Difference between a College & a University?

BU is historically Methodist, but it later spun off and is private non-sectarian today.

 

Well Ted you are mistaken. BU was started by the Methodists.

http://www.bu.edu/visit/about/history/

http://www.bu.edu/visit/about/history/beginnings.html

 

I think that one reason why American 'colleges' are renaming themselves 'universities' is because they are attracting more foreign students, both by DL and in-person.

Here in the US there's never been any question that colleges are fully legitimate higher education institutions. In fact the country's best undergraduate teaching is probably found at the liberal arts colleges, some of which are extremely prestigious.

But in many countries the word 'college' denotes a secondary school or a sub-university vocational institute. So foreign students are less apt to want to enroll in American 'colleges'. They fear that their degrees might not be respected back home.

 

However, this does not hold true for an alma mater of mine:

Example University
-College of Arts & Sciences
-School of Education
-School of Business
-School of Religion

As many have stated previously, there are no common standards or rules for what constitutes a college and what consitutes a university. What used to be called junior colleges have been replaced, wityh few exceptions, by "community college" or just "college". Numerous 4-year colleges have changed their names to "university" and more will likely do so.

Whether an institution calls itself a college or a university appears to be a somewhat arbitrary decision, akin to whether a university will offer B.A. vs B.S. or M.A. vs. M.S. degrees in specific disciplines.

 

In the New York State public college system (SUNY), the ONLY institutions that are Universities are those that offer PhDs. All others are called "colleges" either colleges (typically 4 year institutions with Master offerings) or community colleges (2 year schools or tech schools).

Also, I do not know of any private institution that deviates from this in NY as well. It may be from the fact that NY is a little unique since back in 1784 the Regents has had the authority to charter, and inspect institutions of higher learning in the entire state (sort of the governing body in education). In 1892, NY created the "University Law" which was later heavily revised in 1897. The UL expanded the Regents' oversight of higher education. Those rules established stricter standards for incorporation and authorized regular registration and inspection of colleges and universities. This allowed the "legal" authority to establish and enforce the education requirements for all of professions licensed by the Regents. Finally, this law give VERY BROAD authority over PRIVATE AND PUBLIC educational institutions in NY (see N.Y. Educ. Law sec. 210; Regulations of the Commissioner of Education sec. 52.1).

Finally, I do not know of other states but I believe NY is the ONLY state that is a has a state approving body for registering colleges (on par with regional accredidation). I know someone here will correct me if I am wrong .

Anyhow, that is why I believe that NY schools follow the community college, collge, and university name paths.

peACE

 

You are talking about University of The State of New York right? Ah...an alma mater of mine. The only other ones that might be close are University of Maryland University College or Charter Oak. Still, I don' think they are like USNY.

 

What about "institute"? How is that different from "college" an "university"?

Ex.
Massachuchetts Institute of Technology
Rochester Institute of Technology
Art Institute of Chicago
Kansas City Art Institute
...

 

It has always been an anomaly.

Acutally, Vincennes had been in a collaboration with Ivy Tech (the former Indiana Vocational Technical College) called the "Community College of Indiana". That partnership has died though, and the former Ivy Tech is now Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana.

Also, Vincennes is now offering a limited number of bachelor degree programs.

 

Albany Law School
Brooklyn Law School
Manhattan School of Music
New York Law School
The Juilliard School

Culinary Institute of America
Fashion Institute of Technology
New York Institute of Technology
Pratt Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rochester Institute of Technology


Cooper Union

New York Academy of Art
United States Merchant Marine Academy
United States Military Academy

 

There is a private school south of Tacoma, WA that will be changing its name from a college to a university later this summer. The following information is posted on the school's main web page and does a pretty good job of explaining the reasons the school will be changing names. Even though the school won't officially become a university until August, a sign alongside I-5 already indicates the school is now known as "Saint Martin's University".

Q & A: Saint Martin’s College to be renamed

Q What will be the new name of Saint Martin’s?
Saint Martin’s University.

Q When was the decision made?
The Saint Martin's College board of trustees voted on the name change at its Jan. 25 meeting. The Saint Martin’s College Corporation voted on the name change at a Feb. 11 meeting.

Q What led to the decision?
The College’s name-change to Saint Martin’s University has been spoken of for many years – at least since Saint Martin’s added graduate programs to its offerings. Under the Carnegie Foundation classification system, developed in the 1970s, certain objective measures are used to group institutions of higher education into categories. Under that system, Saint Martin’s has long been listed as a “master’s comprehensive university.”

