University

==History==
{{see also|Academia#History{{!}}History of academia}}
[[File:Archiginnasio-bologna02.png|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[University of Bologna]] in Italy, founded in 1088, is the [[List of oldest universities in continuous operation|world's oldest university in continuous operation]].]]

===Definition===
The original [[Latin]] word ''universitas'' refers in general to "a number of persons associated into one body, a society, company, community, guild, [[corporation]], etc".<ref>{{Citation | last1 = Lewis | first1 = Charlton T. | last2 = Short | first2 = Charles | title = A Latin Dictionary | place = Oxford | publisher = Clarendon Press | orig-year = 1879 | year = 1966 }}</ref> As urban town life and [[Middle Ages|medieval]] [[guild]]s developed, specialized associations of [[student]]s and [[teacher]]s with collective legal rights (these rights were usually guaranteed by charters issued by [[prince]]s, [[prelate]]s, or their [[town]]s) became denominated by this general term. Like other guilds, they were self-regulating and determined the qualifications of their members.<ref>Marcia L. Colish, ''Medieval Foundations of the Western Intellectual Tradition, 400-1400,'' (New Haven: Yale Univ. Pr., 1997), p. 267.</ref>

In modern usage, the word has come to mean "an institution of higher education offering tuition in mainly non-vocational subjects and typically having the power to confer degrees".<ref>{{Citation | contribution = university, n. | year = 2010 | title = OED Online | edition = 3rd | contribution-url = http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/214804?rskey=Owl6ZY&result=1&isAdvanced=false | access-date = 27 August 2013 | place = Oxford | publisher = Oxford University Press | title-link = OED Online | archive-date = 30 April 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210430120926/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/214804?rskey=Owl6ZY&result=1&isAdvanced=false | url-status = live }}</ref> The earlier emphasis on its corporate organization is no longer the primary feature by which a modern university is recognised.<ref>{{Citation | contribution = university, n. | year = 2010 | title = OED Online | edition = 3rd | contribution-url = http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/214804?rskey=Owl6ZY&result=1&isAdvanced=false | access-date = 27 August 2013 | place = Oxford | publisher = Oxford University Press | quote = ...In the Middle Ages: a body of teachers and students engaged in giving and receiving instruction in the higher branches of study … and regarded as a scholastic guild or corporation. | title-link = OED Online | archive-date = 30 April 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210430120926/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/214804?rskey=Owl6ZY&result=1&isAdvanced=false | url-status = live }} Compare {{Citation | contribution = University | year = 1989 | title = Oxford English Dictionary | edition = 2nd  | place = Oxford | publisher = Oxford University Press | quote = The whole body of teachers and scholars engaged, at a particular place, in giving and receiving instruction in the higher branches of learning; such persons associated together as a society or corporate body, with definite organization and acknowledged powers and privileges (esp. that of conferring degrees), and forming an institution for the promotion of education in the higher or more important branches of learning….| title-link = Oxford English Dictionary }}</ref>

The original Latin word referred to degree-awarding institutions of learning in [[Western Europe|Western]] and [[Central Europe]], where this form of legal organisation was prevalent and from where the institution spread around the world.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ridder-Symoens |first=Hilde de |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5Z1VBEbF0HAC |title=A History of the University in Europe: Volume 1, Universities in the Middle Ages |date=1992 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-54113-8 |language=en}}</ref>
[[File:CCSM-UNMSM Casona de San Marcos y Parque Univesitario.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[National University of San Marcos]] in [[Lima]], [[Peru]], was established in 1551, making it the oldest university in the [[Americas]], as well as one of the oldest in the [[Western world|Western World]] in [[List of colonial universities in Hispanic America|continuous operation]].]]

====Academic freedom====
An important idea in the definition of a university is the notion of [[academic freedom]]. The first documentary evidence of this comes from early in the life of the [[University of Bologna]], which adopted an academic charter, the ''[[Authentica habita|Constitutio Habit]]a'',<ref>Malagola, C. (1888), Statuti delle Università e dei Collegi dello Studio Bolognese. Bologna: Zanichelli.</ref> in 1155 or 1158,<ref name="Rüegg, W. 2003 pp 4-34">{{cite book |last = Rüegg|first = W. |year =2003|chapter = Chapter 1: Themes|pages = 4–34 |editor-first= H. |editor-last=De Ridder-Symoens|title = A History of the University in Europe|volume= 1|publisher= Cambridge University Press|isbn= 0-521-54113-1}}</ref> which guaranteed the right of a traveling scholar to unhindered passage in the interests of education. Today, this is claimed as the origin of "academic freedom".<ref>Watson, P. (2005), Ideas. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, page 373</ref>  This is now a widely accepted concept in international research. On 18 September 1988, 430 university rectors signed the ''[[Magna Charta Universitatum]]'',<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www2.unibo.it/avl/charta/charta.htm |title=Magna Charta delle Università Europee |publisher=.unibo.it |access-date=28 May 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101115001914/http://www2.unibo.it/avl/charta/charta.htm |archive-date=15 November 2010  }}</ref> marking the 900th anniversary of Bologna's foundation. The number of universities signing the ''Magna Charta Universitatum'' continues to grow, drawing from all parts of the world.

