Advising Glossary

An educational process that, by intention and design, facilitates students' understanding of the meaning and purpose of higher education and fosters their intellectual and personal development toward academic success and lifelong learning (NACADA, 2004).

Someone in a professional position at an institution who guides students through course selection, program planning, degree completion, and more. Advisors help students find solutions to course or degree-specific requirements or they may connect students to specific services as needed.

A schedule of all the academic events that occur in an academic year. The academic calendar includes the add, withdraw, and drop deadlines for each session within each semester.

The academic standing of a current undergraduate degree-seeking student whose Texas State cumulative GPA remains below 2.00 after academic warning status. Review the probation and suspension policy for more information.

The academic standing of a current undergraduate degree-seeking student with a Texas State cumulative GPA below 2.00 after academic probation status with no academic improvement progress, as defined by a 2.25 or higher Texas State semester GPA, will be academically suspended. Review the probation and suspension policy for more information.

The academic standing of an undergraduate degree-seeking student whose Texas State cumulative GPA does not meet the minimum academic standard of 2.00. Students have an opportunity to demonstrate their ability to meet the university’s academic expectations in the subsequent semester. Students who do not earn a Texas State GPA of 2.00 or higher while on academic warning will be placed on academic probation.

Accelerated Online Programs (AOP) offer fully online degrees focusing on a select set of majors and minors. 

How to learn more:

• Prospective students who are not currently attending TXST: visit the  AOP home page, press the "Request Info" button, and submit the form.
• Current TXST students: contact the Online Student Success office internally at Texas State Global:  Online Form  (preferred method), or  onlinesupport@txstate.edu , or (512) 245-6232. Note: All current TXST students wishing to switch to Accelerated Online Programs are required to meet with an Online Student Success Specialist.

Amendments to procedures that allow students with disabilities to have equal access to university programs.  The Office of Disability Services ensures equal access to university programs and activities for student with disabilities. Learn more about the registration process.

A function that students use in the registration portal to add an additional course to their schedule. You can find important dates about adding courses in the academic calendar.

Courses with a course number between 3000-4000 (ex: HS 3331).

The College Board Advanced Placement Program (AP) examinations are offered to high school students by participating secondary schools each May. Students who have completed AP exams may request their scores to be sent to Texas State to potentially count towards their degree requirements. Submit your AP scores to the Texas State Testing center via College Board.

This course section is limited to students whose program is offered at a different campus.

Options:

• Register for a different section (CRN) that matches your declared program campus.
• Register for a different course that is required for your degree program.
• Refer to your Degree Audit for course options within your degree plan.
• If you are unsure of what courses you should register for, please see your academic advisor.
• Meet with an advisor to determine if you need to declare a degree program offered at the campus you want to attend.
• You can request consideration for a campus restriction override from the appropriate academic department.

A directive from a School or Department that requires a certain action be taken while enrolled in a certain course. A corequisite may be a course, permission from a faculty member, a specified classification, or additional requirements as determined by the faculty. For example, you must take PHYS 1315 (General Physics I) with PHYS 1115 (General Physics I Lab).

A group of people with shared characteristics, such as when they began a program.

Texas State University consists of seven individual colleges – College of Applied Arts, Emmett and Miriam McCoy College of Business, College of Education, College of Fine Arts and Communication, College of Health Professions, College of Liberal Arts, College of Science and Engineering. 

The CLEP is a group of standardized tests created and administered by the College Board. Students can earn credit for courses by earning qualifying scores on any of the 33 examinations. The Testing Center page has more information about the CLEP.

A ceremony in which degrees or diplomas are conferred on graduating students. Additional information about commencement (ceremony schedules, parking, what to wear, guest tickets, etc.) can be found on the Texas State Commencement page. Students will need to apply for graduation to participate in the commencement ceremony. 

A transcript designation for a student who completed all 42 hours of core curriculum, this student is now core complete at any Texas public institution.

The specific number given to each individual course offered on campus each semester. It's typically a 4-digit number (ex: 1310)

The measurement to know how many credits a course is worth. This is indicated by the second number in the course number. For example, PSY 1300 is 3 credit hours. 

A dean oversees academic matters within their School or College. Each school and college has a dean, associate dean(s), and assistant dean(s). 

Department Approval may be required for certain courses and sections of courses. If several sections exist for a single course, it is very likely that some of the sections will be designated for special purposes or unique student groups (e.g., University Honors program, Varsity athletes, Round Rock campus, etc.). Other sections of the course are open to everyone else. If you receive a department approval error code when registering, please refer to the ‘Requesting Registration Overrides’ webpage to reach out to the department of the course you are trying to register for. 

A department chair is a faculty member who leads a university department and is responsible for its operations and relationship with the institution. 

A student who fulfills the specified requirements for two different majors authorized under a single degree has completed a double major and will receive a single diploma. Both majors appear on the diploma. For example, you can double major in a Bachelor of Science with Psychology and Health Sciences.

