Dictionary Definition
college
Noun
1 the body of faculty and students of a
college
2 an institution of higher education created to
educate and grant degrees; often a part of a university
3 British slang for prison
4 a complex of buildings in which a college is
housed
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Pronunciation
Noun
- An institution of [further education] at an intermediate level (in the UK, typically teaching those aged 16 to 19). See also: sixth-form college.
- An institution for adult education at a basic or intermediate level (teaching those of any age).
- (Used mainly in the formal names of private schools) A secondary school (Eton College).
- A non-specialized, semi-autonomous division of a university, with its own faculty, departments, library, etc (Pembroke College, Cambridge; Balliol College, Oxford; University College London).
- (Australia) A residential hall of a university, which may be independent or have its own tutors but is not involved in teaching.
- (Loosely) Any institution of higher education.
- (In the US) An institution of higher education teaching undergraduates and/or graduates. Nearly synonymous with university, with less emphasis on research and may, or may not, have graduate or doctoral programs. Often has an emphasis in a specific academic area (e.g. liberal arts college).
- (In the US) A specialized division of a university (College of Engineering).
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
institution of [further education] at an
intermediate level
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: (xuéyuàn)
- Finnish: lukio
- German: Berufsfachschule , Berufskolleg
- Greek: κολέγιο (kolégio)
- Lithuanian: koledžas
- Persian: آموزشگاه
- Russian: техникум, училище
institution for adult education at a basic or
intermediate level
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: (dàxué)
- Finnish: opisto, oppilaitos
- German: Berufskolleg , Fachschule
- Lithuanian: koledžas
- Persian: (amuzeshgah)
(Used mainly in the formal names of private
schools) A secondary school
non-specialized, semi-autonomous division of a
university, with its own faculty, departments, library, etc
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: (xuéyuàn)
- Finnish: yliopiston osa
- Greek: σχολή (scholí)
- Hebrew:
- Japanese: 学寮 (gakuryō)
- Lithuanian: koledžas
- Persian: (daneshkadeh)
- Russian: институт
residential hall of a university, which may be
independent or have its own tutors but is not involved in teaching
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: (xiàoshè)
- Finnish: yliopisto, korkeakoulu
- Japanese: 寮 (ryō)
- Persian: (daneshkadeh)
institution of higher education
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: (dàxué)
- German: Fachhochschule
- Greek: κολέγιο (kolégio)
- Hebrew:
- Lithuanian: koledžas
- Persian: (daneshkadeh)
- Portuguese: IES , instituição de ensino superior
- Russian: вуз (vuz)
institution of higher education teaching
undergraduates and/or graduates
specialized division of a university
- ttbc Interlingua: collegio
- ttbc Lithuanian: kolegija , koledžas
- ttbc Slovak: vysoká škola
Extensive Definition
College (Latin collegium)
is a term 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, College
of Cardinals). Originally, it meant a group of persons living together under a
common set of rules (con- =
"together" + leg- = "law" or lego = "I choose"); indeed, some
colleges call their members "fellows". The precise usage of
the term varies among English-speaking
countries.
United Kingdom
British
usage of the word "college" remains the loosest, encompassing a
range of institutions:
Schools
- Certain private schools, known as "Public" schools in England, for children such as Eton College and Malvern College.
- In Cambridgeshire, there are certain secondary schools called Village Colleges, which aim to be a centre for the community as well as for their students
Further Education
In general use, a college is an institution between secondary school and university, either a sixth form college or a college of further education and adult education which were usually called technical colleges. Recently, however, with the phasing out of polytechnical colleges the term has become less clear-cut.- Colleges of further education and adult education.
- "Sixth form colleges", where students study for A Levels
Higher Education
In 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 whereas 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.) In other cases, colleges are independent
institutions which prepare students to sit as external candidates
at other universities or have authority to run courses that lead to
the degrees of those universities (e.g. many higher education
colleges and university
colleges).
- The constituent parts of collegiate universities, especially referring to the independent colleges that make up the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and London
- The constituent parts of collegiate universities which provide accommodation and pastoral services at St Andrews and Durham.
- The constituent parts of collegiate universities, such as Lancaster and York and Kent.
- Some universities, such as Imperial College London, which is a university in its own right. Also University College London and King's College London, which are federal colleges of the University of London but are also de facto universities in their own right as they could award their own degrees.
- A name given to large groupings of faculties or departments, notably in the University of Edinburgh, and in the future, under restructuring plans, the University of Birmingham.
