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).

United States

:See Education in the United States.

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In the United States, universities are usually treated by the law as a corporation like any other, although many states impose special responsibilities to safeguard the welfare of a university's students. Because the U.S. federal government does not directly organize or regulate universities, unofficial but formalized systems of accreditation have been developed by regional networks of academic institutions.

Related Topics:
United States - Corporation - U.S. federal government - Accreditation

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In the late 19th century, the U.S. Congress encouraged the creation of many land-grant universities. In the last decades of the 20th century, a number of "mega-universities" have been created, teaching with distance learning techniques.

Related Topics:
19th century - U.S. Congress - Land-grant universities - 20th century - Mega-universities - Distance learning

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The vast majority of American private and public universities are non-profit (meaning that excess tuition is put into providing more and better services), but starting in the 1970s, many for-profit colleges and universities were founded to take advantage of changes in the federal student assistance programs.

Related Topics:
Public universities - 1970s - College

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