Higher Education Glossary

See Attendance

Educational process in which a learner and advisor are partners in meeting established learning outcomes, working toward academic success and outlining steps for achieving the learner’s personal, academic and career goals.

Person assigned to help a learner with academic and personal challenges, including referrals to academic support, mental-health counseling and other campus offices. Advisor guides learner in planning coursework from term to term.

Schedule of all events that occur in an academic year; includes dates of course delivery, examination breaks and end of a term.

Publication that informs learners of their rights and responsibilities in their quest to reach an educational goal. Considered a legal document, it includes policies and procedures of an institution and how an institution interacts with a learner academically. Covers admission requirements and courses needed to reach an educational goal, and other topics including residency and academic integrity. To ensure all incoming learners are treated equally, catalog information is updated by catalog year.

Committing, or contributing to, a dishonest act when teaching, learning, doing research or participating in educational activities, as defined by an institution.

Covers many functions, including curriculum management (including syllabi management), catalog management, classroom-space management, class scheduling, credential-audit and completion processing, class registration and institutional and/or program accreditation. Proficient, efficient academic operations contribute to learner success, persistence, and completion.

Corrective measure used when the ratio of grade points to hours falls below the standard required for graduation or when other criteria are not met.

Structured, organized educational curriculum designed to provide a learner with a specific set of knowledge, skills, and qualifications in a particular field of study or academic discipline.

Learner record maintained by an educational agency, institution or party acting on behalf of the agency or institution. Records include, but are not limited to, grades, transcripts, class lists, learner course schedules, etc. Also called educational record.

Academic status of a learner often determined by a set GPA value. Common academic standing statuses include good standing, academic probation, academic dismissal, dean’s list, etc.  Also used to identify if a learner is making progress toward degree objectives.

Official record of a learner’s academic achievements; currently the predominant U.S. secondary- and postsecondary-education official document used to transmit  completed coursework and the degree or certificate awarded.

Period of formal instruction that represents a complete school year at the same institution. May be divided into semesters, trimesters, quarters or other calendars. Term may be different from financial-aid year or fiscal year. Also see 34 CFR Subtitle B Chapter 6 § 668.3 (a).

Full academic-year schedule that is available when registration for a fall term opens; class schedules for each term are generated once a year.

Evaluation of the caliber of a higher-education institution and its programs. Within the United States, accreditation serves as a method through which learners, families, government authorities and the media may ascertain the quality of an education provided by a particular institution or program.

Organization that establishes criteria for judging the quality of training, educational programs and education offered by educational institutions. Determines the extent to which institutions meet these criteria and issues a list of institutions, courses or educational programs found to be of acceptable quality. Members voluntarily meet membership criteria, as defined by the accrediting organization. Recognized accrediting agencies and associations are reliable authorities on the quality of training, programs and education offered by an educational institution. An institution’s accredited status governs in a large measure the acceptability of its credits by other institutions. Accreditors are either recognized or unrecognized. Recognition is granted by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and/or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). Accreditors recognized by ED can serve as a link to Title IV federal student financial aid for institutions they accredit.

Agency’s or association’s accepted qualitative and quantitative standards of excellence by which it evaluates the quality of education and/or training offered by an institution. Determines whether an institution merits accreditation. May include educational objectives and outcomes, educational program, admission practices, learner-support services, institutional study, training and experience of instructional staff, financial stability, and laboratory and library resources.

Action taken by institution officers or agencies responsible for handling disciplinary violations, after consideration of the disciplinary problem; includes counseling and penalties.

Comprehensive set of standards and procedures used by an educational institution to evaluate and select candidates for enrollment. Criteria form the basis for making informed decisions on learner admissions, ensuring alignment with an institution’s goals and capacity, and encompass:

• established practices outlined in the admission policy that evaluates an institution’s program nature, purpose and available resources

• specific requirements that reflect and implement the admission policy, including educational qualifications, place of residence and other predetermined standards

• evaluation of admission records, which includes all relevant information used in the admission procedure, with particular emphasis on a candidate’s complete, accurate previous academic work

Interview may be used in the selective-admission process; considered significant for use in borderline cases or competitive programs.

