Glossary

Terms Needed for College Success

A.A.O.T.: Associate of arts Oregon transfer degree. A non-designated block transfer degree, consisting of 90 credits and designed for the student who intends to transfer to a four-year college or university with the Oregon University System (OUS). Students need to work closely with an academic advisor to plan their program of study at BMCC.

A.A.S.: Associate of applied science degree. A non-transfer degree awarded to students who complete the requirements of a two-year program, usually a 90-credit designated program as outlined in the college catalog.

A.S.: Associate of science degree. A non-designated college-transfer degree designed for students whose program requirements do not fit A.A.O.T. degree patterns. This degree does not always “block transfer” to Oregon universities.

A.G.S.: Associate of general studies degree. A terminal, two-year, 90-credit program of study that yields a non-designated and non-transferring degree, although some, or possibly all, of the courses may be accepted by another institution of higher education.

(In every case above, students should verify course transferability for each program of study before transferring to another college or university. Even in Oregon, particular schools may have some differences in lower division credits required for their programs.)

Academic Advisor: An assigned BMCC faculty or staff member trained to assist the student in developing and managing the completion of the student’s program of study based on the documented assessments and declared educational goals within the student’s individual educational plan.

Academic Calendar: Start and end dates of the academic year and of each quarter. The calendar reflects deadlines and other information related to payment schedules, add/drop options, graduation applications, and related policies.

Academic Records: The official listing of courses attempted and completed by a student at BMCC, including the credits accepted as a result of the BMCC registrar’s evaluation of official transcripts from other institutions. This information is listed in the student management module of the integrated administrative system, WolfTrax, and is accessible to the student through WolfWeb.

Academic Year: The four-quarter sequence beginning in summer and ending the following spring.

Academic Notification of Warning, and Suspension: An official process by which degree-seeking students who do not achieve satisfactory academic progress receive a specific level of notice whenever their cumulative GPA falls below 2.00 and their cumulative Pace of completion falls below 67%.

Advanced Placement (AP): The national exam for high school students that allows the granting of credit based on points earned and recorded on the official AP transcripts. Earned points of 4 and 5 are considered evidence that the student has mastered the equivalent of an introductory course in English or history at BMCC or other various other subject matters.

Articulation:  Formal alignment of resources, instruction, curriculum, processes, and/or credit between education programs or institutions.  Programmatic articulation aligns curriculum based on standards, proficiencies, skill sets, or expectations for student learning (e.g., CTE Alignment and Articulation resources). Institutional articulation refers to interrelationships of curriculum, standards, and policies across levels (e.g. secondary, community college, and higher education) such that community college credit can be awarded to secondary students, and/or higher education credit can be awarded to secondary or community college students for completing that higher institution’s expectations.

Audit: Taking a credit class without being required to participate fully in the class activities (taking tests or doing homework). Classes taken under audit status do not count as credits attempted in financial aid calculations, and the AU status does not count in calculating GPAs.

BMCC Campus: BMCC’s main campus is located in Pendleton.

BMCC Center: Within the Blue Mountain Community College system, four outreach centers serve the college’s district, which includes Baker, Morrow, and Umatilla counties. Centers are located in Baker City (Baker County), Boardman (Workforce Training Center), Hermiston, and Milton-Freewater. 

BMCC Identification Number: A unique, official identification number randomly issued by the college for each BMCC student that is used to record, access, and store academic records.

Certificate Program: A specified program of study leading to an official award and notation on the transcript. BMCC awards certificates to students who complete certain career and technical or post-secondary programs requiring less than two years of college study and who earn a GPA of no less than a 2.00, or C average.

Class Roster: The official list of students’ names enrolled in a particular class.

Cohort: A group, regardless of size, of individuals that can be identified by at least one identifiable characteristic.

College Preparatory Programs: A BMCC department administering classes and activities related to English as a second language (ESL), adult basic education (ABE), general educational development (GED), credit retrieval, post-secondary remediation up to the 60 level.

Contracts Out Of District (COD): Within the Blue Mountain Community College service area, there are two counties (Grant County and Union County) that are outside the BMCC district but that contract with the college for educational services. BMCC has a COD office in John Day and La Grande.

Corequisite: A course or activity that is required to be taken simultaneously with the course described.

Core Curriculum: Courses required for a specific major. Courses in the core curriculum usually must be taken for a grade (pass/no pass is not allowed) to count toward degree requirements.

