College
The term
college (
Latin collegium) is most often used today to denote an
educational
institution. More broadly, it can be the name of any group of
colleagues (see for example
electoral college,
College of Arms). Originally it meant a group of
people living together under a common set of (
con-, "together" +
leg-, "law"); indeed, some colleges call their members "
fellows". The precise usage of the term varies among
English-speaking countries.
British usage of the word "college" remains the loosest, encompassing a range of institutions:
* colleges of
further education and
adult education.
* "
sixth form colleges", where students (ages 16-18) finish their secondary education, and some
specialist schools
* the constituent parts of some
universities (see below)
*
university colleges — independent higher education institutions that have been granted degree-awarding powers but not
university status.
* certain
public schools for children such as
Eton and
Winchester[Eton College website using school as the educational institute but College as the name]* professional associations such as the
Royal College of Organists, the
Royal College of Surgeons and other various
Royal Colleges.
* the
College of Justice or
Court of Session of
ScotlandIn general use, a "college" refers to; institutions between secondary school and university, colleges of further education and adult education. Many types of institutions have "college" in its name but are not "colleges" in the general use of the word. For example
Eton College would not be referred to as a college, but as a school or by its full name
[Eton College website using school as the educational institute but College as the name].
Universities and colleges
For notable examples of the college system inside UK universities see Colleges within UK UniversitiesIn relation to universities, the term
college normally refers to a part of the university which does not have degree-awarding powers in itself. Degrees are always awarded by
universities,
colleges are institutions or organisations which prepare students for the degree. In some cases, colleges prepare students for the degree of a university of which the college is a part (eg colleges of the
University of London,
University of Cambridge, etc) and in some cases colleges are independent institutions which prepare students to sit as external candidates at other universities (eg many higher education colleges prepare students to sit for external examinations of universities). In the past, many of what are now universities with their own degree-awarding powers were colleges which had their degrees awarded by either a federal university (eg
Cardiff University) or another university (eg many of the
post-1992 universities).
 |
Boston College |
In
American English, the word, in addition to its British meaning, can also refer to a self-contained institution. The usual practice in the United States today is to call an institution made up of several colleges and granting a range of higher degrees a "
university" while a smaller institution only granting
bachelor's or
associate's degrees is called a "college". (See
liberal arts colleges,
community college). Nevertheless, several prominent American universities, including
Boston College,
Dartmouth College,
College of Charleston, and
College of William and Mary, have retained the term "college" in their names for historical reasons though they offer a wide range of higher degrees. This problem led, in part, to the threatened lawsuit between
Yale College Wrexham (equivalent to an American "
high school") and
Yale University, the latter claiming trademark infringement.
Usage of the terms varies among the
states, each of which operates its own institutions and licenses private ones. In
1996 for example,
Georgia changed all of its four-year colleges to universities, and all of its
vocational technology schools to
technical colleges. (Previously, only the four
research institutions were called universities.) Other states have changed the
names of individual colleges, many having started as a
teachers' college or
vocational school (such as an A&M — an
agricultural and
mechanical school) that ended up as a full-fledged
state university.
It should be noted, too, that "university" and "college" do not exhaust all possible titles for an American institution of higher education. Other options include "institute", "academy", "union," and "school" as in the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
United States Military Academy at
West Point, New York,
Cooper Union, or the
Juilliard School.
The term
college is also, as in Britain, used for a constituent semi-autonomous part of a larger university but generally organized on academic rather than residential lines. For example, at many institutions, the undergraduate portion of the university can be briefly referred to as
the college (such as The College at
Brown,
Harvard College at
Harvard, or
Columbia College at
Columbia) while at others each of the faculties may be called a "college" (the "college of engineering", the "college of nursing", and so forth). Some American universities, such as
Princeton,
Rice, and
Yale do have
residential colleges along the lines of Oxford or Cambridge, but the name was clearly adopted in homage to the British system. Unlike the Oxbridge colleges, these residential colleges are not autonomous legal entities nor are they typically much involved in education itself, being primarily concerned with room, board, and social life. At the
University of California, San Diego, however, each of the six residential colleges does teach its own core writing courses and has its own distinctive set of graduation requirements.