===Antecedents===
{{see also|Ancient higher-learning institutions}}
[[File:Bou_Inania_Madrasa,Fes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The Moroccan higher-learning institution [[University of al-Qarawiyyin|Al-Qarawiyin]], founded in 859 A.D., was transformed into a university under the supervision of the Ministry of Education in 1963.<ref name="Belhachmi 2003, 65">Belhachmi, Zakia: "Gender, Education, and Feminist Knowledge in al-Maghrib (North Africa) – 1950–70", ''Journal of Middle Eastern and North African Intellectual and Cultural Studies, Vol. 2–3'', 2003, pp.&nbsp;55–82 (65): {{blockquote|The Adjustments of Original Institutions of the Higher Learning: the Madrasah. Significantly, the institutional adjustments of the madrasahs affected both the structure and the content of these institutions. In terms of structure, the adjustments were twofold: the reorganization of the available original madaris and the creation of new institutions. This resulted in two different types of Islamic teaching institutions in al-Maghrib. The first type was derived from the fusion of old madaris with new universities. For example, Morocco transformed Al-Qarawiyin (859 A.D.) into a university under the supervision of the ministry of education in 1963.}}</ref>]]

An early institution, often called a university, is the [[Harran University (Middle Ages)|Harran University]], founded in the late [[8th century]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Frew |first=Donald |date=1999 |title=Harran: Last Refuge of Classical Paganism |url=https://journal.equinoxpub.com/POM/article/view/2691 |journal=The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies |volume=13 |issue=9 |pages=17–29 |doi=10.1558/pome.v13i9.17}}</ref> Scholars occasionally call the [[University of al-Qarawiyyin]] (name given in 1963), founded as a [[mosque]] by Fatima al-Fihri in 859 CE, a university,<ref>Verger, Jacques: "Patterns", in: Ridder-Symoens, Hilde de (ed.): ''A History of the University in Europe. Vol. I: Universities in the Middle Ages'', Cambridge University Press, 2003, {{ISBN|978-0-521-54113-8}}, pp.&nbsp;35–76 (35)</ref><ref name="founding">{{cite book |last=Esposito |first=John |author-link=John L. Esposito |title=The Oxford Dictionary of Islam |year=2003 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1951-2559-7 |page=328 }}</ref><ref name="Najm">Joseph, S, and Najmabadi, A. '' Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures: Economics, education, mobility, and space''. Brill, 2003, p. 314.</ref><ref name="Swart">Swartley, Keith. ''Encountering the World of Islam''. Authentic, 2005, p. 74.</ref> although Jacques Verger writes that this is done out of scholarly convenience.<ref>A History of the University in Europe. Vol. I: Universities in the Middle Ages. Cambridge University Press, 2003, 35</ref> Several scholars consider that al-Qarawiyyin was founded<ref>Petersen, Andrew: ''Dictionary of Islamic Architecture'', Routledge, 1996, {{ISBN|978-0-415-06084-4}}, p.&nbsp;87 (entry "Fez"): {{blockquote|The Quaraouiyine Mosque, founded in 859, is the most famous mosque of Morocco and attracted continuous investment by Muslim rulers.}}</ref><ref name="Lulat 2005, 70">Lulat, Y. G.-M.: ''A History Of African Higher Education From Antiquity To The Present: A Critical Synthesis Studies in Higher Education'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005, {{ISBN|978-0-313-32061-3}}, p.&nbsp;70: {{blockquote|As for the nature of its curriculum, it was typical of other major madrasahs such as al-Azhar and Al Quaraouiyine, though many of the texts used at the institution came from Muslim Spain...Al Quaraouiyine began its life as a small mosque constructed in 859 C.E. by means of an endowment bequeathed by a wealthy woman of much piety, Fatima bint Muhammed al-Fahri.}}</ref> and run<ref name="Belhachmi 2003, 65"/><ref name="Shillington 2005, 1025">[[Kevin Shillington|Shillington, Kevin]]: ''[[Encyclopedia of African History]]'', Vol. 2, Fitzroy Dearborn, 2005, {{ISBN|978-1-57958-245-6}}, p.&nbsp;1025: {{blockquote|Higher education has always been an integral part of Morocco, going back to the ninth century when the Karaouine Mosque was established. The [[madrasa]], known today as Al Qayrawaniyan University, became part of the state university system in 1947.}} They consider institutions like al-Qarawiyyin to be [[higher education]] colleges of [[Islamic law]] where other subjects were only of secondary importance.</ref><ref>Pedersen, J.; Rahman, Munibur; Hillenbrand, R.: "Madrasa", in ''[[Encyclopaedia of Islam]]'', 2nd edition, Brill, 2010: {{blockquote|[[Madrasa]], in modern usage, the name of an institution of learning where the [[Islamic sciences]] are taught, i.e. a college for higher studies, as opposed to an elementary school of traditional type ([[kuttab]]); in medieval usage, essentially a college of [[law]] in which the other Islamic sciences, including literary and philosophical ones, were ancillary subjects only.}}</ref><ref>[[Josef W. Meri|Meri, Josef W.]] (ed.): ''[[Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia]]'', Vol. 1, A–K, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0-415-96691-7}}, p.&nbsp;457 (entry "madrasa"): {{blockquote|A [[madrasa]] is a college of [[Islamic law]]. The madrasa was an educational institution in which Islamic law ([[fiqh]]) was taught according to one or more [[Sunni]] rites: [[Maliki]], [[Shafi'i]], [[Hanafi]], or [[Hanbali]]. It was supported by an endowment or charitable trust ([[waqf]]) that provided for at least one chair for one professor of law, income for other faculty or staff, scholarships for students, and funds for the maintenance of the building. Madrasas contained lodgings for the professor and some of his students. Subjects other than law were frequently taught in madrasas, and even [[Sufi]] seances were held in them, but there could be no madrasa without law as technically the major subject.}}</ref><ref>Makdisi, George: "Madrasa and University in the Middle Ages", ''[[Studia Islamica]]'', No. 32 (1970), pp.&nbsp;255–264 (255f.): {{blockquote|In studying an institution which is foreign and remote in point of time, as is the case of the medieval madrasa, one runs the double risk of attributing to it characteristics borrowed from one's own institutions and one's own times. Thus gratuitous transfers may be made from one culture to the other, and the time factor may be ignored or dismissed as being without significance. One cannot therefore be too careful in attempting a comparative study of these two institutions: the [[madrasa]] and the university. But in spite of the pitfalls inherent in such a study, albeit sketchy, the results which may be obtained are well worth the risks involved. In any case, one cannot avoid making comparisons when certain unwarranted statements have already been made and seem to be currently accepted without question. The most unwarranted of these statements is the one which makes of the "madrasa" a "university".}}</ref> as a [[madrasa]] until after [[World War II]]. They date the transformation of the madrasa of al-Qarawiyyin into a university to its modern reorganization in 1963.<ref name="Lulat 2005, 154–157">Lulat, Y. G.-M.: ''A History Of African Higher Education From Antiquity To The Present: A Critical Synthesis'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005, {{ISBN|978-0-313-32061-3}}, pp.&nbsp;154–157</ref><ref name="Park & Boum 2006, 348">Park, Thomas K.; Boum, Aomar: ''Historical Dictionary of Morocco'', 2nd ed., Scarecrow Press, 2006, {{ISBN|978-0-8108-5341-6}}, p.&nbsp;348  {{blockquote|''al-qarawiyin'' is the oldest university in [[Morocco]]. It was founded as a [[mosque]] in [[Fès]] in the middle of the ninth century. It has been a destination for students and scholars of [[Islamic sciences]] and Arabic studies throughout the history of Morocco. There were also other religious schools like the madras of ibn yusuf and other schools in the sus. This system of basic education called al-ta'lim al-aSil was funded by the sultans of Morocco and many famous traditional families. After independence, al-qarawiyin maintained its reputation, but it seemed important to transform it into a university that would prepare [[graduates]] for a modern country while maintaining an emphasis on Islamic studies. Hence, al-qarawiyin university was founded in February 1963 and, while the [[Dean (education)|dean]]'s residence was kept in Fès, the new university initially had four colleges located in major regions of the country known for their religious influences and [[madrasa]]s. These colleges were kuliyat al-shari's in Fès, kuliyat uSul al-din in [[Tétouan]], kuliyat al-lugha al-'arabiya in [[Marrakech]] (all founded in 1963), and kuliyat al-shari'a in Ait Melloul near [[Agadir]], which was founded in 1979.}}</ref><ref name="Belhachmi 2003, 65" /> In the wake of these reforms, al-Qarawiyyin was officially renamed "University of Al Quaraouiyine" two years later.<ref name="Lulat 2005, 154–157" />

