Student System



 
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Student System Glossary


 

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Glossary of Acronyms and Terms
AB | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

TERM

BRIEF TRANSLATION OR EXPLANATION

A
 

AACRAO 

American Association of College Registrars and Admissions Officers; recommends what information should or should not be on official transcripts.

Academic Level Designation of an undergraduate's status, based on number of completed credits.

Academic Year

Designation of an undergraduate's status, based on the number of semesters at U.Va.

Accepted Student Applicant who has accepted an admission offer (A in ISIS).

Access UVa

A four point financial aid initiative, created to address the issues of access and affordability for middle and low income families.

Accounting Period A time period for which financial records are maintained and at the end of which financial statements are prepared.
Accrual Basis Income is reported in the fiscal period it is earned, regardless of when it is received, and expenses are deducted in the fiscal period they are incurred, whether they are paid or not. In other words, using accrual basis accounting, both revenues and expenses are recorded when they occur.
Accrual Basis Accounting versus Cash Basis Accounting The difference between the two types of accounting is when revenues and expenses are recorded. In cash basis accounting, revenues are recorded when cash is actually received, and expenses are recorded when they are actually paid (no matter when they were invoiced). The University is currently operating under cash basis accounting.
Activate Applying a student’s financial aid award to his/her student account.
Actual & Limited (A&L) A program that creates credit transactions on the ISIS regular and summer session accounts from the Actual & Limited awards (5AL, 5AA), which are given by schools and departments. The charges that can be paid by this process are: tuition & fees, school fees, international fee, housing, and dining.
Add/Delete Form Form used by the schools to notify the Diploma Coordinator in the University Registrar’s Office of any additions or deletions to the degree candidate list made after the initial diploma order.
Adjustment Modification to an account.
Admitted Student Applicant who has been extended an offer of admission (X or O in ISIS).
Advanced Placement Credit Credit awarded based on placement exam scores; students are exempted from taking a particular course and are awarded credits.
Advanced Standing Exemptions from particular courses based on placement exam scores; no credit is awarded.
Advising Access Code Number obtained each semester from advisor, which student must enter into ISIS the first time they add/drop for a given semester; required by all undergraduate schools and Graduate Nursing.
AISP Application for In-State Privileges
Allocation A specific sum of money awarded for an institution to use during a specific period.
Applicant A person who submits an application core and/or application fee or waiver.
Application Component Document including recommendation; essay/personal statement/statement of intent; portfolio; transcript.
Application Core Form containing biographical information including but not limited to name, address, race/ethnicity, gender, educational history, parent information, school and/or program applied to.
Attendance Status Code designating registration status:
E – Expected
H – Here (final registered)
L – Leave
N – Not cleared to register
S – Sectioned (pre-enrolled)
T – Terminated
Automated Clearing House (ACH) A reliable and efficient nationwide batch-oriented electronic system of the U. S. Federal Reserve Bank that provides electronic funds transfer (EFT) between banks in one or two business days. Types of payments include direct deposit and e-checks.
Award Letter An official document issued by a financial aid office listing the type, amount, and disbursement of the financial aid awarded to a student.
B
Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS)

Degree program designed to meet the needs of the adult learner by offering part-time study, evening courses, small class size, affordable tuition, and a U.Va. degree.

Barcode A code consisting of a group of printed and variously patterned bars and spaces designed to be scanned and read into computer memory as identification for the object it labels.
Borrower Based Academic Year (BBAY) Academic year that floats with the student’s enrollment. All loans borrowed during BBAY must be within annual loan limit for the student’s grade level.
Budget Office Report A report that is run monthly and used for four separate processes:
• University Budget Office to develop enrollment projections for the following academic year
• SFS to reconcile data in the Student System to data in the Integrated System
• Financial Analysis to calculate the distributable charge amounts
• Financial Analysis to record manually the ISIS tuition, fees, housing, dining, international studies office fees, and admissions deposits revenue data into the Integrated System
C  
Campus Based Program

The term that applies to three federal student aid programs administered on campus. These are: Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, and Federal Work-Study programs.

Campus Partners Private vendor that provides billing, accounting, and data processing services for Federal Perkins and institutional loans.

Cash Basis Accounting

An accounting method in which income is recognized only upon receipt of a cash payment, without considering the period for which payments are due. Also, expenses are accounted for only upon their cash payment. See also Accrual vs. Cash Basis Accounting.

