic unit within a college or school.
Dependent Student
A student, usually under the age of 23, who is claimed by his or her parent(s) for Federal
Income Tax purposes, receives financial from his or her parents, and lives at home four
weeks per year. (Requirements may vary from state to state and college to college.
Contact individual colleges for further requirements.)
Discipline
A specific area of study.
Dismissal
The process by which a student, whose academic performance indicates little chance of
obtaining the minimum grades for graduation, is dropped by the college or university.
Dissertation
A paper of significant length that describes in depth and detail a graduate student’s
advanced original research in a specific area. This is one of the requirements for
completion of a doctoral program.
Doctorate
The highest degree conferred by a university following advanced graduate study and
research.
Drop/Add
The period or process after general registration by which a student may drop or add a
course.
Dual Major
The pursuit of two or more programs of study for a single degree.
Elective
Courses or programs pursued outside the major, minor and general requirements.
Fellowship
A non-repayable award to an eligible graduate student based on scholastic achievement.
Financial Aid
Monetary assistance for eligible students available in the form of grants, loans, and work
study employment.
Financial Aid Form
The financial aid document submitted by the applicant and his or her parents that supplies
information concerning income, assets, expenses and liabilities. (www.fafsa.ed.gov)
Foreign Student
A student, who is not a citizen of the United States, and has temporarily entered this
country to enroll in an educational institution.
Fraternity
A campus organization (usually exclusively for men) based on mutual interests,
friendships, and assistance.
Freshman
The status of a student who as completed less than ¼ of their requirements for graduation
(usually less than 32 hours).
Full-time student
Any student who is enrolled for more than twelve (sometimes only nine) hours in a
semester. (See individual colleges for exact number.)
General Education Requirements - Courses required of students in all degree programs in order to meet their basic
educational needs. These will probably include at least two courses (depending on
college or university) in English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, the arts and
possibly physical education and/or religion.
Graduate Student
A student who is working toward a degree beyond the bachelors degree for example a
masters or doctorate.
Grant
A non-repayable award to an eligible student based on determined need.
Humanities
The areas of knowledge that include: art, philosophy, history, English, foreign languages
and music.
Identification Card
(ID) A card that is issued for a variety of school purposes that might include access to
buildings, registration, meals, athletic events and social activities.
Independent Study
A program or course that provides the student the flexibility to study in a particular are of
interest for credit and grade
Independent Student
A student, usually over the age of 23, who is not claimed by his or her parent(s) for
Federal Income Tax purposes, and who does not receive financial assistance from his or
her parents, and does not lives at home four weeks per year. (Requirements may vary
from state to state and college to college. Contact individual colleges for further
requirements.)
Individualized Major
An individually designed program of study developed in consultation with college or
university officials.
Instructor
A person usually only employed on a temporary or part-time basis to each classes at the
college level who usually has not obtained a terminal degree in that area.
Intercollegiate
Activities involving two or more colleges or universities.
Interdisciplinary
Course or program of study involving two or more major area of study
Internship
A work experience in a position related to the student’s academic major.
Intramurals
Athletic activities between and among groups on one college campus.
J-Term
A mini-semester on some college campuses located between the fall and spring semesters
when students study one class on an intensive basis for a short period of time. (about 3-4
weeks).
Junior
The status of a student who has completed at least ½ of their requirements for graduation
(usually more than 64 hours)
Liberal Education Requirements – Please see General Educational Requirements
Lower Classman
A term applied to a student who is on the freshman or sophomore level.
Lower Division
Courses usually taken by students in the freshman and sophomore year.
Major
The area of academic study in the student’s area of interest and career path in which a
student takes a special curriculum.
Masters Degree
An academic degree conferred by a university for completion of an advanced program of
study at the graduate level beyond the bachelor’s degree. This usually involves one or
more years of full time study and a research project or thesis.
Minor
An educational program in an area of the student’s interest and possibly career path in
which a student takes a special curriculum, but is not as intensive as a major.
Natural Science
Areas of science that include: physics, chemistry and biology.
Non-Degree
Special status of students taking course work for credit not intended to apply toward a
particular major or program.
Non-Resident
A student, who has not established status as a resident of a state in which he or she is
enrolled in a college or university.
Non-Traditional Program An educational program providing the opportunity for individualized curriculum free
from some traditional requirements.
Non-Traditional Student
An adult student who begins or re-enters college at the age of 23 or older.
Online class
A class in which most or all of the course work is completed off campus and in a web
based format.
Orientation
A program designed to familiarize the new student (and in some cases parents) with a
college or universities facilities, policies and procedures.
Overload
enrollment for class hours in excess of 18 hours during a given semester. This usually
requires a dean’s permission and may require additional fees.
Pass-Fail
A system by which students can take courses for a grade of pass/fail in lieu of a letter
grade.
