Glossary

Safety school A school that a student has an extremely high chance of being accepted into based on their standardized test scores, academic background, and other application materials.

SAR (Student Aid Report) A document that summarizes the information a student reported on their FAFSA. It includes a student’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC), estimated eligibility for federal student loans and Federal Pell Grants, and whether student’s have been selected for verification.

SAT A test of students’ academic skills which is used as a factor in admission by many post-secondary institutions. There are three sections on the SAT reading, writing, and math.

SAT Subject Tests These tests were multiple-choice standardized tests given by the College Board on individual subjects, but they were discontinued in 2021.

School Profile A document put together by a student’s high school that includes information about the student body and the types of classes offered by the school such as AP, IB, etc. It usually lists figures like graduation rate and other notable facts about the school, though each one is different. It is sometimes included with a student’s application to college, although it is seldom required.

Score Range Helps determine what schools should be a student’s safety school, target school, and reach school. Many schools publish what the middle 50% of their previous incoming freshmen class received on their SAT or ACT. Students can compare this score range to their own to help judge their likelihood of acceptance.

Selectivity An assessment of how competitive it is to get into a particular institution, correlated with acceptance rate and the quality of applications. Schools with a higher selectivity have a lower acceptance rate and extremely qualified applicants.

Semester – see “Course Term” A half year term at a post-secondary institution that typically last between 15 and 18 weeks. Usually, there are two semesters per year one in the spring and one in the fall.

Seminar Small, discussion and research-based courses at post-secondary institutions.

Single-Choice Early Action – see “Early Action ” The same as regular early action except it stipulates that a student can only apply early to one institution.

Single-sex School An institution that only instructs people of one biological sex (an all-female school or an all-male school).

Sophomore Standing A certain number of completed credit hours give students this designation. They could be freshmen who have come in with AP credit and are ahead in their program of study, or juniors who are behind in their program of study and need to catch up in order to be able to graduate.

Student Retention How many students complete a course of study at a particular institution without dropping out or transferring.

Student Right to Know (SRTK) Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to require all institutions of higher education participating in any program under HEA title IV (Student Assistance) to disclose the completion or graduation rate of certificate- or degree-seeking, full-time students entering those institutions. 

Student-Faculty Ratio How many students attend each institution compared to how many faculty teach there.

Study Abroad A period of time (usually between a semester and an academic year) that a student spends studying at a post-secondary institution in another country.

Summer Term The period of time between the end of the spring semester and the beginning of the fall semester in which students can take summer classes.

Supplemental Essays Essays submitted as part of an application package that are specific to a certain institution to which the student is applying. They often center around why a student wants to attend a particular institution, but they can also ask students to address more creative topics.