In college, you will hear a lot of terms that may be new to you. It is important for you to learn these terms as quickly as possible. The following is a list of commonly used terms and their meanings:
Academic plan: An academic plan lists the courses you need to take and complete in every program of study to graduate with a degree.
Credit hours: Credit hours represent the number of clock hours you spend in each class every week during a term and the number of credits you will earn if you satisfactorily complete a course. A one-credit course generally meets for 50 to 60 minutes once a week.
Degree: The term degree refers to the type of diploma students receive after graduation. Two-year colleges have associate in arts (AA), associate in science (AS), and associate in applied science (AAS) degree programs. They all carry about sixty credits. AA and AS degrees, and some AAS degrees, allow students to transfer to four-year colleges or universities. However, the AAS degree has fewer transferable courses. Most courses in AAS programs focus on training students for a specific profession or career.
General education: General education courses are introductory courses—such as English, math, history, or psychology—that almost every student will have to take in order to earn a degree.
Grade point average (GPA): Your GPA is the average of points you receive based on your grades for each course. Generally, college GPAs range from 0 (F) to 4.0 (A or A+).
Grading criteria: Every syllabus includes grading criteria that show how assignments, tests, papers, exams, or presentations are graded and what percentage of the final grade they each carry. The criteria also show how letter grades (A, B, C, D, F) are calculated: A = 95–100, A– = 90–95, and so on.
Major: A major is an area of study like psychology, engineering, education, or nursing.
Syllabus: A syllabus is a contract between the students and the instructor in each course. Generally, instructors provide the syllabus to their students during the first class session. It includes basic information about the course, the instructor’s expectations, grading criteria, the attendance policy, and a week-by-week plan for the course, and assignments, exams, papers, and projects. Make sure you review the syllabus for every course carefully at the beginning of the term and keep them in your course notebook with other course materials.
Transcript: Your transcript is your academic record; it shows your major, when you took particular courses, your grades for each course, and your overall GPA.
Transfer policies: Transfer policies are rules and regulations about which two-year college courses you can transfer to a four-year college or university. For example, some four-year institutions accept only those courses in which students have earned a grade of C or better.