-A-

• Academic advisior:

  Member of faculty who helps and advises the student on academic matters. He/She may also assist the student during the registration process.
  
  

• Academic year:

  The period of formal academic instruction, usually extending from September to june. Depending on the instruction, it may be divided into terms of varying lenghts - semester, trimester or quarters.
  
  

• Accreditation:

  Accreditation is the uniquely American process by which colleges and universities (as well as other groups of educational and service institutions) voluntarily establish and enforce criteria for the assessment of the quality of institutions, degree program, and professional certificate programs within certain regions of the country and in certain acaedmic and professional fields. Being "accredited" signifies that the institution or program meets minimum quality standards established by the group. The accreditation process in entirely non-governmental, but it is recognized by the government in several ways. For example, fedreal financial aid is available only to students at accredited institutions.
  
  

• Adjunt Faculty:

  Part time faulty member, ofter at a non-traditional school, and often with a full-time teaching job at another school.
  
  

• Advanced placement:

  Admission to a school, to a higher level than one would normally enter, because of getting credit for prior learning experiences.
  
  

• Alma Matter:

  The school from which one has graduated.
  
  

• Alumni:

  Gradutes of a school, as in "This school has some distingushed alumni". (The word is technically meant for males only, females are "alumnae"). The singular is "alumnus" (male) or "alumna" (female).
  
  

• Alumni Association:

  A confederation of alumni, who have joined together to support their alma mater in various ways, generally by donating money.
  
  

• approved:

  A level of state recognition of one or more specific programs or departments within a school. Generally regarded as one step above "authorized" and one step below "accredited".
  
  

• Arbitration:

  A means of setting disputes, as between students and a school, in which an independent arbitrator, or jude(or a team of them) listens to both sides, and males a decision. A means of avoiding a legal trial. Many learning contracts have a binding arbitration clause.
  
  

• Assistantship:

  A means of assisting students(usually graduate students) financially by offering them part time academic employment, usually in the form of a teaching assistantship or a research assistantship.
  
  

• Associate's Degree:

  A "two year" degree, traditionally awarded by community or junior colleges after two years of residential study, or completion of 60-64 semester hours.
  
  

• Auditing:

  Sitting is a class, with no intension of earning credit for the course.
  
  

• Authorized:

  A form of state recognition of schools, authorizing them to exist, to accept students, and to grant degrees.

  -B-

• Baccalaureate degree:

  The degree of "Bachelor" conferred upon graduates of most US colleges and universities.
  
  

• Bachelor's Degree:

  Degree conferred by an institution of higher learning after the student has accumlated a certain number of undergraduate credits. Usually a bachelor's degree takes four years to earn, and it is a prerequsite for studies in a graduate program.
  
  

• Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral Degrees:

  The bachelor's degree is the most common undergraduate degree, awarded generally after four years of study. Community colleges award the "associate degree" after two years of study. The doctoral programs incorporate requires an additional three to five years of study beyong the master's. Many doctoral programs incorporate the master's degree; that is, students enter the doctoral program directely after receiving their bachelor's degree.
  
  

• Binding Arbitration:

  Arbitration in which both parties have agreed in advanced that they will abide by the results and take no further legal action.
  
  

• Branch Campus:

  A satellite facility, run by officers of the main campus of a collge or university, at another location. Can range from a small office to a full-fledged university certer.

  -C-

• Campus:

  The main facility of a college or university, usually comprising buildings, grounds, dormitories, cefeterias and dining halls, sport stadia, etc. A institution's building, facilities, and grounds make up its campus.
  
  

• Certificate:

  A certificate is a general qualification that is distinguished from a degree. A degree entitles the holder to apply to enter the next level of academic study, whereas a certificate does not. Certificates are often issued to recognize various academic, professional or vocational specialities.
  
  

• Coeducational:

  Education of men and women on the same campus or in the same program.
  
  

• College:

  In the US, an institution offering programs leading to the Associates Bachelors and possible higher degrees.
  
  

• Colloquim:

  A gathering of scholars to discuss a given topic, often over a period of a view hours to a few days.
  
  

• Community college:

  A two-year traditional school, offering, programs leading to the Associate's degree and typically, many non-credit courses in arts, crafts and vocational fields for community members not interested in a degree.
  
  

• Competency:

  The philosphy and practice of awarding credit and degree based on learning skills, rather than time spent in courses.
  
  

• Courses, Classes, and Credit:

  Americans frequently use the word class to mean course. If you are asked what classes you are taking this semester, you should respond with a list of your couses. "Registering for classes" means choosing the courses you intend to take each semester. For each course you complete you will receive a number of credits (generally three or four). A typical four-year undergraduate degree requires 120 credits. Many universities offer noncredit courses for alumni and other interested members of the general public.
  
