Academic Renewal. Under certain circumstances an undergraduate who has been readmitted to the university after an absence of at least five years may have the former record treated in the same manner as transfer credits. See “Academic Renewal.”

Advanced Placement. Students who have taken an advanced placement course of the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) in their secondary school and who have taken an Advanced Placement Examination of CEEB may receive university credit. See “Advanced Placement.”

AECP. The American English and Culture Program (AECP) features an intensive course of study designed for adult international students who desire to become proficient in English as a second language. See Undergraduate Enrollment, “American English and Culture Program,” and College of Extended Education, “American English and Culture Program.”

ASU East. ASU East is located at the former Williams Air Force Base. See General Information, “ASU East,” and “ASU East.”

ASU Extended Campus. The ASU Extended Campus offers courses evenings and weekends, by television, the Internet, at on- and off-campus sites, and through Independent Learning. See General Information, “ASU Extended Campus,” and “College of Extended Education.”

ASU Main. ASU Main is the principal campus of ASU, located in Tempe. See “ASU Main.”

ASU West. ASU West is the Phoenix branch campus of ASU, established in 1984 by the Arizona Legislature to serve the educational needs of residents in western Maricopa County. See General Information, “ASU West,” and “ASU West.”

Audit Enrollment. A student who audits a course attends regularly scheduled class sessions but earns no credit. See “Audit Enrollment.”

Buckley Amendment. See “Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act” in this section.

CLEP. As part of the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), students who have taken a College-Level Examination of the College Entrance Examination Board may receive university credit. See “College-Level Examination Program (CLEP).”

Comprehensive Exam. A comprehensive examination is intended to permit a student to establish academic credit in a field in which the student has gained experience or competence equivalent to an established university course. See “Comprehensive Examinations.”

Concentration. A concentration is a selection of courses within a major.

Cooperative Education. Cooperative Education is any educational program that requires alternating classroom and work experience in government or industry. The work experience exists for its educational value. See “Cooperative Programs.”

Corequisite. A requirement to be met while taking one course, such as taking another particular course, is a corequisite. See also “Prerequisite” in this section.

Course Prefix. A course prefix is a three-letter designation assigned by each instruction unit. The “Course Prefix Index” provides a comprehensive list. See also “Cross-Listing” in this section.

Credit Enrollment. One semester hour represents a minimum of one 50-minute class exercise per week per semester. A minimum of 120 semester hours is required for graduation with a baccalaureate degree. To obtain credit, a student must be properly registered and pay fees for the course.

Cross-Listing. One course may have more than one course prefix and may be offered by more than one department. Some instruction units require students to enroll in a course under a certain prefix to receive credit properly. Catalog course descriptions indicate courses that are cross-listed.

Cum Laude. An undergraduate student with a minimum of 60 semester hours of course work at ASU and a cumulative GPA of 3.40–3.59 graduates cum laude. See “Graduation with Academic Recognition.” See also “Magna Cum Laude” and “Summa Cum Laude” in this section.

Declaration of Graduation. See “Program of Study” in this section.

Drop/Add. Drop/add is a process in which a student who has registered for courses for a semester or summer session may drop or add courses through the first week of classes in a semester or the first two days of a summer session. See “Drop/Add.”

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, or Buckley Amendment, sets forth the requirements governing the protection of the privacy of the education records of students who are or have been in attendance at ASU. See “Student Records.”

Freshman. A student who has earned 24 or fewer hours is a freshman.

General Studies Requirement. This is a requirement of all undergraduates. See “Meeting the General Studies Requirement.”

GPA. The ASU grade point average (GPA) is obtained by dividing the total number of ASU grade points earned by the number of ASU semester hours graded. Grade point averages are rounded to the nearest hundredth of a grade point. See “Grade Point Average.”

Grade Points. For the purpose of computing the GPA, grade points are assigned to each of the grades for each semester hour as follows: “A,” four points; “B,” three points; “C,” two points; “D,” one point; and “E,” zero points.

Graduate Catalog. The Graduate Catalog describes the procedures and requirements for enrollment in the Graduate College. See “Graduate College.”

Graduate-Level Courses. Courses numbered 500–799 are designed for graduate students. However, an upper-division undergraduate student may enroll in graduate courses with the approval of his or her advisor, the course instructor, the department chair, and the dean of the college or school in which the course is offered. See “500–799 (Graduate-Level) Courses.”