Some scholars, including George Makdisi, have argued that early medieval universities were influenced by the madrasas in [[Al-Andalus]], the [[Emirate of Sicily]], and the [[Middle East]] during the [[Crusades]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Nuria Sanz, Sjur Bergan|title=The heritage of European universities, Volume 548|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M09rKWhN3soC&q=The+Heritage+of+European+Universities|publisher=[[Council of Europe]]|page=28|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905161423/https://books.google.com/books?id=M09rKWhN3soC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Heritage+of+European+Universities&hl=en&sa=X&ei=AZ8LT6SED-Hv0gH_kImMBg&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=arab-oriental&f=false|archive-date=5 September 2015|isbn=9789287161215|date=1 January 2006}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Makdisi|first=George|title=Scholasticism and Humanism in Classical Islam and the Christian West|journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society|volume=109|issue=2|date=April–June 1989|pages=175–182 [175–77]|doi=10.2307/604423|jstor=604423}}; {{Cite journal|last=Makdisi|first=John A.|title=The Islamic Origins of the Common Law|journal=[[North Carolina Law Review]]|date=June 1999|volume=77|issue=5|pages=1635–1739}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=A History of Christian-Muslim Relations|first=Hugh|last=Goddard|year=2000|publisher=[[Edinburgh University Press]]|isbn=978-0-7486-1009-9|page=99}}</ref> Norman Daniel, however, views this argument as overstated.<ref name='NDaniel2'>{{cite journal | title = Review of "The Rise of Colleges. Institutions of Learning in Islam and the West by George Makdisi" | journal = Journal of the American Oriental Society | year = 1984 | first = Norman | last = Daniel | volume = 104 | issue = 3 | pages = 586–8| jstor = 601679 | quote = Professor Makdisi argues that there is a missing link in the development of Western scholasticism, and that Arab influences explain the "dramatically abrupt" appearance of the "sic et non" method. Many medievalists will think the case overstated, and doubt that there is much to explain. | doi=10.2307/601679 }}</ref> In 2013, Roy Lowe and Yoshihito  claimed that the influences of scholarship from the Islamic world on the universities of Western Europe requires a reconsideration of the development of higher education, turning away from a concern with local institutional structures to a broader consideration within a global context.<ref>{{Citation | editor-last = Feingold | editor-first = Mordecai | last1 = Lowe | first1 = Roy | last2 = Yasuhara | first2 = Yoshihito | chapter = The origins of higher learning: time for a new historiography? | title = History of Universities | volume = 27 | issue = 1 | pages = 1–19 | date = 2013 | publisher = Oxford University Press | location = Oxford | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=iRl8AAAAQBAJ&q=History+of+Universities:+Volume+XXVII/1 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150905153758/https://books.google.com/books?id=iRl8AAAAQBAJ&dq=History+of+Universities%3A+Volume+XXVII%2F1&source=gbs_navlinks_s | archive-date = 5 September 2015 | df = dmy-all | isbn = 9780199685844 }}</ref>

===Medieval Europe===
{{Main|Medieval university|List of medieval universities}}
[[File:ChiostroPietroMartireNapoli.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Established in 1224 by [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor]], the [[University of Naples Federico II]] in Italy is the world's oldest state-funded university in continuous operation.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Storia d'Italia |date=7 August 1981 |publisher=UTET |isbn=88-02-03568-7 |volume=4 |location=Torino |page=122}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Fulvio|last=Delle Donne|title=Storia dello Studium di Napoli in età sveva|publisher=Mario Adda Editore|year=2010|language=it|isbn=978-8880828419|pages=9–10}}</ref>]]