Course/Class: An organized unit of instruction within an academic discipline or subject of study, or one of the instructional subdivisions of a discipline or subject area.

Course Description: The paragraph in the course catalog that describes a course’s emphasis and content; the description also may specify prerequisites, corequisites, recommended preparation, and credit hours.

Credit: A measurement of course work and time spent in an academic endeavor. One credit generally equates to fifty minutes (a clock hour) of instruction and two hours of preparatory work outside the instructional classroom each week, or the equivalent thereof. Credits and clock hours may vary depending upon the type of course.

Credit Load: The total number of credits taken in a given term.

Curriculum: An organized program of study.

CWE: Cooperative work experience. CWE is a program of study in a work environment for which students, instructors, and participating businesses develop written training and evaluation plans to guide student development within specific programs. Students receive course credit for their work experience, whether or not they are paid a wage.

Distance Education: The delivery of instruction to students located throughout the district, state, nation, and the world using a variety of technologies and telecommunications networks. Delivery systems include interactive syncronous distance, video recorded instruction, online instruction, guided instruction, and hybrid courses.

Drop: The process of removing one’s name from the class roster within the 100-percent refund period for a course or courses. This procedure results in a full refund. After a drop, there is no record of the student’s having ever registered for the class and no grade is reflected on the transcript.

Electives: Courses that students may choose to take, as contrasted with courses that are required for an academic program.

Emphasis: A concentration or specialization within a program or academic option that provides additional curricular focus. An emphasis does not appear on a transcript except in the A.A.S. degree and certificate programs.

English Language Acquisition (ELA) (Formerly known as, English as a Second Language [ESL] or English Language Learner [ELL]): Terms that denote students or a program for students who want to improve their English language proficiency in order to perform effectively in an academic, work, or community setting. Many college preparatory classes are structured specifically for ELA students.

Enrollment: The placement of a student within a credit or non-credit course. Enrollment and registration are interchangeable terms from a student standpoint. From an institutional standpoint, registration is the process of enrollment and enrollment is a status.

Enrollment Management (EM): The college’s administrative unit consisting of the following functions: admissions, records and testing; advising; financial aid, C.A.S.E., the Student Learning Center, tutoring and veterans’ benefits; student employment; services for students with disabilities; recruitment and marketing; and the TRiO Student Support Services grant-funded program. In addition, the Associated Student Government reports to the associate vice president of enrollment management. The EM offices provide services to students in such areas as: official grades and transcripts; degree, credit, and transfer-transcript audits; international student services; issuance of diplomas; institutional academic progress (IAP); student safety; student dispute resolution; student orientation and student success strategies.

Ethnic/Racial Group: An ethnic or racial category with which a person most closely identifies. Federal and state regulations require BMCC to report aggregated ethnic/racial information and other demographic statistics for its employees and students. The categories listed on federal reports are: American Indian/Alaskan Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, Hispanic, and White. BMCC ethnic/racial reports also include “unknown” and “not reported” categories for students who may be of mixed race or heritage and do not identify with or select any of the categories as listed, who choose not to respond to the query, or who check “unknown” or “not reported” on the data collection form. These ethnic categories do not include international students, who are reported separately.

Faculty: The group of employees whose primary assignment is instructional support of the academic mission.

FAFSA: The Free Application for Federal Student Aid to apply for financial aid for college or grad school. A completed FAFSA is required for students to be considered for federal and state financial aid.

Financial Aid Offer: A combination of financial student-support mechanisms (such as a scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study) determined by the BMCC Office of Financial Aid.

First-Generation College Student: Defined at BMCC as a student whose parents have not earned an associate’s degree or higher. Defined by the federally funded TRiO-Student Support Services program as a student whose parents have not earned a bachelor’s degree or higher.

First-Time Freshman: A student with fewer than 45 credits who has enrolled for the first time in college.

Foundational Requirements: Refer to General Education Requirements.

Full-Time Student: A student enrolled in 12 or more credits during any one term as of the FTE (full-time equivalent) reporting date established by the Oregon Community College Unified Reporting System (OCCURS). Definitions for financial aid and veterans’ services programs may vary.

General Education (Gen. Ed.) Requirements: Courses in the conventional divisions of arts and humanities, social sciences, and math and science that provide students with a broad educational experience. General education courses are typically introductory in nature and provide students with fundamental skills and knowledge. Students seeking an A.A.O.T. or an A.A.S. degree from BMCC and/or planning to transfer to a four-year academic institution often take these required courses while attending a community college in preparation for successful transition as a junior in pursuit of their baccalaureate degree.

