University

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For other uses, see University (disambiguation).

Graduation ceremony on Convocation day at the University of Oxford. The Pro-Vice-

Chancellor in MA gown and hood, Proctor in official dress and new Doctors of
Philosophy in scarlet full dress. Behind them, a bedel, a Doctor and Bachelors of
Arts and Medicine graduate.
A university (Latin: universitas, 'a whole') is an institution of higher (or
tertiary) education and research, which awards academic degrees in various academic
disciplines. Universities typically provide undergraduate education and
postgraduate education.

The word university is derived from the Latin universitas magistrorum et

scholarium, which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars".[1] The modern
university system has roots in the European medieval university, which was created
in Italy and evolved from cathedral schools for the clergy during the High Middle
Ages.[2]

Contents
1 History
1.1 Definition
1.1.1 Academic freedom
1.2 Antecedents
1.3 Medieval universities
1.4 Early modern universities
1.5 Modern universities
1.6 National universities
1.7 Intergovernmental universities
2 Organization
3 Around the world
4 Classification
5 Colloquial usage
6 Cost
7 See also
8 References
9 Further reading
10 External links