Although there are antecedents, the modern university is generally regarded as a formal institution that has its origin in the [[History of Christianity|Medieval Christian]] tradition.<ref name="Rüegg, Walter 1992, pp. XIX">Rüegg, Walter: "Foreword. The University as a European Institution", in: ''A History of the University in Europe. Vol. 1: Universities in the Middle Ages'', Cambridge University Press, 1992, {{ISBN|0-521-36105-2}}, pp. XIX–XX</ref><ref>Verger, Jacques. “The Universities and Scholasticism,” in The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume V c. 1198–c. 1300. Cambridge University Press, 2007, 257.</ref> European higher education took place for hundreds of years in [[cathedral school]]s or [[monastic school]]s (''scholae monasticae''), in which [[monk]]s and [[nun]]s taught classes; evidence of these immediate forerunners of the later university at many places dates back to the 6th century.<ref>Riché, Pierre (1978): "Education and Culture in the Barbarian West: From the Sixth through the Eighth Century", Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, {{ISBN|0-87249-376-8}}, pp. 126-7, 282-98</ref> In Europe, young men proceeded to university when they had completed their study of the [[trivium (education)|trivium]] – the preparatory arts of [[grammar]], [[rhetoric]] and [[dialectic]] or [[logic]]–and the [[quadrivium]]: [[arithmetic]], [[geometry]], [[music]], and [[astronomy]].

The earliest universities were developed under the aegis of the [[Latin Church]] by [[papal bull]] as ''[[Studium Generale|studia generalia]]'' and perhaps from cathedral schools. It is possible, however, that the development of cathedral schools into universities was quite rare, with the University of Paris being an exception.<ref>Gordon Leff, ''Paris and Oxford Universities in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries. An Institutional and Intellectual History'', Wiley, 1968.</ref> Later they were also founded by kings - but with prior papal approval.<ref>Univerzita Karlova získala dva unikátní dokumenty z historie české a evropské vzdělanosti, 29. 6. 2018. https://cuni.cz/UK-9137.html</ref> ([[University of Naples Federico II]], [[Charles University in Prague]], [[Jagiellonian University|Jagiellonian University in Kraków]]) or municipal administrations ([[University of Cologne]], [[University of Erfurt]]). In the [[Early Middle Ages|early medieval period]], most new universities were founded from pre-existing schools, usually when these schools were deemed to have become primarily sites of higher education. Many historians state that universities and cathedral schools were a continuation of the interest in learning promoted by [[monasteries|The residence of a religious community]].<ref>Johnson, P. (2000). The Renaissance : a short history. Modern Library chronicles (Modern Library ed.). New York: Modern Library, p. 9.</ref> [[Pope Gregory VII]] was critical in promoting and regulating the concept of modern university as his [[1079 Papal Decree]] ordered the regulated establishment of cathedral schools that transformed themselves into the first European universities.<ref>Thomas Oestreich (1913). "Pope St. Gregory VII". In Herbermann, Charles. Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.</ref>

[[File:Meeting of doctors at the university of Paris.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Meeting of doctors at the [[University of Paris]]. From a medieval manuscript.]]
The first universities in Europe with a form of corporate/guild structure were the [[University of Bologna]] (1088), the [[University of Paris]] ({{Circa|1150}}, later associated with the [[University of Paris|Sorbonne]]), and the [[University of Oxford]] (1167). The University of Bologna began as a law school teaching the ''[[jus gentium|ius gentium]]'' or [[Roman law]] of peoples which was in demand across Europe for those defending the right of incipient nations against empire and church. The University of Bologna, or ''[[Alma Mater Studiorum]]'', is widely recognized as the oldest university that is independent of any direct authority, such as kings, emperors, or religious organizations. Bologna's claim to being the oldest university is based on its unique characteristics, such as its autonomy and its ability to grant degrees.<ref>Makdisi, G. (1981), Rise of Colleges: Institutions of Learning in Islam and the West. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.</ref><ref>Daun, H. and Arjmand, R. (2005), Islamic Education, pp 377-388 in J. Zajda, editor, International Handbook of Globalisation, Education and Policy Research. Netherlands: Springer.</ref>

The conventional date of 1088, or 1087 according to some,<ref>Huff, T. (2003), The Rise of Early Modern Science. Cambridge University Press, p. 122</ref> records when [[Irnerius]] commenced teaching [[Justinian I|Emperor Justinian's]] 6th-century codification of Roman law, the ''[[Corpus Iuris Civilis]]'', recently discovered at Pisa. Lay students arrived in the city from many lands entering into a contract to gain this knowledge, organising themselves into 'Nationes', divided between that of the Cismontanes and that of the Ultramontanes. The students "had all the power … and dominated the masters".<ref>{{cite book|last =Kerr|first = Clark|date=2001|title = The Uses of the University|publisher = Harvard University Press|pages =16 and 145|isbn = 978-0674005327}}</ref><ref>Rüegg, W. (2003), Mythologies and Historiography of the Beginnings, pp 4-34 in H. De Ridder-Symoens, editor, A History of the University in Europe; Vol 1, Cambridge University Press.p. 12</ref>

All over Europe, rulers and city governments began to create universities to satisfy a European thirst for knowledge, and the belief that society would benefit from the scholarly expertise generated from these institutions. Princes and leaders of city governments perceived the potential benefits of having a scholarly expertise develop with the ability to address difficult problems and achieve desired ends. The emergence of humanism was essential to this understanding of the possible utility of universities as well as the revival of interest in knowledge gained from ancient Greek texts.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2004). "The universities of the Renaissance and Reformation". Renaissance Quarterly, 57, pp. 2.</ref>

