Academic calendar
Fall Semester 2026 runs Sep 1, 2026 – Dec 21, 2026. Calendar aliases that share a date range are grouped together, with every source term still shown.
- Summer Session 2026
- Fall Semester 2026Relevant now
- Winter Session 2027
- Spring Semester 2027
Campus language
Search the full glossary. Nothing is sampled or hidden when the search field is empty.
Showing 21 of 21 terms
A
- Andrews
- Andrews Commons, a dining hall on North Campus known for its pizza and pho.
B
- BCC
- Brown Concert Committee, the group that organizes the annual Spring Weekend festival.
- BDH
- The Brown Daily Herald, the independent student-run daily newspaper.
E
- EmWool
- Emery-Woolley Hall, a residential building located near the Verney-Woolley dining hall.
G
- Grad Center
- The Graduate Center, a brutalist-style residential complex that houses both graduate and undergraduate students.
I
- Ivy Room
- A dining location in the basement of Sharpe Refectory specializing in vegetarian and international options.
J
- Jo's
- Josiah's, a late-night dining option known for its burgers and 'spicy with' sandwiches.
K
- Keeney
- Keeney Quadrangle, a large residential complex primarily for first-year students.
M
- MoChamp
- Morris and Champlin Halls, a large residential complex often housing sophomores.
N
- New Dorm
- The Vartan Gregorian Quad, which was the 'new' dorm for many years.
S
- S/NC
- Satisfactory/No Credit, Brown's version of a pass/fail grading option.
- SAP
- Sexual Assault Peer Education, a student group focused on prevention and education.
- Shopping Period
- The first two weeks of each semester when students can attend any class before officially registering.
- Spring Weekend
- The major annual music festival featuring multiple concerts on the Main Green.
T
- The Blue Room
- A popular cafe located in the Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center (Faunce House).
- The Gates
- The Van Wickle Gates, which are only opened inward for Convocation and outward for Commencement.
- The Ratty
- Sharpe Refectory, the main and largest dining hall on campus.
- The V-Dub
- Verney-Woolley Dining Hall, located on the North Campus.
U
- UCS
- Undergraduate Council of Students, the primary student government body.
- UFB
- Undergraduate Finance Board, the body responsible for allocating the Student Activities Fee.
- Unit
- A course credit; most Brown courses are worth 1 unit, and 30 units are required for graduation.
Places and practicalities
Buildings, logistics, and other local references drawn from the approved campus snapshot.
- Banner
- The online system used for course registration, checking grades, and financial aid.
- Bear Bucks
- A credit system on the Brown Card used for laundry, printing, and some off-campus vendors.
- Brown Card
- The official multi-purpose student identification card used for building access and meal plans.
- CIT
- The Watson Center for Information Technology, home to the Computer Science department.
- Faunce
- The Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center, commonly referred to by its original name, Faunce House.
- RIPTA
- Rhode Island Public Transit Authority; students ride all state buses for free by swiping their Brown ID.
- SafeWalk
- A campus safety service where students can request a walking escort at night.
- The Hay
- John Hay Library, the university's repository for special collections and rare books.
- The PAC
- The Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts.
- The Rock
- John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library, the primary library for humanities and social sciences.
- The SciLi
- The Sciences Library, a high-rise building housing science resources and a popular study space.
Quick answers
Useful facts students can verify from the guide above.
- What academic term is relevant now?
- Fall Semester 2026 runs Sep 1, 2026 – Dec 21, 2026.
- How much campus context is included?
- 21 approved campus terms and 11 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.