In the board of trustees’ Vision Statement for Saint Martin’s, adopted in 2001, one of the goals was officially changing Saint Martin’s name from college to university to more accurately reflect the institution’s nature and programs. Mary Gentry, the board’s chair, has called the new name “symbolic,” since it not only recognizes the fruition of one of the board’s main goals, but also the momentum behind the college’s current growth.

Q When does the change take effect?
The change will officially and legally take place with the beginning of the 2005-06 academic year. The effective date will be Aug. 8, when the academic year at the college’s extension campuses at Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base begin term one. All students enrolled for the 2005-06 academic year will officially fall under the name of Saint Martin’s University.

A celebration marking the name-change will be held on Aug. 30, when students come back for classes at the Lacey campus.

The timetable for the changeover is:
Feb. 14 – Official announcement of pending name change.
Aug. 8 – Official and legal name-change.
Aug. 30 – Celebration of name change.
December 2005/May 2006 – The first graduating classes to bear the name “Saint Martin’s University” on their diplomas.

Q What are the advantages of the name change?
1. The new name will help Saint Martin’s strengthen its outreach by distinctly defining what it is – and what it has been for some time – to the public, potential students, businesses, schools, organizations and donors. In making the change, Saint Martin’s will be in a stronger position to fulfill its mission, “To know, to care, to serve, to educate: the commitment of Saint Martin’s College to the student, the community, and the world.”
2. The new name will eliminate the growing confusion between Saint Martin’s and an increasing number of community colleges that have dropped the name “community” from their names.
3. The new name will give Saint Martin’s graduates a more competitive standing in the marketplace and help attract prospective students to Saint Martin’s.
4. The new name will lessen confusion in the international arena, where two-year institutions generally are known as “colleges” and four-year institutions as “universities.” The expanding ties with students and institutions from other countries, and the goal to build more such ties, will benefit from the name-change.

Q How was the decision reached?
The decision to change Saint Martin's College to Saint Martin’s University was first articulated in the board of trustees’ vision statement of 2001. The vision’s opening statement is:

“Saint Martin’s will be a masters comprehensive university that honors a 1,500 year Catholic, Benedictine heritage by offering a distinctive educational program of liberal arts and sciences as well as professional preparation at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, by involving a diverse community of scholars engaged in service to the community, and that has the financial strength needed to support a growing institution.”

Q What are the costs of the changeover?
While real and ongoing costs will be associated with the changeover, many of them will be made over time, as publications, stationery and other materials need reprinted.

The initial costs will come from the College’s contingency fund and will cover new signage, legal fees, website reformatting and other items considered necessary in the first phase of the changeover.

Q What is the difference between a college and a university?
Webster’s Dictionary defines a university as a college and one or more graduate or professional programs.

In looking for a hard-and-fast rule, nothing firmly divides colleges and universities. No real differences exist. Generally, a college is considered as an institution having associates and/or bachelors programs. A university is usually considered to have a mixture of undergraduate and master’s programs. They also may have doctoral-level programs. While some consider the size of an institution is an indicator of the name – thinking of colleges as small and universities as large – this does not hold true in many cases.

The Carnegie Foundation’s classification system, established in the 1970s, divides the universe of accredited and degree-granting U.S. institutions of higher education into six broad categories. For several years, Saint Martin’s has been placed in Carnegie’s “master’s comprehensive institution” category.

Characteristics of this group of institutions includes the offering of a wide range of baccalaureate programs and a commitment to graduate education through master’s degree programs. During the period the institutions were studied, they awarded 40 or more master’s degrees per year across three or more disciplines.

Q What is the history of Saint Martin’s name?
Saint Martin’s College was named by the first Benedictines who came to found the school in the 1893. According to the school’s first historian, Father Demetrius Jueneman, O.S.B., the name was chosen “in memory of the great devotion Saint Benedict entertained for this Saint.” Saint Martin of Tours, a fourth century Roman soldier-turned-Christian, was a man of great spiritual influence who inspired others through his faith, charity, humility and simple lifestyle.

Saint Martin’s has borne the same name since that time, although the thrust of its programs and the make-up of its student body have undergone several incarnations.

