Study in America, 2nd Edition

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College Argot

Moving from one education system to another requires students to learn a whole new terminology. It is better to familiarize yourself with the “language” spoken on your future campuses before you actually land there.

Applying to study in North America involves learning a whole new language and, in fact, internalizing a whole new argot. Why, you may wonder, don't Americans speak English? There lies the nub—the terms and phrases used by Americans in general and college admission officers in particular can be quite different from what you commonly understand. Ergo this chapter.

“School,” “college,” “university,” and “institute” are terms that are often used interchangeably. Look at the following examples:

Massachusetts Institute ...