Casteen Scholars

College program for students who need additional attention during first two years (former Transition program).

Cavalier Advantage Card A debit card available to students, faculty, or staff that can be used to pay parking fees, bookstore balances, etc. The card cannot be used to pay tuition charges.
Central Processing System (CPS) Processes application for federal student aid.
Chickering The Chickering Group, an Aetna Company, underwrites the University of Virginia student health insurance plan.
Comment Sheet Used by SFS to annotate unique situations about a student. Financial aid counselors use this form during the reading process.
Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) Provides a common process and integrated system that enables effective delivery of Title IV funds.
Community Scholars Program Program that allows non-degree seeking students to enroll under the auspices of SCPS in courses offered by one of the degree-granting schools.
Compliance Assistance (CAi) Software tool designed to help administrators ensure that their athletic department and student-athletes are in compliance with NCAA legislation.
Co-Op Engineering co-operative program; unique registration type.
Course Action Form “Override” form used to add course which cannot be added by student via ISIS.
Course Number Indication of level of difficulty or program level associated with the course. Where possible, odd numbers signify fall semester courses and even numbers signify spring semester courses. The determination of course level is the responsibility of the offering department and/or school. The academic policy committee of each school is expected to assume the necessary monitoring function.
Course Restriction Limitation on who can add a course.
Credentials, Inc. Private vendor contracted by the University to provide on-demand enrollment and degree verifications.
Curriculum Evaluation and Policy Committee (CEPC) Faculty body that approves Arts & Sciences curriculum rules and policies; similar groups exist in other schools.
D

DCE Contact Hours

Number of contact hours for SCPS courses.

DCE Course Location

Virginia city/county, U.S. state, or country code of where SCPS course is offered.

DCE Type Credit

Designation of credit type for SCPS courses.

Degree candidate grade sheets Early grade sheets used to clear a student for graduation.
Degree Candidate Student flagged in ISIS as expected to graduate this semester.
Delay A means to prevent a Financial Obligation Hold (FOH) from appearing on a student’s account if payment has not been received for outstanding charges.
Delinquent Charge (referral) An outstanding, delinquent obligation owed to the University. The department/school is responsible for making at least 3 attempts to collect the money prior to referring the obligation to Student Financial Services.
Direct Credit Study abroad programs using U.Va. schedule numbers and credit.
Directory flags Flags that limit the directory information being included in the telephone directory and WHOIS.
Disbursement Release of funds to the school for delivery to the borrower.
DMP/Honors College and Nursing Distinguished Majors or Honors programs; because participants’ distinction/honors levels are not known until the week before graduation, they are flagged in ISIS so that their diplomas are not ordered until after graduation.
Double Degree Candidate Student receiving two degrees (e.g., J.D./M.B.A., B.A./M.T., B.S.C./M.Ed.).
Double Major Student receiving one degree with two majors.
E

Echols/Rodman

College and Engineering honors programs; participation flagged in ISIS upon entry to program.

ELMnet

Provides automated FFELP and alternative loan data exchange, updates, and loan information through the Internet.

Endowment

A permanent fund bestowed upon an individual institution to be used for a specific purpose.

Entrance Interview Entrance counseling required before releasing the first disbursement of the FFELP loan to a borrower at the school (generally conducted through an online process).
Evaluator Admission committee or faculty member.
Exit Interview A school must conduct an exit interview with each borrower before he or she leaves the institution. During the interview the school should restate for the borrower the terms and outstanding balance of the loan held by the school (generally conducted through an online process).
Expected Family Contribution (EFC) The amount that a student’s family is expected to contribute towards the student’s cost of attendance, as determined by the federal methodology need analysis formula approved by Congress.
Experimental Sites An initiative sponsored by Federal Student Aid (FSA) of the Department of Education. Schools that participate as experimental sites can test different ways to meet program requirements, and FSA can incorporate these school experiences in regulatory and legislative proposals that will enhance program integrity and reduce administrative burden.
F
Faculty Group Designation of the school or entity owning the course; this value is also used for sorting courses within the online course offerings.
Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP)

Includes the Federal Stafford Loan (Subsidized and Unsubsidized), the Federal Perkins Loan, and the Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS). These loans are provided by private lenders such as banks, credit unions, and savings & loan associations. These loans are guaranteed against default by the federal government.