Aspects of the U.S. system
Two features of the American system (but present in other systems also) are universality and breadth.Nearly half of all Americans attend at least one year of "college" and American universities award a great many degrees for professional training which might be accomplished on-the-job elsewhere. At the more academic end of the scale, on the other hand, many American college students (especially at the most elite institutions) see "college" as a time of intellectual exploration which can be accomplished free from any need to prepare for the future, believing graduate school to be the time for that. The American system, by permitting students to spend some of their time in classes entirely removed from their major field of study, forces much less specialization and focus than is common in the rest of the world. Furthermore, a great many students in American universities and colleges live either in institution-run
dormitories or in neighborhoods dominated by student apartments. Hence the college years often involve a distinct kind of living arrangement between the family home and the first adult apartment.
The origin of the U.S. usage
The founders of the first institutions of higher education in the United States were graduates of
Oxford University and
Cambridge University. The small institutions they founded would not have seemed to them like universities — they were tiny and did not offer the higher degrees in medicine and theology. Furthermore, they were not composed of several small colleges. Instead, the new institutions felt like the Oxbridge colleges they were used to — small communities, housing and feeding their students, with instruction from residential tutors (as in the United Kingdom, described above). However, when the first students came to be graduated, these "colleges" proceeded to assume (without any recognized authority) the right to confer degrees upon them. In
Europe, only universities could grant degrees. Presumably the leaders of
Harvard College (which granted America's first degrees in 1642) thought of their college as the first of many residential colleges which would grow up into a New Cambridge university. However, over time, no new colleges were founded; and Harvard grew and added higher faculties. Eventually, it changed its title to university, but the term "college" had stuck and "colleges" had sprung up all over the United States.
The most confusing aspect of the conflict between the British and American terminology arises from the colloquial use of the word "college" by Americans. Where a British person would say "go to university", Americans instead say "go to college", even when referring to an institution formally called a "university." In Britain, aside from usage in reference to
collegiate universities as detailed above, to attend "college" would usually be accepted as meaning one attends a
technical college or a specific
sixth form institution. (Most
state schools and
Independent school in Britain have sixth forms, but there are a number of sixth form specific institutions). However, in the U.S., students at the enormous
University of Michigan still call it their "college". Similarly, the institution that administers many standardized admissions tests in the U.S. is known as the
College Board. To Americans, the word "college" refers not only to an institution but to the phase in one's life usually called "university" elsewhere in the world; more specifically, college refers to an undergraduate education in the United States, while university is a catch all phrase for various levels of study.
Influenced by their origins in the
British Empire, and by modern American
pop culture, the rest of the English-speaking world seems to have adopted a mix of their practices.
Australia
In
Australia, the term "college" can refer to an institution of
tertiary education that is smaller than a university, run independently or as part of a university. Following a reform in the
1980s many of the formerly independent colleges now belong to a larger university. Many private
high schools that provide
secondary education are called "colleges" in Australia. The term can also be used to refer to residence halls, as in the United Kingdom, but compared to the UK their tutorial programs are relatively small-scale and they do no actual teaching towards academic degrees (with the exception of one or two that host
theological colleges).
Additionally, in
Tasmania and the
Australian Capital Territory, "college" refers to the final two years of high school (years eleven and twelve), and the institutions which provide this. In this context, "college" is a system independent of the other years of high school. (Here, the expression is a shorter version of
matriculation college.) All college courses in the ACT are sanctioned by the
Board of Senior Secondary Studies, or BSSS.
In
Australia, "college" can also refer to the several
dormitaries located at
universities around the country. Examples are
St John's College at the
University of Sydney and
Emmanuel College at the
University of Queensland.
