College Terminology

• The Registrar: The official "Record Keeper." This office handles transcripts, enrollment verification, and final grades. (Source: Alfred State/DE Guide)

• Bursar’s Office / Student Accounts: The "Cashier." They handle billing and payments. Even if your district pays your tuition, an unpaid $5 library fine here can "hold" your high school diploma. (Source: Alfred State/DE Guide)

• Financial Aid Office: The office that handles grants, scholarships, and loans. While DE students don't usually get FAFSA yet, this office is where you'll go for help later. (Source: Alfred State)

• Office Hours: "Open Door Time." Specific times when professors are required to be in their office (or on Zoom) to help students. It is expected that you use this time if you have questions! (Source: DE Guide)

• Commuter Student: A student who lives at home and travels to campus for class rather than living in a dorm. (Source: Alfred State)

• Syllabus: The "Academic Contract." A document for each class that lists all deadlines, grading policies, and rules. Professors rarely remind you of dates found here—you must track them yourself. (Source: DE Guide)

• Credit Hour: A unit of measure for college work. Usually, 1 credit hour equals 1 hour in class per week. A 3-credit class usually requires 6–9 hours of study time outside of class. (Source: Alfred State)

• GPA (Grade Point Average) is a number—typically calculated on a 4.0 scale—that represents your overall academic performance by averaging the final grades you've earned throughout high school. Colleges look at this number as one of the most important indicators of your academic consistency and readiness for college-level work. 

• Prerequisite: A "Gatekeeper" course. A class you must pass (like Algebra) before you are allowed to take a more advanced class (like Calculus). (Source: Alfred State)

• Transcript: Your permanent academic record. Every DE grade you earn stays on this document forever and will be seen by every college you apply to in the future. (Source: Alfred State)

• Articulation Agreement: A formal agreement between a high school and a college (or two colleges) that guarantees your credits will transfer. (Source: Alfred State)

• Course Audit: Attending a class to learn the material without receiving a grade or college credit. (Source: Alfred State)

• FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act): The "Privacy Shield." Once you are in a college class, the college legally cannot talk to your parents about your grades without your written permission—even if you are a minor. (Source: DE Guide)

• Add/Drop Period: The "Trial Week." A short window at the very start of the semester, where you can change your schedule without any penalty. (Source: Alfred State)

• Withdrawal (W): The "Emergency Exit." If you are failing a class after the Add/Drop period, you can "Withdraw." You don't get credit, but a "W" on your transcript is much better for your GPA than an "F." (Source: Alfred State/DE Guide)

• Hold: A "Block" on your account. If you owe money or haven't turned in paperwork (like immunization records), the college will put a hold on your account, preventing you from seeing grades or registering for next semester. (Source: Alfred State)

• MATRICULATION: The formal process of entering a college as a candidate for a degree. (Source: Alfred State)

• Professional Judgment: The authority of a financial aid counselor to adjust a student’s aid based on special circumstances (like a change in family income). (Source: Alfred State)

• ACT: The American College Test is a standardized, multiple-choice test widely used in the United States to assess a high school student's academic readiness for college. Core :sections include English, math, and reading.  Optional sections are science and writing.  https://www.act.org/

• CEEB CODE: Also known as the high school code, it is the six digit identification number assigned to a particular high school by the College Entrance Exam Board.  Students need this code for SAT registration, college applications, etc.  Click here to find your CEEB code.

• Common App: This is a standardized, free online platform used by over 1,100 colleges and universities worldwide. It streamlines the college admissions process by allowing students to enter their core information, academic record, and a personal essay just once, and then submit it to multiple schools.

• Community College: Two-year schools that are highly affordable colleges that accept everyone. You can earn a certificate or a two-year degree to either start working immediately or easily transfer to a four-year university.  

• Cost of Attendance (COA): This is the TOTAL cost for the student to go to school, including tuition and fees, room and board, allowances for books and supplies, transportation, and personal and incidental expenses that may arise.

• CSS Profile: The College Scholarship Search Profile is a detailed financial aid application used by mostly private colleges to determine how much of their own money to offer you in grants and scholarships. Think of it as a more in-depth version of the FAFSA that unlocks a college's specific institutional aid.  There is a fee to file this application.

• Early Action (EA): Early Action is a non-binding college admissions plan where you apply and receive your decision months ahead of regular deadlines. Unlike Early Decision, you are not required to attend if accepted and can wait until May 1 to compare financial aid offers from other schools before making your final choice. 

• Early Decisions (ED): Early Decision is a binding college application plan where you apply early and make a firm commitment to attend that specific school if you are accepted. Because of this agreement, you can only apply to one college Early Decision and must withdraw all other applications if admitted. 

• FAFSA: The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the official, free government form you must fill out every year to apply for federal financial aid like grants, work-study programs, and student loans. Colleges and states also use the information on this form to calculate your financial need and determine how much of their own aid to offer you. 

• Financial Aid Package: A financial aid package is the complete collection of financial assistance—including grants, scholarships, work-study, and student loans—that a college offers to help you pay for your education. You will receive this detailed offer after being admitted, giving you a clear picture of what your actual out-of-pocket costs will be for the upcoming school year. 

