Terms & Phrases

Academic Credit: (or credit hours or credit): One academic credit is generally earned for every 15 hours in lecture during a semester.

Academic Probation: The result of a grade point average falling below an acceptable level.

Academic Year: The period of the year students attend an educational institution, typically consisting of two 15-week semesters.

Accredited: Quality of academic programs has been approved by an outside rating agency.

Admission: Acceptance for enrollment.

Advisor: Faculty member who offers academic advice, explains requirements and assists in scheduling.

Anchor Access: Accessed from the My.LSSU Portal. Anchor Access is an important online tool students will use at LSSU. Access to registration, financial aid, tuition & billing information, all academic information, parking, employee information, addresses, etc.

Associate Degree: Awarded for a “two-year” program.

Bachelor Degree: or Baccalaureate — awarded for a “four-year” program.

Calendar: Important dates of the academic year.

Certificate: Normally requires one year of study.

Clinical:  See Internship

College: Academic unit administered by a dean, comprising two or more departments or schools.

Corequisite: A course taken during the same semester as another course.

Cognate: A specified course, generally in field other than the major, which students must take for their program.

Courses: Descriptions in this catalog generally show a course number, followed by the course name, and the number of academic credits shown at the right of the column. ENGL 110 First-Year Composition I

Credit: See academic credit.

Curriculum: (major, program) Courses required for specific degree or certificate.

Departments: Academic units, each administered by a “chair” or “dean” and offering courses in one or more related disciplines.

Discipline: Group of related courses, such as mathematics.

Elective: Course distinguished from required course, selected from a number of specified courses.

Field Placement: See Internship.

Financial Aid: Includes grants, loans, scholarships or work-study.

Full-Time Student: Enrollment of 12 or more credits in a semester (nine credits for graduate students). Graduate students enrolled in cohort structured programs with a defined start and degree completion timeline are qualified as full-time students if they are enrolled in 6 or more credit hours per semester and complete at least 18 credits within a single year. 

General Education Requirements: Courses students must take in addition to their major to earn a bachelors, or an associates degree. Provides a broadly based education.

GED Examinations: (General Education Development examination): A test for students who did not finish high school. Can be used in place of high school graduation.

Grade Point Average (GPA): Number of points divided by the hours of credit attempted. It calculates the average grade point for all classes. Cumulative grade point average is the average for all classes numbered 100 and above.

Internship: (practicum, field placement or clinical): working in a ‘real life’ setting for academic credit.

Major (curriculum): A concentration of courses in a specific area of study.

Minor: A lesser concentration (20 credits or more).

My.LSSU: Web portal to Anchor Access, email service, school announcements, etc.

Part-Time Student: Enrollment of fewer than 12 credits in a semester (fewer than nine for graduate students).

Practicum: See Internship.

Prerequisite: Certain courses students must successfully complete before enrolling in a specific course. Students must satisfy prerequisites, and other stated conditions, before enrolling in a course, or have permission from an instructor to waive the prerequisites. It is the students responsibility to be certain they have the approved prerequisites.

Program: A group of courses students must take in order to earn a degree or certificate.

Registration: Each semester students register for specific courses for the next semester, pay tuition, etc.

Required Courses: Courses students must take to earn a degree. Failed courses must be repeated.

School: See Departments.

Semester: Sometimes called “term”: See academic year.

Term: Sometimes called “semester”: See academic year.

Transcript: Official record of coursework maintained by the LSSU Registrar’s Office.

Transcript, Official: Mailed directly from principal’s or registrar’s office of issuing institution to LSSU Registrar’s Office. It must bear the seal of the institution and signature or stamp of school official.

Transcript, Unofficial:  Does not have a college seal or registrar's signature.  They are issued for use by the student.

Withdrawal: Procedure used when students withdraw from LSSU.