Oct 11, 2024  
2023-24 Technical College of the Lowcountry Catalog/Student Handbook 
    
2023-24 Technical College of the Lowcountry Catalog/Student Handbook [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Definitions of Terms


Admission - Acceptance of a candidate for enrollment.

Admit Status - A student’s status (First-time freshman, Transient, High School Student, First-time Transfer, Readmit, and Special) upon admission.

Advanced Standing - Granted on the basis of demonstrated educational attainment beyond the minimum required for admission.

Advisor, Advisee - The advisor is the individual assigned to help students with their academic program. The student is called the advisee.

Arts and Sciences Division - Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, Developmental Studies, General Education, and Liberal Arts.

Associate Degree - A degree awarded upon successful completion of at least 60 hours of designed college-level work.

Average, Grade Point - A measure of average scholastic success obtained by dividing the number of grade (quality) points earned by the total number of hours of coursework.

Business Technologies Division - Associate in Applied Science Early Care and Education, Administrative Office Technology, Computer Technology, Criminal Justice Technology, Culinary Arts Technology, Business Administration, Paralegal.

Certificate (Earned) - Title bestowed as official recognition for the completion of a designed curriculum.

Corequisite - Courses a student must take with another course.

Course - Organized subject matter in which instruction is offered within a given period of time and for which credit toward graduation or certification is usually given.

Course Number - Identifies class level and distinguishes it from other courses in a given area of study. This usually indicates the level of difficulty of a course, e.g., zero level courses (development), 100 level courses (bridge) above 100 level courses (freshman), 200 level courses (sophomore).

Course Prerequisite - A preliminary requirement that must be met before a certain course may be taken.

Course Section - Identifies section number and distinguishes it from other sections in the same subject matter. This usually indicates the type of sections, i.e., 01 day section, 10 night section, 70 distance learning section.

Credit Hours (Semester Hours) - A unit measure of instruction. For example 40 hours of instruction equals three semester hours.

Curriculum - The whole body of courses offered for study.

Degree (Earned) - Title bestowed as official recognition for the completion of a designed curriculum.

Degree Student - One who has fulfilled the admissions requirements and who is pursuing an Associate Degree program.

Department - An academic discipline that offers instruction in a particular branch of knowledge, e.g. Associate in Arts, Computer Technology, Radiologic Technology, Civil Engineering Technology, etc.

Deregister - Each registration period has specific payment deadlines for tuition and fees. If a student does not meet the payment deadline, the student will be removed (purged or deregistered) from the class roster for those classes. The fee payment deadlines apply to all students, including those on Financial Aid.

Developmental Studies - A program of studies in various areas designed to give the student background prerequisite to college-level studies.

Diploma (Earned) - Title bestowed as official recognition for the completion of a designed curriculum.

Division - An administrative unit comprised of a group of related academic departments. (Arts and Sciences, Business Technologies, Health Sciences, Industrial Technology)

Drop - Resignation from a class or classes during the section swap period. Dropping from a class may impact a student’s financial aid. The student is financially responsible for fees.

Dual Enrollment - College courses for students dually enrolled in high school and at TCL.

Elective - A subject or course which the student may choose as distinguished from courses that are required.

Evening Classes - Any class beginning at 5:00 p.m. or later.

FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) - The first step in applying for federal financial assistance. Apply at www.fafsa.ed.gov and use school code 009910.

Full-Time Student - A student who is enrolled for 12 semester hours of academic courses. A normal full-time load is 15 semester hours.

Health Sciences Division - Massage Therapy, Medical Assisting, Nursing, Radiologic Technology, Surgical Technology, Physical Therapy, Computed Tomography (future program)

Honor’s List - A honor awarded to students who have attained a GPA of 3.5 or higher during a semester in which a minimum of 6 hours of college-level credits is completed.

Humanities - An elective course that must be chosen to complete the humanities requirement for associate degree programs.

Incomplete Grade - For a grade of Incomplete (I) to be requested a student must have completed at least 75% of the required work in a course.

Industrial Technology Division - Building Construction Technology, Civil Engineering Technology, Cosmetology, General Technology, HVAC, Industrial Electronics Technology, Industrial Maintenance Technology.

Non-Degree Seeking / Career Development - A student who is not pursuing an associate degree program.

Part-Time Student - A student enrolled for less than 12 hours of academic coursework.

Prerequisite - A course/courses a student must successfully complete with a grade of “C” or higher prior to enrolling for a particular course.

President’s List - An honor awarded to students who have attained a GPA of 4.0 during a semester in which a minimum of 12 hours of college-level credit is completed.

Programs of Study (Major) - An area of concentration that leads to earning a certificate, diploma, or degree.

Re-admit - The act of readmitting a student after an absence of more than two semesters or probation/suspension.

Residency - Refers to whether or not a student qualifies for in-state tuition fees.

Schedule Changes - The act of changing a student’s original schedule during the section swap period.

Semester - One of any three terms during which courses are offered by the college (Fall, Spring, Summer).

Student Aid - Financial assistance for college expenses through any form of grants, scholarships, loans, or work.

Suspension - Involuntary separation of the student from the college.

Syllabus - An outline for an academic course; includes assignments, exam dates, grading practices, etc.

Transcript - The official record of completed courses and the grades made.

Transfer Credits - The number of course credits taken by a student at one college that another college accepts.

Transfer Student - A student who has attended one or more colleges and is admitted to another.

Transient Student - A student in good standing in one college who is taking courses that will transfer back to the original (home) college.

Tuition - The per credit hour cost of college.

Vice-President’s List - An honor awarded to students who have attained a grade point average of 3.55 - 3.99 during a semester in which a minimum of 12 hours of college-level credit is completed.

Withdrawal from College - Resignation from all classes and college following the procedures outlined in the college catalog.

Withdrawal from Courses - A release from enrollment in one or all courses. An official withdrawal occurs when either a student completes and submits the necessary paperwork. Withdrawing from a class may impact a student’s financial aid and satisfactory academic progress.