A function that students use in the registration portal to drop a course that they no longer want or need to take. You can find important dates about dropping courses in the academic calendar.

If two bachelor's degrees are conferred simultaneously, the student must complete a minimum of 30 hours beyond the requirements of the single degree. Degree audits must be filed in the office of both college advising centers. Graduation will occur when the student has completed requirements for both degrees. Students completing dual bachelor's degrees receive two diplomas. For example, you may earn a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Design and a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences.

Elective credit advanced, which means an upper-level 3000-4000 level transfer course.

Elective credit non-advanced, which means a lower-level 1000-2000 level transfer course.

Texas Education Code §54.014 specifies a maximum number of semester credit hours an undergraduate student may attempt while paying Texas resident tuition.  Students who exceed the maximum hour limitations will be charged the non-resident tuition rate. The Student Business Services page has more information about excessive hours.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a federal law that protects the privacy of students' education records. Students can grant access to a parent or guardian through the Bobcat Family Portal. 

The academic standing of an undergraduate degree-seeking student whose Texas State GPA meets the minimum academic standard of 2.00 or higher.

Calculated by dividing the total number of grade points earned by the number of credit hours attempted. Students can calculate their GPA by using a GPA calculation tool.

Honors will be calculated using the following Texas State GPAs:

• 3.4 - 3.59 will graduate cum laude
• 3.6 - 3.79 will graduate magna cum laude
• 3.8 - 4.0 will graduate summa cum laude

For the commencement program, honors status is calculated using the previous semester's GPA. For more information, visit the Academic Honors page in the Texas State catalog. 

An action item that is designated on a student's account that must be completed; some holds on student accounts can prevent students from enrolling in classes. The Registrar's office has more information about Hold Codes and Contacts.

The International Baccalaureate (IB) is an international program of courses and examinations offered at the high school level. An IB program official transcript of grades (diploma or certificate) must be sent to Texas State University for evaluation and award of appropriate course credit.

Courses with a course number between 1000-2000 (Ex: HIST 1310).

Many departments manage their course enrollment by permitting only those students who have declared a certain major or minor in their department to enroll in their courses. 

Course that does not apply to a student's major or minor but may be used to satisfy the required number of hours a student needs to obtain a bachelor's degree.

Overrides are given to students in order to register for classes that have restrictions or permissions. To request an override for a course, please refer to the ‘Requesting Registration Overrides’ webpage.

A directive from a School or Department that requires a certain action be taken before enrolling in a certain course. A prerequisite may be a course, permission from a faculty member, a specified classification, or additional requirements as determined by the faculty. For example, the prerequisite requirement to take BIO 2451 (Anatomy and Physiology I) is to have both BIO 1330 (Functional Biology) and CHEM 1341 (General Chemistry I) completed with a grade of a C or higher. 

Course(s) available to students from an approved or designated list.

A prospective student is someone who is considering applying to an institution and has not yet been admitted for a current or future term.

When registering for a course, there will be a section number assigned to the course depending on the time, day, and instructor assigned to that specific course section. The section number is usually three numbers (i.e. 251) but can sometimes appear with a letter and numbers (i.e. H03), which means the section is reserved for a special group of students. The Registrar’s office provides more information about sections on their webpage. 

The hours of credit earned for a course.

Based on the number of overall earned hours. The overall earned hours calculation includes hours earned at Texas State University including courses with grades of CR (i.e. CLEP, AP, departmental exams) and hours earned at other colleges or universities. In-progress courses are not considered in determining classification.  

Academic level based on hours earned: 1–29 freshman, 30–59 sophomore, 60–89 junior, and 90+ senior.

If there are extenuating circumstances, a student may submit an appeal for reinstatement. A student who successfully appeals for reinstatement must be reinstated to the same college from which they were suspended. Students must contact the specific academic advising center for appeal deadlines and instructions.

A system of uniform course designations for students and advisors to use when looking for course equivalents.

42 Semester Credit Hour (SCH) core curriculum for all undergraduate students in Texas public higher education comprised of eight Foundational Component Areas and one Component Area Option.

A legislatively mandated program for certain college freshmen and transfer students. Additional information about this program and its requirements can be found on the TSI webpage. 

A request form to have out-of-state and private school courses evaluated as core curricula. Students may submit a Transfer Evaluation Request to have transfer coursework reviewed.

Under Texas Education Code §54.0065, qualified students will receive up to a $1,000 tuition rebate upon graduation from Texas State. Students must meet specific requirements and follow the application requirements from the college they are graduating under.

Catalog composed of the university's policies and procedures as well as each college's curriculum for specific majors, minors, and certificates. 

An online list that students may join and wait for an open seat in the class. The Registrar's office has specific information and instructions about the waitlist process.

Undergraduate courses for which at least 65 percent of the grade must be based on written exams or assignments, and at least one assignment must be 500 words or more in length. Writing intensive is a designation intended to address the writing policy for undergraduate degree programs. An example of a writing intensive course includes HIST 1310 (Early American History). Courses must be taken at Texas State to receive writing intensive designation.