The [[recovery of Aristotle]]'s works – more than 3000 pages of it would eventually be translated – fuelled a spirit of inquiry into natural processes that had already begun to emerge in the 12th century. Some scholars believe that these works represented one of the most important document discoveries in Western intellectual history.<ref>Rubenstein, R. E. (2003). Aristotle's children: how Christians, Muslims, and Jews rediscovered ancient wisdom and illuminated the dark ages (1st ed.). Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, pp. 16-17.</ref> Richard Dales, for instance, calls the discovery of Aristotle's works "a turning point in the history of Western thought."<ref>Dales, R. C. (1990). Medieval discussions of the eternity of the world (Vol. 18). Brill Archive, p. 144.</ref> After Aristotle re-emerged, a community of scholars, primarily communicating in Latin, accelerated the process and practice of attempting to reconcile the thoughts of Greek antiquity, and especially ideas related to understanding the natural world, with those of the church. The efforts of this "[[scholasticism]]" were focused on applying Aristotelian logic and thoughts about natural processes to biblical passages and attempting to prove the viability of those passages through reason. This became the primary mission of lecturers, and the expectation of students.
[[File:Divinity_School_Interior_2,_Bodleian_Library,_Oxford,_UK_-_Diliff.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[University of Oxford]] is the oldest university in the [[English-speaking world]].]]

The university culture developed differently in northern Europe than it did in the south, although the northern (primarily Germany, France and [[Great Britain]]) and southern universities (primarily Italy) did have many elements in common. Latin was the language of the university, used for all texts, lectures, [[disputation]]s and examinations. Professors lectured on the books of Aristotle for logic, [[natural philosophy]], and [[metaphysics]]; while [[Hippocrates]], [[Galen]], and [[Avicenna]] were used for medicine. Outside of these commonalities, great differences separated north and south, primarily in subject matter. Italian universities focused on law and medicine, while the northern universities focused on the arts and theology. The quality of instruction in the different areas of study varied, depending on the university's focus. This led scholars to travel north or south based on their interests and means. The universities also awarded different types of degrees. English, French and German universities usually awarded bachelor's degrees, with the exception of degrees in theology, for which the doctorate was more common. Italian universities awarded primarily doctorates. The distinction can be attributed to the intent of the degree holder after graduation – in the north the focus tended to be on acquiring teaching positions, while in the south students often went on to professional positions.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2004). "The universities of the Renaissance and Reformation". Renaissance Quarterly, 57, pp. 2-8.</ref> The structure of northern universities tended to be modeled after the system of faculty governance developed at the [[University of Paris]]. Southern universities tended to be patterned after the student-controlled model begun at the University of Bologna.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Scott | first1 = J. C. | year = 2006 | title = The mission of the university: Medieval to Postmodern transformations | journal = Journal of Higher Education | volume = 77 | issue = 1| page = 6 | doi = 10.1353/jhe.2006.0007 | s2cid = 144337137 }}</ref> Among the southern universities, a further distinction has been noted between those of northern Italy, which followed the pattern of Bologna as a "self-regulating, independent corporation of scholars" and those of southern Italy and Iberia, which were "founded by royal and imperial charter to serve the needs of government."<ref>{{Citation | last = Pryds | first = Darleen | editor-last = Courtenay | editor-first = William J. | editor2-last = Miethke | editor2-first = Jürgen | editor3-last = Priest | editor3-first = David B. | date = 2000 | title = Universities and Schooling in Medieval Society | chapter = ''Studia'' as Royal Offices: Mediterranean Universities of Medieval Europe | series = Education and Society in the Middle Ages and Renaissance | volume = 10 | publisher = Brill | location = Leiden | pages = 84–85 | isbn=9004113517 }}</ref>

===Early modern universities===
{{See also|List of early modern universities in Europe|List of colonial universities in Latin America}}
[[File:St Salvators Chapel , St Andrews.jpg|alt=St Salvator's college St Andrews|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[University of St Andrews]], founded in 1410, is Scotland's oldest university.<ref>{{Cite web|title=University League Tables 2021|url=https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings|access-date=2021-05-02|website=www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk|language=en|archive-date=25 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110625164636/http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The best UK universities 2021 – rankings|url=http://www.theguardian.com/education/ng-interactive/2020/sep/05/the-best-uk-universities-2021-league-table|access-date=2021-05-02|website=the Guardian|language=en|archive-date=4 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504112216/https://www.theguardian.com/education/ng-interactive/2020/sep/05/the-best-uk-universities-2021-league-table|url-status=live}}</ref>]]
During the [[Early Modern period]] (approximately late 15th century to 1800), the universities of Europe would see a tremendous amount of growth, productivity and innovative research. At the end of the Middle Ages, about 400 years after the first European university was founded, there were 29 universities spread throughout Europe. In the 15th century, 28 new ones were created, with another 18 added between 1500 and 1625.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2004). The universities of the Renaissance and Reformation. Renaissance Quarterly, 57, pp. 1-3.</ref> This pace continued until by the end of the 18th century there were approximately 143 universities in Europe, with the highest concentrations in the German Empire (34), Italian countries (26), France (25), and Spain (23) – this was close to a 500% increase over the number of universities toward the end of the Middle Ages. This number does not include the numerous universities that disappeared, or institutions that merged with other universities during this time.<ref>Frijhoff, W. (1996). Patterns. In H. D. Ridder-Symoens (Ed.), Universities in early modern Europe, 1500-1800, A history of the university in Europe. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press, p. 75.</ref> The identification of a university was not necessarily obvious during the Early Modern period, as the term is applied to a burgeoning number of institutions. In fact, the term "university" was not always used to designate a higher education institution. In [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean countries]], the term ''[[studium generale]]'' was still often used, while "Academy" was common in Northern European countries.<ref>Frijhoff, W. (1996). Patterns. In H. D. Ridder-Symoens (Ed.), Universities in early modern Europe, 1500-1800, A history of the university in Europe. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press, p. 47.</ref>

