A guide to commonly used college language and abbreviations at Michigan State University
Colleges and Universities use a lot of lingo, abbreviations, and acronyms which might not make sense to those who are outside of the college environment. This guide refers to some of these words and acronyms to help you navigate MSU.
1855 is MSU’s founding year and is used often! Most notably, 1855 is a complex of buildings, which includes MSU’s apartments and family housing. The complex houses Sparty’s Market, Starbucks, Spartan Spirit Shop, and various departments.
B.A. refers to Bachelor of Arts, an undergraduate degree awarded in the field of Arts.
Beaumont Tower is the Spartans’ beloved symbol of MSU, which is located in the central campus near the Main library.
Breslin Student Events Center is an events center, which hosts events, graduation ceremonies, and basketball games on MSU’s campus.
B.S. refers to Bachelor of Science, an undergraduate degree awarded in the field of Sciences.
Career Services Network (CSN) is MSU’s career department, which hosts multiple locations across campus and helps Spartans find jobs and internships.
Credit refers to an hour credit, which students earn toward completion of their degrees. At MSU, students need to take 120 credits to graduate with an undergraduate degree. For each credit a student is enrolled in, they will spend that many hours in class and about 2 hours for each credit on homework and out-of-class preparation.
D2L or Desire2Learn is a learning management system, which students utilize to review the course materials and submit assignments to professors.
DPPS is the Department of Police and Public Safety which serves as the Police Department for Michigan State University, with 69 sworn police officers certified by the State of Michigan, handling all police and criminal matters on MSU property. MSU’s police officers are a mixed group of outstanding men and women of different races, cultures, and ethnic backgrounds.
The wait list functionality allows students to place themselves within a virtual queue for classes that are currently full. Each night, the system checks for open seats and adjusts the wait lists accordingly. Click here to learn more about this process.
FAFSA is a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which helps colleges to determine how much financial aid you’re eligible to receive, which could include grants, scholarships, work-study funds, and loans.
Our Office of Financial Aid here is here to help with any questions you have about the FAFSA or your student’s aid package.
Fellowship is a short-term financial opportunity through a fellowship or scholarship program, where students are usually expected to complete a semester-long project.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that affords parents the right to have access to their children’s education records, the right to seek to have the records amended, and the right to have some control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the education records. Permissions from your student needs to be granted to have access to these records. Students grant these permissions in the student information system.
First-Gen at MSU refers to a student who neither parents(s) or guardian(s) have earned a four-year degree.
Flat rate tuition is a certain price, which doesn’t change for students when they pay for a semester. Through flat rate tuition, students can take from 12 to 18 credits at MSU for the same cost.
Graduate application is an application, which students have to file in the beginning of their graduating semester to graduate. For example, students will need to file the graduation application in January to graduate in May of the same semester. This process is completed by the student in the student information system.
Incoming student is a student, who comes to MSU for the first time. An incoming student can be a student, who graduated from high school, took a gap year, or just transferred to MSU.
LiveOn is MSU’s platform, where students can learn more about housing on campus and file applications regarding their housing.
MA is a degree, awarded at a graduate master’s level to students who major in education, economics, and other arts related disciplines.
MBA is a professional degree program, awarded at a graduate level as Master’s of Business Administration.
Medical Doctor or M.D. is a graduate degree, awarded to students who completed a 4 year graduate program at a medical school.
MFA refers to a Master’s degree in Fine Arts, which is awarded to students in the field of Fine Arts, such as music, writing, and theater.
MFA can also mean Multi Factor Authentication. Students will need to have this set up to access many MSU online systems.
MSU Federal Credit Union is a credit union, which primarily serves students, employees, and alumni of Michigan State University.
OCAT is the Office of Cultural and Academic Transition, which provides transitional resources for a diverse group of students on campus.
Office Hours are designated weekly hours, which professors hold to meet with students in case they need help with reviewing or clarifying materials from the class. Office hours are found in the syllabus for the course the student is enrolled in.
Federal Pell Grants are grants awarded to undergraduate students who display exceptional financial need and have not earned a bachelor’s, graduate, or professional degree.
Ph.D. refers to a terminal doctoral degree of Philosophy Doctor, which is awarded across different majors.
Resident Assistant is a student-peer, who builds community and ensures safety of peers on a residential floor.
RCPD stands for The Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities, which assists students and employees with disabilities.
The Office of the Registrar specializes in all things related to the student academic record including enrollment, academic records, degree certification and diplomas, grade collection and recording, transfer credit processing, student-athlete and veteran certification, classroom and event scheduling, curriculum and catalog, and much more!
Hold Policy is a policy rule, which prevents students from doing one or more of the following: being admitted or readmitted, enrolling, becoming registered, receiving your diploma or certificate, or being processed for financial aid. Among the reasons a hold may be placed are: past due financial obligations to any department, office, or unit of the University, the need to obtain academic advising, or as a result of judicial actions.
Scholarship is a type of financial aid, which reduces students’ tuition costs and is not required to be re-payed!
SIS stands for Student Information System. In SIS students can search for classes, enroll into classes, schedule an appointment with their advisor, and check their academic progress.
Sparty’s mini-market stores offer a variety of grab-and-go options and convenience items. Use your Combo-X-Change (CX) benefit included with your dining plan, or we accept cash, credit cards and Spartan Cash.
Syllabus is a document, which contains information about the class and the requirements for successfully completing the class. This is the contract between the instructor and the student and show be referred to throughout the semester.
TA stands for a Teaching Assistant, which teaches a class while being enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program or assists a professor in teaching a class as an undergraduate student.
A transfer student is an applicant who has successfully completed any number of credits at an accredited college or university prior to enrolling at MSU.
UGS 110 is a first-year seminar, which is marked as an Undergraduate Studies seminar intended to help students transition to the university smoothly and succeed at MSU. All first-year students are encouraged to enroll in this class in fall of their first year.
ULA stands for Undergraduate Learning Assistant. ULAs assist professors in conducting the class and grading the assignments.
MSU Union is a central location on the North of Campus, which houses multiple support services departments and units. The Union is a popular meeting place for students and a popular study spot. Many events are also hosted in the Union.
Work-study job or position provides part-time jobs for students with financial need, allowing them to earn money to help pay for college.