Federal Methodology A formula created by Congress used to determine financial need when an individual applies for federally funded student aid with the FAFSA.
Federal Pell Grant Program A federal entitlement grant that provides funds on the basis of a student’s financial need.
Federal Perkins Loan Program Federal loans based on financial need and is available directly through schools. Government pays interest while students are in school at least half-time and during nine-month grace period prior to repayment.
Federal Perkins Loan

A fixed interest student loan, awarded to students with exceptional financial need.

Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan Federal loans based on financial need, included in the financial aid package awarded by school. Interest is paid by the government while the student is in school at least half-time and during the grace period.
Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Program A campus-based aid program that provides grant assistance to students with financial need who are in undergraduate programs and have not earned a bachelor’s degree or first professional degree.
Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan Federal loans not based on financial need. Borrowers are responsible for interest beginning immediately upon disbursement, although most students defer principal and interest payments until they leave school or drop below half-time enrollment.
Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program A federally funded employment program that provides paid jobs, on campus or off campus, for undergraduate or graduate students who need such earnings to meet a portion of their education expenses.
Fellowship A financial endowment set up to support graduate students.
Financial Obligation Hold (FOH) Outstanding financial and non-dollar obligations owed to the University. A student also may receive an FOH for a non-dollar hold.
Fiscal Operations Report and Application to Participate (FISAP)

The University must fill out a FISAP to report expenditures and/or apply for funding for one or more of the three campus-based programs:
• Federal Perkins Loan Program
• Federal Work-Study Program
• Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) Program

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Form used to apply for grants and other need-based aid.
fsaAtlas 3rd party software owned by International Studies Office that is used to store information regarding international students and to interface data to SEVIS.
G

Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB)

Agency that approves standards of state and local government accounting and financial reporting.