Incomplete. A mark of “I” (incomplete) is given by the instructor only when a student who is otherwise doing acceptable work is unable to complete a course because of illness or other conditions beyond the student’s control. See “Incomplete.”

International Baccalaureate. Students who have taken a higher-level examination through the International Baccalaureate program may receive university credit. See “International Baccalaureate Diploma/Certificate.”

Junior. A student who has earned 56–86 hours is a junior.

Lower-Division Courses. Courses numbered 100–299 are designed primarily for freshmen and sophomores. See “100–299 (Lower-Division) Courses.”

Magna Cum Laude. A student with a minimum of 60 semester hours of course work at ASU and a cumulative GPA of 3.60–3.79 graduates magna cum laude. See “Graduation with Academic Recognition.” See also “Cum Laude” and “Summa Cum Laude” in this section.

Major. A major is a specialized group of courses contained within the program of study. Refer to college and school sections for specific descriptions and requirements.

Minor. A minor is a specialized group of courses contained within the program of study available from some instruction units. See “Minors” and refer to college and school sections for specific descriptions and requirements.

Nonresident Tuition. This term refers to the charge assessed to nonresident students, as established in Arizona Board of Regents’ Policy 4-102. See also “Resident Tuition” in this section.

Omnibus Course. An omnibus course is offered on an experimental or tutorial basis when the course content is new or periodically changes. See “Omnibus Courses.”

Pass/Fail Enrollment. A mark of “P” (pass) or “E” (fail) may be assigned for this grading option. This grading method may be used at the option of individual colleges and schools within the university. See “Pass/Fail Enrollment.”

Placement Examination. A proficiency examination is given to waive a course requirement, validate certain transfer credits in professional programs, or determine a student’s ability in a field where competence is an important consideration. See “Placement Examinations.”

Prerequisite. A requirement to be met before registering for one course, such as completing another particular course, is a prerequisite. See also “Corequisite” in this section.

Probation. A student’s college assumes responsibility for enforcing academic standards and may place any student on probation who has failed to maintain good standing. A student on academic probation is required to observe any rules or limitations the college may impose as a condition for retention. See “Probation.”

Program of Study. The complete array of courses included in the study leading to a degree make up a student’s program of study. A student must file an Undergraduate Program of Study or a Declaration of Graduation for graduation within the semester the student earns his or her 87th hour. See “Program of Study Requirements.”

Resident Tuition. This term refers to the charge assessed to resident students who register for classes at ASU. See also “Nonresident Tuition” in this section.

Restricted Complete Withdrawal. From the fifth week to the transaction deadline for a semester and from the seventh day to the transaction deadline for a summer session, students may withdraw from all courses but receive a mark of “W” only from courses in which the instructor certifies that they are passing at the time of the withdrawal. See “Restricted Withdrawal.”

Restricted Course Withdrawal. From the fifth week to the end of the 10th week of a semester and from the seventh day to the end of the third week of a summer session, students may withdraw with a mark of “W” only from courses in which the instructor certifies that they are passing at the time of withdrawal. See “Restricted Withdrawal.”

Senior. A student who has earned 87 or more hours of credit is a senior.

Sophomore. A student who has earned 25–55 hours of credit is a sophomore.

Summa Cum Laude. A student with a minimum of 60 semester hours of course work at ASU and a cumulative GPA of 3.80–4.00 graduates summa cum laude. See “Graduation with Academic Recognition.” See also “Cum Laude” and “Magna Cum Laude” in this section.

TOEFL. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is taken by students whose native language is not English. See Undergraduate Enrollment, “TOEFL” and “AECP” in this section.

Transcript. An official transcript lists in chronological order all courses taken at ASU. It includes all grades received. It is signed and dated by the Registrar and displays the embossed seal of the university. Unofficial transcripts include all information shown on the official transcript, plus information concerning changes, additions, etc., to the record. See “Official Transcripts.”

Unrestricted Course Withdrawal. During the first four weeks of a semester or the first six days of a summer session, a student may withdraw from any course with a mark of “W.” See “Unrestricted Course Withdrawal.”

Upper-Division Courses. Courses numbered 300–499 are designed primarily for juniors, seniors, and other advanced students. See “300–499 (Upper-Division) Courses.”

Page Last Updated: Tuesday, February 26, 2002

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