UNIVERSITY GLOSSARY
ACT - (originally American College Testing) - standardized test in
English, Math, Reading, Science (and optional Writing Skills) used
for U.S. college admissions; one of the only standardized
nationwide tests in the U.S.
College - A four-year post-secondary school that usually does not
have many graduate students. Most schools are not specialized but
have many subjects one can study, often leading to a Bachelor of
Arts or Bachelor of Science degree, depending on the subject. This
is sometimes referred to as a Liberal Arts College (LAC) or Small
Liberal Arts College (SLAC- usually fewer than 2000 students)
Common Application - called the Common App, a computer-based
application form used for undergraduate admissions by hundreds of
colleges and universities. Only schools that evaluate applications
holistically use the common application; that is, the admissions staff
must take into consideration factors such as letters of
recommendation and the application essay. If a college bases
admission solely on GPA and test scores, it does not use the
Common Application. Most but not all top private colleges and
universities use the Common App. Many state universities do not
use it.
Common Application Supplement - additional questions or
information that must be provided when using the Common App to
apply to a particular college. This is most often in the form of
additional essay questions for a college.
Core Curriculum - a specific set of classes that all students at a
college must take.
Deferred (Deferral) - When a student applies early decision, early
action, or single choice early action, the college will usually respond
by December 15th. At that time, a student's application may
accepted, rejected, or deferred. A deferral means that the
application will be considered again with all the other applications
between December and March and the school will respond by April
1st with an acceptance, a rejection or a waitlist.
Distribution Requirements - Categories of courses that students
must fulfill at a college. For example, students may have to take
one math course, one language course, one social science course,
etc. of their choice. This is in addition to the course requirements to
fulfill a major.
Early action (EA) - is an accelerated college application process in
which students typically must complete their applications by
November 1st. In most cases, students will then receive a decision
from the college by mid-December. Early action is NOT BINDING.
Colleges generally have EITHER early decision or early action. In
general, early action is a more attractive option than early decision.
Some reasons to consider early action include:
At many colleges, the acceptance rates are higher for early action
than for regular admission. Students who are not accepted early
but are deferred are still considered for admission with the regular
admission pool. Early action is not binding - students are free to
apply to other colleges.
Students can apply early action to other colleges. Although
students receive early notification of an acceptance, they do not
need to make a decision until the usual May 1 deadline. This allows
time to figure out financial aid.
Even if accepted early, a student can choose to go to a different
college with no penalty.
You must let the school know by May 1st if you are going to attend
or not.
Early Decision (ED) - an accelerated college application process in
which students typically must submit their applications by
November 1st. Early decision is a way of demonstrating to the
college that their school is a student's first choice and that, if
accepted, he or she will definitely attend. In most cases, students
will receive a decision from the college by mid-December. Early
decision is BINDING. If admitted, a student must attend the school
the following September (barring financial issues). A student may
apply to only one college early (although additional applications for
regular admissions are allowed).
If accepted, a student must withdraw all other pending college
applications.
Frequently the acceptance rate is higher for early decision than it is
for regular admissions. This is due in part to the fact that legacies
and recruited athletes are more likely to apply early decision and
they tend to have a higher acceptance rate. Also, colleges are
interested in accepting qualified students who they know will
definitely attend the school.
Students who aren't accepted early but are deferred are still
considered with the regular applicant pool (see Deferred) and will
have the final response in April.
Students who are accepted early decision are finished with the
college process in December of senior year.
Financial Aid - A combination of grants and loans that may be
given by a college based on the financial need of a student's family.
Financial aid generally varies from year to year, based on the
family's previous year's income, expenses and assets.
Financial Need - a calculation based on a family's income and
assets to determine potential grants and/or loans for a student's
education given by the college or government.
Fraternity - a male social organization at a college.
Grant - a scholarship given by a college or other organization;
these funds do not have to be paid back. A grant may be given for
financial need or other reasons (merit, athletic...).
Greek Life - Fraternities and sororities
Hook - a particular characteristic of an applicant that makes
him/her especially interesting to a college. Hooks include: legacy,
under-represented minorities, recruited athletes, first generation
college, large donor family, child of celebrity or high-level politician,
nationality from under-represented country (or state).
Legacy - applicant whose parents or grandparent graduated from
the college (they are alumni). Having siblings who attended the
college does not constitute legacy.
