Terminology Guide

• Course Information
• Course Prefixes
• Degrees, Majors, Minors, Concentrations, Approved Programs of Study and HEGIS Codes
• SUNY Cortland Teacher Certification Exam Pass-Rates

Course Information

The number assigned to each course is the key to the level at which it is taught. SUNY Cortland uses the following numbering system to define the course numbers and section numbers.

Course Numbers

100-199 courses generally designed for freshmen but may be appropriate for sophomores, usually an introductory or first course taught in a sequence within a discipline.

200-299 courses generally designed for sophomores but may be appropriate for freshmen, usually advancing in a progression as a second course which may require previous knowledge or training.

300-399 courses generally designed for juniors and seniors, but may also be appropriate for sophomores. Prerequisites are often required for this course level.

400-499 courses generally designed for juniors and seniors advancing well into upper division work with prerequisite knowledge base required.

500-599 courses are considered graduate courses but are designed for both graduate and highly motivated undergraduate students. This level of course work is open to juniors and seniors in good academic standing (cumulative grade point average of 2.0). Please note: There are certain 500-level courses that are for graduate students only.

600-699 courses designed exclusively at the graduate level for graduate students only.

Section Numbers

The number following the course prefix and course number used to identify a specific day, time, location and instructor for a course. The section number also may be used to identify specific majors or student cohorts eligible to enroll in a specific section of a course.

000-009 section numbers indicate that the course has no restrictions and is open to all students.

010, 020, 030, 040 section numbers generally indicate a quarter course. The middle digit represents the quarter.

090 section numbers indicate that the course is a Mohawk Valley graduate course held at SUNY IT.

500-599 section numbers require special permission from the chair of the department offering the course.

600-699 section numbers identify courses that may be reserved for a specific major, group of majors or special student cohort.

700-799 section numbers are reserved for students not in a particular major or discipline.

800-899 section numbers indicate courses that are a part of a "learning community" or special student cohort program.

Prerequisites

Most courses beyond the introductory level require a degree of knowledge or preparation described by the prerequisites for the course. At SUNY Cortland the prerequisites indicate the level of preparation normally required for the course. In appropriate circumstances prerequisites may be waived. An equivalent course or courses taken elsewhere suffice, but questions regarding equivalency should be referred to the department offering the course.

Students who believe that courses they have taken meet the equivalency requirements may seek the consent of the chair of the department to waive the course prerequisites. When the phrase “consent of department” is used, permission from the department chair is required before students may enroll in the course.

Frequency of Course Offerings

Courses described in this catalog are offered according to the frequency code schedule listed below. The identifying code appears in the course description.

State University of New York College at Cortland reserves the right to cancel the offering of a scheduled course when any of these conditions prevail:

1. Enrollment in the course is fewer than 10 persons. In cases where the cancelled course is a graduation requirement for any of those enrolled in it, SUNY Cortland will afford affected students an alternative method of meeting the requirement.
2. Because of a temporary vacancy no qualified instructor is available to teach the course.
3. The cancellation is early enough to permit students to register in another course.

Courses to be offered in a particular semester are listed on the registrar’s home page at www.cortland.edu/registrar on the Web. The schedule of course offerings for the fall semester is available in mid-March, and the schedule of course offerings for the spring semester is available in mid-October.

Frequency Codes

A = Every semester
B = At least once per year
C = At least once every two years
F = Fall
M = Summer
O = Occasionally
S = Spring
W = Winter

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Course Prefixes

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Degrees, Majors, Minors, Concentrations, Programs of Study and HEGIS Codes

Degrees

Degrees offered are Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.), Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S.Ed.).

Majors

A major is an approved program of study leading to a bachelor of arts (B.A.), bachelor of science (B.S.), or bachelor of science in education (B.S.Ed.). Majors require a minimum of 30 credit hours of discipline-specific courses. Majors must have a minimum of 15 credit hours of discipline-specific courses at the 300 level or above.