Saint Martin's admitted its first student, Angus McDonald, on Sept. 11, 1895. As with other 19th Century American Benedictine schools, the new College enrolled boys and young men between about the ages 10 to 20 and sometimes both older as well as younger. Both boarders and "day scholars" were accepted and taught from a curriculum of preparatory and high school classes, plus classical and commercial college courses.

By 1897, 29 grammar and high school students were attending Saint Martin's. College-level courses were added in 1900 to provide the necessary education for candidates planning to enter the Benedictine priesthood.

Saint Martin's became a four-year, accredited, baccalaureate-granting institution in 1940 and became coeducational in 1965. The high school was closed in 1974.

Saint Martin’s now offers undergraduate academic programs in 22 majors and graduate programs in six.

Q What will and will not change when Saint Martin’s becomes a university?
While Saint Martin’s will be changing its name, its mission will remain unaltered. It will remain primarily a teaching institution.

Saint Martin’s change of names will not devalue or invalidate the degrees earned by its alumni. It will not affect trusts, bequests or other standing arrangements made with Saint Martin’s by private individuals, foundations or other donors. It also will not affect our tax-exempt status.

Saint Martin’s website and e-mail, stmartin.edu, are fully compatible with the changeover and will remain unchanged.

Thousands of alumni and friends have known Saint Martin’s as an exceptional place with special meaning to them. Although it will have a new name, the Saint Martin’s commitment to building and preserving a close-knit sense of community among all segments of its community – students, faculty, staff and monks – will remain paramount. So will its commitment to providing rigorous education firmly rooted in Benedictine Catholic tradition and values. Saint Martin’s remains dedicated to providing outstanding education in a living and learning environment that:
-Celebrates the uniqueness and worth of the individual.
-Honors the importance of hospitality and community.
-Encourages spiritual and ethical development.
-Prepares students for lives characterized by responsibility, productivity, service and caring.

Saint Martin’s University will continue to be grateful for the continuing support and goodwill of its alumni, benefactors and community supporters, and for the monks of Saint Martin’s Abbey, who remain Saint Martin’s inspiration and guide as it grows into the 21st century.


© 2004 Saint Martin's College, 5300 Pacific Ave SE, Lacey, WA 98503 USA
Contact: [email protected] 360-491-4700
Policies / Accessibility / Copyright

Contact the Office of Communication.

 

There is a private school south of Tacoma, WA that will be changing its name from a college to a university later this summer. The following information is posted on the school's main web page and does a pretty good job of explaining the reasons the school will be changing names. Even though the school won't officially become a university until August, a sign alongside I-5 already indicates the school is now known as "Saint Martin's University".

Q & A: Saint Martin’s College to be renamed

Q What will be the new name of Saint Martin’s?
Saint Martin’s University.

Q When was the decision made?
The Saint Martin's College board of trustees voted on the name change at its Jan. 25 meeting. The Saint Martin’s College Corporation voted on the name change at a Feb. 11 meeting.

Q What led to the decision?
The College’s name-change to Saint Martin’s University has been spoken of for many years – at least since Saint Martin’s added graduate programs to its offerings. Under the Carnegie Foundation classification system, developed in the 1970s, certain objective measures are used to group institutions of higher education into categories. Under that system, Saint Martin’s has long been listed as a “master’s comprehensive university.”

In the board of trustees’ Vision Statement for Saint Martin’s, adopted in 2001, one of the goals was officially changing Saint Martin’s name from college to university to more accurately reflect the institution’s nature and programs. Mary Gentry, the board’s chair, has called the new name “symbolic,” since it not only recognizes the fruition of one of the board’s main goals, but also the momentum behind the college’s current growth.

Q When does the change take effect?
The change will officially and legally take place with the beginning of the 2005-06 academic year. The effective date will be Aug. 8, when the academic year at the college’s extension campuses at Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base begin term one. All students enrolled for the 2005-06 academic year will officially fall under the name of Saint Martin’s University.

A celebration marking the name-change will be held on Aug. 30, when students come back for classes at the Lacey campus.

The timetable for the changeover is:
Feb. 14 – Official announcement of pending name change.
Aug. 8 – Official and legal name-change.
Aug. 30 – Celebration of name change.
December 2005/May 2006 – The first graduating classes to bear the name “Saint Martin’s University” on their diplomas.