  

• C.O.P.A.:

  The council on postsecondary Accreditation, one of the two organizations that officially recognizes accrediting agencies.
  
  

• Cramming:

  Intensive preparation for an examination.
  
  

• Credit:

  Units used to record courses taken. Each credit typically represents the number of hours spent in class each week. Hence a 3 credit or 3 unit course might represent a clases that met three hours a week for a quarter or a semester.
  
  

• Curriculum:

  A program or series of courses to be taken in pursuit of a degree or other objective.

  -D-

• Department of Education:

  The national agency concerned with all educational matters not handled by the 50 state department of education.
  
  

• Diploma:

  The certificate that shows that a certain courses of study has been completed. Diploma are awarded for completing degree studies or other, shorter courses of study.
  
  

• Dissertation:

  The major research project normally required as part of the work for a doctorate. Dissertations are expected to make a new, creative contribution to the field of study, or to demonstate one's excellence in the field.
  
  

• Dormitory:

  Student living quarters on residential campuses. May include dining halls and classrooms.

  -E-

• Early Decision:

  Making a decision on whether to admit a student sooner than admission usually made. offered by some schools primarily as either to students applying to several schools, or those who are especially anxious to know the outcome of their application.
  
  

• Electives:

  Courses on does not have to take, but may elect to take, as part of a degree program.
  
  

• Eassay Test:

  An examination in which the student writes narrative sentences as answers to questions, instead of the short answers required by a multiple choice test. Also called a "subjective test".

  -F-

• Faculty:

  In United States, the faculty are the teaching staff of the University (professors, associate and assistant professors, lecturers and instructors). The word is not used to designate parts of the university, as it is in many other countries. The faculty is divided into "departments" according to the academic speciality (e.g., the Department of History).
  
  

• Fellowship:

  A study grant, usually awarded to a graduate student, and usually requiring no work other than usual academic work.
  
  

• Financial aid:

  A term inluding scholarships, loans, fellowships, assistantship, tuition waivers. Many schools have a financial aid officer.
  
  

• Franternities:

  Man's fraternal and social organizations that exist on many larger university campuses, ofter with their own living accomodations. Also, there are professional and scholastic fraternities that are socieites open to man and woman.
  
  

• Freshman:

  The name for the class in the first of four years of traditional study for the Bachelor's degree, and its individual members.
  
  

• Freshman Admission:

  Students appearing to a bachelor degree program, who have not completed post-secondary course work at a college or university, are considered first-time university students or "freshman". Freshman applicants must have completed the primary and secondary education system in their own country or the equivalent in another country. In the United States, students must have completed a twelve-year primary-secondary sequence and have taken the ACT or SAT in order to be eligible for admission.

  -G-

• Grade-point Average, or GPA:

  The most common method of measuring academic performance is by grade-point average, or GPA. At the end of each term, your letter grades (A,B,C,D, and E or F) are converted into numerals (with A equal to 4) and their sum is averaged to determine your GPA for that term.
  
  

• Grades:

  Evaluative scores provided for each course, and often for individual examinations or paper written for that course. There are letter grades(A,B,C,D,E,F) and number grades (percentages 0% - 100% or on a scale of 0-20). Some schools use a pass/fail system with no grades.

  -H-

• Honor Societies:

  Organizations for persons with high grade point average (see GPA) or other evidence of outstanding performance. There are local societies on many campuses, and several national ones.
  
  

• Honor System:

  A system in which student are trusted not to cheat on examinations, and to obey other rules, without proceters or other monitoring their performance.

  -J-

• Junior:

  The name for the class in its third year of a four-year Bachelor's degree degree program or any members of that class.
  
  

• Junior College:

  Another name for community college.

  -L-

  
  
  

• Language Laboratory:

  A room with special audio equipment to facilitate learning languages. Many students can be learning different languages at different skill levels at the same time.
  
  

• Life experience portfolio:

  A comprehensive presentation listing and describing all learning experience in a persons life, with appropriate documentation. The basic document used in assigning academic credit for life experince learning.
  
  

• L.S.A.T.:

  The Lawyers School Admission Test, required by most Law Schools of all applications.

  -M-

• Major:

  The subject or academic department in which a student takes concertrated coursework leading to a speciality.
  
  

• Mentor:

  Faculty member assigned to supervise independent study work at a university.
  
  

• Minor:

  The secondary subject or academic department in which a student takes concentrated coursework.
  
  

• Multiple Choice Test:

  An examination in which the student chooses the best of several alternative answers provided for each question.

  -N-

• Narrative Transcript:

  A transcript issued by school in which, instead of simply listing the courses completed and grades received, there is a narrative description of the work done and the schools rational for awarding credit for that work.
  