Minors

A minor is an approved program of study, not leading to a degree, in an area outside the major. A minor comprises a minimum of 15 credit hours; half of these credit hours must be taken at SUNY Cortland. Students cannot minor in the same area as the major or concentration. Likewise, students cannot earn a concentration in the same area as the minor.

Concentrations

A concentration is an approved program of study that provides a particular set of options within a given major or minor.

Concentrations may be embedded as part of the requirements of a major, or added as a separate option to a major. A concentration must have a minimum of 12 hours that are independent and distinct from the major requirements, that is, the credit hours used in the concentration cannot be used to fulfill the requirements in the major core, and likewise those courses used in the major core cannot be used to fulfill the requirements in the concentration. Half of the credit hours in the concentration must be taken at SUNY Cortland.

Therefore, an academic major of 30 credit hours of discipline-specific courses with an "embedded" concentration would include a concentration with 12 credit hours plus at least 18 credit hours in the major. An academic major that provides the option of a concentration that can be "added" separately to a major would include a concentration with 12 distinct hours in addition to the 30 credit-hour major for a total of 42 credit hours.

Students cannot earn a minor in the same area as the major or concentration. Likewise, students cannot earn a concentration in the same area as the minor.

Approved programs of study are those approved by the College's provost and vice president for academic affairs, the College's president, and the New York State Education Department and adopted by SUNY Cortland according to the procedures for curriculum change in effect at the time of approval.

Majors, minors and concentrations are not listed on diplomas but are recorded on official College transcripts.

Students may graduate under any catalog in effect during the period of their enrollment, providing they have not interrupted such enrollment and all requirements listed in the catalog have been met. A change of major, adding a minor or concentration may result in a change of catalog term and additional required course work for the new major and/or the need to meet certain grade point criteria as determined by the new department's published requirements at the time of the change of major.

Note: An official leave of absence is not considered an interruption in enrollment.

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SUNY Cortland Teacher Certification Exam Pass-Rates

All graduates of teacher preparation programs must pass a New York state teacher certification exam in order to be granted Initial Certification in Teacher Education to teach in New York state. The following table presents the pass rates by 2008 SUNY Cortland graduates on the New York State Teacher Certification Examination (NYSTCE).

Professional Knowledge/Pedagogy is assessed by the NYSTCE Assessment of Teaching Skills-Written (ATS-W).

Content Knowledge is assessed by the NYSTCE Liberal Arts and Sciences Test (LAST).

Content Specialty is assessed by the NYSTCE Content Specialty Tests (CST).

SUNY Cortland's pass rates for these exams are among the highest in New York state. The exceptional pass rates by Cortland graduates on the state exams demonstrate that the College has maintained the highest standards while attracting large numbers of students to outstanding teacher education programs. In fact, SUNY Cortland has the largest teacher education program on the East Coast and the ninth largest teacher education program in the United States.

The College's traditional programs in childhood and physical education are long standing and highly recognized throughout the nation. Through its conceptual framework and placement of student teachers, SUNY Cortland is committed to preparing teachers to meet statewide demands within urban and rural areas.

Within SUNY, Cortland is the only college or university that provides disabilities education in five distinct areas: therapeutic recreation, special education, speech pathology and audiology, adapted physical education, and psychology of exceptionality (learning disabilities, mental retardation, ABA and behavior disorders). The Institute for Disability Studies provides faculty and students across the three schools with an opportunity to work directly in the community to support children and adults with disabilities. The Institute encourages the work of advocacy in numerous ways on a local, state and national level.

SUNY Cortland supports the fourth largest Migrant Educational Outreach Program in New York, which provides educational, health and social services advocacy and academic support to school-age children of migrant workers and their families in the schools, after school, at their homes and in the migrant labor camps.

These data are presented in compliance with Section 207 of the Higher Education Act Title II. Program completers in this table are defined as undergraduate and graduate students receiving a degree between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008 and who have taken the NYSTCE exams. While most of the graduates take one of these exams, it is not a graduation requirement at SUNY Cortland.

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