Have you heard?

If you haven’t already, you’re about to hear loads of new words and abbreviations around campus. Here’s a cheat sheet to help you wrap your head around them.

Caf
The Cissie Gool Café next to Cissie Gool Plaza — great for cheap, good food.

Course
A unit of study that gets you credit towards your degree.

CPS
Campus Protection Services take care of UCT’s safety and security.

Curriculum
A combination of courses that make up your degree programme.

DP
Duly performed — if you get a DP for a course, you can write the exams.

DPR
Duly performed refused. This means you can’t write exams.

Dean
The head of a faculty.

Early assessment
A formal check to see how you’re doing in your first weeks at varsity.

EDP
Extended Degree Programmes give you extra time and support to complete your degree.

Eduroam
The UCT network that provides free Wi-Fi on campus.

Faculty
A group of academic departments. UCT has six.

First-class pass
When you get over 75% for academic work. An upper second is 70–74%, a lower second is 60–69% and a third is 50–59%. An S means you failed.

First lecture
The day’s earliest lecture and where you’ll find yourself at 08:00 if you’re a fresher.

Food and Connect
Keep an eye out for these food vendors across campus. Yum!

Fresher
That’s you! A first-year.

Fresher’s Braai
A first-years-only party on the Green Mile during O-Week.

FYE
The First-Year Experience is there to help you get through year one.

Green mile
UCT’s main rugby fields.

Hot seat
A weekly appointment with your tutor to discuss your academic progress.

ICTS
Information and Communication Technology Services. They keep you connected.

The plaza
The open area below Sarah Baartman Hall where tons of events take place.

Jammie Shuttle
The blue buses that get you around campus and town. It’s free for students.

Jammie steps
The steps below Sarah Baartman Hall.

Jammie Thursdays
When cool things happen on the plaza during meridian on Thursdays.

Lectures
45-minute lessons with 15 minutes in between to get to the next one.

LinkedIn Learning
An online virtual training library that offers thousands of tutorials.

Meridian
Lunch break — between 13:00 and 14:00 during the week.

North Stop
One of the main Jammie Shuttle stops on upper campus. It’s north of the South Stop.

OIC
The Office for Inclusivity & Change ensures accessibility and inclusivity for all.

OL
Orientation Leader. The one who will take you through stuff during O-Week.

O-Week
The orientation programme that gives you time to get to know UCT and join clubs and societies.

Pass mark
Anything above 50%.

PeopleSoft
An online database for your academic record, timetable, course marks and personal details.

Pracs
Practicals help you put into practice what you’ve learned in theory.

RAG
“Remember and Give” — the fundraising arm of SHAWCO.

Res
Residence. The place you stay if you’re living on campus.

SAX Appeal
The RAG magazine sold at traffic lights to raise money for SHAWCO.

SHAWCO
The Students’ Health and Welfare Centres Organisation offers community outreach programmes.

SRC
The Students’ Representative Council is the highest decision-making structure of student governance.

Student card
Your multi-purpose UCT ID card. Keep it with you all the time.

Student number
Once you’re registered, you’ll need this number often. Remember it.

Sup
Supplementary exam (for when the first one didn’t go so well).

Transformation
The ongoing process of making UCT inclusive and reflective of South African demographics.

Tuts
Tutorials. Small group meetings to discuss course material. A must if you want to get a DP.

Tutor
The person, usually a student, who runs tuts.

Vac
Vacation. Others call it ‘holiday’ or ‘leave’.

Varsity
Where you find yourself right now, and UCT’s student newspaper.

Vula
UCT’s official online learning system where you’ll find everything you need to know about your courses, and more.

Year mark
Together with your exam results, this contributes to your final mark.