Glossary

We hope that this guide gives you a good overview of the atmosphere and ethos of UCL and what subjects and study options are available, however, we know that some of the terms used at UCL and in the UK generally might be unfamiliar. Here’s what we mean when we say:

Affiliate study/Affiliate Tutor	“Affiliate study” is a slightly more formal name for study abroad. When you come to UCL you will be registered as an Affiliate student, and the study director for your particular area is called the Affiliate Tutor.
Term	The UCL year is divided into three parts, called “terms”, in much the same way that some universities divide their year into semesters. UCL’s terms are: Autumn Term, which begins in September and marks the start of the academic year Spring Term, which begins in January Summer Term, which begins in April and is usually set aside for revision (review) and examinations, rather than timetabled teaching. Study abroad students can either join us for a whole academic year, just the Autumn Term (September – December), or just the Spring/Summer terms (January – June).
Module	Individual courses making up your programme of study are referred to as “modules”. You’ll often find the terms “module” and “course” used interchangeably.
Course units (CU)	Module credits at UCL are called “course units”, or CU. Most of our modules are worth either 0.5 or 1 CU. More about credit equivalency.
Faculty	At UCL you’ll hear the word “Faculty” used to refer to a grouping of departments working in related disciplines, rather than to members of academic staff. For example, the Department of History and the Department of Geography both sit within our Faculty of Social & Historical Sciences.

Glossary

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