Important Terms & Definitions

Important terms and Definitions

ACT: Standardized test measuring comprehension and knowledge used for admissions and college placement.  It is often used in place of or in conjunction with the SAT.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Final date which the college or university must receive an interested student’s application for admissions in order to be considered. It, Furthermore, includes Financial Aid Application Deadline, which if not met can result in lost financial aid opportunities.

EFC: Expected Family Contribution.  Based on the FAFSA, the dollar amount a family is expected to contribute towards a student’s college education.
EQUIVALENCY SCHOLARSHIP:  A scholarship that can be divided to accommodate more than one athlete, providing partial athletic scholarships.
FAFSA:  Free Application for Federal Student Aid.  It must be filled out by all students who request financial aid of any type from colleges.
FEES: Money charged on top of tuition, room and board, which may include registration fees, graduation fees, health service fees, lab fees, athletic and recreational fees.
FINANCIAL AID:  Monetary assistance made available to the students with a financial need to cover the cost of all or part of their education.   It May come in the form of scholarships, grants, educational loans, work study or foundation/outside scholarships.
FINANCIAL NEED:  The difference between the cost of the education and what the family of the applicant can be expected to contribute.
FULL SCHOLARSHIP: Full athletic scholarships, also referred to as “full ride”, cover room, board, books, tuition and applicable fees. Full scholarships are only guaranteed only in Division1 Women’s & Men’s Basketball and Football.   
GRANT: Awards based on the financial need that does not require repayment.
LOAN:  Financial aid that must be repaid
NAIA:  National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.   There are over 300 four year member colleges in the United States and Canada.  The NAIA is the second largest collegiate athletic association in the country.
NCAA: National College Athletic Associations. It includes 1,025 active colleges and universities, including 117 D1A,  121 D1AA,  88 D1AAA,  279  D2 and 420 D3 institutions.
The major difference between divisions is the level of play, academic and eligibility standards and financial aid limitations.
NJCAA:  National Junior College Athletic Association, includes over 500 member two year colleges and competes in three different divisions.  Most of the Division I and II NJCAA institutions offer athletic scholarships.   California Junior Colleges are not participants in the NJCAA and do not offer athletic scholarships of any kind.
NLI:  National Letter of Intent.  By signing a National Letter of Intent, a prospective student-athlete agrees to attend the designated college or university for one academic year Pursuant to the terms of the National Letter of Intent program, participating institutions agree to provide athletics financial aid for one academic year to the student-athlete, provided he/she is admitted to the institution and is eligible for financial aid under NCAA rules. An important provision of the National Letter of Intent program is a recruiting prohibition applied after a prospective student-athlete sign a Letter of Intent. This prohibition requires participating institutions to cease recruitment of a prospective student-athlete once a National Letter of Intent is signed with another institution. (see www.national-letter.org for complete rules regarding the NLI)
NON-RESIDENT: A student who does not meet specific state residency requirements or who lives out of state.
OFFICIAL VISIT: The NCAA allows a maximum of five official visits.  Official visits refer to paid visits:  It May not exceed 48 hours on campus, expenses are paid only for  you; travel, meals and lodging.   You may not visit one school more than one time ‘officially’, though you may visit the school as often as you wish at your own expense.
PARTIAL SCHOLARSHIP: Partial athletic scholarship might only cover a portion of the costs of school.  It allows schools with a limited number of scholarships to allocate financial assistance to more athletes. Partial scholarships are more frequently given out than Full Scholarships.
PROBATION: Warning status for students who fall below academic requirements. Requirements vary by school.
PUBLIC COLLEGES OR UNIVERSITY: Receive support by the state.  The state pays part of the school’s operation costs.
RECRUITER: A person who finds students and/or student athletes to attend their college.
RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS:  The minimum amount of time a student must live in the state to pay in-state tuition, which is lower than that tuition paid by out of state students.
ROOM & BOARD: Cost of living in campus housing or residence halls as well a cost of meals from campus food services.
ROTC:  Reserve Officers’ Training Corps.   The United States Armed Forces sponsor ROTC programs that will prepare the student for leadership theory and an understanding of military science.  Students will be required to serve as commissioned officers when they are a graduate from college.
SAR: Student Aid Report.  Results of the FAFSA, which colleges will need to assist in determining the financial need.
SAT: Standardized tests by the College Board (see www.collegeboard.org) Colleges take the scores of this test when making decisions about admissions or course placement. It concentrates on Verbal and Mathematical reasoning.
SCHOLARSHIP OFFER: A verbal commitment between a college and a student notifying the athlete of the institution’s intent of awarding a scholarship.  This will be followed by a written offer when NCAA/NAIA regulations allow.
TRANSCRIPTS: A copy of your high school or college academic record. High school records will include SAT and/or ACT scores to be provided directly to the colleges.
TRANSFER COURSES: College courses giving credit that may be transferred to another college.  Students should always check with the prospective college to see if classes taking are transferable.
UNDERGRADUATE: A college student working on a bachelor degree
UNIT: A value that indicates the amount of college credit given for a course.  
WORK STUDY: Part time work, usually on campus, allowing students to earn money for college expenses while going to school.