The propagation of universities was not necessarily a steady progression, as the 17th century was rife with events that adversely affected university expansion. Many wars, and especially the [[Thirty Years' War]], disrupted the university landscape throughout Europe at different times. [[War]], [[Plague (disease)|plague]], [[famine]], [[regicide]], and changes in religious power and structure often adversely affected the societies that provided support for universities. Internal strife within the universities themselves, such as student brawling and absentee professors, acted to destabilize these institutions as well. Universities were also reluctant to give up older curricula, and the continued reliance on the works of Aristotle defied contemporary advancements in science and the arts.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2004). The universities of the Renaissance and Reformation. Renaissance Quarterly, 57, p. 23.</ref> This era was also affected by the rise of the [[nation-state]]. As universities increasingly came under state control, or formed under the auspices of the state, the faculty governance model (begun by the University of Paris) became more and more prominent. Although the older student-controlled universities still existed, they slowly started to move toward this structural organization. Control of universities still tended to be independent, although university leadership was increasingly appointed by the state.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Scott | first1 = J. C. | year = 2006 | title = The mission of the university: Medieval to Postmodern transformations | journal = Journal of Higher Education | volume = 77 | issue = 1| pages = 10–13 | doi=10.1353/jhe.2006.0007| s2cid = 144337137 }}</ref>

Although the structural model provided by the University of Paris, where student members are controlled by faculty "masters", provided a standard for universities, the application of this model took at least three different forms. There were universities that had a system of faculties whose teaching addressed a very specific curriculum; this model tended to train specialists. There was a collegiate or tutorial model based on the system at [[University of Oxford]] where teaching and organization was decentralized and knowledge was more of a generalist nature. There were also universities that combined these models, using the collegiate model but having a centralized organization.<ref>Frijhoff, W. (1996). Patterns. In H. D. Ridder-Symoens (Ed.), Universities in early modern Europe, 1500-1800, A history of the university in Europe. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press, p. 65.</ref>

[[File:11-11-24-basel-by-ralfr-035.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Old main building of the [[University of Basel]] – Switzerland's oldest university (1460). The university is among the birthplaces of [[Renaissance humanism]].]]
Early Modern universities initially continued the curriculum and research of the Middle Ages: [[natural philosophy]], logic, medicine, theology, mathematics, astronomy, astrology, law, grammar and [[rhetoric]]. Aristotle was prevalent throughout the curriculum, while medicine also depended on Galen and Arabic scholarship. The importance of humanism for changing this state-of-affairs cannot be underestimated.<ref>Ruegg, W. (1992). Epilogue: the rise of humanism. In H. D. Ridder-Symoens (Ed.), Universities in the Middle Ages, A history of the university in Europe. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press.</ref> Once humanist professors joined the university faculty, they began to transform the study of grammar and rhetoric through the [[studia humanitatis]]. Humanist professors focused on the ability of students to write and speak with distinction, to translate and interpret classical texts, and to live honorable lives.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2002). The universities of the Italian renaissance. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, p. 223.</ref> Other scholars within the university were affected by the humanist approaches to learning and their linguistic expertise in relation to ancient texts, as well as the ideology that advocated the ultimate importance of those texts.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2002). The universities of the Italian renaissance. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, p. 197.</ref> Professors of medicine such as [[Niccolò Leoniceno]], [[Thomas Linacre]] and William Cop were often trained in and taught from a humanist perspective as well as translated important ancient medical texts. The critical mindset imparted by humanism was imperative for changes in universities and scholarship. For instance, [[Andreas Vesalius]] was educated in a humanist fashion before producing a translation of Galen, whose ideas he verified through his own dissections. In law, Andreas Alciatus infused the ''[[Corpus Juris]]'' with a humanist perspective, while [[Jacques Cujas]] humanist writings were paramount to his reputation as a jurist. [[Philipp Melanchthon]] cited the works of [[Erasmus]] as a highly influential guide for connecting theology back to original texts, which was important for the reform at Protestant universities.<ref>Ruegg, W. (1996). Themes. In H. D. Ridder-Symoens (Ed.), Universities in Early Modern Europe, 1500-1800, A history of the university in Europe. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press, pp. 33-39.</ref> [[Galileo Galilei]], who taught at the Universities of [[University of Pisa|Pisa]] and [[University of Padua|Padua]], and [[Martin Luther]], who taught at the [[University of Wittenberg]] (as did Melanchthon), also had humanist training. The task of the humanists was to slowly permeate the university; to increase the humanist presence in professorships and chairs, syllabi and textbooks so that published works would demonstrate the humanistic ideal of science and scholarship.<ref>Grendler, P. F. (2004). The universities of the Renaissance and Reformation. Renaissance Quarterly, 57, pp. 12-13.</ref>
[[File:Class_at_Salamanca.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|17th-century classroom at the [[University of Salamanca]]]]
Although the initial focus of the humanist scholars in the university was the discovery, exposition and insertion of ancient texts and languages into the university, and the ideas of those texts into society generally, their influence was ultimately quite progressive. The emergence of classical texts brought new ideas and led to a more creative university climate (as the notable list of scholars above attests to). A focus on knowledge coming from self, from the human, has a direct implication for new forms of scholarship and instruction, and was the foundation for what is commonly known as the humanities. This disposition toward knowledge manifested in not simply the translation and propagation of ancient texts, but also their adaptation and expansion. For instance, Vesalius was imperative for advocating the use of Galen, but he also invigorated this text with experimentation, disagreements and further research.<ref>Bylebyl, J. J. (2009). Disputation and description in the renaissance pulse controversy. In A. Wear, R. K. French, & I. M. Lonie (Eds.), The medical renaissance of the sixteenth century (1st ed., pp. 223-245). Cambridge University Press.</ref> The propagation of these texts, especially within the universities, was greatly aided by the emergence of the printing press and the beginning of the use of the vernacular, which allowed for the printing of relatively large texts at reasonable prices.<ref>Füssel, S. (2005). Gutenberg and the Impact of Printing (English ed.). Aldershot, Hampshire: Ashgate Pub., p. 145.</ref>