Canada
In
Canada, the term "college" usually refers to a
community college or a technical, applied arts, or applied science school. These are
post-secondary diploma-granting institutions, but they are not universities and typically do not grant degrees, except in
British Columbia where some have university status. In
Quebec, it can refer in particular to
CEGEP (
Collège d'enseignement général et professionnel, "college of general and professional education"), a form of post-secondary education specific to the
Quebec education system that is required in order to continue onto university, or to learn a trade.
The
Royal Military College of Canada, a full-fledged degree-granting university, does not follow the naming convention used by the rest of the country.
The term "college" also applies to distinct entities within a university (usually referred to as "
federated colleges" or "affiliated colleges"), akin to the residential colleges in the United Kingdom. These colleges act independently, but in affiliation or federation with the university that actually grants the degrees. For example,
Trinity College was once an independent institution, but later became federated with the
University of Toronto, and is now one of its residential colleges. Occasionally, "college" refers to a subject specific faculty within a university that, while distinct, are neither
federated nor
affiliatedâ€"College of Education, College of Medicine, College of Dentistry, among others.
There are also universities referred to as art colleges, empowered to grant academic degrees of BFA, Bdes, MFA, Mdes and sometimes collaborative PhD degrees. Some of them have "university" in their name (
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University) and others do not (
Ontario College of Art & Design and
Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design).
It should be noted that, unlike in the United States, there is a strong distinction between "college" and "university" in Canada. In conversation, one specifically would say either "I'm going to university" (i.e., studying for a three- or four-year degree at a university) or "I'm going to college" (suggesting a technical or career college). Due to this distinction, the cultural phenomenon known as
college radio in the United States is more properly called "campus radio" in Canada.
In a number of Canadian cities, many government-run secondary schools are called "collegiate institutes" (C.I.), a complicated form of the word "college" which avoids the usual "post-secondary" connotation. Some private secondary schools in Toronto choose to use the word "college" in their names nevertheless. Some secondary schools elsewhere in the country, particularly ones within the
separate school system, may also use the word "college" or "collegiate" in their names.
Ireland
|
Parliament Square, Trinity College, Dublin. |
In the
Republic of Ireland, the term "college" is usually limited to an institution of
tertiary education, but the term is quite
generic within this field. University students often say they attend "college" rather than "university", with the term college being more popular in wider society. This is possibly due to the fact that, until 1989, no university provided teaching or research directly. Instead, these were offered by a constituent college of the university, in the case of the
National University of Ireland and
University of Dublin — or at least in strict legal terms. A limited number of
secondary education institutions use the word college to describe or name themselves, but this tends to be the exception.
The state's only
ancient university, the
University of Dublin, is really English in its origins and, until recently, its outlook. Created during the reign of
Elizabeth I, it is modeled on the universities of
Cambridge and
Oxford. However, only one
constituent college was ever founded, hence the curious position of
Trinity College, Dublin today. For a time, degrees in
Dublin Institute of Technology were also conferred by the university. However, that institution now has its own degree awarding powers and is considering applying for full university status.
Among more modern foundations, the
National University of Ireland, founded in 1908, consisted of constituent colleges and recognised colleges until 1997. The former are now referred to as
constituent universities — institutions that are essentially universities in their own right. The National University can trace its existence back to 1850 and the creation of the
Queen's University of Ireland and the creation of the
Catholic University of Ireland in 1854. From 1880, the degree awarding roles of these two universities was taken over by the
Royal University of Ireland, which remained until the creation of the National University in 1908 and the
Queen's University of Belfast.
The state's two new universities
Dublin City University and
University of Limerick were initially
National Institute for Higher Education institutions. These institutions offered university level
academic degrees and
research from the start of their existence and were awarded university status in 1989 in recognition of this. These two universities now follow the general trend of universities having associated colleges offering their degrees.