Pell Award
A non-repayable financial aid award provided by the federal government directly to an
undergraduate student.
Physical Sciences
The natural sciences in the areas of non-living materals such as mineralogy, astronomy,
meteorology, and geology.
Placement
The college or university office that provides job information, career counseling,
professional reference credentials, and an on-campus recruiting.
Pledge
A student who has accepted a bid and is in training prior to initiation into a fraternity or
sorority.
Pre-Professional
Preparation for professional training through undergraduate programs of study. Example:
Pre-Law, Pre-Medicine, Pre-Physical Therapy etc.
Prerequisites
Courses(s) required before enrollment in a more advanced class.
President
The chief administrative officer of a college or university.
Adademic Probation
A warning to a student who fails to maintain an overall grade point average of 2.0 or
better. Failure to improve the average within a specific amount of time results in
dismissal. (See individual college or universities for specific requirements.)
Professor
A full time instructor, almost always with a doctorate or terminal degree in his or her
field of study, and usually with at least ten years of teaching experience.
Program
A plan of academic study.
Quality Points
The number of points assigned to a letter grade to determine an academic average.
Quarter
A school term (about 11 weeks) that is 1/3 of a school year. (Now only used on a small
number of campuses in the US.)
Quarter Hour
Each hour of coursework in a quarter system. . (Now only used on a small number of
campuses in the US.)
Recruitment
Opportunity for students to interview employer representatives on campus.
Registrar
A university official who plans and oversees registration for classes, keeps student
records, and prepares transcripts.
Registration
The process of class enrollment
Requirement
A course or condition that must be fulfilled as a part of a particular program.
ROTC
Reserve Officers Training Corp – A program completed in addition to a student’s general
program of study that leads a student to a commission as an officer in the military
service in addition to receiving their college degree.
Rush
The recruiting time when interested non-members receive information on all fraternities
and sororities on a college campus.
Schedule of classes
A list published each semester giving day(s) times and the place individual classes are
offered. This may also include the name of the instructor.
Scholarship
A non-repayable award to an eligible undergraduate based on academic achievement,
financial need, participation in extra-curricular activities or a combination of these.
School
A term applied to academic units in a particular college or a single academic unit in a
university.
Semester
A school term (usually about 16 weeks) that is one-half of the academic year.
Semester Hour
The unit of credit that is assigned to classes in the semester system. Credits for classes
usually range from 1-6 hours per week with most being three. This usually indicates the
number of classroom hours per week for a normal grading term. For example a three
hour class would meet three hours per week.
Senior
The status of a student who has completed at least ¾ of their requirements for graduation
(usually more than 96 semester hours).
Sequence
Classes that must be completed in a definite order.
Social Sciences
Courses offered relating to a certain aspect of human society such as history, sociology,
psychology, political science, or economics.
Sophomore
The status of a student who has completed at least ¼ of their requirements for graduation.
(usually more than 32 semester hours)
Sorority
A campus organization for women based on mutual interests and friendship.
Studio Classes
Classes where two hours of class time are required each week for one our of class credit
(May also be called performance classes or laboratory classes.)
Study
The amount of time a student must work on a course outside of the classroom in order to
meet minimum course proficiency. This ranges from 1-3 hours per week for each
semester hour of course work.
Teaching Assistant
(TA) A graduate student who is employed to teach classes on a part-time basis.
Terminal Degree
The highest degree that could possibly be conferred in a field of study (Usually a
doctorate.)
Thesis
A paper that describes in depth a graduate student’s advanced research in a specific area.
This is usually a requirement for a Masters Degree.
Transcript
A record of academic coursework at a college or university.
Transfer Student
Any student who decides to attend a college or university other than the one he or she
originally selected to attend.
Transient Student
A student who attends a college or university for a semester and will apply the credits
earned to the school that he or she intends to graduate.
Tutor
A person providing study skills and assistance in a particular subject (At some schools,
these are provided free of charge and at others the fees must be paid by the student.)
Unconditional Admission Admission of a student without deficiencies in any of the admission requirements. The
student is granted full rights and privileges as a student to take all classes on the freshman
level.
Undergraduate
A term applied to freshman, sophomores, juniors and seniors who are working toward a
baccalaureate degree.
University
An educational institution made up of schools and/or colleges that grant degrees at the
bachelors, masters and doctoral level.
Upper Classman
A term applied to a student on the junior or senior level.
Wait List
A list of students who has registered, but not enrolled in a class during pre-registration
because the class has reached its enrollment limit. The student may be added on the first
day fo the class if spaces remain or with teacher permission.
Withdraw
The process where a student officially drops all classes that he or she has registered for
during a semester.
Work Study
A type of financial aid where a student is employed on campus not more than an average
of twenty hours per week to earn money to help pay for educational costs.