College Prep Glossary

Academic GPA
The grade point average calculated after removing non-academic courses such as physical education, driver education, and vocational courses. If in doubt, check with the colleges requesting the academic GPA as to what they consider non-academic courses.

ACT® Test
A college entrance exam administered by ACT, Inc., covering English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science, with an optional 40-minute timed Writing section required by some colleges. Scores range from 1 to 36 on each section and as a composite of all the sections. Find information at http://www.act.org/

Advanced Placement® (AP)* Course
An academically challenging course taken during high school, designed to be equivalent to a college course in the subject. 38 different AP courses, across multiple subject areas, are offered to prepare students for Advanced Placement exams administered each May. Colleges and universities may award credit or advanced standing in a subject or course based on the student’s performance on the AP exam (scored on a scale of 1 to 5). Schools (including home schools) are not allowed to use the AP designation to describe courses on the transcript unless they are College Board-approved AP courses. Schools or home schools offering AP courses must first submit the course syllabus to the College Board (AP Central) for an audit process and receive approval for the course, in order to assure that all AP courses meet similar standards. Advanced Placement information can be found at https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/

Carnegie Unit
A unit equivalent to a conventional one-hour class taken four or five times per week throughout the school year, representing a total of 120 to 180 hours of instruction. In school systems using the Carnegie unit, a one-year course earns one Carnegie unit and a one semester course earns one-half (0.5) of a Carnegie unit.

Common Application®
A standardized college application used by more than 900 institutions, allowing a student to complete the application once and submit it to multiple colleges. Teacher evaluations, application essays, transcripts, and parent or counselor statements are also submitted electronically through the Common Application site, https://www.commonapp.org/. Homeschooled students should be aware that the parent or another person serving in the “guidance counselor” role will be asked to complete the School Report and Counselor Letter section of the Common Application, along with uploading the official high school transcript. Many colleges also require supplements to the Common Application–usually additional essays or shorter questions–which must be submitted as part of the application.

Credit
A measurement indicating the amount of time or work a student has put into a course. Some school systems consider a one-year course to be one credit or unit (see Carnegie unit); other systems consider a one-year course to be ten credits (and thus one semester would be five credits).

CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE®*
A financial aid application which some (not all) colleges and universities require in addition to the FAFSA to determine financial aid eligibility, and which is submitted online through the College Board website. Most institutions using this application are private, but several public institutions also require it, and it is often used for determining the amount of non-federal financial aid to award the student.

Course Description
A brief summary of the content of a course, which includes the course title, 2-3 paragraphs about the course content, a mention of course prerequisites, and titles/bibliographic information of textbooks and resources. For homeschoolers, course descriptions are prepared for two main reasons: the parent needs them in order to plan the course, and colleges often request them at application time to supplement the information on the transcript. Keep your course descriptions in an easily accessible form throughout the high school years and edit them at application time to suit the length and format requested by colleges. Be sure to also keep course descriptions from community college courses and any other outside courses your student takes.

EFC (Estimated Family Contribution)
The amount of money a family can be expected to contribute to college expenses for a given year. This calculation arises from information the family submits on the FAFSA, and this figure is used by colleges to make decisions on the amount of financial aid to offer the family.

Extracurricular Activities
Activities outside of the typical academic subjects, such as clubs, sports, drama, music activities, volunteer work, paid work, or church and community activities. Extracurricular activities are an important facet of the student’s college application, as they demonstrate additional dimensions to the student’s life and provide a way to show leadership, initiative, and passion.

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
An application required annually for all students who wish to qualify for federal, state, or college-based aid, generally submitted as soon as possible after October 1 in the year before the student will begin college. The FAFSA requests information on parent and student finances and, after submission, provides the family with an EFC figure (Estimated Family Contribution). From this figure, the total financial need can be calculated by subtracting the EFC from the total expenses of each college being considered. Most financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, so applying as early as possible is advantageous. Apply at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa

GPA (Grade Point Average)
A figure calculated by giving each letter grade a point value (generally an A=4 points, B=3, etc.), multiplying each grade by the number of credits the course was worth, totaling all of these values, and dividing by the number of credits earned. A perfect GPA is 4.0, although a weighted GPA may be calculated by awarding A’s in honors and Advanced Placement courses with 5 points rather than 4 points.

