Institutional Research - Glossary of Terms
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AAUP - American Association of University Professionals
Academic Rank - A state-wide categorization of faculty positions. Categories include, but are not limited to: Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, and Instructor. To look at full range of ranks, see Fact Book.
Academic Year - The time period containing the academic sessions held during consecutive Summer, Fall, and Spring semesters.
African American or Black - A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa (except those of Hispanic origin).
Allocated Positions - The staff or faculty employment positions allocated for each fiscal year in the University Operating Budget. An allocated position exists whether it is filled with an employee or not.
American Indian or Alaska Native - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains a tribal affiliation or community attachment.
Asian or Pacific Islander - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, or Pacific Islands. This includes people from China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, American Samoa, India, and Vietnam.
Auxiliaries - Budget entities which are primarily self supported ventures in support of the university community (students, faculty and university departments).
Catalog Year - Begins Fall semester and includes Spring and Summer semester.
Center of Excellence - An academic or cluster of academic programs identified by a respective university and approved by the Board of Regents in 1978 to be given special funding and institutional priority to achieve or enhance quality and national recognition.
CIP (Classification of Instructional Programs) - A numerical classification and standard terminology for secondary and postsecondary instructional programs. CIP codes are used by universities nationally to report various instructional program data to the U. S. Department of Education and other government and higher education organizations. CIP Manual
CIRP - Cooperative Institutional Research Program
Common Data Set (CDS) - a collaborative effort among data providers in the higher education community and publishers as represented by the College Board, Thomson Peterson's, and U.S. News & World Report. The combined goal of this collaboration is to improve the quality and accuracy of information provided to all involved in a student's transition into higher education, as well as to reduce the reporting burden on data providers.
Contract and Grants - Budget entities which deal primarily with sponsored research activities and federally funded educational grants
Corridor Funding - The University is funded to generate specific numbers of annual FTEs at each level: Lower, Upper, Graduate Classroom, and Thesis/Dissertion. Florida Statutes provide that if the actual enrollment for any university is less than the funded enrollment by from zero to five percent for a fiscal year, the university shall receive full funding as allocated. If the actual enrollment for any university is less than the planned enrollment by more than five percent for any 2 consecutive fiscal years, the university's enrollment plan for the next year shall be reduced. If actual enrollment exceeds planned enrollment by more than 5 percent, an explanation of the excess shall be provided with the next year's enrollment plan. The analysis of enrollment conducted from implementing this subsection shall be based on the categories of enrollment used in the educational and general appropriations.
Credit - Recognition of attendance or performance in an instructional activity (course or program)that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.
Credit Course - A course that, if successfully completed, can be applied toward the number of courses required for achieving a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.
CUPA - College and University Professional Association
Degree Seeking Student - Students enrolled in courses for credit who are recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or other formal award.
Dual enrollment - A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school. Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate.
E&G (Educational and General) - Budget entities which provide instructional programs leading to formal degrees; research for solving problems; and for public service programs.
Enrollment - Registration for coursework and payment of fees constitutes official enrollment.
Enrollment Increase - is the number of Full Time Equivalent students FTEs over the number currently funded in the Legislative Budget Request.
Faculty - A person appointed to a position defined by the Board of Governors Personnel Classification system as in the faculty pay plan. Categories include Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, and Instructor, as well as non-instructional staff such as Counselor/Advisors, and Librarians.
Faculty Rank - A state wide categorization of faculty positions. Categories include Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, and Instructor.
First-Professional Student - Those students enrolled in programs leading toward a first-professional degree in the fields of dentistry (D.D.S.,D.M.D.), law (L.L.B.,J.D.), medicine (M.D.), pharmacy (B.Pharm, Pharm.D.) and veterinary medicine (D.V.M.).
First-Time Student - A student attending any institution for the first time at the level enrolled. Includes students enrolled in the fall term who attended a postsecondary institution for the first time at the same level in the prior summer term. Also includes students who entered with advanced standing (college credit earned before graduation from high school).
First-time, first-year (freshman) student - A student attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level. Includes students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer term. Also includes students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).
First-year student - A student who has completed less than the equivalent of 1 full year of undergraduate work; that is, less than 30 semester hours (in a 120-hour degree program) or less than 900 contact hours.