Q What are the advantages of the name change?
1. The new name will help Saint Martin’s strengthen its outreach by distinctly defining what it is – and what it has been for some time – to the public, potential students, businesses, schools, organizations and donors. In making the change, Saint Martin’s will be in a stronger position to fulfill its mission, “To know, to care, to serve, to educate: the commitment of Saint Martin’s College to the student, the community, and the world.”
2. The new name will eliminate the growing confusion between Saint Martin’s and an increasing number of community colleges that have dropped the name “community” from their names.
3. The new name will give Saint Martin’s graduates a more competitive standing in the marketplace and help attract prospective students to Saint Martin’s.
4. The new name will lessen confusion in the international arena, where two-year institutions generally are known as “colleges” and four-year institutions as “universities.” The expanding ties with students and institutions from other countries, and the goal to build more such ties, will benefit from the name-change.

Q How was the decision reached?
The decision to change Saint Martin's College to Saint Martin’s University was first articulated in the board of trustees’ vision statement of 2001. The vision’s opening statement is:

“Saint Martin’s will be a masters comprehensive university that honors a 1,500 year Catholic, Benedictine heritage by offering a distinctive educational program of liberal arts and sciences as well as professional preparation at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, by involving a diverse community of scholars engaged in service to the community, and that has the financial strength needed to support a growing institution.”

Q What are the costs of the changeover?
While real and ongoing costs will be associated with the changeover, many of them will be made over time, as publications, stationery and other materials need reprinted.

The initial costs will come from the College’s contingency fund and will cover new signage, legal fees, website reformatting and other items considered necessary in the first phase of the changeover.

Q What is the difference between a college and a university?
Webster’s Dictionary defines a university as a college and one or more graduate or professional programs.

In looking for a hard-and-fast rule, nothing firmly divides colleges and universities. No real differences exist. Generally, a college is considered as an institution having associates and/or bachelors programs. A university is usually considered to have a mixture of undergraduate and master’s programs. They also may have doctoral-level programs. While some consider the size of an institution is an indicator of the name – thinking of colleges as small and universities as large – this does not hold true in many cases.

The Carnegie Foundation’s classification system, established in the 1970s, divides the universe of accredited and degree-granting U.S. institutions of higher education into six broad categories. For several years, Saint Martin’s has been placed in Carnegie’s “master’s comprehensive institution” category.

Characteristics of this group of institutions includes the offering of a wide range of baccalaureate programs and a commitment to graduate education through master’s degree programs. During the period the institutions were studied, they awarded 40 or more master’s degrees per year across three or more disciplines.

Q What is the history of Saint Martin’s name?
Saint Martin’s College was named by the first Benedictines who came to found the school in the 1893. According to the school’s first historian, Father Demetrius Jueneman, O.S.B., the name was chosen “in memory of the great devotion Saint Benedict entertained for this Saint.” Saint Martin of Tours, a fourth century Roman soldier-turned-Christian, was a man of great spiritual influence who inspired others through his faith, charity, humility and simple lifestyle.

Saint Martin’s has borne the same name since that time, although the thrust of its programs and the make-up of its student body have undergone several incarnations.

Saint Martin's admitted its first student, Angus McDonald, on Sept. 11, 1895. As with other 19th Century American Benedictine schools, the new College enrolled boys and young men between about the ages 10 to 20 and sometimes both older as well as younger. Both boarders and "day scholars" were accepted and taught from a curriculum of preparatory and high school classes, plus classical and commercial college courses.

By 1897, 29 grammar and high school students were attending Saint Martin's. College-level courses were added in 1900 to provide the necessary education for candidates planning to enter the Benedictine priesthood.

Saint Martin's became a four-year, accredited, baccalaureate-granting institution in 1940 and became coeducational in 1965. The high school was closed in 1974.

Saint Martin’s now offers undergraduate academic programs in 22 majors and graduate programs in six.

Q What will and will not change when Saint Martin’s becomes a university?
While Saint Martin’s will be changing its name, its mission will remain unaltered. It will remain primarily a teaching institution.

Saint Martin’s change of names will not devalue or invalidate the degrees earned by its alumni. It will not affect trusts, bequests or other standing arrangements made with Saint Martin’s by private individuals, foundations or other donors. It also will not affect our tax-exempt status.

Saint Martin’s website and e-mail, stmartin.edu, are fully compatible with the changeover and will remain unchanged.

