University

A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. A university provides both tertiary and quaternary education. University is derived from the Latin universitas, meaning corporation (since the first medieval European universities were simply groups of scholars).

Selective admissions

Unlike community colleges, enrollment at a university is generally not available to all. However, admission systems vary widely around the world.

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In English-speaking countries, prospective university students typically apply for admission through a selective (and frequently arduous) process during their last year of high school or community college. Universities have formed non-profit organizations (or arranged for the formation of government agencies) to centralize the administration of standardized admission exams and the processing of applications.

Related Topics:
High school - Community college

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Such organizations include:

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• Australia: Different states use different systems. In New South Wales, it is the Higher School Certificate, Admission is through the Universities Admissions Centre. In Victoria it is the VCE
• Canada: Post-Secondary Application Service of British Columbia (British Columbia), Ontario Universities' Application Centre (Ontario)
• Hong Kong: Joint University Programmes Admissions System and Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority
• Israel: National Center for Examinations and Evaluation
• Japan: National Center for University Entrance Examinations
• Malta: Entrance is done after perfomring well in examinations which are a local version equivalent to the General Certificate of Education
• Turkey: Student Selection and Placement Center ÖSYM, prepares ÖSS
• United Kingdom: University and College Admissions Service
• United States: The College Board and ACT, Inc. (makers of undergraduate admissions exams); and the Educational Testing Service (which administers exams for the College Board, ACT, and several graduate admissions councils)

See also: college admissions

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In contrast, admission is administered differently elsewhere. For example, in Germany, prospective students who have passed the Abitur may decide freely what subjects to enroll in. However, in some popular subject fields such as medicine or business administration, students have to pass a certain numerus clausus — that is, they cannot enroll unless they have scored a minimum grade point average on their Abitur.

Related Topics:
Germany - Abitur - Medicine - Business administration - Numerus clausus

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Austria and Switzerland probably have the most liberal system of university admission anywhere in the world, since anyone who has passed the Matura may enroll in any subject field (or even several at no additional cost) at a public university. In Belgium as well, the only prerequisite for enrolling in university studies is to have obtained a high-school diploma. In both Switzerland and Belgium, the medical studies are an exception, which have a numerus clausus system due to overcrowding. This liberal admission practice led to overcrowding and high dropout rates in the more popular fields of study like psychology and journalism, as well as high failure rates on exams which are unofficially used to filter out the less-capable students. Following a ruling by the European Court of Justice issued on July 7, 2005, which forces Austria to accept nationals of other EU Member States under the same conditions as students who took their Matura in Austria, a law was passed on June 8 allowing universities to impose measures to select students in those fields which are subject to numerus clausus in Germany. At present, it is not completely clear what exactly those restrictions will be, but there are no intentions to introduce a numerus clausus.

Related Topics:
Austria - Switzerland - Matura - Belgium - Dropout - European Court of Justice - July 7 - 2005 - EU - June 8

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