College Terms

Accredited – A college or program that has been certified as fulfilling certain standards by a national and/or regional professional association.

Advanced Placement (AP) – Designated high school honors classes that provide college credit for students scoring at a certain level on a final examination.

Assessment Test – Tests administered by colleges to determine the entry-level placement of students in skills-based courses, namely English as a Second Language (ESL).

Associate’s Degree – A two-year degree, awarded by a community college upon completion of a program of study.

Bachelor’s Degree – A four-year degree, awarded by a university upon completion of a program of study.

Career Assessment – A tool used to take inventory of a student’s skills, interests, abilities, values, and/or personality. These assessment instruments are used by counselors to learn about students and recommend careers students should explore and evaluate. Contact the Career Center at (951) 372-7147 for more information.

Certificate – Awarded upon completion of a concentrated occupational program, usually at a community college.

Certification – A verification done by the community college verifying that a student has completed the California State University General Education (CSU GE) or the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) requirements. Students request certification at the time transcripts are sent.

College Level Examination Program (CLEP) Students may receive college credits through CLEP exams. Contact counseling for more information.

Concentration – An option or special emphasis within a degree program. Concentrations are noted on the degree.

Corequisite – A condition of enrollment consisting of a course that a student is required to take simultaneously in order to enroll in another course.

Credential (Teaching) – If you want to teach in California, you must obtain either a multiple subject (for grades K-8) or a single subject (for grades 7-12) credential. This is obtained upon the completion of a bachelor’s degree and prescribed professional education requirements.

Credit-by-Examination – Credit may be granted to a student who satisfactorily passes an examination approved or conducted by the discipline or program in which a comparable course is offered. In the case of foreign languages, students must complete a high- level course in order to receive credit for a lower-level language course. Forms are available on the Admissions and Records webpage at www.norcocollege.edu Links to an external site..

Doctorate Degree – A Ph.D., or related degree, awarded upon the completion of a prescribed program beyond the master’s degree level.

Drop/Add – At Norco College, once the term has started, students are required to obtain an authorization code from the instructor in order to add a class. No code is required to drop a class. Refer to the schedule of classes for add deadlines. Find add/drop refund deadlines on WebAdvisor at www.norcocollege.edu Links to an external site.. Click on class names/deadlines.

Educational Goal – The desired outcome after completing college courses (i.e., earn a certificate, obtain an associate degree, update job skills, transfer to a four-year college or university, etc.)

EduNav – A degree planning tool to help students and their advisors navigate the path all the way to graduation. With EduNav, students plan and register for all their courses in a guided, intuitive system, personalized to the students needs and preferences.

General Education/Breadth Requirement – Course requirements, which students are expected to meet regardless of major field. The UC, CSU and many independent colleges have articulation agreements with Norco College, which allow students to complete their general education before they transfer on to universities. More information can be obtained through the Transfer Center.

Impacted Programs – Some majors, at some colleges, may be declared impacted because they receive more applications than program space allows. Applications for impacted programs may be required at a specific time and could entail a competitive selection process.

Major – A specialized field of study that a student chooses to pursue which leads to a degree and preparation for a career.

Master’s Degree – A four-year degree, awarded upon completion of one or two years of study beyond the bachelor’s level.

Midterms – Tests given halfway through the semester to gauge how the student is progressing.

Minor – A secondary field of study outside of the major field. Some degree programs require a minor.

Pass/No Pass – A grading where students do not receive a letter grade for taking a course. Depending upon the student’s achievement in the class, Pass (P) or No Pass (NP) will appear on his/ her transcripts. Deadlines for selecting Pass/No Pass are in the class schedule.

Prerequisite – A condition of enrollment a student is required to meet in order to demonstrate current readiness for enrollment in a course or educational program.

Program of Study – An organized program of courses within a discipline leading to an associate degree or certificate.

Schedule of Classes – A publication used during registration, providing the subject, description of course, course number, course title, units, time, instructor, and location of classes offered.

Student Educational Plan (SEP) – A SEP is a plan which lists the classes you will need to

complete your educational goal at Norco College.

Syllabus – A description of a course which also lists the dates of major exams, assignments and projects.

Transfer Program – A community college program that provides the first two years of transferable credits (60-70 units) in preparation for the bachelor’s degree.

Units/Credits – What a student receives when completing a college course. Units are based upon the amount of hours spent in class.

Waitlist – A list formed after a course reaches maximum capacity of students expressing an interest to register for the class if a spot becomes available.

WebAdvisor – a Web interface that offers students access to student registration dates, registration and payment, grades, transcript requests, enrollment verifications, financial aid information, and much more.