Nonbinding admissions process allowing a learner to apply early and to receive an admission decision sooner than a regular admission timeline. Does not require a learner, if accepted, to commit to attending an institution, allowing them to consider all options before making a final decision. Also see Admissions, Early Decision.

Admissions process in which a learner applies to an institution in advance of the regular admission cycle and agrees to attend the institution, if admitted. Binding in nature. If a learner is admitted, they must withdraw all other college applications and commit to attending the institution.

Exercise of discretionary powers of selection by an institution of higher education. Selection is based on merit as determined by the college, rather than order of application. It is competitive and limited to those who are believed to be best qualified to benefit from the educational opportunities available.

Percentage of learners granted admission who do not matriculate.

Process in which a learner is accepted into a specific academic program contingent upon meeting additional, program-specific criteria beyond an institution’s general-admission requirements.

Any organized program of education that seeks to provide an adult learner opportunities to further their education, regardless of previous educational attainment through formal and informal group leadership. U.S. Department of Education’s adult-education category refers to learners taking courses other than college-grade courses on campus or at a branch campus.

Learner who may have to balance life, work and education. Typically age 25 and older; may care for dependents and/or work full time while enrolled. Often connected to the military. Also called Posttraditional learner. (source ACE)

Program sponsored by College Board in which learners take college-level courses at their high school before graduation. Learners may earn college credit by obtaining a minimum score on an AP exam in the course subject, as determined by an individual college.

(see Incremental Credentials)

Process by which institutions of higher education recognize and transfer academic credits earned by a learner from one institution to another. Designed to ensure credits earned at one institution are accepted by another institution; may be applied toward a degree or program at another institution without unnecessary duplication or loss of credits.

Awarded to graduate and advanced professional learners in recognition of competence and promise. Individuals usually have specified obligations to their major department in return for tuition remission and/or a stipend.

Learner’s engagement and participation in a class. The U.S. Department of Education requires learners receiving Title IV federal financial-aid funds attend classes during the period for which they receive aid, resulting in institutions establishing ways to verify attendance. This can include physical presence in a scheduled class or regular, substantive interaction between a learner and instructor in online or distance-education courses.

Measure of scholastic success obtained by dividing the total number of grade points by the total number of hours of coursework completed.

See Degree, Bachelor’s.

Online visual representation that recognizes skills, achievements, membership affiliation, and participation.

Learner is enrolled in a fixed set of courses, with a specific number of credits.

See Campus, Branch.

See Catalog

Campus away from the educational institution’s main campus. Also see 34 CFR Subtitle B Chapter 6 § 600.2

A measure of the amount of time a student has studied a subject. (Also see Credit Hour and the Carnegie Foundation)

See Academic Catalog.

See Course Number.

Date established each term when an official enrollment count is recorded by an institution. Often tied to refund deadlines and/or financial-aid eligibility.

Official document indicating completion of purposefully collected coursework to signify understanding of a subject or topic. May also focus on confirming acquisition of specific skills.

Official document issued by state departments of education on the basis of evidence a person has completed the equivalent of a high-school course; accepted by some colleges in lieu of the regular high-school diploma. Also called General Education Development (GED).

Process in which an educational institution or recognized certifying body validates a learner has attained a specific level of skill or knowledge in a particular field or discipline.

Course from an academic catalog built into a class schedule; available for registration for a particular term. May be offered several times each term. Sometimes called a section.

Saving a specific space in a specific class with a specific instructor.

Learner’s status in respect to progress toward completion of their curriculum–freshman, sophomore, junior, senior. Usually based on the number of hours or courses completed at the time of registration. Some colleges add a scholarship requirement for advancement to another class. Classification may be for extracurricular, as well as academic, purposes.

Practice of accounting for all details needed to offer classes to learners in a term to ensure timely progression of a learner to meet educational goal(s).

Inventory of instructional space and capacity, layout, technology and ownership. Data are used by institutions to manage assignment of classes to spaces that match the requirements of the class in size, configuration and resources Class-schedule building Practice of accounting for all details needed to offer classes to learners in a term to ensure timely progression of a learner to meet educational goal(s).

