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Glossary of Academic Terms

Academic Course Load: The number of credit hours in which a student is enrolled during a quarter.
Academic Program: A series of credit courses designed to lead to a degree, diploma or certificate in a field of study or occupation.
Add: The process of increasing an academic course load.
Advanced Placement (AP): A program administered by the College Board through which a student can earn college credit for examinations taken in high school. Click here for a complete AP Key.
Advisor: A university student service professional assigned to facilitate students' successful progress toward a college degree.
Associate Degree: The degree typically awarded by a community or junior college (UC's Raymond Walters & Clermont branches, for example) following the completion of a two-year program of study or approximately ninety credits. Select colleges on the Clifton campus also offer associates degrees.
Audit: The process by which a student can register for a course(s) for a no-grade, no-credit basis. Students should indicate that they will audit a course at the time of registration.
Baccalaureate Degree: An academic program generally of 180+ credits, including completion of the General Education program and course requirements for each major. Programs are designed for a full-time student to complete in four years, provided the student enrolls in and successfully completes 15 credits per regular academic quarter.
Bachelor's Degree: Same as a baccalaureate degree. B.S.= Bachelor of Science degree; B.A.= Bachelor of Arts degree. B.I.S.= Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies.
CAS (Course Applicability System): The Course Applicability System or (CAS) is used to determine course equivalencies between different universities. CAS was designed to provide a Web-based advising system for potential transfer students and University of Cincinnati students taking courses as guests at other institutions. Students should always consult an advisor when planning on transferring coursework to the University of Cincinnati.
Call Number: The 6-digit number that appears after the course number and before the section code as in 15 ENGL 101: 407971. This number identifies the specific course, in this case, English Composition I. This is the number entered into the registration system on Onestop to enroll a student in the class.
Certificate: An academic program generally of around 30 quarter credits. Some certificate programs are designed to provide specialized programs for people who already have diplomas or degrees; others are for people who want to complete a program that leads directly to a specific job quickly.
Course Number: The 3-digit number identifying each Course within a discipline. 15 ENGL 101. In this example, 101 is the course within the Department of English.
College: One of UC's degree-granting administrative units. There are ten undergraduate degree-granting colleges at the Clifton campus.
Co-Requisite: Course or courses that a student is required to take along with another course in which the student is enrolled.
Credit or Credit Hour: Each credit hour is a unit of time during which a class will meet each week during a semester. The number of credit hours for each course usually indicates how much time is spent in the classroom each week.
Cumulative Grade-Point Average (GPA): The weighted mean value of all grade points a student has earned by enrollment in UC courses through any delivery system and at any location or through credit examination.
Curriculum: A prescribed set of courses leading to a degree or certificate.
Dean's List: A recognition of academic excellence. To be on the Dean's List, a UC student must achieve a quarter grade-point average of 3.4 or higher while enrolled in six or more credits per quarter.
Degree Progress Audit (DPA): DARS is an automated degree audit system that reflects the progress a student has made toward the completion of their degree requirements.
Degree Requirements: A list of exact courses, subject areas and credit hours needed to obtain a specific degree or certificate. The College of Arts and Sciences degree requirements can be found at http://www.artsci.uc.edu/collegemain/programs/
Discipline/Subject Code: The 2, 3, or 4-letter abbreviation that appears before the course and section numbers as in 15 ENGL 101. This code identifies the specific department, in this case, English.
Drop: The process of decreasing an academic course load during the beginning of each quarter (deadlines are shortened during summer terms). Courses dropped during this time will not be recorded on the academic record.
Electives: Courses in which a student may enroll that do not fulfill specific requirements, but may count toward the total number of credit hours needed. Students may choose electives depending upon his or her interests and needs. When choosing electives, students should consult their advisor.
Freshman: A student who has completed fewer than 45 posted quarter credits.
Full-Time Student: A student enrolled in twelve or more quarter credits during a quarter.
General Education Program: Courses in liberal arts and sciences that are typically introductory and provide students with general knowledge and reasoning ability rather than specific skills for employment or specialized knowledge required for a major. UC's program consists of six Breadth of Knowledge Requirements and four areas of experience. The courses to be taken for this program depend upon major and student's home college, and should be chosen with the aid of an advisor. Students enrolled in the College of Arts & Sciences may only use the A&S Core Requirements Checklist to fulfill the general education requirements.
Grade Point Average (GPA): Indicates a student's academic progress and status on a 4.0 scale. It is calculated by adding quality points earned and dividing by total number of credits attempted.
Graduate Degree: A degree awarded for education at a level beyond the bachelor's degree. State universities offer graduate certificates, master's degrees and specialist degrees in various professional and liberal arts fields, such as medical or law degrees.
