College Glossary

Liberal Arts College: A smaller school (usually under 5,000 students) focused on broad undergraduate education rather than pre-professional training. You'll take classes across many subjects — humanities, sciences, social sciences — before specializing. Think Williams, Amherst, or Pomona.

Research University: A large university with a major focus on research alongside teaching. These schools have big graduate programs, research labs, and well-known professors. Think UCLA, MIT, or the University of Michigan.

Community College: A two-year school that offers associate degrees and certificates. Tuition is much lower than four-year schools. Many students start here and transfer to a four-year university to finish their bachelor's degree.

Trade / Vocational School: A school focused on teaching specific job skills — things like welding, nursing, dental hygiene, or IT certifications. Programs are usually shorter than a four-year degree and lead directly to a career.

HBCU: Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Schools founded before 1964 with the mission of educating Black students. Examples include Howard, Spelman, and Morehouse. HBCUs enroll students of all backgrounds today.

Public University: A school funded partly by the state government. Tuition is lower for residents of that state (“in-state”) and higher for everyone else (“out-of-state”). Examples: University of Texas, Penn State, UC Berkeley.

Private University: A school that doesn't receive direct state funding, so tuition is the same regardless of where you live. Can be nonprofit (Harvard, Stanford) or for-profit. Private doesn't always mean more expensive after financial aid.

In-State vs Out-of-State: At public universities, “in-state” means you're a resident of the state the school is in and pay a lower tuition rate. “Out-of-state” students pay significantly more — sometimes 2–3x as much.

Endowment: Money a college has saved and invested over the years, often from donations. A large endowment (like Harvard's $50B+) means the school can offer generous financial aid. It's basically the school's savings account.

Need-Blind Admissions: The school decides whether to accept you without looking at your family's finances. Your ability to pay tuition has no effect on whether you get in. Only a handful of schools are truly need-blind for all applicants.

Acceptance Rate: The percentage of applicants a school admits. A 10% acceptance rate means they accept 10 out of every 100 who apply. Lower rates generally mean more selective (and more competitive) schools.

GPA (Grade Point Average): A number summarizing your grades, usually on a 4.0 scale. An “unweighted” GPA treats all classes equally (A = 4.0). A “weighted” GPA gives bonus points for honors and AP classes, so it can go above 4.0.

SAT / ACT: Standardized tests used in college admissions. The SAT is scored 400–1600 and the ACT is scored 1–36. Many schools now make these optional, but strong scores can still help your application.

Test-Optional: You can choose whether to submit SAT/ACT scores. If you don't submit them, the school won't hold it against you — they'll evaluate your application based on everything else.

Test-Blind: The school won't look at your SAT/ACT scores even if you send them. Your test scores literally don't matter in the admissions decision.

Test-Required: You must submit SAT or ACT scores as part of your application. The school will not consider your application complete without them.

Early Decision (ED): You apply early (usually by November 1) and get a decision by mid-December. The catch: it's binding — if you get in, you must attend. You can only apply ED to one school.

Early Action (EA): Like Early Decision — you apply early and hear back early — but it's not binding. You can still compare offers from other schools before deciding.

Regular Decision (RD): The standard application deadline, usually around January 1. Decisions come out in March or April. No commitments until you choose in May.

Rolling Admissions: The school reviews applications as they arrive rather than waiting for a deadline. You hear back relatively quickly, and spots fill up over time. Applying earlier is usually better.

Legacy: A student whose parent (or sometimes grandparent) attended the same school. Some colleges give a small admissions boost to legacy applicants. Policies on this are changing at many schools.

Holistic Review: The school looks at your whole application — grades, test scores, essays, activities, recommendations, background — not just numbers. Most selective schools use holistic review.

Common App: A single online application platform accepted by over 1,000 colleges. You fill out one main application and write one personal essay, then send it to multiple schools (each may also require supplemental essays).

Tuition: The price the school charges for classes. This is the “sticker price” before any financial aid. Most students pay less than the listed tuition after grants and scholarships.

Room and Board: The cost of living on campus: a dorm room (“room”) and a meal plan (“board”). This is separate from tuition and typically adds $10,000–$18,000 per year.

Cost of Attendance (COA): The total estimated cost for one year: tuition + room and board + books + personal expenses + travel. This is the number to look at when comparing schools, not just tuition alone.

FAFSA: Free Application for Federal Student Aid. A form you fill out every year to qualify for federal grants, loans, and work-study. Almost every student should fill this out — it's free and opens doors to financial aid.

Merit Scholarship: Money awarded based on your achievements — grades, test scores, talents, or leadership — not your family's finances. You don't have to pay it back.

Need-Based Aid: Financial aid based on what your family can afford to pay (determined by the FAFSA and sometimes the CSS Profile). Includes grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans.

Work-Study: A federal program that gives you a part-time job on or near campus to help cover expenses. The money you earn doesn't count against your financial aid. Hours are flexible around your class schedule.

Student Loans: Money you borrow to pay for college that you must pay back after graduation, with interest. Federal loans (from the government) usually have better terms than private loans (from banks).

NCAA: National Collegiate Athletic Association — the organization that governs college sports at most US schools. It sets rules for eligibility, scholarships, and competition.

Division I (D1): The highest level of NCAA college athletics. D1 schools typically have the biggest athletic budgets, the most scholarships for athletes, and play on national TV. Think Alabama football or Duke basketball.

Division II (D2): A step below D1 in terms of athletic scholarships and competition level, but still competitive. D2 schools offer partial athletic scholarships and try to balance athletics with academics.

Division III (D3): NCAA schools that don't offer athletic scholarships. Athletes play for the love of the sport alongside their studies. Many strong academic schools (like MIT, Amherst, and Williams) compete in D3.

NAIA: National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics — a separate organization from the NCAA, mostly governing smaller colleges. NAIA schools can offer athletic scholarships and are often more flexible with eligibility rules.

Conference: A group of schools that regularly compete against each other in sports. Examples: the Big Ten, the SEC, the ACC, the Ivy League. Conference membership also affects TV deals, revenue, and school reputation.

Greek Life: Fraternities (for men) and sororities (for women) — social organizations you can join in college. They offer community, networking, and social events. Some campuses have very active Greek life; others have none at all.

Residential Campus: A campus where most students live in on-campus housing (dorms, apartments). This creates a tight-knit community. Commuter schools, by contrast, have most students living off-campus.

Urban / Suburban / Rural Setting: Where the campus is located. Urban = in a city (NYU, Columbia). Suburban = near a city but not in the middle of it (Northwestern, Stanford). Rural = in a small town or countryside (Dartmouth, Williams).