In unit-cost studies, represents one hour of instruction given to one learner. Class periods of from 50 to 60 minutes usually count as one clock-hour. Also see IPEDS definition.

Graduation ceremony. See Graduation.

Committee that establishes policies and makes decisions on questions relating to the academic status of learners, including asking questions about awarding degrees and the imposition of academic discipline.

Specific, measurable skill, knowledge, ability or capacity learner is expected to acquire and demonstrate as part of their academic program.

Inclusive of all administrative procedures used to assert a learner has fulfilled all institutional academic and administrative requirements for the credential sought.

Secure, verifiable learning or employment records supporting academic and workplace recognition and achievements, including courses, competencies, skills and employer-based achievements and milestones. (source: 1EdTech)

1. Learner is enrolled in multiple postsecondary institutions at the same time
2. Learner receives both high school and college credit when enrolled in courses taught by college-approved high-school teachers in a secondary environment through partnerships between high schools and colleges or universities, (source NACEP also called dual credit, dual enrollment, concurrent credit and coenrollment;
3. High-school learner independently enrolled in a postsecondary institution while also enrolled in high school; does not receive credit toward high-school graduation requirements from the postsecondary enrollment.

Faculty’s opinion and advice are sought, but authority remains with senior administration and board of trustees. Model revolves around information sharing and discussion, rather than joint decision making. One of three models of decision making used in shared governance in higher education.

Standardized measure used in the United States and Canada to quantify and record noncredit continuing-education and professional-development activities. Typically awarded to individuals who complete specific educational programs, workshops, seminars or training courses designed to enhance skills, knowledge and competence in a particular field or profession.

Provides for integration of classroom work and practical experience through alternate attendance at class and employment in business, industry or government. Also called Work-Study Plan or Work-Study Program. This is not the same as Federal Work Study.

Course, such as a lab or lecture, taken concurrently with another course; provides supplementary instruction or support to enhance a learner’s understanding of the primary course material.

Course provided by an institution in which instructional materials are provided to learner by mail or electronic transmission, including examinations. Interaction between instructors and learners is limited, not regular and substantive, and primarily initiated by the learner. If a course is part correspondence/part residential training, it is considered a correspondence-education course. A correspondence education course is not distance education. (Source Higher Learning Commission) Also see Distance Education.

Academic program in which 50% or more of required courses may be taken as correspondence-education courses.

Organized subject matter in which instruction is offered within a given period of time; credit toward graduation or certification is usually awarded after completion.

Resides at the academic-catalog level and includes various types of information, such as title, level, description, course-learning outcomes/performance objectives, pre- and corequisites, type, etc.

Indicates class level of a course. Same as catalog number.

Preliminary requirement that must be met before a particular course can be taken.

Retaking a course to make up a failing mark, raise a grade or obtain additional knowledge of a subject. In some instances, a course repeat requires permission.

Descriptive name of a course; usually gives a general idea of course content.

Course-specific, measurable statements that define what learners are expected to know, or be able to demonstrate, upon successful completion of a particular course.

Enrollment in a course for no academic credit or assigned grade; has no impact on GPA. Audited courses cannot be used to complete degree requirements.

See Corequisite.

Enrollment in a course is limited to learners who meet a standard of academic achievement or who are admitted with permission of the institution. Courses normally have smaller enrollment to encourage active engagement with the instructor and other learners. Courses often include higher expectations of projects and/or analysis of a subject to demonstrate mastery beyond the commonly offered version of the course.

Not part of a curriculum pattern; no credit is granted for taking the course.

No-grade course in which pass or credit, or not-pass is given; generally not considered in the computation of learner’s grade-point average.

See Prerequisite

Course provided by an institution to help admitted learners acquire necessary academic skills for college-level coursework. Often addresses foundational knowledge and skill gaps in mathematics, reading and writing. Institutional credit toward credential completion is not usually offered for these courses.

Documentation confirming a learner’s qualifications, abilities or authority. Provided by a trusted third party, such as a college or university, with authority or accepted competence to issue the document. Term encompasses many different assertions of learning, including educational degrees, educational certificates, badges, certifications, licenses, microcredentials, nanodegrees and credit or noncredit certificates.

