Your undergraduate student lexicon
Here's how to wrap your head around university lingo
As a new student, you might have a hard time navigating all the administrative words and acronyms used by the university.
With that in mind, here's a list of Concordia-specific terms that will come in extra handy as you register for classes and begin your first year.
Your need-to-know Concordia terms
Academic year: Composed of three terms — a Summer term (early May to mid-August) and followed by two regular sessions. A fall term (September to December) and a winter term (January to April).
Undergraduate Calendar: This official document outlines all undergraduate academic programs offered at Concordia. It is meant to help you understand the university's academic and administrative structure, policies and procedures. Although there's an actual calendar inside it, this document is way more than just a calendar!
Faculty: A branch of a university encompassing various related academic disciplines, e.g. Faculty of Arts & Science, John Molson School of Business.
Department: An academic unit within a Faculty dealing with a particular field of knowledge, e.g. Department of Biology
Bachelor's degree: The first degree obtained at a university. In general, a bachelor’s degree requires between 90-120 credits to be complete.
Certificate: Concordia offers several undergraduate certificates, usually of 30 credits, made up of regular undergraduate courses. Certificates are separate from degree programs; however, courses taken as part of a certificate program are normally applicable to the appropriate undergraduate degree.
Credits: A course that spans one semester is typically worth three credits, while a two-semester course is worth six credits. To be considered full-time you must register for a minimum of 12 credits and a maximum of 15 credits per semester.
Electives: As opposed to a required program course, an elective course is one chosen by you, based on your interests. Often outside your primary area of study, electives help you expand your general knowledge.
Deficiencies: A deficiency is a course you have not completed that is required for admission to your chosen program. Courses identified as “deficiencies” must be completed as early in your studies as possible.
Transfer Credits: Transfer credits are courses that are normally applied towards your degree or program of study. This may shorten the length of your time it takes to complete your program/degree. You may earn transfer credits from another post-secondary educational institution, with prior permission, or by changing degrees within Concordia.
Prerequisites and corequisites: a prerequisite is a specific course you need to take before another course. You can find out if a course has a prerequisite by reading the course description directly in the registration system or in the undergraduate calendar. It’s best to fit the prerequisite you need into your schedule now, so you have access to your desired course in a later semester. A co-requisite is when a specific course must be taken in the same academic term as another course unless you’ve already successfully completed it.
Exemptions: you may be granted exemption from a Concordia course based on previous studies. This means that you have already covered the work at another institution and have successfully met its minimum grade requirement. An exemption from a course has no credit value towards a degree – which means it will not decrease the number of courses you need to complete your degree but it will rather either let you skip ahead to a more advanced course or it is replaced with a course chosen in consultation with your academic advisor.
Course Swap: A function in the registration system that allows you to add and drop a course simultaneously. This tool eliminates risk when performing actions such as switching sections of the same course, resolving a time conflict in you schedule, etc.
Course Waitlist: A feature in the registration system that allows you to indicate your interest in taking a course that is already full. If a spot becomes available in the course, you would automatically be notified and placed in the course. Note: not all classes have a waitlist and sometimes the waitlist is reserved for a specific group of students.
Class schedule builder: A tool in the registration system that allows you to lay out your schedule in a calendar format and generate a personalized course schedule based on your chosen combination of classes. Note: the tool does not register you for any courses, but will allow you to add courses directly to your enrollment course cart.
DNE (Did Not Enter): The DNE deadline is the date by which you can officially withdraw from a course without having to pay for it. If you drop a course before this deadline it won’t appear on either your student record or official transcript.
DISC (Discontinued): If you miss the DNE deadline but still want to drop a course you can, as long as it’s done before the DISC deadline. While it won’t affect your GPA, discontinuing a course will result in a DISC notation on your student record and official transcript. You will also be kept financially responsible for the payment of tuition and other fees pertaining to the course.
Permanent Code: The Quebec Ministry of Education requires all the province's universities to have a permanent code for each registered student on whose behalf the university receives funding. You can find your permanent code on your unofficial transcript, accessible via the My CU Account on the Student Hub.