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College Q and A

What do those letters and numbers associated with college classes mean? (I get asked this all the time!)

These names may be slightly different at some schools, but basically, they’re called a course prefix and a course number.  The course prefix may be two to five letters (usually three or four), is usually in all caps, and tells you what kind of class it is. It’s usually an abbreviation of either the subject or the name of the department offering the course.  Is it a math class – MA or MAT or MATH, a biology class – BIO or BIOL, an English class – ENG or ENGL, etc. 

Course numbers are usually three or four digits (occasionally, they’ll have a letter or two attached), and tell you a number of useful things.  Some numbering systems seem to have no rhyme or reason, but usually they tell you what level a course is (freshman, sophomore, etc.), how many hours the course is (credit hours, quarter hours, etc.), and may give some hint as to course sequencing within a department.  Usually, the first number gives an indication of the course’s level (1 = freshman, 2 = sophomore, 3 = junior, 4 = senior), and usually, the last number either gives an indication of how many credit/quarter hours the class is or a course’s sequence in a series – e.g. ACCT 3443 is a three hour, junior level accounting course, ENGL 102 is the second (taken after ENGL 101) freshman English course.

Do I have to pay all of college’s expenses at the beginning of the year?

There are probably as many different arrangements of when payments are due as there are different colleges.  So I can’t tell you exactly how it will be handled at your school.  However, here’s how it’s likely to be done…  You PROBABLY won’t have to pay for the whole year, all at once – maybe once a semester, but more than likely, you’ll have once a semester expenses, once a month expenses, regular expenses, and occasional expenses.  Regular and occasional expenses are where you can get yourself into trouble by spending too much…

Tuition and fees are usually due once a semester – maybe before the semester starts, if not, early in the semester.  Books are also a once-a-semester expense, and occur very early in the semester (if not before).  Because books can be purchased on campus and off, plus online, there are a myriad of different payment possibilities here.  In addition, you get a little money back when you sell them back at semester’s end.  Room and board could be due once a semester too (if so, again likely early), but it’s probably due monthly.

If you are responsible for any of your other bills, they will probably be monthly too (cell phone, insurance, gasoline, etc.).  You’ll regularly have expenses like the latte you pick up on the way to class, the pizza you and your friends order at 1:00 a.m., and the personal care items you pick up at Target.  If you’re more attractive and popular than I was when I was in school, maybe your social expenses will be regular expenses – mine were occasional.  Other occasional expenses might be the outfit for the Winter Formal, attendance at the conference for your major, or tickets to the Final Four when your school’s basketball team goes all the way…

Certainly, the beginning of the year and the beginning of each semester demand significant outlays of funds, but several of the expenses are spread throughout the semester and year.  Too, if you don’t have all the money available up front, you may be able to spread the payments through the semester.  Check with your school to see about payment plan options, as well as with the financial aid office to see how and when you might receive any aid.  It’s important to note that you probably won’t be able to enroll for the subsequent semester, until you’re paid in full.  Of course, the tradeoff may still be worth while…

Submit your questions to lance@collegeanswerguy.com and visit www.collegeanswerguy.com and www.collegeprep101.com.