- University colleges — independent higher education institutions that have the power to award degrees, but are not actually universities.
Professional Bodies
- Professional associations such as the Royal College of Organists, the Royal College of Surgeons and other various Royal Colleges.
Law Courts
- The College of Justice or Court of Session of Scotland
United States
In American English, the word, in contrast to its many and varied British meanings, often refers to liberal arts colleges that provide education primarily at the undergraduate level. It can also refer to schools which offer a vocational, business, engineering, or technical curriculum. The term can either refer to both a self-contained institution that has no graduate studies or to the undergraduate school of a full university (i.e., that also has a graduate school). In popular American usage, the word "college" is the generic term for any post-secondary undergraduate education. Americans go to "college" after high school, regardless of whether the specific institution is formally a college or a university, and the word and its derivatives are the standard terms used to describe the institutions and experiences associated with American post-secondary undergraduate education. Colleges vary in terms of size, degree, and length of stay. Two-year colleges offer the Associates degree (A.A.) and four-year colleges offer the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or Bachelor of Sciences (B.S.) degree. These are usually primarily undergraduate institutions, although some might have limited programs at the graduate level.Four-year institutions in the U.S. which
emphasize the liberal arts
are
liberal arts colleges. These colleges traditionally emphasize
interactive instruction (although research is still a component of
these institutions). Examples include Grove
City College in Pennsylvania,
Ramapo College of New Jersey and Wheaton
College in Illinois. If not associated with a university, they
are often categorized as residential
and generally have smaller enrollment, class size, and
teacher-student ratios than universities. These
colleges often encourage a high level of teacher-student
interaction at the center of which are classes taught by full-time
faculty rather than graduate
student TAs (who sometimes teach the classes at Research
I and other universities). The colleges
are either coeducational,
women's colleges, or
men's colleges. Some are
historically black colleges. Some are also secular
(or not affiliated with a particular religion) while others are
involved in religious
education. Many are private.
Some are
public liberal arts colleges. In addition, colleges such as
Hampshire
College, Pitzer
College, Sarah
Lawrence College, Bennington
College, Marlboro
College and New
College of Florida offer experimental
curriculums.
On the other hand, public
and private
universities are research-oriented institutions which service
both an undergraduate and graduate
student body. Graduate
programs grant a variety of Master's
degrees including M.B.A.s or M.F.A.s.
The doctorate is the
highest academic degree, and the Ph.D.
is given in most fields. Medical
schools award M.D.s
while law
schools award the J.S.D. as the
highest academic achievement. These institutions usually have a
large student body. Introductory seminars can have a class size in
the hundreds in some of the larger schools. The interaction between
students and full-time faculty can be limited as compared to some
liberal arts colleges. At some of the larger universities some
undergraduate classes are taught by graduate
student TAs.
At the same time, some American universities,
such as Boston
College, Dartmouth
College, the College
of Charleston and
The College of William & Mary, have retained the term
"college" in their names for historical reasons or because of an
undergraduate focus, although they offer 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. As of
2003, there were 2,474 four-year colleges and universities in the
United States.
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-year 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"
(Massachusetts
Institute of Technology), "academy" (United
States Military Academy), "union" (Cooper
Union), "conservatory" (New
England Conservatory), and "school" (Juilliard
School), although these titles are only for their official
names. In colloquial use, they are still referred to as "college"
when referring to their undergraduate studies.
The term college is also, as in the United
Kingdom, 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 of the University of Chicago, 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). There exist other variants for historical reasons; for
example, Duke
University, which was called Trinity College until the 1920s,
still calls its main undergraduate subdivision
Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. 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 and the
University of California, Santa Cruz, however, each of the
residential colleges do teach its own core writing courses and has
its own distinctive set of graduation requirements.
The origin of the U.S. usage
The founders of the first institutions of higher education in the United States were graduates of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. 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 Oxford and Cambridge colleges they were used to — small communities, housing and feeding their students, with instruction from residential tutors (as in the United Kingdom, described above). When the first students came to be graduated, these "colleges" assumed the right to confer degrees upon them, usually with authority -- for example, the College of William and Mary has a Royal Charter from the British monarchy allowing it to confer degrees while Dartmouth College has a charter permitting it to award degrees "as are usually granted in either of the universities, or any other college in our realm of Great Britain."Contrast this with Europe, where only
universities could grant degrees. The leaders of Harvard
College (which granted America's first degrees in 1642) might
have thought of their college as the first of many residential
colleges which would grow up into a New Cambridge university.
