| |
The following terms or phrases are ones with which you may not be familiar, but are peculiar to the academic world. Students may encounter them in conversations with faculty and staff, in our catalog, or in other publications.
Academic probation: A state-mandated process to identify a student whose cumulative grade point average falls below 2.00.
Academic unit: (or credit hours, or, simply, unit): Credit for courses offered by Taft College is awarded in terms of semester units. The value of a course is computed on the basis of one unit of credit for each hour of lecture or discussion, two-to-three hours of laboratory, or two hours of activity per week, for a 16-week semester. Courses meeting for fewer than 16 weeks will require an equivalent number of hours prorated on a per-week basis
Academic year: Two semesters (fall and spring), plus summer session and examination periods.
Accredited: Quality of academic programs has been approved by an outside rating agency.
Admission: Your acceptance for enrollment.
Advisor: Counselor or academic advisor who offers academic advice.
Advisory: A condition of enrollment that a student is advised but not required to meet before or in conjunction with enrolling in a course.
Associate Degree: Awarded for (generally) completing a two-year program. The typical amount of class work to complete an Associate Degree in two years is 14-16 semester units or a total of 60 semester units if a student begins college eligible for college level English and math.
Bachelor’s Degree: (baccalaureate degree): Awarded for a four-year degree.
Calendar: See “Academic Calendar” in this website. It includes important dates of the academic year.
Catalog: The catalog is your comprehensive guide and contract with Taft College.
Certificate: A document that verifies completion of a specific area of study.
Class Schedule: Published for the registration period for each semester and includes course details (when, where) and scheduling procedures. Current schedule link
Competency Requirements: Reading, writing and mathematics competency must be demonstrated before graduation.
Co-requisite: Course your must take concurrently with another course.
Courses: Listed in the “Course Descriptions” section of this catalog, showing the course number, title, description, and units.
Credit: See “Academic Unit”
Credit/No-Credit: At the option of each academic division, some courses are offered on a credit/no-credit (satisfactory/fail) grading basis as indicated in the Course Description section of this catalog. Also, a student may elect to take one class on the CR/NC option (see “Credit/No-credit Grading”).
Curriculum (program): Courses required for a specific degree or certificate.
Cut: Deliberately missing a class without prior approval.
Departments: Academic departments offering courses in one or more disciplines.
Distance Learning: Instruction provided outside the traditional classroom. Distance Learning home page
Drop and add: You may change your schedule by dropping or adding classes. Check the Academic Calendar for the drop/add deadlines for each term or check with the Counseling Center secretary.
Elective: Course distinguished from required course. You pick it from a number of specified courses.
E.O.P.S./C.A.R.E. (Extended Opportunity Programs and Services/Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education): A state-funded program that provides comprehensive support services that is designated to help students achieve their educational goal.
Financial aid: Various types of financial help including scholarships, work-study jobs or grants to eligible students. Financial Aid home page
Full-time student: A student enrolled in 12 or more units in one semester.
GED (General Education Development examination): An examination to show high school diploma equivalency.
General Education requirement: A group of courses required to earn a degree; provides a broadly based education.
Grade Point Average (GPA): Number of grade points earned divided by the total units attempted.
Major: A concentration of courses in a specific educational area.
Math/English Placement Tests: Tests (given free of charge) taken by any student planning to take English or Math courses, take six or more units, graduate, or transfer units to another institution.
Matriculation: A process that brings the college and student who enrolls for credit into an agreement designed to achieve the student’s educational goal.
Part-time student: A student taking less than 12 units in a semester.
Professor: General term for all faculty. If your professor has a doctoral degree, you may also refer to him/her as a “doctor”.
Prerequisite: Specific courses you must successfully complete with a “C” or better before you can enroll for another specific course. Students must satisfy prerequisites and any other stated conditions before enrolling in a course.
Registration: Each semester you must register in specific classes for the next semester, pay tuition and fees, etc.
Requisite: Either prerequisites or co-requisites required only for courses where specified academic background is necessary in order to assure students a reasonable chance of success in a course.
Syllabus: Written description of course content distributed by instructors to students.
Term: See “Academic Year”
Transcript: Record of all of your courses kept by the Registrar’s office.
Two-for-one: For most courses, you will be expected to spend an average of two hours in preparation or study for each hour of lecture or recitation.