The Language of Higher Education

Higher Education has its own language. Even with the Higher Education sector, terminology differs from institution to institution.

As you embark on your studies, you'll soon realise that your subject area also has its own language, too. It may seem a bit complicated at first, but you will soon get used to these terms, and start using them yourself without thinking twice about it.

To help you at first, though, here is a brief A-Z of some of the more common terms used in Higher Education.

• Award. What is given to you on successful completion of your programme of study. Academic awards include certificates, diplomas and degrees.
• Course. When you applied for your degree, you probably referred to it as a "course". Within the university, a prescribed set of units leading to an award is more usually called a Programme.
• Course Unit/Module. A discrete block of learning that has an assigned number of credits at a specific academic level. At the University of Manchester undergraduate course units are usually worth 10 or 20 credits, and postgraduate course units are 15 or 30 credits.
• Dean. The (academic) head of each University Faculty.
• Discipline. A particular branch of learning or instruction. Your academic discpline is usually the subject of your degree. So, if you are a BSc Philosophy student, you are studying the discipline of philosophy. It's possible to study more than one discipline, e.g. a joint honours student may study both English Literature and French. A Discipline (or Subject Area, or Department) is also an administrative term for the smallest discrete academic and administrative grouping. At the University of Manchester, disciplines are grouped together to make up Schools (see below).
• Doctor (Dr). In an academic setting, the title of someone who holds the highest academic award - a doctorate.
• Facilitator. Someone who helps facilitate your learning rather than teaches you. Traditional ('didactic') teaching methods often imply a one-way process, 'teacher talks: student listens'. Facilitation is a two-way process between student(s) and teacher, e.g. in seminar sessions someone - a lecturer, a Graduate Teaching Assistant or even a fellow student - may act as a facilitator.
• Faculty. The largest academic organisational unit within a university. At the University of Manchester there are four Faculties: Humanities; Life Sciences; Medical and Human Sciences; Engineering and Physical Sciences.
• Formative. Formative work or formative assessment is something that you are asked to do in which the prime aim is developmental than judgmental. (You may be assigned a mark for a piece of formative work, but this is for the purpose of helping you gauge how you are doing: it will not count towards your final degree mark).
• Module/Course Unit. See Course Unit, above.
• PDP (Personal Development Planning). PDP is simply — (the clue is in the title!) — a process for planning your personal, educational and career-related development, to ensure that you meet your goals. It involves determining where you want to go, assessing where you are currently, and working out how to bridge the gap between the two! PDP is increasingly seen as a valuable tool to aid learning, not just as a student but in the world of work. (A record of your plans and achievements may be compiled online or in hard copy, as a Portfolio). You can find more by going to the PDP section of this website.
• Problem-based learning (PBL). An innovative type of learning designed to help students develop their thought processes (and, indeed, their practices). PBL involves finding solutions to real-world problems by working co-operatively with other students. In PBL, teachers act as facilitators rather than teachers.
• Professor. A senior grade of the teaching/research staff, normally given for exceptional contribution to a particular field of study.
• Programme. Your programme of study is the overall course of study you are undertaking, such as a diploma or degree, e.g. BSc Geography, MA Linguistics.
• Reflection. Thinking about and questioning your own experiences, thoughts and behaviour in order to enhance personal, academic and professional development. Helps you gain insight into the way you think and behave.
• School. At Manchester, cognate disciplines are grouped into organisational units called Schools. There are eight Schools in the Faculty of Humanities: Arts, Histories and Cultures; Environment and Development; Combined Studies; Languages, Linguistics and Cultures; Social Sciences; Law; Manchester Business School; Education.
• Summative. Summative work or summative assessment is work that you are asked to do which is assigned a mark which will be formally noted as an indicator of your achievement, that will be taken into account when making decisions at Boards of Examiners meetings about your progress and what award you should receive. This is therefore work that must be completed and passed if your are to continue your programme of study.

Adapted with permission from The University of Manchester School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting Study Skills Workbook by Steven Pryjmachuk.