Academic calendar
Fall 2026 runs Aug 31, 2026 – Dec 13, 2026. Calendar aliases that share a date range are grouped together, with every source term still shown.
- Fall 2026Relevant now
- Spring 2027
- Summer 2027
- Fall 2027
- Spring 2028
- Summer 2028
Campus language
Search the full glossary. Nothing is sampled or hidden when the search field is empty.
Showing 60 of 60 terms
A
- AAPC
- American Academy of Professional Coders; the primary professional association for healthcare business professionals.
- AHIMA
- American Health Information Management Association, the primary alternative certifying body often compared by students
B
- Bubble and Highlight
- A specific study technique involving circling and color-coding sections of coding manuals to increase speed during the exam.
- Bubble and Underline
- A specific highlighting and notation technique used to prepare coding manuals for the open-book exam.
- Bubbling
- A study technique involving circling or highlighting specific parts of code descriptions to differentiate similar codes.
- Bundling
- The practice of grouping multiple services under a single code for billing purposes.
C
- CDEO
- Certified Documentation Expert Outpatient, the certification for clinical documentation improvement
- CEU
- Continuing Education Unit; required credits maintained by members to keep their certifications active.
- CEUs
- Continuing Education Units required to maintain an active certification status
- Chicken Scratch
- Handwritten notes allowed in the margins of coding books, provided they are for clarification and not transcribed test questions.
- CIC
- Certified Inpatient Coder, a certification for hospital inpatient facility coding and DRGs.
- COC
- Certified Outpatient Coder, a certification focused on hospital outpatient facility coding.
- Coding Clinic
- A quarterly publication by the AHA often referenced by students for official coding advice
- Coding Ninja
- A term used within the community and AAPC marketing for a highly proficient and fast coder.
- CPB
- Certified Professional Biller, the certification for medical billing and reimbursement
- CPC
- Certified Professional Coder, the primary certification for medical coding in physician office settings
- CPC-A
- Certified Professional Coder-Apprentice, the status held by new coders before meeting experience requirements.
- CPMA
- Certified Professional Medical Auditor, the certification for medical auditing and compliance
- CPPM
- Certified Physician Practice Manager; certification for healthcare management.
- CRC
- Certified Risk Adjustment Coder, the certification for risk adjustment coding models
D
- Dropping the A
- The process of submitting work experience or completing Practicode to remove the Apprentice status from a credential.
H
- HEALTHCON
- The primary annual national conference hosted by AAPC for networking and education
- HEALTHCON
- The annual national conference hosted by AAPC for healthcare professionals
- Hick-Picks
- The phonetic pronunciation of HCPCS (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System) manuals.
- Hicks-Picks
- The common pronunciation for the HCPCS (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System) manual
L
- Losing the A
- The process of completing work experience or Practicode to upgrade from CPC-A to a full CPC.
M
- MAC
- Medical Auditing & Compliance; a specialized training track within the academy.
- Modifier
- A two-digit code added to a procedure code to provide additional context without changing the definition.
N
- NAB
- National Advisory Board - the leadership body that represents the AAPC membership
P
- Practicode
- An online training program used to gain coding experience and remove the Apprentice status
T
- Tabbed
- A coding manual that has been physically organized with adhesive tabs to allow for faster navigation during the timed exam.
- Tabbing
- The process of adding physical index tabs to code books to navigate sections quickly during timed exams.
- The 10
- Shorthand for the ICD-10-CM code book used for diagnosis coding
- The 4-hour
- Common shorthand for the duration and intensity of the CPC certification exam.
- The 70%
- The minimum passing score required for the CPC and other certification exams.
- The A
- The 'Apprentice' designation added to a certification (e.g., CPC-A) until the student gains two years of experience
- The Apprentice
- Refers to the 'A' designation (e.g., CPC-A) given to those who have passed the exam but lack two years of work experience.
- The Beast
- A common nickname for the CPC exam due to its length (100 questions) and high difficulty level.
- The Bible
- The CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) manual, considered the most critical book for the certification exam.
- The Big Book
- Common student shorthand for the ICD-10-CM code book.
- The Big Three
- The three essential coding manuals required for most exams: CPT, ICD-10-CM, and HCPCS Level II.
- The Black Book
- Common shorthand for the AAPC Official CPC Certification Study Guide.
- The Blitz
- Refers to the CCO (Certification Coaching Organization) review videos, a popular third-party study aid used by AAPC students.
- The Blue Book
- Common student shorthand for the HCPCS Level II manual, typically featuring a blue cover.
- The Books
- The mandatory set of coding manuals (CPT, ICD-10-CM, and HCPCS Level II) required for exams and daily work.
- The Brown Book
- The AAPC-published ICD-10-CM code book
- The CPT
- The Current Procedural Terminology codebook, the essential manual for the certification exam
- The Exam
- The high-stakes, multi-hour certification test (usually the CPC) that is the primary goal of most students.