Thousands of alumni and friends have known Saint Martin’s as an exceptional place with special meaning to them. Although it will have a new name, the Saint Martin’s commitment to building and preserving a close-knit sense of community among all segments of its community – students, faculty, staff and monks – will remain paramount. So will its commitment to providing rigorous education firmly rooted in Benedictine Catholic tradition and values. Saint Martin’s remains dedicated to providing outstanding education in a living and learning environment that:
-Celebrates the uniqueness and worth of the individual.
-Honors the importance of hospitality and community.
-Encourages spiritual and ethical development.
-Prepares students for lives characterized by responsibility, productivity, service and caring.

Saint Martin’s University will continue to be grateful for the continuing support and goodwill of its alumni, benefactors and community supporters, and for the monks of Saint Martin’s Abbey, who remain Saint Martin’s inspiration and guide as it grows into the 21st century.


© 2004 Saint Martin's College, 5300 Pacific Ave SE, Lacey, WA 98503 USA
Contact: [email protected] 360-491-4700
Policies / Accessibility / Copyright

Contact the Office of Communication.

 

Well, I'd hate to be wrong twice in a row. So I'll ask it instead of saying it. Who was that late night comedienne whose immortal words were, "Never mind!" ?

 

Well, I'd hate to be wrong twice in a row. So I'll ask it instead of saying it. Who was that late night comedienne whose immortal words were, "Never mind!" ?

 

That would be Gilda Radner's character Emily Latella (or Litella), the hard-of-hearing news commentator from Saturday Night Live.

 

That would be Gilda Radner's character Emily Latella (or Litella), the hard-of-hearing news commentator from Saturday Night Live.

 

Sniff!

EXCUUUUSE me?

St. Martin's COLLEGE is not "south of Tacoma".

It is located within the city limits of Lacey, Washington, which borders on MY HOME TOWN, the capital of that progressive and prosperous state, the exquisitely and appropriately named Olympia.

Olympia, the residence of thousands of dedicated, honest, visionary, hard working, and well educated state employees, stands on the shore of Budd Inlet, one of the southernmost arms of that vast and beautiful inland sea, Puget Sound. The city's notheastern skyline is dominated by the awesome white and blue bulk of Mount Rainier (known even today by some misguided citizens of that certain burg to the north as "Mount Tacoma"), the Pacific Northwest's sole peak over 14,000 feet...

"South of Tacoma" INDEED!!

nosborne48

B.A. (magna cum laude) St. Martin's COLLEGE 1975

 

I still don't see how calling themselves a university is going to help once anybody sees the rainfall stats and realise that they're considering moving to a temperate rain forest ;-)

Angela

 

RAINFALL! I'll give you RAINFALL!

In addition to its many other attractions, the beautiful and cultured City of Olympia enjoys mild summers and winters. Annual rainfall is about 40", most of which arrives between the late fall and early spring. The summers are warm and relatively dry. Truly, a climate inferior to none and superior to most!

Okay. I can write this stuff by the yard since I grew up with the relentless boosterism of the Puget Sound region but the fact is, I can't keep an ENTIRELY straight face.

The truth is, those winters are horrible. True, it rarely freezes but what that means is long, long dark dreary drizzly days. Headlights on at noon. Dusk at 4:00 p.m. if the sun came out at ALL that day. Mildew growing everywhere including in your shoes. Damp. damp, damp eating into your bones.

The best climate in the WORLD has to be coastal Southern California but southern New Mexico is mightly nice! That's the big reason I live HERE and not in beautiful Olympia!

 

Er, no thanks. I live in the UK. I have all the rainfall I need ;-)

I was impressed by how long you managed to keep the marketing speak going. If you ever tire of the law you have a new vocation in tourism promotion.

Sounds hideously and tediously familiar.

Although I do have problems with this concept called sun, could you explain it please.

Angela gazes up into the almost uniformly grey sky. It's supposed to be raining again tomorrow, with a high (yes, I said high) of 68.

Snigger ;-)

Every time my husband mentions one of the hedge funds he deals with in LA I perk up in the hope that they've offered him a million bucks a year plus equity and we're heading out there . . . so far, it hasn't worked . . . sigh.

Angela

 

Houses are HIDEOUSLY expensive in Los Angeles. A three bedroom bungalow in a middle class neighborhood can run 350,000 to 500,000 USD.

What's interesting, though, is that rents, while high, are NOT proportionately higher than in the rest of the country. In other words, it IS possible to live in LA but you have to RENT not BUY.

An MBA friend of mine says that the gap between purchase prices and reasonable rental return is a sure sign of a MAJOR real estate bubble.

He's a pretty smart guy. We'll see.