Notes:See also Digital Credential and Incremental Credential

Inclusive of the systemic, ongoing review of a learner’s completed academic progress toward a credential. Can be used by the administration, faculty, academic advisors and/or learners.

Credit granted for satisfying course requirements by written or oral examination without a learner having been formally enrolled in the course.

When a learner transfers from one institution to another, earned credit may need to be evaluated at the new institution. A conversion equivalency exists and is used as follows.

• Quarter hours multiplied by 2/3 = semester hours
• Semester hours multiplied by 1½ = quarter hours
• Session hours or year hours multiplied by 2 = semester hours
• Session hours or year hours multiplied by 3 = quarter hours
• Term hours multiplied by number of weeks in term over 18 = semester hours
• Term hours multiplied by number of weeks in term over 12 = quarter hours

Allows individuals to earn academic credit for knowledge or skills gained outside traditional classroom settings, such as through work, military experience or independent study. Learners can demonstrate knowledge through assessments, such as exams or portfolio evaluations, to receive credit toward a degree. Also called prior-learning assessment (PLA).

Amount of learner work defined by an institution, as approved by the institution’s accrediting agency or state-approval agency; consistent with commonly accepted practice in postsecondary education. In determining the amount of work associated with a credit hour, institutions can take into account a variety of delivery methods, measurements of learner work, academic calendars, disciplines and degree levels. (34 C  Sec. 600.2) Reasonably approximates not less than the following.

• 1 hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of 2 hours of out-of-class learner work each week for approximately 15 weeks for one semester or one trimester hour of credit, or 10 to 12 weeks for one quarter hour of credit, or the equivalent amount of work over a different period of time
• at least an equivalent amount of work as required in paragraph above for other academic activities as established by the institution, including laboratory work, internships, practica, studio work and other academic work leading to the award of credit hours

See Credit for Prior Learning (CPL).

Academic credit earned by a learner through courses completed at the institution in which they are enrolled. Typically requires physical presence on campus or participation in institution-led learning activities or programs.

Credit accepted from another higher-education institution for application toward a credential.

Sequence of planned experiences, usually consisting of courses offered by an educational institution in which learners practice and achieve proficiency in content and applied learning skills.

Process of planning, implementing and evaluating an educational curriculum. Includes the design, development, organization and supervision of content, materials and activities of an educational program. Aims to ensure curriculum aligns with institutional and accrediting-body requirements and objectives.

Process of removing part of the curriculum from an institution. Process is complex and involves decision making, a teachout process and final-closeout process.

Academic honor acknowledging a learner’s academic achievement. Awarded to learners who achieve high grades during a specific term or academic year. Criteria for making the list typically include maintaining a certain grade-point average (GPA) and completing a minimum number of credit hours.

Learner fails to complete a course with a satisfactory grade.

Deficiency may be removed in various ways. Accomplished by completing a course in a secondary school, taking noncredit courses on campus, doing extra work in the field of the deficiency in addition to the usual degree requirements (3 semester hours of credit is the equivalent to 1 secondary unit, for example), completing courses in correspondence, extension or summer school, attaining a specified level of scholarship that automatically cancels the deficiency, demonstrating competence in the area of deficiency in some other manner recognized by the institution or by examination.

Academic credential or qualification awarded to a learner who has successfully completed a specified course of study in a particular field or discipline. Categorized into different levels and types, each with its own requirements and academic focus. In the United States, the common degrees awarded in higher education include, but are not limited to, associate, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and professional degrees. See IPEDS definitions for specific credential levels  https://academicprograms.uic.edu/resources/ipeds/

See Credential Audit.

Awarded to learners at the conclusion of their studies who have proved unusual achievement in a major field of interest.

Post-baccalaureate academic degree, such as a master’s, doctorate or professional degree; typically requires specialized knowledge and/or research in a specific field of st

Award conferred on an individual who has made profound, lasting contributions but has not completed formal academic requirements. Typically a doctoral or master’s degree.

Academic department registers a learner in some, or all, courses, rather than the learner registering themself.

(See also Credential and Incremental Credential) An electronic representation of an earned skill or achievement. They can be embedded with metadata which make them verifiable, portable, and electronically sharable.