AAEE -- the American Association for Employment in Education, the national association of educational placement offices, through which reciprocity may be granted

Buckley Amendment -- an amendment to the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974,which gave students the right to review their university records (references, in the case of the placement office), that were received or created after January 1, 1975

Campus Copy -- the stamp that is put on your reference review copy or on any copy of your employment credential that is sent to another department on the UW-Madison campus

Code Sheet -- the pink sheet you complete when you register which tells EPCS what type of vacancies you want to receive and what your qualifications are; the information is entered into our computer, along with vacancy information we receive from employers, to match you with jobs for which you qualify

Consultant -- the person at EPCS who can help you with all aspects of your job search; just call the receptionist, tell her your field and she can make an appointment for you with the person who can best help you with letters, your resume, interviews, contracts, and any questions you may have about the job-search process or career decisions

Contract -- a binding, legal document between you and the school board or college/university which states the conditions of employment; when you sign, you are legally bound to honor this agreement (a verbal agreement to accept a contract is also binding)

Course Summary -- the second page of your employment credential on which you list your course work in your major, minor, education and related areas; this isn't a substitute for a transcript, but rather a summary of your academic background, by course area, for the position you are seeking

Credential Release -- the form you complete and sign (at the bottom of the EPCS Policy Statement) to indicate who can ask us to send a copy of your employment credential to an employing official

Credential Request -- your WRITTEN request on Credential Request Labels (or a request from those people you have checked on your credential release) asking EPCS to send a copy of your employment credential to a bona fide employing official

Data Sheet -- the first page of your employment credential, basically a brief resume, which your consultant, and employers who come to EPCS, use to learn about your background; when it's sent to the employer, s/he uses it as a brief review of the resume you sent

Employing Official (or employer) -- person, or persons, authorized by a school board to solicit applications and interview prospective staff; it may be a principal, superintendent, screening committee, etc.; only such persons are bona fide employers and may receive a copy of your employment credential

Employment Credential (or credential) -- your Data Sheet, Course Summary page, and references; EPCS photocopies these pages, attaches a cover, and mails the credential to bona fide employing officials in support of your application for an existing job

Inactive -- the status of your file when the placement year ends on September 30th or when you have not updated your file and paid the Processing Charge for the current placement year

Interview -- a meeting between you and the prospective employer to determine whether you and the employer will "fit"; both parties should ask questions to decide their suitability for each other (ideally, the exchange should be 50-50, but in the real world it's more like 70-30!)

Mailing List -- the list of candidates to whom EPCS sends Vacancy Listings during a placement year

National Association of Teacher Agencies (NATA) -- a professional association of private placement offices for educators; they charge a fee based on the first year's salary of the job they help you find (usually 7-10%); NATA upholds standards in reference handling similar to university placement offices

Non-school -- employment outside the field of education; could include business, government, agencies, etc.

Personal File -- the materials you keep to take to interviews or to send if the employer requests them; could include transcripts, lesson plans, personal references, school evaluations, tapes, slides, performance programs, exhibit lists, publications lists, personal statement, plus extra resumes, etc.; these materials are not included in your credential, but might be helpful in your job search

Policy Statement -- the summary of EPCS policies and procedures at the bottom of which is the credential release for you to sign

Processing Charge -- the money you pay to make your EPCS file active, to receive Vacancy Listings and have up to 20 copies of your employment credential sent to employers

Reactivate -- the process by which EPCS makes your inactive file active again; your updated materials and any new references are added to your file, and your name is put on the mailing list again

Reactivation -- with EPCS, the process in which you revise the materials in your inactive file and return the revisions with the Processing Charge

Reciprocity -- a courtesy arrangement under which the placement office of another college or university, in a specific geographic area where you want to relocate, notifies you of vacancies in their area

Recruitment Fair -- in Wisconsin, WERF, the Wisconsin Educational Recruitment Fair, held each June in Madison to bring together employers from around the country and Wisconsin educators (you!)

Reference -- an evaluation of your professional competencies, written by someone who knows you and your work, whether academic (a professor), teaching (a supervisor, cooperating teacher, etc.), or other; references are the most vital part of your employment credential

Reference Review -- your right, under the Buckley Amendment, to see the references written for your place- ment file; EPCS has specific procedures, governed by the law, for this review

Registrant Information Listing -- a computer print-out you receive as soon as your EPCS file has been made active, to verify the information you provided on your code sheet

Registration -- with EPCS, the process in which you complete our materials and return them with the Processing Charge

Resume -- the brief account (one to two pages) of your background and experience that you write and have copied, to send to prospective employing officials (see "Your Job Search in Education" for samples)

Transcript -- the official record of your academic background, obtained only from the Registrar's office

Vacancy Listing -- a form notifying you of a specific job opening, giving you a description of the job, the qualifications needed, and the address where you should apply; the reverse side of the form has space for you to provide job information when you sign a contract or make plans for the coming academic year

The following abbreviations are used frequently on our Vacancy Listings:

Vita -- the longer form of a resume (two to six or more pages), used by applicants for college/university positions; it usually contains more detailed information about academic background, experience, service, etc., than does a resume (see "Your Job Search in Education" for sample)

Waiver -- a form you sign giving up your legal right to reference review; it may be signed for an individual refer- ence or for all references

WERF -- the Wisconsin Educational Recruitment Fair, held each June in Madison to bring together employers from around the country and Wisconsin educators (you!)