Grade: A mark indicating a degree of academic accomplishment.

Grade Point Average (GPA): A computation of work done at BMCC and at other academic institutions. Grade points are computed on the basis of: 4 points for each credit of A, 3 points for each credit of B, 2 points for each credit of C, 1 point for each credit of D, and 0 points for each credit of F or FA. All assigned courses, regardless of curriculum, are included in the BMCC cumulative grade point average. To compute your GPA, take the number of points for your grade, multiply them by the number of credits for that class (for example, if you received an A for a four-credit class, you would have a total of 16 points), and divide the total points by total credits. All marks except A, B, C, D, F and FA are disregarded in the computation of grade point averages; however, some of these disregarded marks will affect financial aid and athletic eligibility. Honors GPA and graduation are calculated differently (see below).

Grant: An award of student financial support that does not require repayment and is based on financial need.

Honors: An official recognition of students with exceptional academic qualifications; such students may graduate with honors or high honors. For honors designation, students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.40 to 3.84 in all courses that meet degree requirements. The high honors designation requires a cumulative GPA of 3.85 or higher in all courses that meet degree requirements. The cumulative GPA calculation will include all courses taken at BMCC and other institutions as long as they apply to the degree requirements.

Hybrid Course: Courses delivered by a combination of in class time and online coursework. 

In-State Resident: As defined for tuition purposes, a U.S. citizen or national whose primary residence is in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Montana, or California.

Interlibrary Loan Service (ILL): A service provided by the Library and Media Services Center through which BMCC’s centers and students, as well as the general public, may obtain materials on temporary loan from other libraries nationwide.

International Student: As defined for tuition purposes, a person who is not a citizen or a national of the United States and who is in this country temporarily and specifically to obtain a postsecondary educational degree. BMCC assesses an international student the same rate of tuition as a student who is classified as a nonresident alien; an international student pays the same amount for fees and books as any other student.

Junior: Usually defined by four-year institutions as a student with 90 quarter credits of 100-level or higher course work.

Major: An extensive program of study in a designated subject area offered at four-year institutions; students seeking a bachelor’s degree must declare a major and complete all of its requirements. There are no majors offered at BMCC.

Matriculation: Advancing through the educational process toward a goal, particularly related to enrolling in a college or university (for example, upon completing the A.A.O.T. degree at BMCC, a student may to matriculate to Eastern Oregon University).

Minor: A field of specialized study secondary to a major that may be offered by an academic unit at a four-year institution. There are no minors offered at BMCC.

New Student: A student that has not attended BMCC, has attended BMCC but has not attended within the most recent two academic years, earned credits at BMCC prior to completing high school

Non-Credit Enrollment: Course offerings in which no credit is awarded for completion; non-credit courses often serve to upgrade skills, maintain licensure, or gain personal enrichment.

Non-Designated Degree: A set of courses fulfilling general education requirements for a transfer degree leading to a baccalaureate degree or for the associate of general science degree, which offers a broad education as opposed to a focused or career study program.

Nonresident Alien: A term used for tuition purposes to define a person who is not a citizen or a national of the United States and who is in this country on a temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. The tuition rate for a nonresident alien is different from the resident tuition rate, but a resident alien student pays the same amount for fees and books.

Non-Traditional Student: A student in credit classes or developmental education classes not fitting the traditional student definition.

Oregon Transfer Module: A one-year program of study through which a student can complete most, but not all, general education requirements before transferring to a public four-year institution in Oregon.

Orientation: An activity for students that is intended to acquaint them with campus resources and thereby better prepare them for successful learning and navigation within the educational system.

Out-of-State Resident: A term used to assess tuition for a student who is a U.S. citizen or national whose primary residence lies outside Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Nevada, Montana, or California.

Outcome: A term used at BMCC and at other institutions that defines institutional expectations and academic standards. Student-learning outcomes are specific statements defining the expected understanding, knowledge, and/or skill-set that a successful student will have obtained upon completing a course. All course syllabi at BMCC list expected student-learning outcomes.

Part-Time Student: For most purposes at BMCC, and consistent with national definitions, a degree-seeking student who is enrolled in fewer than 12 credit hours in a term as of the FTE (full-time equivalent) reporting date established by the Oregon Community College Unified Reporting System (OCCURS). Definitions for the financial aid and veterans’ services programs may vary.

