An academic year, or school year, is a period that schools, colleges and universities use to measure the duration of studies for a given educational level. Academic years are often divided into academic terms. Students attend classes and do relevant exams and homework during this time, which comprises school days (days when there is education) and school holidays (when there is a break from education). The duration of school days, holidays and school year varies across the world. The days in the school year depend on the state or country. For example, in Maryland, USA, there are 180 days in a school year, but in Minnesota, USA there are 165 days in the year.
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Academic year in the context of Year
A year is a unit of time based on how long it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun. In scientific use, the tropical year (approximately 365 solar days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45 seconds) and the sidereal year (about 20 minutes longer) are more exact. The modern calendar year, as reckoned according to the Gregorian calendar, approximates the tropical year by using a system of leap years.
The term 'year' is also used to indicate other periods of roughly similar duration, such as the lunar year (a roughly 354-day cycle of twelve of the Moon's phases – see lunar calendar), as well as periods loosely associated with the calendar or astronomical year, such as the seasonal year, the fiscal year, the academic year, etc.
Academic year in the context of Academic term
An academic term (or simply term) is a portion of an academic year during which an educational institution holds classes. The schedules adopted vary widely. Common terms such as semester, trimester, and quarter are used to denote terms of specific durations. In most countries, the academic year begins in late summer or early autumn and ends during the following spring or summer.