Honors Course
A college prep course that has been enhanced beyond the requirements of a typical college prep course by adding additional rigor and increased expectations. Extra rigor may be in the form of a more challenging textbook, more difficult math problems, a higher level of literature reading, additional or more challenging essays and research papers, etc. Depending on the policies of the high school, home school, or college/university, an honors course may enhance the weighted GPA. See “Weighted GPA” below.

IB® (International Baccalaureate®) Program
An internationally recognized, academically challenging program which, like the Advanced Placement program, offers high-level courses recognized by colleges for their rigor. Students take written exams at the conclusion of the program to demonstrate their mastery of the material. Not all communities offer IB courses, and homeschoolers typically have limited or no access to them.

Official Transcript
A record of the student’s high school grades and credits, sent directly from the school to the college electronically or, in certain cases, in a sealed envelope stamped as “official.” For home schools, the term is less meaningful than for traditional schools, since the college will expect a homeschooler’s transcript to be created by the parent unless the family works with an independent study program that prepares official transcripts for them. However, transcripts from community colleges or any outside programs should always be sent as official transcripts.

Personal Statement
A college application essay written by the student applicant in response to a prompt question on the application. Most essays are about 400 to 700 words in length, though some colleges also ask for shorter statements in addition to the main essay. Students should spend quality time preparing these essays, as they are an important supplement to the transcript, test scores, and lists of extracurricular activities and are the major way the student can communicate his or her unique experiences and perspectives.

Recommendations (References)
Forms or letters sent as part of the college application by a teacher or other person who knows the applicant well and can comment on characteristics such as academic promise, character, motivation, intellectual curiosity, and achievement. Typically these should be from individuals who taught the student in 11th or 12th grade. Most colleges ask for one or two recommendations; some allow more. Homeschoolers should always ask individual colleges if they may submit extra recommendations, as this can be advantageous.

Portfolio
A more “non-traditional” presentation of the student’s high school accomplishments, which may be submitted instead of or in addition to a formal transcript of grades and credits. A portfolio is often used by a student for whom a traditional transcript does not adequately describe the high school experience, and may include samples of work, lists of books read, essays, news media articles or video clips, artwork, videos or photos of outstanding projects or activities, or any items unique to the student applicant. Options for submission of portfolios may include paper or electronic (e.g. a website or upload). Note that not every college will be open to receiving a portfolio; always check to find out the preferred or allowable format for sending student records.

SAR (Student Aid Report)
A report sent to the applicant’s family that summarizes the information supplied on the FAFSA financial aid application and includes the EFC (Estimated Family Contribution).

SAT® Exam*
A college entrance exam administered by the College Board, containing two main sections: Math and Evidence-Based Reading and Writing, with an optional 50-minute timed essay. Scores range from 200 to 800 per section, with the maximum total score being 1600. Find information at https://www.collegeboard.org/

SAT Subject Tests™ (NOW OBSOLETE)
These were single-subject tests, one hour long, administered by the College Board and used by some colleges to gather additional information about the student’s knowledge in specific subjects.

Transcript
An organized listing, semester by semester, of a student’s high school courses. In addition to including course names, grades, credits toward graduation, and GPA (grade point average), the transcript may also include unofficial reporting of college entrance exam scores.

Unweighted GPA
Grade point average calculated with the assumption that all courses the student has completed receive equal weight, with no extra points added for honors, community college, or Advanced Placement courses. Some colleges specifically ask for an unweighted GPA.

Weighted GPA
Grade point average calculated after adding extra points (“weight”) for honors, community college courses, or Advanced Placement courses. Typically this means that an A in these courses receives 5 points rather than 4 and a B receives 4 rather than 3, so the overall GPA can exceed 4.0. Many variations exist; in some cases, only AP and college courses receive the extra point while honors courses receive 0.5 extra point or no additional weighting. College admissions departments may “unweight” the GPA according to their own preferences.

*SAT, AP, Advanced Placement, and CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE are registered trademarks of the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this product. SAT Subject Tests is a trademark owned by the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, this product.

ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc.

The Common Application® is a registered trademark of The Common Application, Inc.

IB® and International Baccalaureate® are registered trademarks of International Baccalaureate Organization.