Three verbs mark the path through student life. You enroll in a course (register for it officially), then you attend classes (go and be present at them). To pursue a degree means to work toward it as a long-term goal, studying over months or years until you earn it. So enroll is the one-time act of signing up, attend is what you do each week, and pursue is the bigger journey toward a qualification. Notice the grammar too: enroll keeps its preposition in, while attend takes no preposition at all.
Getting into a course
enroll /ɪnˈroʊl/ — Farid enrolled in an evening class at Haffenville Community Center.
attend /əˈtɛnd/ — Maya attends English class every Tuesday.
pursue /pɚˈsuː/ — Yasmin wants to pursue a degree in education.
Not ""Maya attends to English class every Tuesday."" — say ""Maya attends English class every Tuesday."". Attend takes a direct object with no preposition. You attend a class, not attend to it.
Try it: Before the semester begins, students can ___ online and choose their subjects. (enroll / attend / pursue) Answer: enroll — Enroll means to officially register for a course, which is exactly what you do before it starts. You attend once classes are running, and you pursue a longer goal like a degree, so neither fits the act of signing up.
In the classroom
A lecture is a formal talk that teaches a subject, usually at college. The curriculum is the planned set of subjects and goals for the whole course, and the faculty are the teaching staff who deliver it.
lecture /ˈlɛktʃɚ/ — Farid took careful notes during the lecture.
curriculum /kəˈrɪkjələm/ — The new curriculum includes more speaking practice.
faculty /ˈfækəlti/ — Students can ask faculty for advice after class.
Try it: The school changed its ___ to include digital skills in every year of the program. (curriculum / lecture / faculty) Answer: curriculum — The curriculum is the overall plan of subjects and goals, so that is what you change to add digital skills. A lecture is a single talk, and the faculty are the people who teach, so you would not 'change' either one to add a topic.
Handing in and improving work
When your work is ready, you submit it (hand it in officially). Before that, you revise, meaning you either study again for a test or improve a piece of writing. A long research paper for a degree is a thesis.
submit /səbˈmɪt/ — Amina submitted her essay before the deadline.
revise /rɪˈvaɪz/ — Sofia revised for the grammar exam after dinner.
thesis /ˈθiːsɪs/ — Mei is writing a thesis about bilingual education.
Not ""I need to submit my essay again to fix the introduction."" — say ""I need to revise my essay to fix the introduction."". Revise means to improve or study again, and submit means to hand the finished work in.
Try it: The teacher asked Diego to ___ the introduction of his essay because it was unclear. (revise / submit / enroll) Answer: revise — Revise means to improve a piece of writing by changing it, which is exactly what an unclear introduction needs. Submit means handing the finished work in, and enroll means registering for a course, so neither one means fixing the writing.
Coursework and materials
A semester is one half of the school year. You read textbooks for the facts and write essays to argue a point in your own words.
semester /sɪˈmestɚ/ — The spring semester begins in January.
textbook /ˈtekstbʊk/ — Mei bought the textbook for her history course.
essay /ˈeseɪ/ — Farid wrote a short essay on renewable energy.
Try it: Lani has to argue her own opinion in about 800 words. Her teacher wants the finished ___ by Friday. (essay / thesis / textbook) Answer: essay — An essay is a short piece of writing arguing your own view, which suits 800 words. A thesis also argues a view but is a long research work of many thousands of words, and a textbook is a book you read rather than write.
How work is judged
After you hand work in, you get grades that score it and feedback that explains what to change next time.
grade /ɡreɪd/ — Wei was pleased with his grades this term.
feedback /ˈfiːdbæk/ — The lecturer gave detailed feedback on the draft.
Try it: Yasmin's mark was fine, but the written comments explaining how to improve were more useful. She valued the ___. (feedback / grade / curriculum) Answer: feedback — Feedback is the comments that explain how to improve. A grade is only the score itself, and a curriculum is the list of what a course covers, so neither one explains how to do better.