Just FYI: An IU glossary

Here are some key terms that are useful to know on campus so you can pretend you’re not really a freshman.

A&H — Courses categorized as Arts and Humanities by the College of Arts and Sciences

ACADEMIC PROBATION — Occurs when a student’s cumulative grade-point average for a semester falls below 2.0

AI — Associate instructor

AUDIT — Taking a class not for credit

B-SCHOOL — the Kelley School of Business

BIG TEN — The collegiate athletic conference of which IU is a member. The other schools in the Big Ten are Purdue, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Northwestern, Iowa and Nebraska.

BURSAR — The office that bills tuition and room and board fees. The Bursar’s office is located in Franklin Hall, Room 011, 601 E. Kirkwood Ave.

CAMPUS ACCESS CARD — In addition to being a photo ID, your campus access card serves as your library card, bus pass, residence hall meal card and debit card.

COAS — College of Arts and Sciences; sometimes called simply “the College”

CUTTER — Originally, the word “cutter” was an insult to a stone cutter who worked in one of Bloomington’s limestone quarries. Now, a cutter is a term that can refer to a Bloomington resident or to the men’s Little 500 bike team, the race champions for the past five years.

GLBTSSS — The office of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Support Services; provides support, information and advocacy for potential and current students as well as concerned parents and curious parties. The office also offers counseling services and programming throughout the year.

G.P.A. — Grade-point average

GREEK SYSTEM — The sororities and fraternities that make up about 17 percent of the IU student population. The houses’ names are combinations of letters from the Greek alphabet.

HPER — (pronounced “hyper”)
The School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation; commonly used to refer to classes offered through the school and the recreation and sporting facilities that are located in the same building.

IMU — Indiana Memorial Union; often referred to as “the Union,” located at 900 E. Seventh St.

IUAA — IU Alumni Association; students can become members even before they graduate (see SAA).

IUSA — IU Student Association; IU’s student government.

IUSF — IU Student Foundation; a nonprofit organization that raises funds for the University. IUSF sponsors the Little 500 bike race and other events.

LITTLE FIVE — The famous Little 500 bicycle race and the week of events surrounding it.

LITTLE 50 — An annual team relay foot race held in the same week as Little 500.

MAC — Musical Arts Center, located at 101 N. Jordan Ave. across from Read Center. This venue is the site of the Jacobs School of Music opera performances and IU Ballet Department shows.

N&M — Courses categorized as Natural and Mathematical Sciences by COAS

OFFICE HOURS — Times your professors set aside each week to be available to answer questions you have about their classes

ONESTART — http://www.onestart.iu.edu; a site that gives you access to your student i-mail account, schedule, transcript, grades and other University services.

ONCOURSE — http://www.oncourse.iu.edu; an online portal for IU faculty and students to use to keep in contact for classes. Professors and students can post resources, set up message boards and more on pages made for each particular class.

RPS — Residential Programs and Services; the division that handles all things related to a student’s living environment, including dorm rooms, meal plans and programming.


S&H — Courses categorized as Social and Historical Studies by COAS

SAA — IU Student Alumni Association; promotes development of leadership and organizational skills.

SAB — Student Athletic Board; allows students to become involved with IU athletics without being athletes.

SID — Your 10-digit student ID number; used to access transcript or schedule online; sometimes required by professors when taking tests.

SRSC — Student Recreational Sports Center; located on Law Lane; 204,000 square-foot facility offering more than 400 workout machines in addition to other programs and courts for fitness.

UD — University Division; the part of IU most freshmen are automatically admitted into and remain in until they are accepted by the school of their major.

UITS — University Information Technology Services; deals with all things computer and technology-related on campus.