FISAP - Fiscal Operation Report and Application to Participate
Fiscal Year - A twelve-month period running from July 1st through the following June 30th.
Fiscal Year of the State - is the period of time beginning July 1 and ending on the following June 30, both dates inclusive.
FTIC (First Time in College) - An entering freshman or a first year student entering with less then 12 hours of college credit.
Full Time Student - A full time student is a student who takes at least 12 credit hours (undergraduate) or 9 credit hours (graduate) in a specific semester.
Full-time Equivalent (FTE) Enrollment (Annualized) - A workload measure based on credit hours generated for each term divided by the appropriate undergraduate or graduate divisor. In Fall or Spring term, an FTE is equivalent to 15 credit hours at the undergraduate level or 12 credit hours at the graduate level. In the Summer term, an FTE is 10 credit hours at the undergraduate level or 8 credit hours at the graduate level.
Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Faculty - is a budgetary term that represents one full-time faculty position. (Note that two people each serving in half-time faculty positions would together equal one F.T.E. faculty.)
Full-Time Graduate Student - A student enrolled for 9 or more semester credits or 9 or more quarter credits or students involved in thesis or dissertation preparation who are considered full-time by the institution.
Full-Time-Equivalent (F.T.E.) Student - The teaching of 40 credit hours at the undergraduate level or 32 credit hours at the graduate level for an academic year.
Fundable Student Credit House (SCH) - Student credit hours which the university receives funding from the state as measured from the three final Student Data Course File submissions to the Board of Governors.
Graduate Fee Waivers - Appropriations by the Legislature for graduate assistant fee waivers are used to fund graduate and fellowship fee waivers granted by the universities. The graduate assistant fee waivers are provided to students based on graduate credit hours taken and the number of hours worked.
Graduate I - A course level classification term: Student's Course Number is between 5000 and 8999 and is not Graduate II.
Graduate II - A course level classification term: Student's Course Number is between 5000 and 8999 and Student's Classification Level (01060) = 'A' and Degree Level Sought (01053 = E,S,D, or R, and Student Program Category (01062) is an authorized Doctoral degree program at this institution.
Graduate Student - A student who holds a bachelor's or first-professional degree, or equivalent, is taking courses at the postbaccalaureate level, and is admitted to a graduate or first-professional program.
Graduate, Advanced - A graduate student who has been formally admitted to a recognized Doctoral or Post-Master's degree program who has accumulated 36 or more semester credit hours toward his or her degree program or has a Master's degree.
Graduate, Beginning - A graduate student who has been formally admitted to a graduate degree program and is not an advanced graduate student.
Grants and Aids - are contributions to units of governments or nonprofit organizations to be used for one or more specified purposes, activities, or facilities. Funds appropriated under this category may be advanced.
Gross Square Footage (GSF) - The sum of all areas on all floors of a building included within the outside face of its exterior walls.
Headcount Faculty - The number of individual persons who are members of the faculty. Includes both part-time and full-time individuals.
HEDS - Higher Education Data Sharing
Hispanic - A person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central, or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.
In-State Student - A student who is a legal resident of the state in which he/she attends school.
IPEDS - Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System - Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, the core postsecondary education data collection system for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
ISAS - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Florida
Level of Student - The student's level of progress toward a degree. Freshmen and Sophomore students are categorized as Lower Level; Junior and Senior students are categorized as Upper Level; Graduate students are categorized as Graduate Level.
Lower Division Student - A student who has earned less than sixty semester credit hours.
Lower Level - A course level classification term: Student's Course Number is between 1000 and 2999.
Major - A subject of academic study chosen as a field of specialization.
Manyear - A budgeting term calculated and based on a position budgeted for 12 months of activity and full-time portion of effort (1.0 FTE.) (same as personyear)
Mid 50% Range - The lowest score in the second quartile to the highest score in the third quartile. (25th - 75th percentile) It is an indicator of the most common values.
NCAA - National Collegiate Athletic Association
NCES - National College Education Survey
Net Assignable Square Feet (NASF) - The sum of all areas on all floors of a building that can serve an occupant or specific use.