However, over time, few new colleges were founded there, and
Harvard grew and added higher faculties. Eventually, it changed its
title to university, but the term "college" had stuck and
"colleges" have arisen across the United
States.
Eventually, several prominent
colleges/universities were started to train Christian ministers.
Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Brown all started to train preachers
in the subjects of Bible and theology. However, now these
universities teach theology as a more academic than ministerial
discipline.
With the rise of Christian education, renowned
seminaries and Bible colleges have continued the original purpose
of these universities. Criswell
College and
Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas;
Southern Seminary in Louisville;
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois; and
Wheaton
College and Graduate School in Wheaton, Illinois are just a few
of the institutions that have influenced higher education in
Theology in Philosophy to this day.
Origin of U.S. State Colleges: The Morrill Act
In addition to private colleges and universities, the U.S. also has a system of government funded, public universities, also, in many cases, known as State Colleges. This system arose in order to make higher education more easily accessible to the citizenry of the country, specifically to improve agricultural systems by providing training and scholarship in the production and sales of agricultural products, and to provide formal education in “…agriculture, home economics, mechanical arts, and other professions that seemed practical at the time.”In the 1860s, when this act was established, the
original colleges on the east coast, primarily those of the
Ivy
League and several religious based colleges, were the only form
of higher education available, and were often confined only to the
children of the elite. A movement arose to bring a form of more
practical higher education to the masses, as “…many politicians and
educators wanted to make it possible for all young Americans to
receive some sort of advanced education.” 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.
A small number of the oldest professional
associations use "college" in the name in the British sense, such
as the
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
Ireland
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. There are many secondary education institutions that use the word college. Many secondary schools formerly known as technical colleges, were renamed as community colleges. These are secondary institutions in contrast to the American community college.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 modelled 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.
A number of Private Colleges exist such as
Griffith
College, providing undergraduate and postgraduate courses
validated by HETAC and in some
cases by other Universities.
Other types of college include Colleges of
Education, such as
National College of Ireland. 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
seealso Education in Hong KongIn 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 or 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 commerce and economics college in India
was the Sydenham
College, Mumbai which was
established in the year 1913. 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 (est. January 1857). The first research institution
for the study of the social sciences and ushering the spirit of
Oriental
research was the Asiatic
Society, (est. 1784). The first college for the study of
Christian theology and ecumenical enquiry has been the Serampore
College (est. 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.
New Zealand
In New Zealand
the word "college" normally refers to a 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 usually only one of terminology.
However, many private or integrated schools are known as "such and
such college" There does seem to be a geographical difference in
terminology: "colleges" most frequently appear in the North Island,
whereas "high schools" are more common in the South Island.
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".
Some universities, such as the University
of Canterbury, have divided their University into constituent
administrative "Colleges" - the College of Arts containing
departments that teach Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences,
College of Science containing Science departments, and so on. This
is largely modelled on the Cambridge model, discussed above.
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
Philippines
The Philippines is heavily influenced by American
educational system. Colleges are institutions of learning that
grant degrees.
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 British 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.
Sri Lanka
In Sri Lanka the word "college" normally refers to a secondary school, however not always. A limited number of exclusive secondary schools that were established during the colonial period based on English public school model and several catholic schools were named colleges. Many post-independence adapted the term college too.There are several professional higher-education
institutions that offer higher-education without granting degrees
that are referred to as "colleges". This may include Sri
Lanka Law College.
South Africa
Similar to New Zealand, in South Africa the word
"college" normally refers to a secondary
school. Nevertheless, most secondary schools are called "Someplace
High (School)". The word "college" in South Africa generally
implies that the school is private. In many cases the high school
is exclusive and follows the English public school model. Thus no
less than six of South Africa's Elite Seven
high schools call themselves "college" and fit this description. A
typical example of this category would be
St John's College.
Another category of private high schools also use
the "college" term. However, these schools do not follow the
English public school model, but rather are more informal in
character and specialize in improving children's marks through
intensive focus on examination needs. These "colleges" are thus
often nick-named "cram-colleges"
Although the term "college" is hardly used in any
context at any university in South Africa, some non-university
tertiary institutions call themselves colleges. These include
teacher training colleges, business colleges and wildlife
management colleges to name a few.