Peer Tutor: A trained student who works with fellow students to provide, at no additional cost to the recipients, additional instruction in course work that he or she has completed with a grade of B or better.

Placement Test: An assessment of academic preparedness that helps place a student into a specific course addressing the particular skill level identified by the test. BMCC uses placement tests in math, reading, and writing to help ensure a student’s success in college.

Pre-registration: Allows students to register before the beginning of classes each term. Students must be in good academic standing and have no outstanding financial balance due from a previous term; otherwise they may be prevented from enrolling in classes or be removed from classes until such obligations are met.

Prerequisite: A course or instructional program that students are expected to complete successfully as a necessary requirement before they are permitted to enroll in another course or instructional program that is more advanced.

Professional Tutors: Professional tutors are qualified individuals who have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and have been approved through the Office of Instruction to offer tutoring services to credit seeking, GED, ABE, or ESL students at BMCC.

Quarter: Synonymous with the academic period often called a term at BMCC. There are four quarters in an academic year, beginning with the summer quarter and ending with the following spring quarter.

Registration: The placement of a student within a credit or non-credit course. Enrollment and registration are interchangeable from a student standpoint. From an institutional standpoint, registration is the process of enrollment and enrollment is a status.

Resident: For tuition purposes, a student whose primary residence is in Oregon; residents are charged in-state tuition. At BMCC, students who reside in Idaho, Washington, Nevada, Montana, and California are also considered residents.

Resident Alien: A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence (and who holds alien registration receipt cards Form I-551/155). A resident alien is assessed tuition at the same rate as a citizen or national of the United States.

Returning student: Student that has graduated from high school or is over 18 and has attended BMCC within the most recent two academic years.

Scholarships: Financial support mechanisms awarded to students based on merit or need. Scholarships may require that recipients meet certain conditions such as term credit load or progress toward degree. Scholarships do not have to be repaid.

Sequence Courses: Two or more closely related courses in a discipline or subject area, taken in a specified order using chronological numbering.

Sophomore: A student who has completed 45 or more credit hours.

Staff: The category of employees whose primary assignment is administrative support of the academic mission.

Subject Code: An alphabetical abbreviation used with a course number to indicate an academic subject area, such as MTH for math courses.

Supplemental Instruction: Face-to-face or online teaching and learning opportunities offered by instructors in addition to and in support of the classroom experience.

Syllabus: An outline of a particular course offering that communicates the course’s content, learning objectives, and expected performance criteria for student grades.

Term: An academic quarter.

Traditional Student: A student who is between the ages of 18 and 22 years old taking credit-bearing courses and who has received a high school diploma.

Transcripts: The official record of courses and grades attempted or completed by a student. Official transcripts must be ordered by the student from an academic institution’s enrollment management office. Transfer transcripts are records from another school that BMCC uses for admission purposes or for evaluating a student’s earned credits that may be accepted toward a program of study at BMCC. Students requesting transfer transcripts from another institution must arrange to have those transcripts sent directly to BMCC’s Office of Enrollment Management in order for those transcripts to be considered official and to be used in assessing credits already earned. Unofficial transcripts from BMCC are available online through the student’s account.

Transition: The process of a student’s successful fulfillment of declared educational goals and his/her subsequent advancement to another endeavor as a result of completing those goals. Transitions may occur, for example, from one academic level to the next, from a study program to a job, or from one institution of higher education to another.

TRiO Student Support Services: A federally funded student-support program that provides services to help eligible students succeed in college. The project serves first-generation, low-income, or disabled students who are seeking a college degree and who hold U. S. citizenship.

Tuition and Fees: BMCC Board approved total mandatory charges assessed students for enrolling in the institution each term.

Tutor: A person with expertise in specific subject areas to assist students in understanding concepts taught in the classroom. Tutors are available free to the students at most BMCC locations, though they may be available to help only in specific academic areas.

Withdraw: The process of filing the required paperwork when a student abandons an attempt to earn the credits associated with a given course. Both the course and a grade of W appear on the student’s transcript. The grade of W is not calculated for GPA; however, a W may affect a student’s financial aid. Students withdrawing from classes do not receive a refund of tuition or fees.

WolfWeb: The Internet-based resource that provides BMCC students online access to all of their BMCC information.

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