# What's the distinction between "University of \_\_\_\_\_" and "\_\_\_\_ State"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 26, 2008, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842 "2008-03-26T22:08:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2008, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/81 "2008-03-31T14:45:34Z")
[QUOTE=Garfield226] Illinois is just plain confusing when it comes to this. The University of Illinois system, Southern Illinois University system, Eastern Illinois University, Western Illinois University, Northern Illinois University and Northwestern Illinois University are all public universities. As are Illinois State University and Chicago State University. And there’s no clear “first-tier, second-tier, third-tier”. The University of Illinois is probably the best overall university, but there are standouts for individual majors. So there you go. [/QUOTE] Wrong. Illinois has a somewhat clear state college system. The University of Illinois is the top tier school. It’s a Public Ivy and one of the best funded, most competitive and most highly regarded universities in the nation. Illinois State University originated as a [Normal School](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_school) and spawned the child colleges of Northern Illinois University, Eastern Illinois University, Western Illinois University and Southern Illinois University. All of these schools began as teacher training schools and to this day are best known for their Education Programs. They comprise the second tier. There is no such thing as Northwestern Illinois University. Northwestern University is a private institution ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2008, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/82 "2008-03-31T15:18:16Z")
[QUOTE=Voyager] Funny thing about that. 30 years ago I went to the University of Southwestern Louisiana, which gave Ph.Ds and had a much better Computer Science Dept. than LSU - with plenty of funded research. After I left the name got changed to the University of Louisiana. LSU got royally pissed, and got the state legislature to change it back. It then got changed back again, and is the U of L today. So sometimes titles are more about politics and power than quality. Course this is Louisiana - information might not be applicable to the United States. [/QUOTE] [Wiki disagrees](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Louisiana). There’s a University of Louisiana - Lafayette and a University of Louisiana - Monroe but no University of Louisiana. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2008, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/83 "2008-03-31T19:55:49Z")
[QUOTE=capybara] So. . . I should make UC Merced my 1st tier reach school, and Cal Poly my 2d tier safety? Just thought I’d play with your broad brush. Did you go to Berkeley, or what? [/QUOTE] From Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Berkeley is perennially the most selective of the institutions affiliated with the University of California, and one of the most selective universities in the United States. For the 2007-08 academic year, approximately 4387 freshman (including U.S. and international students) matriculated from an applicant pool of 44,127. The average person admitted as a freshman in 2007 had a weighted GPA of **4.25** /4.00, while those who matriculated in 2006 had an average GPA of 4.26/4.00 [7] and average score of 1975 out of 2400 (approximately 94th percentile) on the SAT admissions test. > > Berkeley is the only university in the nation to achieve top 5 rankings for all of its PhD programs in those disciplines covered by the US News and World Report graduate school survey. In a survey of “Top American Research Universities” released by The Center for Measuring University Performance at Arizona State University, Berkeley ranked seventh overall and first among public institutions Yeah, I’d say it’s selective. And prestigious. > [@dtilque](#): > > Especially that direction university down there in Los Angeles. UCLA and Cal (Berkeley) should just drop it from their schedules… Sounds good to me! go Bears. ---
**Author:** ![movingfinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@movingfinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/movingfinger)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/84 "2008-04-01T06:04:08Z")
I thought “A&M” stood for agricultural and mining. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/85 "2008-04-01T06:08:13Z")
[QUOTE=jsc1953] From Wikipedia: Yeah, I’d say it’s selective. And prestigious. Sounds good to me! go Bears. [/QUOTE] \*\*capybara \*\*was referencing UC Merced, not Berkeley. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/86 "2008-04-01T12:55:35Z")
[QUOTE=movingfinger] I thought “A&M” stood for agricultural and mining. [/QUOTE] Nope, mechanical. As in engineering I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![NunOfTheAbove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@NunOfTheAbove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NunOfTheAbove)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/87 "2008-04-01T21:37:30Z")
[QUOTE=Cagey Drifter] I went to Berkeley, and I think I can say pretty safely that at least Berkeley and UCLA (and probably Irvine and Davis) are considered better than all the Cal State schools. [/QUOTE] As someone who teaches at CSU Chico I’m profoundly… well… on your side on this one. We generally get the rich kids who couldn’t get into a UC or the one’s who just really, really, really like drinking. I wish I could say our students are easily as bright as those at Berkeley, but I really can’t. ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2008, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/88 "2008-04-02T02:26:34Z")