Examining the influence of humanism on scholars in medicine, mathematics, astronomy and physics may suggest that humanism and universities were a strong impetus for the scientific revolution. Although the connection between humanism and the scientific discovery may very well have begun within the confines of the university, the connection has been commonly perceived as having been severed by the changing nature of science during the [[Scientific Revolution]]. Historians such as [[Richard S. Westfall]] have argued that the overt traditionalism of universities inhibited attempts to re-conceptualize nature and knowledge and caused an indelible tension between universities and scientists.<ref>Westfall, R. S. (1977). The construction of modern science: mechanisms and mechanics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 105.</ref> This resistance to changes in science may have been a significant factor in driving many scientists away from the university and toward private benefactors, usually in princely courts, and associations with newly forming scientific societies.<ref>Ornstein, M. (1928). The role of scientific societies in the seventeenth century. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.</ref>

Other historians find incongruity in the proposition that the very place where the vast number of the scholars that influenced the scientific revolution received their education should also be the place that inhibits their research and the advancement of science. In fact, more than 80% of the European scientists between 1450 and 1650 included in the [[Dictionary of Scientific Biography]] were university trained, of which approximately 45% held university posts.<ref>Gascoigne, J. (1990). A reappraisal of the role of the universities in the Scientific Revolution. In D. C. Lindberg & R. S. Westman (Eds.), Reappraisals of the Scientific Revolution, pp. 208-209.</ref> It was the case that the academic foundations remaining from the Middle Ages were stable, and they did provide for an environment that fostered considerable growth and development. There was considerable reluctance on the part of universities to relinquish the symmetry and comprehensiveness provided by the Aristotelian system, which was effective as a coherent system for understanding and interpreting the world. However, university professors still have some autonomy, at least in the sciences, to choose epistemological foundations and methods. For instance, Melanchthon and his disciples at University of Wittenberg were instrumental for integrating Copernican mathematical constructs into astronomical debate and instruction.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Westman | first1 = R. S. | year = 1975 | title = The Melanchthon circle:, rheticus, and the Wittenberg interpretation of the Copernicantheory | doi = 10.1086/351431| journal = Isis | volume = 66 | issue = 2| pages = 164–193 | s2cid = 144116078 }}</ref> Another example was the short-lived but fairly rapid adoption of Cartesian epistemology and methodology in European universities, and the debates surrounding that adoption, which led to more mechanistic approaches to scientific problems as well as demonstrated an openness to change. There are many examples which belie the commonly perceived intransigence of universities.<ref>Gascoigne, J. (1990). A reappraisal of the role of the universities in the Scientific Revolution. In D. C. Lindberg & R. S. Westman (Eds.), Reappraisals of the Scientific Revolution, pp. 210-229.</ref> Although universities may have been slow to accept new sciences and methodologies as they emerged, when they did accept new ideas it helped to convey legitimacy and respectability, and supported the scientific changes through providing a stable environment for instruction and material resources.<ref>Gascoigne, J. (1990). A reappraisal of the role of the universities in the Scientific Revolution. In D. C. Lindberg & R. S. Westman (Eds.), Reappraisals of the Scientific Revolution, pp. 245-248.</ref>

Regardless of the way the tension between universities, individual scientists, and the scientific revolution itself is perceived, there was a discernible impact on the way that university education was constructed. Aristotelian epistemology provided a coherent framework not simply for knowledge and knowledge construction, but also for the training of scholars within the higher education setting. The creation of new scientific constructs during the scientific revolution, and the epistemological challenges that were inherent within this creation, initiated the idea of both the autonomy of science and the hierarchy of the disciplines. Instead of entering higher education to become a "general scholar" immersed in becoming proficient in the entire curriculum, there emerged a type of scholar that put science first and viewed it as a vocation in itself. The divergence between those focused on science and those still entrenched in the idea of a general scholar exacerbated the epistemological tensions that were already beginning to emerge.<ref>Feingold, M. (1991). Tradition vs novelty: universities and scientific societies in the early modern period. In P. Barker & R. Ariew (Eds.), Revolution and continuity: essays in the history and philosophy of early modern science, Studies in philosophy and the history of philosophy. Washington, D.C: Catholic University of America Press, pp. 53-54.</ref>

The epistemological tensions between scientists and universities were also heightened by the economic realities of research during this time, as individual scientists, associations and universities were vying for limited resources. There was also competition from the formation of new colleges funded by private benefactors and designed to provide free education to the public, or established by local governments to provide a knowledge-hungry populace with an alternative to traditional universities.<ref>Feingold, M. (1991). Tradition vs novelty: universities and scientific societies in the early modern period. In P. Barker & R. Ariew (Eds.), Revolution and continuity: essays in the history and philosophy of early modern science, Studies in philosophy and the history of philosophy. Washington, D.C: Catholic University of America Press, pp. 46-50.</ref> Even when universities supported new scientific endeavors, and the university provided foundational training and authority for the research and conclusions, they could not compete with the resources available through private benefactors.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = See | last2 = Baldwin | first2 = M | year = 1995 | title = The snakestone experiments: an early modern medical debate | doi = 10.1086/357237 | pmid =  7591659| journal = Isis | volume = 86 | issue = 3| pages = 394–418 | s2cid = 6122500 }}</ref>

By the end of the early modern period, the structure and orientation of higher education had changed in ways that are eminently recognizable for the modern context. Aristotle was no longer a force providing the epistemological and methodological focus for universities and a more mechanistic orientation was emerging. The hierarchical place of theological knowledge had for the most part been displaced and the humanities had become a fixture, and a new openness was beginning to take hold in the construction and dissemination of knowledge that were to become imperative for the formation of the modern state.