Grading Method Designation by course of what grading options are allowed for that course.
Grading Option Designation by student of what grades can be assigned for a course.
Grant-in-Aid (GIA) A monetary athletic award given to an athlete for one academic year at a time, which may be renewed each year.
H  
Honoraries/Awards Academic awards and honor societies; entered to ISIS and listed in the Final Exercises program.
Hope and Lifetime Learning Tax Credit (1098T) Tax credit opportunities made available through the Tax Relief Act of 1997.
I  
IDS (Instructor Database System) Database application created and maintained by SCPS for the creation of courses. Data uploaded from IDS to ISIS.
ISIS Online Web-based student self-service component of ISIS.
ImageNow Document imaging software, used primarily to reduce the paper flow within an office environment.
Index Refers to the information contained in an electronic document that enables a person to retrieve it from a database.
Institutional Loans Various long term and short term loans such as Dupont and Lawson (Medical School).
Institutional Methodology A standard method of determining a student’s or family’s ability to pay for college used by individual colleges in awarding their own institutional funds for financial aid. Colleges must use the Federal Methodology in awarding any federal funds.
Institutional Need Analysis (INAS) Stand alone, mainframe need analysis system provided by the College Board.
Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) An electronic output document transmitted to the schools the student specified on the application and to state agencies. Sent by the Department of Education’s Central Processing System (CPS), the ISIR summarizes information submitted on a student's Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and provides the student's Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The ISIR also includes full applicant data, information on eligibility matches, NSLDS financial aid history, comments, assumptions, and reject reasons.
Instructional Toolkit Course management system; allows for maintenance of a grade book and/or electronic submission of final grade.
Internal Transfer Undergraduate student applying to an upper division school or transferring between schools.
J
January Term A two week term that begins after the fall semester and prior to the spring semester. Credit hours earned are applied to the student’s spring semester.
L  
Learning Needs and Evaluation Center (LNEC) Division of Student Health which identifies students needing priority course enrollment for physical or other medical reasons.
Loan An advance of funds guaranteed by a signed promissory note in which the recipient of the funds promises to repay a specified amount under prescribed conditions.
Lockbox A service offered by banks to companies in which the company receives payments by mail to a post office box, and the bank picks up the payments several times a day, deposits them into the company’s account, and notifies the company of the deposit. This enables the company to put the money to work as soon as it is received, but the amounts must be large in order for the value obtained to exceed the cost of services.
M  
Match The systematic process of matching a student’s admissions status with their application for financial aid (FAFSA).
Military Billing Documentation is received from any branch of the military or from the student, and credit is applied to the student’s account up front. A contract already must exist with the University before the credit can be applied.
Mnemonic Letter code designating the subject area for a course.
N
National Student Clearinghouse Agency that coordinates the transfer of enrollment verifications from colleges and universities to loan servicers.
National Student Loan Data System Department of Education’s central database for student aid. Collects and maintains data on recipients from: FFELP, Direct Loans, Federal Perkins, Federal Pell, along with enrollment data and the transfer student monitor.
Non-Dollar Hold A hold regarding non-monetary issues, such as exit interview not completed, NCAA paperwork that still needs to be completed, etc.
Non-Resident Status Less-than-half-time registration status used when student is not enrolled in credits.
Non-Student An individual who does not have academic activity for the current semester.
O  
Office The top-level organizational entity within ISIS.
Official Award Award made when the student submits the FAFSA, University Financial Aid Application (UFAA) and the supporting documentation (federal tax returns) have been reviewed during the verification process. Students who are not selected for verification must have a FAFSA on file with U.Va., but they may not be required to submit a UFAA or supporting documentation.
Outstanding Charges • Regular Session -- balance forward charges
• Prior term charges that have been billed
• Delinquent charges (referrals) -- all charges regardless of billing status or due date
• Loans -- billed and past due charges and all fines regardless of billing status or due date
• ITC Communication Services -- past due charges
• Returned checks -- all charges regardless of billing status or due date
• University Bookstore -- past due charges
• Summer Session -- past due charges
OVAS (Office of Virginia Status) Office that determines a student's eligibility to pay in-state tuition rates.
P
Packaging The process of assembling one or more financial aid award and loan, grant and/or scholarship, as well as employment, for a student.
PARS Mainframe system that assists in development of financial aid packages. Based on information in the student’s record and parameters provided by the financial aid administrator for each fund, PARS identifies students who meet the criteria for each award, calculates the student’s financial need, calculates an estimated Pell Grant, and assigns funds from various sources as stipulated by the financial aid administrator. Currently used for standard academic year awarding. This does not include BIS, Summer Session, January Term, or graduate students.
PLUS Loan Federal parent loan for undergraduate students. Low-interest, education loans which allow parents to borrow money in order to fund the cost of their child’s education.
Preliminary Award An estimate of financial aid eligibility. The financial aid administrator uses both the FAFSA and UFAA data to determine the student’s estimated financial need. During the verification process, additional supporting documentation is received, and the estimated data is validated which allows the Preliminary awards to be made Official.
Professional Judgment Delegation of authority from the federal government to the financial aid administator to adjust the Expected Family Contribution, Cost of Attendance or change dependency status when extenuating circumstances exist. Professional Judgment decisions are made at the level of the financial aid office.
PTAEO Grants accounting terminology referring to charging instructions: project, task, award, expenditure, and organization.
Pull Forward ISIS process to create student or course records for a future semester.
R
Reading The review, verification, and awarding of student financial assistance.
Ready List List of students who have provided the necessary documentation (federal and University required). This list allows counselors to make an initial recommendation of financial aid the student may be eligible to receive.
