Back to College Glossary
Posted by
Jess Lyon on Thu, Feb 09, 2012 @ 01:37 PM
Going back to college in CT? Confused by all the education jargon? See below for a short list of most commonly used college terms.
Accreditation: The goal of accreditation is to ensure that education provided by institutions of higher education meets acceptable levels of quality. Accrediting agencies, which are private educational associations of regional or national scope, develop evaluation criteria and conduct peer evaluations to assess whether or not those criteria are met. Institutions and/or programs that request an agency's evaluation and that meet an agency's criteria are then "accredited" by that agency.
Accuplacer: A mandatory assessment for those without any college credit that evaluates math, English and reading skills and used by academic advisors to determine course selection.
Add and Drop: The process of changing a course schedule by dropping or adding a course during the prescribed time at the beginning of each semester.
Adviser: Faculty or staff member who can provide information and assistance on academic schedules and concerns.
Associates: An undergraduate degree awarded by a college or university upon successful completion of a program of study, usually requiring two years of full-time study. An associates is typically awarded by community colleges; it may be a career or technical degree, or it may be a transfer degree, allowing students to transfer those credits to a four-year bachelor’s degree-granting school.
Bachelors: An undergraduate degree awarded by a college or university upon successful completion of a program of study, typically requiring at least four years (or the equivalent) of full-time study. Common degree types include Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B.), which refers to the liberal arts, and Bachelor of Science (B.S.).
Course: A regularly scheduled class on a particular subject. Each college or university offers degree programs that consist of a specific number of required and elective courses.
Credits: Units that a school uses to indicate that a student has completed and passed courses that are required for a degree. Each school defines the total number and types of credits necessary for degree completion, with every course being assigned a value in terms of "credits," "credit hours," or "units."
Curriculum: A program of study made up of a set of courses offered by a school.
Electives: Courses that students can choose to take for credit toward a degree, but are not required.
Grants: Financial assistance that does not require repayment.
Incomplete: The grade assigned only if a student is temporarily unable to complete course requirements because of unusual circumstances.
Loans: Financial assistance that must be repaid.
Masters: A graduate degree awarded by a college or university upon successful completion of an advanced program of study, typically requiring one or two years of full-time study beyond the bachelor’s degree. Common degree types include Master of Arts (M.A.), which refers to the liberal arts; Master of Science (M.S.); and Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.).
Prerequisite: A course that must be taken prior to enrollment in another course.
Scholarships: Financial assistance based on merit; do not require repayment.
Syllabus: The outline or guide that a professor gives a student on the first day of class so the student knows exactly what is required in the class and what it takes to achieve a specific grade.
Transcript: This is the official document containing the record of a student’s academic performance and testing history. The transcript must be issued by the school at which a student is or has been officially enrolled and should be certified by the signature of an authorized school administrator. The school’s official seal or watermarked school stationery may also be used to authenticate the transcript.
Transfer Credit: Academic credit earned at another accredited institution and accepted toward a degree.
Withdrawal: When a student decides to permanently leave a course.
Work-study program: A federal financial aid program that allows students to work on campus.
Do you have any more terms to add?