- The Forum
- The AAPC online community boards where students and professionals discuss coding scenarios and exam prep.
- The Green Book
- The ICD-10-CM code book, often referred to by its color in AAPC-provided book bundles.
- The Grid
- The Evaluation and Management (E/M) leveling table used to determine the complexity of a patient visit
- The Guidelines
- The ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting, which are the mandatory rules for coding
- The HCPCS
- The Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System Level II manual
- The ICD
- The ICD-10-CM codebook used for diagnosis coding
- The ICD-10
- The International Classification of Diseases codebook used for diagnosis coding
- The Manuals
- The essential code books (CPT, ICD-10-CM, and HCPCS Level II) used during the open-book exams
- The Marathon
- A nickname for the 4-hour CPC certification exam due to its length and intensity.
- The Monster
- A nickname sometimes used for the ICD-10-CM manual due to its extreme thickness and weight.
- The Portal
- The AAPC online member area where students access their coursework, grades, and exam results.
- The Red Book
- The HCPCS Level II code book, often referred to by its color in AAPC-provided book bundles.
Places and practicalities
Buildings, logistics, and other local references drawn from the approved campus snapshot.
- AAPC HQ
- The main administrative headquarters located in Salt Lake City, Utah
- Black Box
- A term used to describe the specific instructional notes found within the CPT manual that dictate coding rules.
- Black Box Warning
- A specific type of alert in coding manuals that students must identify for exam questions
- Black Friday Sale
- The annual November event where students wait to purchase courses and exam vouchers at their lowest prices.
- Blackboard
- The Learning Management System (LMS) used to deliver online course content and assignments.
- Blackout
- Specific dates or periods when exam results are being processed or systems are down for maintenance.
- Blackout Dates
- Specific periods during the year when exam scheduling is unavailable due to system updates.
- CEU Tracker
- The online tool used by members to log Continuing Education Units required to maintain certification.
- CEUs
- Continuing Education Units required every two years to keep certifications active
- Exam Hub
- The digital portal within the AAPC website where students schedule, launch, and view results for their exams.
- Exam Retake
- The second attempt at a certification exam included with most initial exam purchases.
- Exam Voucher
- A prepaid credit used to register for a certification exam, often included in course bundles
- Examity
- The third-party online proctoring service used by AAPC for students taking their certification exams remotely.
- Free Retake
- A common logistics feature where a second exam attempt is included with the initial purchase
- HEALTHCON
- The annual national conference hosted by AAPC for professional development and networking.
- HQ
- The AAPC headquarters located in Salt Lake City, Utah, where administrative and curriculum decisions are made.
- Knowledge Center
- The official AAPC blog and digital repository for industry news and coding updates
- Local Chapter
- The physical or virtual regional meeting groups where members gather for networking and education.
- Local Chapter
- Regional member groups that host monthly meetings for networking and earning CEUs
- Meazure Learning
- The third-party online proctoring service used for taking AAPC certification exams remotely.
- Member Area
- The personalized online dashboard where students access their courses and exam results.
- Member Area
- The online portal where students track their certifications, CEUs, and exam results
- Member Portal
- The centralized online dashboard for managing certifications, CEUs, and exam results
- Practicode
- An online coding practice program that allows students to gain real-world experience and remove the 'A' (Apprentice) status.
- ProctorU
- The third-party online service used to take AAPC exams remotely from home
- Remote Proctoring
- The process of taking a certification exam at home via a webcam and third-party monitoring service
- Salt Lake
- The corporate headquarters located in Salt Lake City, Utah, often referred to when discussing administrative issues or official mailings.
- Salt Lake HQ
- The physical headquarters of the AAPC located in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- Testing Center
- A physical proctored site, often a hotel or office, where students take in-person certification exams
- The 'A'
- The Apprentice designation attached to a credential (e.g., CPC-A) until the coder gains two years of experience.
- The 2-Year Rule
- The requirement to document two years of professional experience to remove the 'Apprentice' designation from a certification.
- The Forum
- The official AAPC online discussion boards where students and professionals interact
- The Forum
- The official AAPC online community discussion boards for students and professionals
- The Portal
- The 'My AAPC' member dashboard used to track exam results, membership status, and CEU submissions.
- The Voucher
- A digital code or credit purchased to pay for an exam attempt, often bundled with study materials.
- VILT
- Virtual Instructor-Led Training, the format for live online classes hosted by AAPC instructors
- Voucher
- A digital code purchased by students to register for and schedule their certification exams.
Quick answers
Useful facts students can verify from the guide above.
- What academic term is relevant now?
- Fall 2026 runs Aug 31, 2026 – Dec 13, 2026.
- How much campus context is included?
- 60 approved campus terms and 37 local details are included in full.
- Are all approved campus terms included?
- Yes. The complete approved glossary is available in the scrollable, searchable campus-language section.
- Where does this guide come from?
- Calendar dates, campus terms, and local details come from DormWay's approved campus reference library.