What is the difference between a college and a university?
Degree-granting institutions in the United States can be called colleges, universities, institutes, or other terms, and colleges and institutes are in no way inferior to universities. As a general rule, colleges tend to be smaller and usually offer only undergraduate degrees, while a university also offers graduate degrees.
A college is generally smaller, and a university is normally made up of several colleges. The University of Oregon has eight colleges in addition to Clark Honors College (Arts & Sciences, Music, Education, Business, Law, Architecture & Allied Arts, Journalism, Graduate School). “College” also often refers to a small independent liberal arts institution, although the dividing line between college and university has blurred in recent years as many colleges began calling themselves universities, imagining the latter title to convey greater importance and prestige.
The term college refers to an educational establishment which grants bachelor degrees in science, liberal arts, both, or in one specific study area. On the other hand, a university encompasses undergraduate studies, graduate and professional schools. A university is composed of different colleges.
The difference between the words college and university depend very much upon where you live. In many cases, in the US, a college refers to a four year advanced education only, and an institution which does not have the accreditation to offer more than a bachelor’s degree. College may also be restricted by its modifiers. For example, a technical college may offer Associate of Arts degrees or certification in certain fields only. A junior college or community college also offers a variety of A.A. degrees and certification programs. Traditionally, the term college applied to a part of a university. Large universities may be split into colleges or departments that offer different degrees. In a sense, the university unified different colleges. The University of California, Berkeley, for instance, has colleges of music, science, law, and liberal arts, to name a few. Deans or heads of the college oversee each college, but the ability to grant degrees is through the overhead university. Most
A college is a school that offers study in one specific area of knowledge. For example, Wabash College is a men’s liberal arts college. A university is a collection of colleges in one institution. For example, my university, the University of Louisiana – Lafayette has seven major colleges; College of the Arts, College of Education, College of Engineering, College of Liberal Arts, College of Nursing and Allied Health Professions, B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration, and the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences. Each of these colleges has its own requirements, and operate on their own under the university. As you can see, Wabash College offers one area of study, while the University of Louisiana – Lafayette has many different areas of study.