Holds on Student Records: Holds are actions taken by University offices to restrict a student's registration ability or prevent the student from receiving a transcript or diploma. Holds are usually placed for academic, financial, or conduct reasons.
Incomplete Grade (I grade): Instructors use the "I" (Incomplete) when students fail to submit all of required coursework by the end of the quarter. An "I" grade should only be awarded if it is possible for students to complete the work without class attendance. In undergraduate courses, the "I" does not factor into the grade point averages during the quarter immediately after it is awarded. Following that subsequent quarter, the "I" carries zero (0) quality points-treated like the "F" and the "UW." After one (1) year, any "I" remaining on students' records automatically and permanently changes to the "I/F," which carries zero (0) quality points and affects students' GPA like the "F."
Junior: A student who has completed more than 89.5, but fewer than 135 posted quarter credits.
Major: The subject area leading to a degree or certificate in which a student chooses to concentrate his/her academic work.
Master's Degree: An academic degree program of 32 or more quarter credits in courses at the graduate level.
Minor: An academic program generally of 30 credit hours. Minors must be completed before or at the same time that the student earns his or her bachelor's degree.
New Student Bearcat Bound Orientation:: A two-day program during the summer that all new freshmen students are required to attend. At this program, placement tests are administered, crucial information about a student's UC college and its requirements are delivered, and students meet with an advisor to plan and register for classes.
One-Stop: A website focused on student services, where students may go to check e-mail, register for classes, view/pay bill, view grades, check on financial aid, and have other general questions answered. Onestop is also a physical location in University Pavilion where students may go to receive assistance in-person.
Part-Time Student: A student enrolled in fewer than twelve quarter credit hours during a quarter.
Placement Test: Tests taken by all new students at Orientation or at a Quick Start event, generally in English, Mathematics, and a foreign language (if the student took 2 or more years in the same language in high school.) Results of this test are used to place students at the appropriate entry level in each subject.
Pre-Requisite: A course or courses a student must complete before being allowed to register for a more advanced course in the same or related area.
Program of Study: The subject area in which a student chooses to concentrate his/her academic work.
Quality Points: The number of quality hours (for a course) multiplied by the numerical value of the grade earned (A = 4.0 points, B = 3.0 points, etc.). The total number of quality points divided by the total number of quality hours equals a student's cumulative grade point average (GPA).
Quality Hours: Credits earned which affect a student's GPA.
Quarter: One of the three main enrollment periods in an academic year. At UC, the academic year consists of a ten-week fall quarter, a ten-week winter quarter and a ten-week spring quarter. There is also a ten-week summer quarter as well as summer courses that are divided into either two five-week periods or three 3.5 week periods or one full summer period.
Section Code: The 3 digits that appear after the department/subject code and subject number in the schedule of classes, as in 15 ENGL 101 -002. This number refers to the specific day and time that the course is offered. In the case of distance learning courses, section numbers will always begin with a "7" as in section "707."
Senior: A student who has completed more than 134.5 posted quarter credits.
Sophomore: A student who has completed more than 44.5, but fewer than 90 posted quarter credits.
Syllabus: A document provided by an instructor that describes the content, learning objectives and expectations of a course, the grading policy, a list of assignments and due dates, and related information such as the required textbooks and other course materials, the instructor's office hours, contact information, etc.
Transcripts: Written record of a student's academic performance. Students may obtain official and unofficial transcripts by contacting the Registrar.
Transfer Credit: Transfer credit refers to units (hours) of academic credit awarded at a receiving institution in recognition of college level credit earned at a sending institution. Academic institutions operate under a variety of systems (e.g., semester or quarter). Semester hour credit may be converted to quarter hour credit by multiplying by 1.5. (e.g., three semester hour credits will equate to 4.5 quarter hour credits).
Transfer Module: The Transfer Module contains 54-60 quarter hours or 36-40 semester hours of specified course credits in English composition, mathematics, fine arts, humanities, social science, behavioral science, natural science, physical science, and interdisciplinary coursework. A transfer module completed at one college or university will automatically meet the requirements of the transfer module at the receiving institution, once the student is accepted. Students may be required, however, to meet additional general education requirements that are not included in the Transfer Module.
Transfer Student: A student applying for admission to The University of Cincinnati (UC) who has formerly attended another regionally accredited institution of higher learning. A student is also considered a Transfer Student if he/she attended UC after high school, transferred to another school and is returning to UC.
Withdrawal: The process of dropping a course (or courses) after the first 14 calendar days of the quarter. Withdrawing from ALL coursework is referred to as a Complete Withdrawal. When a student withdraws from a course, a grade of "W" (or "F") is assigned. The "W" has no impact on the GPA. The withdrawal deadline is the 58th calendar day of the quarter.