• Financial Need: Financial Need is the difference between a college’s total cost of attendance and your Student Aid Index (SAI). It represents the exact gap in funding that needs to be covered by financial aid—like grants, scholarships, and loans—for you to afford that specific school. 

• FSA: An FSA ID is a secure username and password that you create to log in to federal student aid websites and electronically sign your FAFSA. You and at least one of your parents will each need to create your own individual FSA ID to successfully complete the financial aid process. 

• Merit-Based Scholarship: A merit-based scholarship is a financial award given to students in recognition of their academic, athletic, artistic, or extracurricular achievements, rather than their family's financial need. These scholarships are offered by colleges and private organizations to reward and attract talented, high-performing students. 

• NCAA Eligibility Center: The NCAA Eligibility Center is the official organization that reviews a high school student-athlete's academic records and amateur status to determine if they are eligible to play Division I or II college sports. Registering with this center is a mandatory step for any high school athlete looking to get recruited and compete at the varsity collegiate level. https://www.ncaa.org/eligibility-center/register/ 

• Need-Based Scholarship: A need-based scholarship is a financial award given to students based on their family's demonstrated financial circumstances rather than their academic, athletic, or artistic achievements. Like all scholarships, this money does not have to be repaid and is designed to make college affordable for students who need assistance covering the cost of attendance. 

• Net Price Calculator: A Net Price Calculator is an online tool required on every college's website that estimates exactly how much your family will pay out-of-pocket for one year of school after subtracting grants and scholarships. You can easily find and compare these calculators for different schools at the U.S. Department of Education's Net Price Calculator Center. 

• Official Test Scores: Official test scores are your standardized test results (like the SAT, ACT, or AP exams) sent directly to a college from the testing agency, rather than unofficial scores you manually type into your application. While some colleges allow you to self-report your scores when you first apply, they will eventually require these verified, official reports to confirm your numbers are accurate before you enroll. 

• PLUS Loans: A PLUS Loan (specifically a Parent PLUS Loan) is a federal loan that parents of dependent undergraduate students can take out to help cover college costs not met by other financial aid. 

• PSAT/NMSQT: The PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) is a standardized exam typically taken in your sophomore or junior year that serves as a practice run for the SAT. If you take it as a junior, your score also acts as the qualifying exam to compete for the prestigious National Merit Scholarship program. Students don't register for the PSAT/NMSQT through the College Board. Schools and districts choose whether and when to offer it. To find out more about the PSAT/NMSQT at your school, contact your school counselor. 

• Reach School: A reach school is a college where your academic profile—like your GPA or test scores—falls below the average range of their recently admitted students, making admission a challenge but not impossible. Highly selective universities with extremely low acceptance rates (like the Ivy League) are also considered reach schools for almost every applicant, regardless of how perfect their grades might be. 

• Rolling Admissions: Rolling admissions is an application process where colleges review applications and send out decisions continuously as they are received, rather than waiting until one big deadline. Because spots and financial aid are handed out on a first-come, first-served basis, applying earlier gives you a much better chance of getting accepted. 

• Safety School: A safety school is a college where your academic credentials—like your GPA and test scores—are well above the average of their admitted students, making your chances of acceptance very high. It is important to include a few of these on your college list to guarantee you have a solid, affordable backup option that you would actually be excited to attend. 

• SAT: The SAT is a standardized, digital exam created by the College Board that tests your reading, writing, and math skills to measure your academic readiness for college. Many colleges use your score as one piece of the puzzle to help make admissions and merit-based scholarship decisions. https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat 

• SUNY: SUNY (State University of New York) is a massive system of 64 public colleges, universities, and community colleges located all across New York State. Because these schools are publicly funded by the state, they typically offer much more affordable tuition rates, especially if you are a New York resident. 

• Student Aid Index (SAI): Student Aid Index (SAI) is a number calculated from your FAFSA data that colleges use to determine your eligibility for financial aid. A lower SAI (which can drop as low as -1500) indicates a higher financial need, helping schools figure out exactly how much federal and institutional aid to offer you. 

• Superscoring: Superscoring is a college admissions policy where a school takes your highest individual section scores from every time you took the SAT or ACT and combines them to create a new, higher overall score. This means the college will only look at your absolute best performance in each subject, even if those scores happened on completely different testing dates. 

• TAP: The Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) is a state-funded grant—most commonly associated with New York—that helps eligible residents pay for tuition at approved colleges within their home state. Because it is a grant rather than a loan, this money does not have to be paid back, making in-state education much more affordable.

• Transcript:  A transcript is your official academic record that details every high school class you have taken, the final grades you earned, and your overall GPA. Colleges consider this document the most important piece of your application because it shows your academic growth, the rigor of your courses, and your consistency over all four years of high school. 

• Wait List: A wait list is an admissions decision in which a college hasn't officially accepted or rejected you but instead places your application on hold. If admitted students decide to enroll elsewhere and the college has empty spots left in its incoming freshman class, it will begin offering those remaining spots to students who accepted a place on the wait list. 

Source: https://www.alfredstate.edu/admissions/admissions-resources/college-terminology