Glossary of Terms

major: a subject or field of study chosen by a student to represent his or her principal interest and upon which a large share of his or her efforts are concentrated

minor: a subject or a course of study pursued by a student, especially a candidate for a degree, subordinately or supplementary to a major or principal subject or course

option: something that may be or is chosen; choice. A major may offer more than one option or choice that provides focus in a particular area.

certificate: a document attesting to the fact that a person has completed an educational course

interdisciplinary: combining or involving two or more academic disciplines or fields of study

pre-professional: preparatory to the practice of a profession or to its specialized field of study

university: an institution of learning of the highest level, having a college of liberal arts and a program of graduate studies together with several professional schools, as of agriculture, business, and education, and authorized to confer both undergraduate and graduate degrees.

college: a constituent unit of a university, furnishing courses of instruction in the liberal arts and sciences, usually leading to a bachelor's degree.

general education: general education is a series of courses required in all majors designed to develop essential academic skills, to acquaint students with their cultural heritage, and to provide them with a broad base of liberal studies in the humanities, mathematics, and in the social and physical sciences.

university requirements: two university requirements, American Cultural Diversity (ACD) and Global Perspectives (GP), need to be completed in any degree program and are not General Education requirements.