Non-Degree Seeking - A student enrolled in courses for credit who is not recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or formal award.
Non-Resident Alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.
Non-Tenure Earning - Those non-tenured faculty whose position does not provide for the possibility of attaining tenure.
Nonresident Alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.
NSF - NAtional Survey Foundation
NSSE - National Survey of Student Education
Out-of-State Fee Waivers - Appropriations by the Legislature are used to fund out-of-state fee waivers granted by the universities. The funds support undergraduate students, graduate assistants, and fellowships. The out-of-state fee waivers are provided to students based on credit hours taken and the number of hours worked.
Out-of-State Student - A student who is not a legal resident of the state in which he/she attends school.
Part-Time Graduate Student - A student enrolled for 8.5 or fewer semester credits.
Part-Time Student - A graduate student enrolled for less than 9 semester credit hours in a term, or an undergraduate student enrolled for less than 12 semester credit hours in a term.
Personyear - A budgeting term calculated and based on a position budgeted for twelve months of activity and full-time portion of effort (1.0 FTE.) (same as manyear)
Postbaccalaureate Student - A student with a bachelor's degree who is enrolled in graduate or first-professional courses.
Race/Ethnicity - Categories used to describe groups to which individuals belong, identify with, or belong in the eyes of the community. The categories do not denote scientific definitions of anthropological origins. A person may be counted in only one group. The groups used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens, and other eligible noncitizens are: - Black, non-Hispanic - American Indian or Alaska Native - Asian or Pacific Islander - Hispanic - White, non-Hispanic
Ranked Faculty - Faculty who hold the rank of Assistant Professor or above including those holding the equivalent ranks of curator, scholar, scientist and engineer.
Resident Alien (and other eligible noncitizens) - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who has been admitted as a legal immigrant for the purpose of obtaining permanent resident alien status (and who holds either an alien registration card (Form 1-551 or 1-151), a Temporary Resident Card (Form 1-688), or an Arrival-Departure Records (Form 1-94) with a notation that conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee or Cuban-Haitian).
SACS-COC - Southern Association of College and Schools - Commssion of College
SAIR - Southern Association for Institutional Researchers
SAMAS - SAMAS - State Automated Management Accounting System
Service Area - Each university is responsible for serving a designated geographic area of the State of Florida. The counties that The Univesity of West Florida officially serves as designated by the Department of Education Board of Regents Rule Chapter 6C-8: Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton, and Washington counties.
Special Student - is a student not formally admitted and thus is not degree seeking. Interchangeable with the term "Unclassified Student".
State of Residence - A person's permanent address as determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For entering freshmen, residence may be the legal resident of a parent or guardian.
Student Data Course File (SDCF) - Board of Governors file containing enrollment data for every student registered during a term.
Student Financial Aid - Appropriations by the Legislature for student financial aid are used to support need and merit based student grants, scholarships, and loans to provide access and attract high achieving and talented students.
SUDS - State University Database System
SUG - Southern University Group
SUS - SUS - State University System of Florida
TEAMS - Technical, Executive, Administrative, and Managerial Support. This is a new system, as of January 7, 2003, of classifying employees.
Tenure - That condition attained by a faculty member through highly competent scholarly activities which assures the faculty member security of employment and immunity from reprisals or threats due to an intellectual position or belief which may be unpopular and which guarantees annual reappointment for the faculty member until voluntary resignation, retirement, or removal for adequate cause.
Tenure-earning - Those non-tenured faculty who are in a position which allows them the possibility of attaining tenure.
Total Student Credit Hours (SCH) - Total student credit hours, regardless of fundability status as defined by the legislature.
Unclassified Student - is a student not formally admitted and thus is not degree seeking. Interchangeable with the term "Special Student".
University Support Personnel System (USPS) - A Board of Governors pay plan and personnel system for support personnel (excluding TEAMS and Faculty) within the State University System of Florida.
Upper Division Student - A student who has earned 60 or more semester credit hours or has a Associate of Arts degree or is working toward an additional Baccalaureate degree.
Upper Level - A course level classification term: Student's Course Number is between 3000 and 4999.
White, non-Hispanic - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, North Africa, or the Middle East (except those of Hispanic origin).
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