UConn Lingo for Families

Add/Drop – the period at the start of each academic term when students are able to add or drop classes

Advisor – may be a faculty member or a full-time administrative employee of the University who serves as a resource for students in planning a meaningful academic schedule that helps them achieve their goals and meet graduation requirements

Area Councils – a governing body of students for a specific group of residence halls on campus

Credit – unit of value assigned to a course; if a four-year program consists of a total of 120 credits, then a typical semester would represent one-eighth of the total program, or 15 credits; the University requires all students to complete at least 120 credits toward the degree and some schools require more than 120 degree credits

Daily Campus – UConn’s student newspaper, available every weekday morning around campus and at dailycampus.com

DGPA – Division Grade Point Average; shows either the lower (first two years) or upper (last two years) division GPA; see also GPA, SGPA, and TGPA

Elective – course that a student enrolls in outside of their major, minor, or core curriculum requirements

Family Weekend – A fun-filled weekend of events for UConn families and students. Family Weekend occurs each fall.

Flex Passes – used to bring a guest in the dining hall or to take out food at the grab & go locations. Not valid at the coffee shops

Full-time student – student enrolled in 12 credits or more each semester

GPA – Grade Point Average; an indication of academic achievement on a scale between 4.0 (A) and a 0.0 (F); see also DGPA, SGPA, and TGPA

Husky Bucks – a debit account that can be accessed using the Husky-One Card (UConn I.D). Husky Bucks can be used at several locations on campus including the UConn Co-op, on-campus coffee shops and grab & go’s.  It makes the UConn I.D. a convenient cashless tool. A student can sign up for Husky Bucks at: onecard.uconn.edu

HuskyCT – an web-based class management tool

Husky Fight Song – you will hear this at football, basketball games and more to cheer our Huskies on to victory

Husky WOW – UConn’s Week of Welcome for new and continuing students. Occurs at the beginning of the academic year in late August.

ID Card (One Card) – necessary computerized form of identification enabling a student access to dining halls, Health Services, the Student Rec Facility, the Library and more

Lower Division Student – designation for students that have earned less than 60 credits

Major – field of study a student selects to emphasize in his/her academic work; a substantial amount of the student’s academic work will be in this area

Mirror Lake – larger manmade lake on campus adjacent to Route 195; has its own small island and serves as a temporary home to several hundred ducks and Canadian geese

NetID a student ID that consists of letters and numbers. This is the student’s University internet ID, which is used to access the student’s UConn email address, HuskyCT, the housing application, and more.

Nutmeg – the undergraduate yearbook

One Card – Also known as the Student ID card.  This card is used for several different purposes including access into the dining halls, as a library card, and as a debit card if Husky Bucks are put on it

One Ton Sundae – SUBOG special event during Winter Weekend when a ton of various flavors of UConn Dairy Bar ice cream is turned into a giant hot-fudge sundae with the works for the whole campus to enjoy

Oozeball – a not-to-be-missed annual mud volleyball tournament during Spring Semester sponsored by the Student Alumni Association

Prerequisite implies a progression from less advanced to more advanced study in a field; students must satisfy the prerequisite(s) before registering for the course, unless exempted by the instructor; prerequisites taken out of sequence within a single department shall not count towards degree credit unless the head of the department offering the course grants an exception

Points used at Dining locations that do not allow a meal swipe; the coffee shops, Bistro on Union Street (1-8 p.m. Monday-Friday) and Grab & Go locations

Registration – period of time when a student selects and signs up for the courses they intend to take in the next academic semester and consults first with their advisor

Resident Assistant (RA) – student staff who are trained to help residents understand how the University works, to resolve personal problems and conflicts, to plan time effectively, to develop good study skills, and to live safely and comfortably in the residence hall system

Residence Halls – provide educational opportunities and services that complement, supplement and support the academic mission of the University in its efforts to educate the whole student

SGPA – Semester Grade Point Average; given each semester to show a student how well they did that semester; see also DGPA, TGPA, and GPA.

Student Administration System – Also called “Student Admin System” and “PeopleSoft.” UConn’s computer student administration system.  Currently, students register for classes using this system, check their fee bill and financial aid package, fill out the FERPA waiver, and waive out of the mandatory health insurance fee.  Students access this system with their NetID.

Student ID Number – Since the University no longer uses social security numbers as an identifier, this 7-digit student ID is used. This is a unique identifier for each student.

Study Abroad – an opportunity to take advantage of academics in one of the many countries offered

SUBOG – Student Union Board of Governors; one of the largest student represented programming organizations on campus

Swan Lake – smaller manmade lake near the Chemistry building that is home to a few duck families and is also a favorite campus study spot on warm, sunny days

Syllabus – a professor’s course outline given to students on the first day telling when assignments, readings and projects need to be completed; may also include grading system, attendance policy, brief course description, and office hours

Teaching Assistant (TA) – a graduate student who may supervise lab sections and discussions for a class

TGPA – Total Grade Point Average; shows the combined GPA of all classes taken at UConn; see also DGPA, GPA, and SGPA

UCTV – UConn’s student-run television station

Upper Division Student – designation for students that have earned 60 or more credits

USG – Undergraduate Student Government; officially recognized UConn student government

WHUS – campus radio station 97.1 FM, “The Sound Alternative”

WOW – UConn’s Week of Welcome.  See Husky WOW above.