Third level technical education in the state has been carried out in the
Regional Technical College network since 1970. These institutions are now referred to as
Institutes of Technology, and some have
delegated authority that entitles them to give degrees and diplomas in their own name. Initially these institutions offered only
National Certificate and
National Diploma courses. Now they also offer
academic degrees at
undergraduate and
postgraduate level.
Other types of college include
Colleges of Education. These are specialist institutions, often linked to a university, which provide both
undergraduate and
postgraduate academic degrees for people who want to train as teachers.
Hong Kong
In
Hong Kong, the term "college" has a range of meanings, as in the British case. In the first case it can refer to a
secondary school. It is also used by tertiary institutions as either part of their names, such as
Shue Yan College; to refer to a constituent part of the university, such as the colleges in the collegiate
Chinese University of Hong Kong; or to a residence hall of a university, such as
St. John's College, University of Hong Kong.
India
The term university is more common than college in
India. Generally, colleges are located in different parts of a state and all of them are affiliated to a regional university. The colleges offer programmes under that university. Examinations are conducted by the university at the same time for all colleges under its affiliation. There are several hundred universities and each university has affiliated colleges.
The first liberal arts and sciences college in India was the
Presidency College, Kolkata (estd. 1817) (initially known as Hindu College). The first Missionary institution to impart Western style education in India was the
Scottish Church College, Calcutta (estd. 1830). The first modern university in India was the
University of Calcutta (estd. January 1857). The first research institution for the study of the social sciences and ushering the spirit of
Oriental research was the
Asiatic Society, (estd. 1784). The first college for the study of Christian theology and ecumenical enquiry has been the
Serampore College (estd. 1818).
The
Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are specialized institutions that award their own degrees. They are premier institutes in India. There are only seven of them at present.
Of late the government has been establishing
Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) as specialized centres of excellence in the rapidly emerging field of Information Technology. They have been setup to educate professionals for the booming technology oriented market.
Singapore
The term "college" in
Singapore is generally only used for pre-university educational institutions called "Junior Colleges", which provide the final two years of
secondary education (equivalent to sixth form in English terms or grades 11-12 in the American system). Since
1 January 2005, the term also refers to the three campuses of the
Institute of Technical Education with the introduction of the "collegiate system", in which the three institutions are called
ITE College East,
ITE College Central, and
ITE College West respectively.
The term "
university" is used to describe higher-education institutions offering locally-conferred degrees. Institutions offering diplomas are called "
polytechnics", while other institutions are often referred to as "institutes" and so forth.
New Zealand
 |
The University of Otago. |
In
New Zealand the word "college" normally refers to a newer
secondary school for ages 13 to 17. In contrast, most older schools of the same type are "high schools". Also, single-sex schools are more likely to be "Someplace Boys/Girls High School", but there are also very many coeducational "high schools". The difference between "high schools" and "colleges" is only one of terminology.
The constituent colleges of the former
University of New Zealand (such as Canterbury University College) have become independent universities. Some halls of residence associated with New Zealand universities retain the name of "college", particularly at the
University of Otago (which although brought under the umbrella of the University of New Zealand, already possessed university status and degree awarding powers). The institutions formerly known as "Teacher-training colleges" now style themselves "College of education".
Like the United Kingdom some professional bodies in New Zealand style themselves as "colleges", for example, the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, the R.A.C. of Physicians etc.
Some languages beyond English use words similar to "college". (French, for example, has the
Collège de France.) However, in other languages, confusion is most likely to arise when an American is reading something translated by someone using British conventions, or
vice versa.
*In
Belgium, the term
college is used for institutes of
secondary education, more in particular for
Catholic schools (
official secondary schools are called
atheneum). For
tertiary education, the difference is made between
hogeschool (which literally means
high school) and
university. With the current reform of higher education under the
Bologna process, the
hogeschool institutions now offer
professional bachelor's degrees (three years study in one cycle) as well as professional
master's degrees (one year study in addition to the professional bachelor's degree). Universities offer
academic bachelor's degrees (three years study in one cycle) and academic
master's degrees (one or two years study in addition to the academic bachelor's degree). Recent government measures have brought the
hogeschool institutions to associate with an university in order to
academize their curriculum and to get involved in applied research projects.
