feeder school

Definition

An institution that regularly sends graduates to a particular university or program, creating a pipeline that's either a mutually beneficial relationship or an old boys' network, depending on your perspective.

Example Usage

Those three prep schools are our biggest feeders - 40% of our incoming class comes from just those institutions.

Origin

Admissions terminology from hierarchical education systems

Fun Fact

Elite universities often have formal relationships with feeder schools, with admissions officers making regular visits, reinforcing educational inequality by social class

Source: Admissions and enrollment management terminology

Related Terms

Beginner

discussion section

A smaller class meeting led by a TA where students supposedly discuss lecture material but often sit in awkward silence until someone speaks. It's where 'class participation' grades are determined by the same three extroverts every week.

🎓 Education / Academia

Intermediate

neologism

A fancy word for "new word," typically used by linguists, writers, and people who want to sound smarter at parties. It's the official term for when someone invents a word and it actually catches on, rather than just dying in the group chat where it was born. Ironically, using "neologism" instead of "new word" is peak intellectual showing off.

🎓 Education / Academia

Advanced

partial

In mathematics, a derivative that focuses on one variable at a time while treating all the others like they're frozen in carbonite—perfect for analyzing complex multivariable functions. It's the calculus equivalent of saying "let's just deal with one problem at a time." Also refers to dentures that only replace some teeth, though that usage appears in significantly fewer equations.

🎓 Education / Academia

Beginner

academic quarter

A 10-11 week term used by quarter system institutions, resulting in three main terms per academic year instead of two semesters. It's the fast-paced, high-intensity alternative to semesters, where you blink and it's finals week.

🎓 Education / Academia

Intermediate

Publish or Perish

The academic survival mantra that has produced millions of papers read by exactly three people: the author, one reviewer, and the author's mom. Quality is optional; quantity is tenure. It's a system that rewards prolific writing the same way a hamster wheel rewards running.

🎓 Education / Academia

Intermediate

grade distribution

The statistical breakdown of grades in a course, theoretically reflecting student mastery but often revealing more about the instructor's grading philosophy. It's what separates the 'everyone gets an A' professors from the 'I've never given an A' professors.

🎓 Education / Academia

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