One of the experiences shared by new students when they first come to college is being introduced to a brand new vocabulary. Every college campus has their own set of words, terms, and—most of all—acronyms that, at first, can seem like a second language of alphabet soup to freshmen. The following glossary should help you to become “fluent” with the language of Queens College.
Bulletin – A catalog printed every two years containing all QC policies. Academic departments and programs are listed alphabetically, with course descriptions and requirements for majors/minors. You will receive a copy at your orientation.
Bursar – The office which handles all payment transactions (e.g., tuition payment).
CLIQ – College Life Introduction at Queens – A mandatory program organized by the Office of Student Life, designed to introduce you to life at QC outside of the classroom.
Corequisite – A course that must be taken during the same semester as another course. E.g., GEOL 100 must be taken with the corequisite lab, GEOL 100.0.
CPE – CUNY Proficiency Exam – A mid-career assessment of students’ competencies in academic reading, writing, and critical thinking.
Credit – A unit of academic value assigned to college courses. This number usually corresponds to the number of hours the course meets per week.
Dean’s List – An academic honor a student earns with a semester GPA of at least 3.5 in 12 credits of quality points. Part-time students may also be named to Dean’s List with a GPA of 3.5 in 12 credits of quality points in one year.
e-CAT – Electronic College Advising Tool – An online resource to monitor your degree progress, plan possible situations (e.g., what would my requirements be if I majored in English?), in between and in conjunction with meeting with academic advisors and faculty advisors.
e-SIMS – Electronic Student Information Management System – An online resource to access, manage, and update your student account information 24/7.
Elective – A course that is not required for major, minor, Primary College Competency, or LASAR, but does count toward the 120-credit degree requirement.
Free Hour – From 12:15 – 1:00PM on Mondays and Wednesdays; no classes are scheduled.
Full-time – Enrolled in at least 12 credit hours or billable equated credits per semester.
FYI – Freshman Year Initiative – A program sponsoring freshman-only academic communities of 22 students each, who participate in 2 or 3 courses together within their first semester at QC. Courses satisfy various degree requirements and are taught by some of the best faculty at the College; also they are supplemented with FYI events throughout the semester.
GPA – Grade Point Average – An average of grades earned on a scale of 0.0 – 4.0 (4.0 = A).
Incomplete – A temporary grade assigned by faculty upon a student’s request when the student has not satisfied some course requirements. Student must complete requirements before the end of the following semester so that a permanent grade may be assigned.
LASAR – Liberal Arts and Science Area Requirements – Seven areas of study from various academic disciplines designed to promote academic breadth; a required general education component.
LOA – Leave of Absence – Complete withdrawal from all courses during a semester.
Major – A concentration of courses defined by an academic department or program. The number of credits varies. A completed major is required for graduation.
Minor – A course sequence of 15 – 27 credits designated by a department or program to provide an opportunity for in-depth study but not as extensive as a major. In most cases, a minor is optional.
Part-time – Enrolled in less than 12 billable equated credits in a semester.
PCC – Primary College Competencies – Required general education components, including English, mathematics, foreign language, and physical education; may be exempt from specific PCC areas based on prior work
Permit – Permission for study outside of Queens College. At other schools within CUNY, an e-permit may be obtained online, via the CUNY Portal (www.cuny.edu); at schools outside of CUNY, a permit must be obtained in advance through the Registrar. Permits are not allowed for students in their first semester at QC.
P/NC – Pass/No Credit – Student may elect to take a course on a Pass/No Credit basis once each semester by the specified deadline, with a maximum of 21 total credits taken P/NC. If the student earns a D or better, then a P appears on the transcript, granting credit for the course; if the student earns an F, then NC appears on the transcript, with no credit granted. P/NC grades are not computed in the GPA.
Prerequisite – A course that must be successfully completed before enrolling in a more advanced course.
Semester – Fall and spring terms of study within which courses begin and end. Each lasts 14 weeks, with the 15th week reserved for final exams. Summer sessions vary between 4 – 6 weeks; winter session is approximately 3 weeks.
Transcript – Student record of courses taken, including earned credits and grades.
“W”-course – Writing-intensive course – courses that contain a sufficient amount of writing as part of course requirements. Designated by a “W” next to the course number, e.g., CMLIT 102W.
Withdrawal – Indicates student does not intend to complete the course. Within specified deadlines, students may withdraw from class(es) via the Web (http://esims.cuny.edu). A non-punitive grade of “W” will appear on the transcript. Consult the Bursar for refund schedules and limitations.