The non-English-speaking world
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.Belgium
In Belgium, the term college is used for some catholic secondary schools (public secondary schools are often called atheneum). For higher education, there are two types of institutions: the Hogeschool (Dutch) / Haute Ecole (French) (which literally means high school but can be translated as university college or as vocational university) and the university. With the current reform of higher education under the Bologna process, the Hogescholen / Hautes Ecoles offer professional bachelor's degrees (3 years study in one cycle) or academic bachelor's degrees (first cycle of 3 years study) and master's degrees (second cycle of 1 or 2 years in addition to the academic bachelor's degree). Universities offer academic bachelor's degrees, master's degrees and doctorate's degrees (minimum 3 years). More information about the higher education system can be found in the Higher Education RegistersBrazil
In Brazil the term colégio (college) is normally used to refer to primary and secondary education institutions and mainly limited to private schools. It is more common to call a primary or secondary public school escola (school). Colégio is never used to refer to tertiary education institutions, which are called either universidade (university) or faculdade (faculty or college in US terminology).East Asia
In the People's Republic of China, Japan, South Korea and other East Asian states, colleges and universities are collectively named 大學 or in simplified writing 大学, 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 (Chinese), daigaku (Japanese), and daehak (Korean). In Japan, daigaku is usually considered distinct from senmon gakkou (専門学校), which is more of a post-secondary vocational school. In the People's Republic of China, the college students are selected through the annual National College Entrance Examination. The meaning of 大學 is clear, but in the case of smaller institutions, the term 學院 ("xueyuan" in Chinese) is often used and, like "college" in English, can refer to either an institution of tertiary or secondary education.Denmark
In Denmark the term kollegium means dormitory. A university is called a universitet. Some institutes of higher education call themselves højskole which literally means "high school" e.g. Handelshøjskolen i København (Copenhagen Business School) .Finland
In Finland the term college has no single counterpart. A general university is called yliopisto (in Swedish, universitet). A university on a specific field of study is korkeakoulu (literally, high school). The Swedish term is högskola. In translation they use "university", "school", or "academy". An institute of the more practically oriented branch of tertiary education is ammattikorkeakoulu, in Swedish yrkeshögskola. Some of them translate their name as "polytechnic", some as "university of applied science".France
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.Germany
In Germany a Hochschule or Universität is an institute of tertiary education. "University" 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 the 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 (which one will otherwise only achieve by graduating successfully from the Gymnasium). College is the equivalent of the German Oberstufe (12th and 13th grade) in the Gymnasium. Having graduated from the Gymnasium with an Abitur enables one to go to university. A Graduiertenkolleg is a German Graduate school and a Studienkolleg is a special university-preparatory school for foreign students whose foreign high school diploma is not recognised to be equivalent to a German Abitur.Greece
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.Hungary
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".Indonesia
In Indonesia the term kolese refers to a school that be organized by Jesuits. For example, Kolese Kanisius, Jakarta.Israel
In Israel tertiary institutions accredited to confer a Bachelor's (and in some cases also a Master's) degree, which are not universities, are called Colleges (Hebrew: מכללות, Mikhlalot); the primary distinction is that only universities may award doctorate degrees. There are over twenty colleges as well as a similar number of teacher training colleges, most of which can award only a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) degree; see the full list of colleges, as well as of universities in Israel.Italy
In Republican Rome, a collegium could be a voluntary association of men who met at a particular tavern at a major crossroads. A crossroads college was a social club, not a school. Business deals and even assassinations could be planned there, quietly, over a carafe of wine. (Source: Colleen McCullough, "The First Man in Rome,"1990.)In Italy the term
collegio, in school contest, refers to a particular school (with
elite, alternative or stricter education; a collegio offered by the
State to the children of some of its civil employee, or a collegio
related to a military education, is more commonly called convitto),
with possibility of passing here the night or most of the
day.
