Oops, my ignorance is showing (once again)....

[DustMolecule]

But I FINALLY must ask....and, as my first born child is entering into 'those years'....I don't even know the difference between a 'college' and a 'university'. It seems like a university is a collection of 'colleges'. But I truly sincerely don't know the nuances of it all. Could someone please explain. I 'went' (but didn't graduate) from a liberal arts college - but I had 'no idea where I was' or why I chose a 'college' over a 'university'. I bet I'm not the only one who doesn't understand how this all works....

TIA for any enlightenment.

[Reverend_Smitty]

1. I really don't think one is better than the other...

Boston College isn't a lesser school than Boston University. It just has to do with the number of majors offered.

[XanaDUer]

2. And doesn't it also have to do with offering Ph.Ds?

Colleges don't, universities do? :shrug:

[dhinojosa]

3. Well you asked for it....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College

In American English the term "college" is generally reserved for institutions of higher education, which are often (furthermore) totally independent and fully empowered to grant degrees. The usual practice in America today is to call an institution made up of several faculties and granting a range of higher degrees a "university"; a smaller institution only granting bachelor's or associate's degrees is called a "college". (See liberal arts colleges, community college). Nonetheless, a few of America's most prestigious universities, such as Boston College and Dartmouth College, have retained the term "college" in their names for historical reasons though they offer a wide range of higher degrees.

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 names of individual colleges, many having started as a teachers' college or vocational school (such as an A&M — an agricultural and mechanical school), and 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; others include "institute", "academy", and "school" as in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology <1> (http://www.mit.edu), United States Military Academy at West Point, New York <2> (http://www.usma.edu), or the Juilliard School.

[DustMolecule]

6. that's a pretty good explanation ....thank you (n/t)

[Sandpiper]

4. They've come to mean essentially the same thing in popular usage

Traditionally, a college was a school within the University offering specialized instruction (i.e. a major).

A college is also an institution of higher learning that does not grant graduate or post graduate degrees.

[BlackVelvetElvis]

5. Universities have seperate schools.

A "school of law" a "school of medicine" and so forth.