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There are many types of colleges and universities in the United
States, and several different ways in which Americans identify
them.
Classification can be based on whether a school is financially
supported by a state or not, the history of a school, how
and when it was first established, or how the school primarily
functions now. International students - coming from quite
different educational educational systems - may be unfamiliar
with the ways schools are sometimes classified in America,
so here's some more information:
"Public" Universities
These are state-affiliated institutions that are publicly
supported (financed by public taxes) and they're usually large
in size. They normally offer all levels of degrees and many
different fields of study. Public colleges and universities
are relatively inexpensive for residents of the state where
the schools are located (since they're funded in large part
by state tax revenues). Foreign students pay "out-of-state"
tuition, which is higher, often significantly so.
International students may find it hard to gain admission
to these schools at the undergraduate level, because preference
is often given to state residents. This is especially true
in the fields of engineering, business, and computer science.
Many state university systems have a number of different campuses
situated all around the state. Sometimes one campus will be
the preeminent one in terms of research and graduate study
- this school is sometimes referred to as the "flagship" campus
of the system. There are many notable public universities
across the country. Here are just a few examples:
- Purdue University
- Pennsylvania State University
- Ohio State University
- University of California
- University of North Carolina
- University of Texas
Small Liberal Arts Colleges
There are hundreds of small liberal arts colleges throughout
the United States, enrolling anywhere from fewer than 1,000
students to several thousand. They are usually dedicated primarily
to the undergraduate study of the traditional arts and sciences
disciplines: Humanities, sciences, and social sciences.
Strictly liberal arts colleges are often quite old (by U.S.
standards, anyway!) and are usually private schools (meaning
they're supported by tuition fees, private donations, and
grants). Many of these colleges were traditionally single-sex
(all-men or all-women), but that's only true these days in
a handful of cases, usually exclusively women's colleges.
Sometimes these schools were founded with a religious affiliation,
but the overwhelming majority of them don't take this into
account anymore in terms of admissions or day-to-day student
life.
These colleges are usually highly rated institutions because
they stress small classes, individual attention for their
students, and a close relationship between the faculty and
students. Many of them also generally have stringent admissions
standards. Among these schools are:
- Amherst
- Williams
- Swarthmore
- Bowdoin
- Smith
- Mount Holyoke
- Vassar
- Bryn Mawr
- Oberlin
- Grinnell
- Pomona College
The Ivy League
Although these schools are among the oldest and most famous
in the country, the Ivy League itself was not officially formed
until the 1950s - as an athletic conference! Members of the
Ivy League, all of which reside in the northeastern United
States, are:
- Harvard
- Yale
- Princeton
- Brown
- Dartmouth
- Cornell
- Columbia
- University of Pennsylvania
Ivy League colleges stress undergraduate liberal arts education,
but they also have noted grad and professional schools. Tuition
at these private schools is among the highest in the country,
and admission is generally highly competitive.
Generally there are a significant number of international
students attending these colleges, since these colleges are
well-known internationally - and also because the schools
actively seek a diverse student body. Sometimes you'll find
the term "Ivy League" also applied, somewhat inaccurately,
to any top-notch private liberal arts college. And despite
the cachet of the term "Ivy League," there are many other
colleges and universities, both private and public, that are
just as highly rated and as difficult to get into; Stanford
being just one example.
Denominational or Religiously Affiliated Schools
There are a large number of colleges and universities in the
United States that were formed by religious groups and organizations.
Although they are not limited in admission to members of that
religious group, they are administered by members of their
religious faction and are often run in line with their religious
precepts. Among well-known schools in this category are:
- Notre Dame, Georgetown (Catholic)
- Brandeis, Yeshiva (Jewish)
- Brigham Young (Mormon)
- Southern Methodist University (Methodist)
- Earlham (Quaker)
Technical Institutes
These are schools specializing primarily in engineering and
science, and particularly noted for their research and graduate
programs. Most international students who attend these schools
are admitted at the graduate degree level. The undergraduate
colleges of these schools also offer a variety of liberal
arts courses along with their technical subjects. Undergraduates
admitted to these schools usually have especially strong backgrounds
in math and sciences, as witnessed by grades and standardized
test scores (e.g., SAT or GRE). Noted schools include:
- MIT (the Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
- Cal Poly (California Polytechnic Institute)
- Georgia Tech (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute)
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