===Modern universities===
{{Main|History of European universities|List of modern universities in Europe (1801–1945)|Research university}}[[File:King's_College_London_Chapel_2,_London_-_Diliff.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[King's College London]], established by Royal Charter having been founded by [[King George IV]] and [[Duke of Wellington]] in 1829, is one of the founding colleges of the [[University of London]].]]Modern universities constitute a [[guild]] or quasi-guild system. This facet of the university system did not change due to its peripheral standing in an industrialized economy; as commerce developed between towns in Europe during the Middle Ages, though other guilds stood in the way of developing commerce and therefore were eventually abolished, the scholars guild did not. According to historian Elliot Krause, "The university and scholars' guilds held onto their power over membership, training, and workplace because early capitalism was not interested in it."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Krause |first=Elliot |title=Death of Guilds:Professions, States, and The Advance of Capitalism, 1930 to The Present} |publisher=Yale University Press, New Haven and London |year=1996}}</ref>

By the 18th century, universities published their own [[academic journal|research journals]] and by the 19th century, the German and the French university models had arisen. The German, or Humboldtian model, was conceived by [[Wilhelm von Humboldt]] and based on [[Friedrich Schleiermacher]]'s liberal ideas pertaining to the importance of [[academic freedom|freedom]], [[seminar]]s, and [[laboratory|laboratories]] in universities.{{Citation needed|date=December 2007}} The French university model involved strict discipline and control over every aspect of the university.

Until the 19th century, [[religion]] played a significant role in university curriculum; however, the role of religion in research universities decreased during that century. By the end of the 19th century, the German university model had spread around the world. Universities concentrated on science in the 19th and 20th centuries and became increasingly accessible to the masses. In the United States, the [[Johns Hopkins University]] was the first to adopt the (German) [[research university]] model and pioneered the adoption of that model by most American universities. When Johns Hopkins was founded in 1876, "nearly the entire faculty had studied in Germany."<ref name="Menand">{{cite news|last1=Menand|first1=Louis|last2=Reitter|first2=Paul|last3=Wellmon|first3=Chad|title=General Introduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cWesDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA2|access-date=25 January 2017|work=The Rise of the Research University: A Sourcebook|isbn=9780226414850|publisher=University of Chicago Press|date=2017|location=Chicago|pages=2–3|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215064506/https://books.google.com/books?id=cWesDQAAQBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA2|archive-date=15 February 2017}}</ref> In Britain, the move from [[Industrial Revolution]] to [[modernity]] saw the arrival of new civic universities with an emphasis on [[science]] and [[engineering]], a movement initiated in 1960 by Sir Keith Murray (chairman of the University Grants Committee) and [[Samuel Curran|Sir Samuel Curran]], with the formation of the [[University of Strathclyde]].<ref>{{Cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/69524 |title=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography |year=2004 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/69524 |access-date=28 May 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306083652/http://oxforddnb.com/view/article/69524 |archive-date=6 March 2016  }}</ref> The British also established universities worldwide, and [[higher education]] became available to the masses not only in Europe.

In 1963, the [[Robbins Report]] on universities in the United Kingdom concluded that such institutions should have four main "objectives essential to any properly balanced system: instruction in skills; the promotion of the general powers of the mind so as to produce not mere specialists but rather cultivated men and women; to maintain research in balance with teaching, since teaching should not be separated from the advancement of learning and the search for truth; and to transmit a common culture and common standards of citizenship."<ref name="historyandpolicy">{{cite web|url=http://www.historyandpolicy.org/papers/policy-paper-98.html|title=The 'Idea of a University' today|last=Anderson|first=Robert|date=March 2010|work=History & Policy|access-date=9 December 2010|location=United Kingdom|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101127065822/http://www.historyandpolicy.org/papers/policy-paper-98.html|archive-date=27 November 2010}}</ref>

In the early 21st century, concerns were raised over the increasing managerialisation and standardisation of universities worldwide. Neo-liberal management models have in this sense been critiqued for creating "corporate universities (where) power is transferred from faculty to managers, economic justifications dominate, and the familiar 'bottom line' eclipses pedagogical or intellectual concerns".<ref>Maggie Berg & Barbara Seeber. The Slow Professor: Challenging the Culture of Speed in the Academy, p. x. Toronto: Toronto University Press. 2016.</ref> Academics' understanding of time, pedagogical pleasure, vocation, and collegiality have been cited as possible ways of alleviating such problems.<ref>Maggie Berg & Barbara Seeber. The Slow Professor: Challenging the Culture of Speed in the Academy. Toronto: Toronto University Press. 2016. (passim)</ref>

===National universities===
[[File:Casa central de la U. de Chile.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The Central House building of the [[University of Chile]], in [[Santiago]], a [[public university]] established in 1842]]
A [[national university]] is generally a university created or run by a national state but at the same time represents a state autonomic institution which functions as a completely independent body inside of the same state. Some national universities are closely associated with national [[cultural]], [[religious]] or [[political]] aspirations, for instance the [[National University of Ireland]], which formed partly from the [[Catholic University of Ireland]] which was created almost immediately and specifically in answer to the non-denominational universities which had been set up in Ireland in 1850. In the years leading up to the [[Easter Rising]], and in no small part a result of the Gaelic Romantic revivalists, the NUI collected a large amount of information on the [[Irish language]] and [[Irish culture]].{{citation needed|date=August 2016}} Reforms in Argentina were the result of the [[University Revolution]] of 1918 and its posterior reforms by incorporating values that sought for a more equal and laic{{explain|date=August 2016}} higher education system.

===Intergovernmental universities===
Universities created by bilateral or multilateral treaties between states are [[intergovernmental organization|intergovernmental]]. An example is the [[Academy of European Law]], which offers training in European law to lawyers, judges, barristers, solicitors, in-house counsel and academics. [[EUCLID (Pôle Universitaire Euclide, Euclid University)]] is chartered as a university and umbrella organization dedicated to sustainable development in signatory countries, and the [[United Nations University]] engages in efforts to resolve the pressing global problems that are of concern to the United Nations, its peoples and member states. The [[European University Institute]], a post-graduate university specialized in the social sciences, is officially an intergovernmental organization, set up by the member states of the [[European Union]].