*In
China,
Japan,
Korea and other East Asian nations, colleges and universities are collectively named å¤§å¸ or in simplified writing 大å¦, which is a word originally introduced by
Confucius with his influential book of the same name. The original word and subsequently the book's title is most frequently translated to "
The Great Learning". Today's pronunciation of this word is country- and sometimes region- specific and includes
daxue and
daigaku. In Japan,
daigaku is usually considered distinct from
senmon gakkou (å°‚é–€å¦æ ¡), which is more of a
post-secondary vocational school. In
China, the college students are selected through the annual
National College Entrance Examination.
*In
Denmark the term
kollegium means
dormitory. A University are called a
Universitet. Some institutes of higher education call themselves
højskole which literally means "high school" e.g.
Handelshøjskolen i København (Copenhagen Business School) .
*In
France,
collège generally refers to a
middle school or
junior high school. However, it can also be used in a manner more similar to that of English, such as in the term
electoral college or the
Collège de France. The latter use, though, is not as common.
 |
Courtyard of the Collège de France. |
*In
Germany a
Hochschule or
Universität is an institute of
tertiary education. "College" is a more proper term to use than a direct translation:
Hochschule literally means "high school". German
secondary education often takes place in an institution called in
German an
Oberschule, with its specific forms
Hauptschule,
Realschule,
Gymnasium, and in some
states also
Gesamtschule, together with vocational secondary education in
Berufsschule (in
North Rhine-Westphalia called
Berufskolleg). The term
Kolleg (literally: college) is used in some
states for institutions of
adult education where graduates of a
Berufsschule can graduate with an
Abitur. A
Graduiertenkolleg is a German
Graduate school.
*In
Greece the term college is mainly used to refer to private secondary education institutions (high schools and junior high schools), while Πανεπιστήμιο (University) is the term utilized for Higher Education.
*In
Hungary the term
kollégium refers to a
dormitory that may or may not be independent from an educational institution; it can also refer to a university's autonomous student organisation, dedicated to the advanced study of a certain science, topic etc, for example the
College for Social Theory.
*In
the Netherlands the term
college is used for institutes of
secondary education. The term
college is also used for classes or lectures at university.
*In
Norway the term "
university college" is used as an official English translation for
høgskole, a term used for independent
educational institutions providing
tertiary, but not
quaternary education. Similarly to the situation in Germany and Sweden, the
Norwegian term
høgskole literally means "high school".
*In
Portugal the term college (
colégio) is mainly used to refer to private
secondary education institutions, while
Universidade (University),
Instituto or
Escola Superior are the terms generally used for several kind of higher education institutions.
*In
Spain and the other
Spanish speaking countries the term
colegio refers to either to institutes of primary and secondary education or some
homogenous grouping of people who refer to themselves as a
colegio.
*In
Sweden the term "
university college" is used as an official English translation for
högskola, a term used for independent
educational institutions providing
tertiary, but not
quaternary education. Similarly to the situation in Germany, the
Swedish term
högskola literally means "high school". The same term is also used for a number of institutions which function as specialized
universities rather than as university colleges, providing quaternary education and conducting
research (such as
Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan, the
Royal Institute of Technology).
*In some
cantons of the French speaking part of
Switzerland and also on the border to the
Swiss German speaking part (i.e. in
Fribourg) the French term "Collège" (German: Kollegium) is used for the
Gymnasium (10th to 13th grade) which lends to the
matura. It is also used as a name for the physical building in which obligatory education takes place (e.g.,
Le collège des coteaux).
*
Career college*
Community college*
Junior college*
Residential college*
Sixth form college*
University college*
University*
List of colleges and universities*
Electoral college*
College of Cardinals*
House system*
Colleges within UK UniversitiesNotes
*Penwith College
