373: Confused About College Jargon? Here are Definitions.

14 Jun

Are you confused about all the collegiate jargon? Maybe you are an international student or a parent who hasn’t been in school for many years. Maybe you are trying to navigate all the terms and graduation requirements for your new university. Listen in as Megan outlines many the terms you should know and what they mean.

Recently we received this email from a student who will be a freshman in college next year, which inspired this question:

I want to better understand all the college terminology and lingo admission advisors and recruiters throw around. What does stuff like college credit, difference between courses, electives and workshops, what does it mean to register for classes, etc.? Where do I learn more about this stuff? 

I can’t seem to find any reliable resources for understanding these things other than just googling the dictionary definition (which isn’t all that helpful). I actually want to understand how this terminology system works and why it’s used. Please let me know how you might be able to help.

I am an Indian citizen but I’m completing high school in Nigeria. I am going to university in Canada to study 3D Animation at Emily Carr University. I am the second person in my immediate family (other than my sister) to have the opportunity to study abroad. 

Right now, I am preparing to register for classes and generally planning for college but I’m struggling to interpret most of the technical collegiate jargon and it’s really slowing down the process. 

Tune in to hear Gretchen and Megan lay out all the technical jargon they can think of! We hope this helps.