[QUOTE=NunOfTheAbove] As someone who teaches at CSU Chico I’m profoundly… well… on your side on this one. We generally get the rich kids who couldn’t get into a UC or the one’s who just really, really, really like drinking. I wish I could say our students are easily as bright as those at Berkeley, but I really can’t. [/QUOTE] I’m not from California, so I didn’t know anything about other schools in California when I moved there… but I instantly found that everyone referred to Cal State Chico as a “party school” where people enroll “just to drink.” I wasn’t sure if that was one of those overblown exaggerations or whether it really was like that. I tend to take such caricatures of schools (especially from people from nearby schools) with a grain of salt. ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2008, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/89 "2008-04-02T14:11:41Z")
[QUOTE=acsenray] If you look at my Wikipedia link for land-grant colleges in Post No. 35, you’ll see that very few land-grant institutions have “agricultural and mechanical” or “A&M” in their names. Even if they started out that way, they’ve become full-service universities, and, in some cases (such as Ohio State University), the flagship university of the state system. And, generally speaking, that includes the ones that have kept “A&M” in their names. They’re full-service universities. [/QUOTE] Here’s a nitpick for you . . . It’s NOT “Ohio State University”. It’s “_The_ Ohio State University”. And don’t ask me who thought that up. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2008, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/90 "2008-04-02T16:51:13Z")
[QUOTE=wolfman] It is still fairly common among old people in Colorado to think of the schools in only their original purposes. The acedemic school(CU), the aggie college(CSU formerly Colo. A&M), the teacher’s college(UNC, formerly Colo, Teacher’s college), and the mining/engineering school Colo. sch. of Mines. Even though they all have rounded curiculums these days, the perception still exists. [/QUOTE] Well to be fair CSM is not well rounded by anyone’s definition. There are only 3 majors that are offered that are not some form of engineering and they have one department for liberal arts and international studies which is the smallest department on campus and offers no majors. One of the reasons I chose to go to Mines was that there are no English courses offered at the school. So well rounded, no, it’s just a glorified trade school. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2008, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/91 "2008-04-02T22:19:12Z")
[QUOTE=Spartydog] Here’s a nitpick for you . . . It’s NOT “Ohio State University”. It’s “_The_ Ohio State University”. And don’t ask me who thought that up. [/QUOTE] The name was changed in 1878 by the Ohio legislature, from Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College. At the time, the state was trying to establish the school as its premier educational institution, and the name change reflects this emphasis. > [@Ohio Revised Code](#): > > “The educational institution originally designated as the Ohio agricultural and mechanical college shall be known as ‘The Ohio State University.’” ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/92 "2008-04-03T00:01:24Z")
[QUOTE=Spartydog] Here’s a nitpick for you . . . It’s NOT “Ohio State University”. It’s “_The_ Ohio State University”. And don’t ask me who thought that up. [/QUOTE] You didn’t see **Spavined Gelding** ’s post saying the same thing? I guess not. So I’ll just respond the same way. Who cares? The silly part is paying attention to this kind of P.R. claptrap. People call it “Ohio State” and “Ohio State University.” Nobody is obligated to obey the “The” Nazis. ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/93 "2008-04-03T00:45:47Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] The name was changed in 1878 by the Ohio legislature, from Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College. At the time, the state was trying to establish the school as its premier educational institution, and the name change reflects this emphasis. [/QUOTE] Thanks, I would have thought is was something dreamed up by Woody Hayes. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/94 "2008-04-03T03:33:26Z")
[QUOTE=acsenray] You didn’t see **Spavined Gelding** ’s post saying the same thing? I guess not. So I’ll just respond the same way. Who cares? The silly part is paying attention to this kind of P.R. claptrap. People call it “Ohio State” and “Ohio State University.” Nobody is obligated to obey the “The” Nazis. [/QUOTE] You can call it Throatwarbler Mangrove if you prefer. However, the official name of the institution, by law, is “The Ohio State University”. Using any other name is simply using the wrong name. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/95 "2008-04-03T14:22:48Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] You can call it Throatwarbler Mangrove if you prefer. However, the official name of the institution, by law, is “The Ohio State University”. Using any other name is simply using the wrong name. [/QUOTE] People get by all the time not using the exact legal names of things and people. To label them “wrong” because of a minor variation of use of an article is beyond justifiable. It’s Ohio State University because everyone calls it that. It takes a certain kind of pedancy to insist that it always be referred to as The Ohio State University. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/96 "2008-04-03T14:47:52Z")
[QUOTE=acsenray] It takes a certain kind of pedancy to insist that it always be referred to as The Ohio State University. [/QUOTE] Or pedantry, even. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842/97 "2008-04-03T14:56:49Z")
[QUOTE=NunOfTheAbove] As someone who teaches at CSU Chico I’m profoundly… well… on your side on this one. We generally get the rich kids who couldn’t get into a UC or the one’s who just really, really, really like drinking. [/QUOTE] Ah, I did grad work at UCSB, and there IS a UC that has that demographic covered, trust me. Ah, I contribute to the problem! Chico does have an unfair rep (I think Playboy rated them highly in the ‘party school’ hierarchy one year)-- UCSB suffers from the same problem, I think, and touting Nobel prizes on the faculty is still less compelling to a certain kind of undergrad applicant who looks forward to chugging Jagermeister and burning couches. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-distinction-between-university-of-_____-and-____-state/442842.md?page=4)