Bridge to university · Study skills
University life in Canada: key terms
Credits, GPA scales, prerequisites, add/drop dates, probation, office hours, TAs, accessibility services and student aid, explained in plain language.
About this deck
Starting university comes with its own vocabulary, and much of it matters for your grades and your money. This deck explains the terms first-year students meet in their first weeks: credits and units, course loads, programs, majors and faculties, grade point averages and why the scales differ between universities, prerequisites and corequisites, add, drop and withdrawal deadlines, academic probation, the syllabus and academic calendar, office hours and teaching assistants, accessibility and wellness services, and the basics of Canadian student financial aid, including OSAP and other provincial programs.
Everything here is general. Each Canadian university sets its own rules for grading, deadlines, academic standing and fees, and the same word can mean slightly different things at two schools. Use the cards to learn what questions to ask, then look up the exact answer in your own university's academic calendar and registrar pages. The most costly mistakes new students make are missing the last date to drop a course without penalty, assuming one university's GPA scale works like another's, ignoring a prerequisite, waiting too long to register with accessibility services, and leaving student aid applications until classes have started. Put every deadline in your calendar during orientation week.
Before you start: None; suited to students in Grade 12 or starting first year.
All 38 cards
Cover the definitions with a sheet of paper and test yourself, or use the study modes above.
Academics
- Credit or unit
- A measure of how much a course counts toward a degree. A one-term course is often worth 3 of these at some schools and 0.5 at others.Example: A 120-unit degree might be about forty one-term courses
- Full course load
- Often about five one-term courses per term. Each school and aid program sets its own minimum for full-time status.
- Program versus course
- The whole degree path, such as a BSc in Biology, versus a single class within it.
- Major and minor
- The main field you concentrate in, and a smaller secondary concentration.
- Faculty
- An academic division such as Science, Arts or Engineering; the word can also mean the teaching staff as a group.
- Prerequisite
- A course you must complete, often with a minimum grade, before you may enrol in another.Example: Calculus I before Calculus II
- Corequisite
- A course you must take at the same time as another, unless you have already completed it.Example: A chemistry lab taken alongside the lecture
- Antirequisite
- A course you cannot also receive credit for because its content overlaps one you have taken. Some schools call it an exclusion.
- Syllabus
- The course outline listing topics, assessments and their weights, due dates, policies and contact details. Treat it like a contract.
- Lecture, tutorial and lab
- A large class led by a professor, a smaller discussion or problem session, and a hands-on practical session.
- Academic calendar
- A university's yearly publication of rules, programs, course descriptions and key dates; it settles questions about policy.
Grades and standing
- GPA
- Grade point average: grade points for each course, weighted by course credit, then averaged.
- Different GPA scales
- Canadian universities use different systems, including 4.0, 4.3, 9 point and 12 point scales and plain percentages. Convert carefully.Example: An A+ could be worth 4.0 at one school, 9 at another and 12 at a third
- Cumulative versus term GPA
- The average over every course taken so far, versus the average for the current term only.
- Academic probation
- A status triggered when your average falls below a set minimum; you must improve by a deadline or risk suspension. Names and rules vary.
- Required to withdraw
- A status after continued poor standing that bars you from enrolling for a set period. Rules differ by university.
- Deferred exam
- An exam moved to a later date for a documented reason such as illness; you usually must apply within a few days.
- Transcript
- The registrar's record of your courses, grades and standing, sent when you apply to programs, jobs or graduate school.
- Rules vary by school
- Each university sets its own policies on grading, deadlines, appeals and standing; always confirm in your own calendar.
Deadlines
- Add/drop deadline
- The last date to join a course, or to leave one without it appearing on your transcript; usually early in the term.
- Withdrawal deadline
- A later date to leave a course with a W or similar notation instead of a failing grade. Tuition refunds usually shrink over time.
- Fee payment deadline
- Date by which tuition must be paid or deferred against expected aid; late payment can mean fees or cancelled registration.
Support
- Office hours
- Set times when professors or TAs are available for questions. Going early in the term is one of the best study habits.
- Teaching assistant (TA)
- Usually a graduate student who leads tutorials or labs, grades work and answers questions under the professor's direction.
- Academic advisor
- A staff member who helps you plan courses, check degree requirements and solve registration problems.
- Accessibility services
- The office that arranges academic accommodations, such as extra exam time, for students with documented disabilities. Register early.
- Accommodation letter
- A notice from the disability support office telling instructors what supports you need, without revealing your diagnosis.
- Student wellness centre
- Campus health and counselling services, often free or low cost for enrolled students.
- Registrar's office
- Handles enrolment, records, transcripts, exam schedules and graduation.
Money
- Canada Student Financial Assistance Program
- The federal program behind Canada Student Grants, which are not repaid, and Canada Student Loans. You apply through your province or territory.
- Interest on federal student loans
- Since April 1, 2023 the federal portion of student loans carries no interest. Provincial portions follow each province's own rules.
- Repayment start
- Federal student loans must be repaid beginning six months after you finish or leave your studies.
- OSAP
- The Ontario Student Assistance Program. Ontario students apply through it for provincial and federal grants and loans together.
- Other provincial aid programs
- Each province runs one, such as StudentAid BC, Alberta Student Aid and Manitoba Student Aid. Quebec, NWT and Nunavut run separate systems.
- Scholarship
- Money awarded mainly for merit, such as grades or leadership, that does not have to be repaid.
- Bursary
- Money awarded mainly on the basis of financial need, which is not repaid.
- Tuition and ancillary fees
- Charges for courses plus mandatory extras, such as student union, health plan and transit pass fees.
- Health plan opt-out
- Students already covered by a family plan can often decline the student plan before an early fixed deadline.