Merit Scholarship - a grant from a college based on the strong
academic history of the student. This scholarship is not financial
need-based; it is given as a "reward" for strong grades and as an
incentive to attend the college.
Need Blind - A college does not take into account a student's
financial aid needs when making their application decisions.
Oxbridge - (UK) The combined term for Oxford and Cambridge
universities
Peer Review - for some colleges, an additional essay that must be
written by a PEER of the applicant; a sibling or friend, not an adult,
discussing the applicant.
Personal Statement - (UK) a statement submitted by the student
with his/her application for UK university focusing on:
- why you want to study a particular subject
- how you are right for the course
- what related work or reading you've done outside the classroom
- how it's relevant to your course
- how this relates to your chosen career path or long-term plan
- etc.
Post-secondary School - college or university (after high school).
Prépa - (FR) Classe préparatoire; a two-year post-lycée program
leading to a nation-wide competitive examination into a "Grande
école." May be in sciences, math, humanities, economics, etc.
Recruited Athlete - being invited to join a specific college's
athletic team during the application process; a coach's interest in
the athlete may help the student gain acceptance into the college.
Rolling admission, an application process that typically opens up
in the early fall, and may continue right through the summer, giving
students a large window in which to apply. Rolling admission is
more common in state universities than in private colleges.
Unlike a regular admission process with a firm application deadline,
rolling admission applicants are often notified of their acceptance or
rejection within a few weeks of applying. A college with rolling
admission typically accepts applications for as long as spaces are
available.
Applicants should realize, however, that it is a mistake to view
rolling admission as an excuse to put off the application process. In
many cases, applying early improves an applicant's chance of being
accepted. Also, while there may be no application deadline, there
typically are deadlines for scholarships, financial aid and housing. A
late application may make it impossible to get any decent financial
aid.
Rolling admission can offer a student several perks:
Applicants may receive a decision long before the March or April
notification period of regular admission colleges. Applying early can
improve an applicant's chance of being accepted. Applying early
may improve an applicant's chance of receiving a scholarship.
Applying early may give an applicant first choice for housing.
Some rolling admission colleges still give students until May 1 to
make a decision; this allows an applicant to weigh all options. A
student who applies early and is rejected may still have time to
apply to other colleges with winter deadlines.
Rolling admission colleges may remain an option if a student gets
rejected elsewhere; some rolling admission colleges accept
applications right up until classes start
Rush (Rushing) - the process of applying to join a fraternity or
sorority
SAT - (originally the Scholastic Aptitude Test) - standardized test in
Critical Reading and Math (and optional Writing Skills) widely used
for U.S. college admissions; one of the only standardized
nationwide tests in the U.S.
Secondary School - high school, lycée
Single-Choice Early Action - These admission programs
incorporate some features of both EA and ED. The result is a policy
that is less restrictive than Early Decision, but more restrictive than
Early Action.
Defining Features of Single-Choice Early Action:
Applicants must have their applications completed early, usually by
November 1st. Applicants will receive an admissions decision early,
usually in mid-December. As with Early Decision, applicants can
apply to just one school through an early admission program.
Applicants can apply to other colleges through their non-binding
regular admission programs or rolling admission programs. Also,
applicants are typically allowed to apply to any public universities
and non-U.S. institutions as long as admission decisions are nonbinding.
Like Early Action, Single-Choice Early Action applicants have until
May 1st to make a decision. This allows applicants to compare
offers of admission and financial aid packages from other colleges.
Like Early Action, Single-Choice Early Action admission decisions are
non-binding. You do not need to attend the school if admitted. If
accepted, you must let the school know by May 1st if you will
attend or not.
Sorority - a female social organization at a college
UCAS - (UK) Universities and Colleges Admissions Service; the
organization by which students learn about UK universities and
subjects; the UCAS system is then how students apply to most UK
universities (excluding, notably, Oxford and Cambridge).
University - A school that comprises a four-year college as well as
graduate schools.
Wait list - the college will determine how many of the accepted
students decide to attend the school. If there are still places
available, they may offer a spot to someone who is on the waitlist.
If waitlisted, you must let the school know if you want to remain on
the waitlist and still be considered for a spot at the school if one
becomes available.
Yield - The percentage of accepted students who decide to
matriculate at a school (for example, if 2000 are accepted and 1400
decide to attend, the yield is 70%)