Column One has the term, column two has the definition.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Academic Advisor | Academic advisors assist students in defining and reaching their academic and career goals. All degree-seeking, undergraduate students are assigned to an academic advisor. Once the academic department assigns an academic advisor to an incoming student, then the student should contact that advisor to arrange an advising appointment. Undeclared students and freshmen will be assigned an advisor from the Academic Achievement Center (AAC). Double majors will have two advisors and are required to meet with both. The student must meet with their academic advisor each semester before registering for classes. After this advising meeting, the advisor will remove the advisor hold and the student can register for classes. |
| Academic Affairs | The Office of Academic Affairs is responsible for all academic programs and services of the college. They coordinate the planning of new degree programs, hiring and evaluation of faculty, and ensuring an effective learning environment. |
| Academic Program | A program of study, usually involving theoretical knowledge and research, and usually leading to a diploma, certificate, associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s doctor’s or first professional degree. |
| Admissions | Being accepted into an institution, college, or program once the entrance requirements are met. Some admissions are limited by spaces available, and by selection criteria. |
| Advanced Placement Courses (AP) | College-level courses taught in high school. Students may take an examination at the completion of the course; acceptable scores allow students to earn college credit. BSU will accept a score of 3 or higher for AP coursework. |
| Application | The formal way of notifying Bridgewater State University that you want to be a student there. Students are encouraged to use the online transfer application found on the web site for the Office of Admissions or Transfer Central. |
| Applied Degree | A degree in an applied subject such as allied health and computer information systems. Applied degrees are career focused and coursework is directed at occupational training and development. |
| Articulation Agreement | The process of developing a formal, written agreement that identifies a course or a group of courses offered on a "sending" campus that are comparable to, or acceptable in lieu of, specific course requirements at a "receiving" campus. Successful completion of an articulated course assures the student and the faculty that the student has taken the appropriate course, received the necessary instruction and preparation, and that similar outcomes can be assured, enabling progression to the next level of instruction at the receiving institution. |
| Associate’s Degree | A degree that normally requires at least 2 but less than 4 years of full-time equivalent of college work. |
| Bachelor’s Degree | A degree that normally requires at least 4 but not more than 5 years of full-time equivalent college-level work. |
| Basis of Admission | The evidence, primarily academic, on which your admission decision is based, e.g., high school record, college credits and GPA, etc. |
| B.E.A.R.S. (Bridgewater Equivalency and Articulation Report Systems) | B.E.A.R.S. displays courses that have previously been established as equivalent coursework from another institution. Courses not found in this database may be transferable and will be considered upon a student's application and admission to Bridgewater State University. B.E.A.R.S. is for reference only. Bridgewater State University course equivalents are subject to change upon official evaluation by the Bridgewater State University Office of Admissions. The inclusion or exclusion of courses from this program does not reflect on the acceptability of the courses to Bridgewater State University. |
| Catalog | The book of rules, regulations, policies, programs, requirements, and courses produced annually by the University. |
| Certificate | Recognition of successful completion of a program of study, of varying lengths, often less than one year. |
| Chairperson | The head of a program or department. “Department Head” is sometimes used synonymously with “Chair.” |
| Co-op/Internship | The system of having paid (coop) or unpaid (internship) work placements, usually four to eight months, as a component of a program of study with earned college credit. |
| Core Curriculum | Developed to serve as the educational foundation that all Bridgewater State University students will build on to complete their program of study. The Core Curriculum features a skills-centered, outcomes based distribution model of general education that allows students a wide choice of courses and the flexibility to integrate the requirements of their major with the broader, liberal education that is required of responsible citizens of the 21st century. |
| Credit | The value given to a course. May be related to the number of hours of instruction. The majority of academic courses are worth three credits. Associate degrees generally require 60 or more credits and bachelor’s degrees require 120 or more credits. Bridgewater State University requires 120 credits. |
| Dean | Head of a division or college. For example, the Dean of the College of Education & Health Sciences. |
| Degree Audit | The printout, available on InfoBear, provides you with information that the college believes to be correct about your credits earned, grade point average (GPA), courses you have taken, grades you have earned, and courses you still need to complete. You should look it over to make sure that the information is accurate. |
| Department | Faculty and administrators associated with a particular discipline or program (e.g. the Sociology Department). |
| Developmental Coursework | Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular post-secondary curriculum and educational setting. |
| Diploma | Recognition of successful completion of a program of study, usually one year in length. |
| Dipping (Double/Triple Dipping) | Applying one course to fulfill multiple college and major requirements. |
| Double Major | The double major allows a student to complete all the requirements to simultaneously earn a major in two fields. Students completing a double major receive one diploma which will be reflected on their final transcript. A minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or higher in the student’s major(s) is required for graduation. The social work major requires a minimum major GPA of 2.5 for graduation. |
| Dual Enrollment | A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school. Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate. |
