List of acronyms for prefrosh
Acronyms, not be confused with initialism, are indispensable to understanding the workings of the university. Students interested in working with or fighting the administration, joining a student group, running for student government, or engaging in tenacious bureaucratic wrangling will undoubtedly encounter acronyms using all twenty-six letters of the alphabet!
If there's one thing Columbia has a lot of, it's bureaucracy. It also has lots of acronyms. There are enough acronyms at Columbia to make you dizzy. This is a primer. Most of the below are actually examples of initialism, but if you notice that you're either mispronouncing something or you're a pedant. Don't worry, pedantry is cool.
- ABC - Activities Board at Columbia
- BC - Barnard College (not Boston College)
- CAA - Columbia Alumni Association
- CC - Contemporary Civilization or Columbia College (not Community College)
- CCE - Center for Career Education
- CCSC - Columbia College Student Council
- CEPSR - Center for Engineering and Physical Science Research
- CI - Community Impact
- CLS - Columbia Law School
- CPS - Counseling and Psychological Services
- CSMESS - Columbia Science, Math and Engineering Secondary School
- CTV - Columbia Television
- CUIT - Columbia University Information Technology (formerly AcIS (Academic Information Services) and AIS Administrative Information Services)
- CULPA - Columbia Underground Listing of Professor Ability
- CUMB - Columbia University Marching Band
- E3B - Department of Evolution, Ecology and Environmental Biology
- ESC - Engineering Student Council (Not the 'Escape' button on your keyboard)
- FYSAAC - First Year-Sophomore Academic Advising Center
- GS - School of General Studies
- GSSC - General Studies Student Council
- IRC - Intercultural Resource Center
- JSAC - Junior-Senior Advising Center
- LDEO - Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
- NSOP - New Student Orientation Program
- OMA - Office of Multicultural Affairs
- RA - Resident Adviser or Research Assistant
- SDA - Student Development and Activities
- SEAS - School of Engineering and Applied Science
- SGA - Student Government Association (Barnard Student Council)
- SGB - Student Governing Board
- SSOL - Student Services Online
- TA - Teaching Assistant, not to be confused with T&A
- UNDED - Undergraduate Education Committee, the advising board of the History Department
- URH - University Residence Halls, now known as Housing Services
- UW - University Writing or Unofficial Withdrawal
