Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word university. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word university, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say university in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word university you have here. The definition of the word university will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofuniversity, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Institution of highereducation (typically accepting students from the age of about 17 or 18, depending on country, but in some exceptional cases able to take younger students) where subjects are studied and researched in depth and degrees are offered.
She's studying mathematics at university.
The only reason why I haven't gone to university is because I can't afford it.
1661, John Fell, The Life of the most learned, reverend and pious Dr. H. Hammond:
During the whole time of his abode in the university he generally spent thirteen hours of the day in study; by which assiduity besides an exact dispatch of the whole course of philosophy, he read over in a manner all classic authors that are extant[…]
Since the launch early last year of […] two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations. University brands built in some cases over centuries have been forced to contemplate the possibility that information technology will rapidly make their existing business model obsolete.
The most compelling stories of whether university is worth it are examples where a university education lifts the economic standing of a poor or disadvantaged student to a higher socioeconomic position.
2023 August 2, Ben Tinker, Meg Tirrell and Brenda Goodman, “New director named at National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases after Fauci’s retirement”, in CNN:
The NIAID supports projects at universities and research organizations around the United States as well as a network of 21 NIAID labs across the country.
(obsolete) The entirety of a group; all members of a class.
1841, George Borrow, The Zincali - Or, An Account of the Gypsies of Spain:
t appears a pity to banish the women and children. But to this can be opposed that holy act of your Majesty which expelled the Moriscos, and the children of the Moriscos, for the reason given in the royal edict. Whenever any detestable crime is committed by any university, it is well to punish all.
Usage notes
In western Europe, and later the United States, universities were typically founded by executive act (e.g. royal charter) and were generally relatively large (compared to colleges), offering postgraduate degrees in addition to undergraduate degrees. In other countries, this distinction is not made and any degree-granting institution is called a university.
In the United States, Ireland, and the Philippines, students will sometimes say that they go to "the university" or to "a university", but they are far more likely to say they are going "to college", even if the institution they attend is a university. In the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and most other English-speaking countries, students go "to university (or uni)", without the article, if they are attending a school that grants bachelor's or postgraduate degrees.