BGSU Vocabulary

The BG1 Card - The BG1 Card is the official identification card for BGSU students, faculty and staff.  A BG1 Card is more than just an ID card. It provides access to meal plans, events, and campus facilities. Also, if a student is a PNC Bank customer, it can be linked to their bank account to serve as an ATM card. Lastly by adding funds to their BG1 Bucks account, a students' card can then be used for printing, on-campus vending, and also at multiple off campus locations.

Falcon Dollars vs. Meal Swipes - Falcon Dollars and/or Retail Dollars refer to the retail portion of the Custom and Retail Meal Plans. These dollars can be used in any Dining retail location to pay a la carte. These dollars may also be used to pay door price for entrance into the all-you-care-to-eat facilities. Falcon Dollars may not be used off campus or at the BGSU Bookstore. A swipe is when a student with a Traditional/AYCE or Custom meal plan presents an ID to enter an all-you-care-to-eat facility. The swipe constitutes the use of one "meal". Students with a residential plan may use their meal swipes to acquire an "Equivalency Meal" in the Market @ CP, Market @ Offenhauer, or the Market @ Kreischer.

Academic Year - Consecutive fall, winter, spring and summer semesters. For example: AY 21-22 refers to the interval from Fall 2021 to Summer 2022.

Fiscal Year - Funding year that includes July 1 through June 30. For example: FY 2022 refers to the fiscal year from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022.

Course Level - Level of a course based on the catalog number. Lower division = courses numbered 0000 to 2999, Upper division = courses numbered 3000 to 4999, Graduate = courses numbered 5000 and above.

Credit - A unit representing one credit hour (1 credit = 1 credit hour) of successfully completed work. It is applied toward the total number of credits needed for completing the requirements of a degree or certificate.

Credit hour - A unit of measure representing an hour (50 minutes) or equivalent of instruction over a 14- or 15-week period in a semester. It is applied toward the total number of hours needed for completing the requirements of a degree or certificate.

FAFSA | FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the form used by the U.S. Department of Education and almost all colleges and universities to determine eligibility for federal, state, and college-sponsored financial aid. The form is available online at www.fafsa.gov after Oct. 1 of the year before a student plans to attend and is filled out annually. Priority is given to those students who apply before January 15. To fill out the form a student will first need to create a Federal Student Aid Identification (FSA ID), which is made up of a username and password. For students determined by the application to be dependent, at least one parent will also need a FSA ID. Be sure to list Bowling Green State University as a school to receive your information. The BGSU and BGSU Firelands school code is 003018.

Financial Aid - Grants, loans, assistantships, scholarships, fellowships, tuition waivers, tuition discounts, veteran's benefits, employer aid (tuition reimbursement) and other monies (other than from relatives/friends) provided to students to meet expenses.

Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Student - 1 Undergraduate FTE = 15 credit hours; 1 Graduate FTE = 15 credit hours.

Part-Time Student - Undergraduates: Students registered for fewer than 12 credit hours at the census date; Graduate Students: Students registered for fewer than 9 credit hours at the census date.

General education courses - Courses designed to introduce students to the fundamental knowledge, skills and values essential to the study of academic disciplines.

Access BGSU | Access BGSU is a feature available to BGSU students and provides students with the ability to share important data such as grades, billing/payment information, financial aid awards, holds, and to do's with a designated proxy (parent, guardian, spouse, etc.). a student can choose what others can view through the enrollment link found on their MyBGSU Student Center. Log in to MyBGSU Account > Student Center > Share My Information > Delegate Access To A New Contact > Read Terms and Conditions > I Accept. • Students may grant access to financial aid information, billing information, and grades, along with “TO DO LIST” and “HOLDS.” 

Student Support Referral - Parent and Family Connections has established the Student Referral Form to identify students who need additional support. Please complete the following form to initiate the referral process. We will contact referred students within one to two business days and will take action on all forms received.

Form submissions are not monitored outside of normal business hours. If you have an immediate concern about the health and safety of a student, please contact the Campus Police at 419-372-2346.

Holds (on students account) - Holds are updated every 24 hours in Navigate. If a student has already addressed the reason for the hold and it is not yet cleared, check back tomorrow to see if it’s successfully been resolved in the app. If the issue persists, contact advising@bgsu.edu.

Hold for Mandatory Advising - For the first three semesters a student attends BGSU they are required to meet with an advisor prior to scheduling their classes. We enforce this requirement by placing a hold on their account until the meeting is complete. If this requirement is not met prior to the students' assigned class registration day, the system will block them. Once an advising appointment is completed, the advisor will remove the hold from the students' account so they can register for classes.

Hold for Financial Issue - Accounts unpaid as of the payment due date may incur service fees and/or late payment fees. According to University collection policies, unpaid/past due balances may result in a hold being placed on a students' account. These holds may restrict registration privileges, receipt of academic transcripts, and/or receipt of diploma. Residential students with unpaid balances may incur meal plan deactivation and Ped access deactivation. It is the student’s responsibility to check his/her account balance regularly. It is also the student’s responsibility to make satisfactory payment arrangements on any unpaid account.

Handshake - The career services team utilizes Handshake - a modern platform for connecting students and alumni with on-campus and off-campus employers. Handshake offers many great features including the ability to post your resume to connect with employers, apply for part-time and full-time positions, register your co-op 50 experience, sign-up to attend career-related events and more!