  

• Non-Resident:

  (1)

  A means of instruction in which the student does not need to visit the school; all work is done by correspondence, telephone, or exchange of tape or video cassets.
  (2)

  A person who does not meet residency requirements of a given school and as a results, often has to pay a higher tuition or fees. Often out-of-state residents pay 2 - 5 times as much tuition as residents of the state in which a school is located.

  -O-

• Objective Test:

  An examination in which questions requiring a very short answer are posed. It can be multiple choice, true/false, fill in the blank etc. The questions are related to facts rather than opinion.
  
  

• Open Admission:

  An admission policy in which everyone who applies is admitted, on the theory that the ones who are unable to do university work will drop out before long.
  
  

• Out-of-State-Student:

  One from a state other than in which the school is located, because of higher tuition rates for out-of state students, many people to establish legal residence in the same state as their school.

  -P-

• Parallel Instruction:

  A method in which non-resident students do exactly the same work as resident students, during the same general time periods, doing everyting except attending classes.
  
  

• Plan of Study:

  A detail description of the program an application to a school plans to pursue. Many traditional schools ask for this as part of the admissions procedure. The plan of the study should be designed to meet the objectives of the statement of purpose.
  
  

• Prerequisties:

  Course that must be taken before certain other course may be taken. For instance, a course in algebra is often a prerequisite for a course in geometry.
  
  

• Private School:

  A school that is privately owned, rather than operated by a government department.
  
  

• Proctor:

  A person who supervises the taking of an examination to be certain there is no cheating and that otherr rules are followed.
  
  

• Professional School:

  School in which one studies for the various professions, including medical and dental school, law school, nursing school, etc.
  
  

• P.S.A.T.:

  Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test, given annually to high school juniors.
  
  

• Public School:

  A school operated by the government of a city, country, district, state, or the federal government.

  -Q-

• Quarter:

  An academic term of a school on the "quarter system", in which the calender year is divided into four equal quarters. New courses begin each quarter.
  
  

• Quarter Hour:

  An amount of credit earned for each classroom hour spent in a given course during a given quarter. A course that meets four each week for a quarter would probably by worth be worth four quarter hours same as quarter units.

  -R-

• Registrar:

  The official at most universities who is responsible for maintaining student records and in many cases, for verifying and validating applications for admission.
  
  

• Recognized:

  A term used by some schools to indicate approval from some other organization or governmental body. The term usually does not have a precise meaning, and may mean different things in different states.
  
  

• Rolling Admissions:

  A year-round admissions procedure. Many schools admit students once or twice a year. A school with rolling admission considers each application when received and notifies the student as quickly as possible.

  -S-

• S.A.T.:

  Scholastic Aptitude Test, one of the standard tests given to qualify for admission to colleges and university.
  
  

• Semester:

  A school term generally four-five months. School on the semester system will have 2 semester a year, often with a shorter summer session.
  
  

• Semester Hour:

  An Amount of credit earned in a course representing one class room per week for a semester. A class that meets three days a week for one hour would be worth three semester hours. Also called Semister Unit.
  
  

• Senior:

  The fourth year of study of a 4 year traditional Bachelor's degree program, or a members of the senior class.
  
  

• Seminar:

  A form of instruction combining independent research with meetings of small groups of student and a faculty member, generally to report on reading or research, the students have done.
  
  

• Sophomore:

  The second year of study of a 4 - year traditional Bachelor's degree program, or a member of that class.
  
  

• Sorority:

  A women's social organization, often with its own living quarters on or near a campus, and usually indentified with two or three Greek letters, such as Sigma Chi.
  
  

• Special Student:

  A student who is not studying for a degree either because he/she ineligible, or does not wish the degree.
  
  

• Subjective Test:

  An examination in which the answeres are in the form of narrative sentences or long or short essays, often expressing opinions rather than reporting facts.
  
  

• Syllabus:

  A detailed description of a course of study, often including the book to be read, papers to be written, and examinations to be given.

  -T-

• Thesis:

  The major piece of research that is completed by many master's degree candidates. A thesis is expected to show a detailed knowledge of one's field and ability to do research and integrate knowledge of the field.

• Traditional Education:

  Education at a residential school in which the Bachelor's degree is completed through four years of classroom study, the master's in one or two years, and the Doctorate in two - four years.

• Transcript:

  A certified copy of the student's academic record showing courses taken examinations passed, and grades or scores received. A transcript is an authenticated copy of a student's official academic record detailing the courses the student has taken and the grade received in each.

• Transfer Admission:

  Students who have completed post-secondary course work at an accredited community college or university in the United States or at a college or university located outside of the United States are considered "transfer" students.

• Transfer Student:

  A student who has earned credit in one school, and then transfers to another school

• Tution Waiver:

  A form of financial assistance in which the school charges little or no tution.

• Tutor:

  See Mentor. A tutor can also be a hired assistant who helps a student prepare for a given class or examination.

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