Referral An outstanding delinquent obligation owed to the University. The department or school is responsible for making at least three attempts to collect the money prior to referring the obligation to Student Financial Services.
Registration Blocks Flags set in ISIS by various offices that prevent course enrollment and/or final registration.
Registration Type Code designating type of registration and some special program affiliations:
D**: Rodman
E**: Echols
I**: International (NYU London program)
P**: Part-Time
R**: Regular
S**: Special
U**: Summer only
X**: Extension
*RA: Readmit (semester of readmission only)
*RE: Returning
*NE: New (first semester only)
*TR: Transfer (first semester only)
NLV: Non-Resident status
RCP: Engineering Co-Op program
LFC: Leave, Foreign, Full-time
LFN: Leave, Foreign, Not Full-time
LDC: Leave, Domestic, Full-time
LDN: Leave, Domestic, Not Full-time
GLV: Leave of Absence
Renewal FAFSA A partially completed application form to be updated by a current federal financial aid applicant to be eligible to receive Title IV financial aid for the next award year. To use the Renewal FAFSA, the student must have submitted a FAFSA applying for federal financial aid for the preceding award year.
Resource25 Space management software used to track and schedule University academic space, as well as Newcomb Hall and Intramural-Recreational Sports.
Restricted Scholarship Scholarships that have donor criteria on how the scholarships are to be awarded and administered.
Revenue Distribution Includes two separate processes:
• ITC-ADS programs create general ledger transaction files that are fed automatically into the Integrated System to reflect payments that have been received
• The manual process of distributing payments received as revenue for the various schools and departments
S
Satisfactory Academic Progress A qualitative (grade point average) and quantitative (credit hours) measure of a student’s progress toward the completion of his/her academic program of study.
Schedule Number Five character unique identifier of course sections in both the Instructor Database System and ISIS.
Schedule25 Scheduling algorithm used to make initial classroom assignments for Architecture, Arts & Sciences, and Nursing.
Scholarship Funds used to pay for higher education, which are not required to be repaid.
School Audit School-conducted review of academic progress; used to determine probations and suspensions.
School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS) School which addresses the needs of the Commonwealth by extending the University’s educational resources to citizens across the state and helping them further their knowledge and skills. Network of seven regional centers, each offering University courses and programs in response to its local constituency.
Semester The entity within the year into which courses and enrollments are organized. Most courses are conducted over the span of an entire semester, although there may be sub-sessions within semester—particularly the case with Summer Session courses—and some schools may offer shorter courses or courses which extend across semesters—as in Darden, Medicine, and SCPS.
Set Off Debt Collection Collection of outstanding debts, including the mandatory referral of delinquent accounts to the Virginia Department of Taxation so these debts can be applied against any state payments made to the individual (e.g., tax refunds, lottery winnings, travel reimbursements, etc.).
SEVIS (Student Exchange and Visitor Information System) A web-based system for maintaining information on international students and exchange visitors in the United States, administered by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, a division of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm of the Department of Homeland Security.
Special Students Degree-seeking students, usually undergraduates, who enroll through SCPS because they are taking a reduced course load; students are enrolled in their “home” school as non-resident if they are graduating.
Sponsor Student’s employer. Sponsor payments are tuition payments made by a student’s employer, and include the University’s Tuition Waiver program.
State Financial Aid Commonwealth of Virginia Grant, Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program (VGAP), and Graduate student aid. The Commonwealth of Virginia Grant and VGAP are for undergraduate students.
State Pre-pays Funds administered by any state other than Virginia give individuals the chance to pre-pay college tuition and required fees. As a general rule, these programs pay U.Va. that state’s in-state tuition rate per credit hour for a student.
Stipend A fixed amount of money paid at regular intervals as a salary to cover living expenses.
Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) Provides ability to exchange information electronically with the U.S. Department of Education.
Student Aid Report (SAR) An electronic output document for the schools that contains a student’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and all the financial and other data submitted by the student on the FAFSA.
Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) See SEVIS.
Student Financial Services (SFS) U.Va. office responsible for student accounts and financial aid services.
Study Abroad An academic program conducted outside of the United States.
Subcode 5-digit numeric field that identifies the specific charge, credit, adjustments, or payment within ISIS.
Summer Term Term comprised of three mini-sessions and viewed by SFS as one term, for the purpose of awarding financial aid.
T
Term Record A record of academic activity for a given semester.
Termination Type Code designating reason for termination:
FRT/FSH – Failed to return/show
GEW, GLW, GML, MWD – withdrew
NDI – Dismissed (Honor conviction)
NEP – Expelled
GCP – Graduated, completed program
Third Party Billing A request received from an outside vendor (local/state/federal government agency or an international agency) to send invoice to vendor and not the student. A “delay” is placed on the student’s account until the money is received (this does not apply to SCPS students).
Title IV Financial Aid A component of the Higher Education Act of 1965 which established guidelines for the administration of the federal financial assistance programs.
Transcript The official record of work attempted; includes courses, credits, grades, degrees conferred, thesis/dissertation titles, transfer and advanced placement/standing credits.
Tuition Management System (TMS) A third party vendor that administers the University’s optional monthly payment plan. Under the current plan, tuition, fees, housing, and dining may be paid in ten monthly installments. The required payment schedule allows the student to pay for some of the costs after the start of the term.
Tuition Waiver Full or partial reduction to a student’s tuition charges.
Type Course Designation of course type. e.g., CE - Community Education, EC - Extension for Credit, EG - Non-degree credit, inservice training, state/local agency.
Type Instruction Designation of how course is taught, e.g., CA - Computer-assisted instruction, CI - Classroom/internet, CO - Conference.
U
Upper Division School School to which an undergraduate may apply after having spent one or two years at the University (Curry or McIntire).
UREG Office of the University Registrar
V