Netherlands
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. Confusingly, college is also used to refer to both the mayor and aldermen of a municipality, who form the municipal government.Norway
In Norway the term "university college" is used as an official English translation for høgskole (alternatively spelt høyskole and høgskule), a term used for independent educational institutions providing tertiary, but not quaternary education. Similarly to the situation in Germany, Sweden and Denmark, the Norwegian term høgskole literally means "high school".Portugal
In Portugal the term college (colégio) is mainly used to refer to private secondary education institutions, while Universidade (University), Faculdade, Instituto or Escola Superior are the terms generally used for several kind of higher education institutions.Romania
In Romania, college is a middle educational institution. It is the same as high school in U.S.A.Russia
In Russia, upon finishing 9th grade students can choose to either continue attending high school and then go on to universities, or go to college. Colleges provide high school and technical education. After graduating from college students can continue their education in universities.Spain, Spanish-speaking countries (Latin America)
In Spain and the Spanish speaking countries of Latin America the term colegio (school) refers to either institutions for primary and secondary education or some homogeneous grouping of people who refer to themselves as a colegio inasmuch as they are colleagues. For example, in Peru the professional organizations that group the lawyers of Lima or the biologists of Peru are called "Colegio de Abogados de Lima" (or College of Lawyers of Lima) and Colegio de Biologos del Peru; in Colombia, an example of professional body is the "Colegio Colombiano de Archivistas - CCA", called in English Colombian College of Archivists - CCA. An exception is Puerto Rico. On the island the word "colegio" usually refers to elementary to secondary private schools, while the word "escuela" is used to refer to elementary to secondary public schools. A unit of the University of Puerto Rico system is called El Colegio ( the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez ) for traditional reasons. The University of Puerto Rico was founded during the American sovereignty. Therefore, the graduates of this unit even at the Ph.D. level are Colegiales.Sweden
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 Norway, 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 university colleges, providing quaternary education and conducting research. Before studying at a "högskola" or university (universitet), you must have fulfilled the Gymnasium (school), being the grades from 10 to 12. That means that the common högskola/university student is 19 years old and above.Examples of Swedish universities are found at
List of universities in Sweden
Switzerland
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 middle school or junior high school and sometimes 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 de La Planta).Turkey
In Turkey, the term college (kolej in Turkish) refers to private high schools. The name originates from Robert College, the first American educational institution founded outside the United States. Though founded as a college, the school also had middle and secondary sections over the years after its foundation in 1863. Since 1971, Robert College operates as a private high school; however, the term kolej (college) is widely used by the private high schools that flourished over the last few decades, as an imitation of foreign schools, like Robert College, in Turkey. According to the Turkish education system, official name for a private high school is the direct translation, özel lise, not kolej.Vietnam
In Vietnam there are 2 ways to use the word "college".Vietnamese usually say "college" refers to "cao
đẳng". "Cao đẳng" is a higher education institute in Vietnam. The
courses last for 3 years, 1 year shorter than "đại học"
(Vietnamese, means "university"). After graduation from a college,
students are awarded a degree. This degree is evaluated below a
degree from a university. If necessary, the student with a
colleges' degree can transfer to a university and study in one year
or more to complete their course at a suitable university.
Vietnamese students always want to attend a university rather than
a college since they think college is not as good as
university.
The second usage is not common. "College" refer
to a school in a university, like some in the US. Vietnam National
University, Hanoi has 5 colleges in its divisions.
See also
- Career college
- Collegiate church
- Community college
- Historically black colleges
- 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 Universities
- List of Art Colleges in Europe
References
college in Bulgarian: Колеж
college in Danish: Seminarium
college in German: Hochschule
college in Spanish: Colegio
college in Spanish: College
college in Spanish: Facultad
college in French: Collège
college in Indonesian: Kolese
college in Italian: college
college in Italian: Collegio
college in Italian: Facoltà
college in Hebrew: מכללות אקדמיות בישראל
college in Georgian: კოლეჯი
college in Dutch: Hogeschool
college in Japanese: 単科大学
college in Polish: College
college in Portuguese: Faculdade
college in Russian: Колледж
college in Simple English: College
college in Finnish: College
college in Swedish: College
college in Tagalog: Dalubhasaan
college in Thai: วิทยาลัย
college in Ukrainian: Коледж
college in Yiddish: קאלעדזש
college in Chinese: 學院
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
Bund,
Rochdale cooperative, academe, academia, alliance, alma mater, assemblage, association, axis, band, bloc, body, caboose, can, chokey, coalition, college of
engineering, combination, combine, common market,
community college, confederacy, confederation, consumer
cooperative, cooperative, cooperative
society, corps, council, credit union, customs
union, degree-granting institution, economic community, federation, four-year
college, free trade area, gang, graduate school, group, grouping, hoosegow, institute of
technology, ivied halls, journalism school, jug, junior college, law school,
league, lockup, machine, medical school,
mob, multiversity, normal, normal school, partnership, political
machine, postgraduate school, prison, ring, rock pile, school of
communications, school of education, society, stir, two-year college, union, university, university
college, varsity