| Earned Credit Hours | Earned Hours are determined by considering all transferable credit hours from accredited institutions as well as any coursework successfully completed at BSU. |
| Elective Credit | Courses taken at another institution that do not have a specific equivalent course at Bridgewater State University. These courses are identified on a transcript as 1XX, 2XX, 3XX or 4XX. |
| Exemption | The waiving of a prerequisite or required course for students who have proven they have comparable learning. The student may be required to replace the exempted course with an alternate. |
| Financial Aid | Grants, loans, assistantships, scholarships, fellowships, tuition waivers, tuition discounts, veteran's benefits, employer aid (tuition reimbursement) and other monies (other than from relatives/friends) provided to students to meet expenses. |
| GPA or Grade Point Average | The average overall grade for all courses taken for credit in a particular semester, year or institution. A cumulative GPA is the average of all grades for courses taken to date at one institution. |
| InfoBear | The on-line information resource tool for students at Bridgewater State University. InfoBear cannot be accessed without a Banner ID number. InfoBear lets you register, drop or add a course, check your transcript, find out about financial aid, pay bills online and even check your grades. |
| Independent Institution | A post-secondary institution supported by private funds, rather than state funds. |
| Joint Admissions | If you graduate from your community college in a Joint Admissions Program and have earned at least a 2.5 GPA, you will be automatically admitted into one of Bridgewater State University ’s Joint Admissions Programs. Joint Admissions students do not have to write an essay or pay an application fee. The Joint Admissions program will be phased out in the spring of 2014. The MassTransfer program will take its place. |
| Lower Division (or lower level) Courses | Generally courses numbered 100 and 200 (ex: ENG 101 and PSY 223), usually making up the first two years of a bachelor’s degree. |
| Major | A program of study in a degree where about 25-50% of the courses are in a single discipline (e.g. Philosophy, History). |
| MassTransfer | A statewide program that facilitates the transfer of students between Massachusetts institutions of higher education. MassTransfer has two main purposes: 1.) To provide community college students who complete associate degrees and enroll in linked MassTransfer Programs with the full transfer of credit, guaranteed admission, and a tuition discount (each based on final GPA); and 2.) To provide any student in the Massachusetts public higher education system who completes the MassTransfer Block, the benefit of satisfying the core (general education) requirements at any other public higher education institution, with the receiving institution able to add no more than six additional credits or two courses. |
| Minor | A program of study that is a smaller or secondary choice for academic specialization. A minor requires fewer courses or credits than a major, usually 18-21. |
| Native Student | A student is native to the institution where they begin their college career |
| Non-credit Course | A course taken for learning value. A grade may be assigned, but the course is not usually applicable to a credential. |
| Prerequisite | A course you must take before you can take a more advanced course in the discipline. |
| Public Institution | A post-secondary institution supported in part by state funds. |
| Receiving Institution | The institution to which you are transferring. |
| Registrar | The Registrar's Office maintains student academic records, issues transcripts for all current and former students, manages the registration and drop/add processes, coordinates data for the University Catalog and the Course Schedule each semester, schedules classrooms, verifies enrollment, records grades, confirms the graduation status of students, orders diplomas, and processes all changes and corrections to student records including addresses, names, and social security numbers. |
| Registration | The process of enrolling in individual courses after completion of all required admission procedures. |
| Requirement | A course you must take in order to complete a credential. |
| Residency Requirement | The number of courses or credits (or percentage of the program) you must complete at Bridgewater State University to graduate. (BSU Residency Requirements include: 120 total credits, ½ of Major requirements completed at BSU, 15 of final 30 credits taken at BSU). |
| Sending Institution | The institution from which you are transferring. |
| Seminars | Topics courses that allow students to explore an area of interest in a small, discussion oriented course. The First Year Seminar (exempt if transferring in 24+ credits) is a writing intensive course designed to engage the student in college-level learning. The Second Year Seminar (exempt if transferring in 54+ credits) is either speaking or writing intensive and will engage students in the connections between classroom learning and the world. |
| Syllabus | A description of the main content, organization and expected outcomes of a course, normally including the number of credits awarded, hours of class time, how it’s evaluated, assignments, and texts. |
| Transcript | An official record of student performance showing all schoolwork completed at a given school and the final mark or other evaluation received in each portion of the instruction. Transcripts often include an explanation of the marking scale used by the school. |
| Transfer | Consists of the granting of credit (transfer credit) toward a credential by one institution, for programs or courses completed at another. |
| Transferable Credit | Earned credit hours granted for course work completed at another accredited institution of higher education with a grade of C- or higher. |
| Transfer Credit Evaluation | A printed out analyses of the articulation of all courses taken at previous institutions provided by Bridgewater State University to transfer students upon their acceptance. |
| Transfer Student | A student who attends one institution (sending institution) and then transfers their coursework to another (receiving institution). |
| Tuition Advantage Program | Students who graduate with a 3.0 GPA or higher and are part of the MassTransfer Program are eligible to participate in the Tuition Advantage Program. The Tuition Advantage Program allows you a reduction off in-state tuition at Bridgewater State University. This deduction automatically appears on your tuition statement when your application is complete. |
| Upper Division (or upper level) | Courses at the 300-level or above, usually making up most of the final two years of a bachelor’s degree. |