# When is a 'roommate' not a 'roommate' ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 9, 2005, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267 "2005-08-09T13:28:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/41 "2005-08-11T11:02:01Z")
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**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/42 "2005-08-11T14:19:14Z")
BTW, “Institute” is also a synonym for University many times, as in Massachussetts Institute of Technology (MIT), California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Renssalaer Polytechinic Institute (RPI), etc. All prestigious educational establishments of the highest caliber. In your original question you asked what “college student” ment in the US – it means anyone pursuing a bachelor’s level degree at either a so-called college or university or institute (all being degree-granting instututions). ---
**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:** [August 11, 2005, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/43 "2005-08-11T14:44:32Z")
> [@Cat Jones](#): > > IA question - Boston College and Dartmouth College have both been mentioned as colleges which award degrees, is it possible that the ‘college’ is part of their chosen name rather then referring to the style of educational establishment ? There are thousands of degree-granting “colleges” in the United States. Boston College and Dartmouth are not exceptional. The “style” of educational establishment is “post-secondary (or ‘higher’) educational institution.” Such institutions are free to choose from one of many terms in choosing their names. Among those terms are “university,” “college,” and “institute.” In casual conversation, they are all referred to generically as “college,” or, even more casually, as “school.” In the United States, a primary or secondary educational institution (a school) is never referred to as a “college,” although there might be a handful of old institutions that use the word in their 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:** [August 11, 2005, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/44 "2005-08-11T14:48:40Z")
> [@Cat Jones](#): > > I missed this **Constantine** , I think that answers my question. I think Constantine’s definitions are still slightly misleading. There is a _tendency_ for institutions with “university” in the name to be more likely to offer degrees higher than a bachelor’s degree (master’s, doctorates) and there is a _tendency_ for insitutions with “college” in the name to offer _only_ bachelor’s degrees. But it is still only a tendency. Without checking, it is not safe to make any assumptions about “X College” just because it uses the word “college” and not “university” in its name. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/45 "2005-08-11T18:27:13Z")
If someone said “we live together” or “I live with him/her” I would assume a romantic realtionship. If they said “we share a house/flat” or “he/she is my flatmate” I would not. My university offers everything from private apartments with 4 bedrooms, 2 shower rooms and a kitchen, to single bedrooms off a common corridor with shared bathrooms and kitchens. Oh yes, and it isn’t a single sex corridor. There are set ups where 2 people have separate bedrooms, a private sitting room and kitchen, but share the bathroom with 6 other people, or where you share the kitchen with 10 people but have your own en-suite bathroom. There are some “married” rooms with double beds, there are “family” rooms for student parents, there is basically every permutation of student living arrangements possible…none requires you to share a bedroom with someone unless you’re also sharing a bed with them. ---
**Author:** ![constantine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3bc359/32.png) [@constantine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constantine)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2005, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267/46 "2005-08-11T19:59:41Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > I think Constantine’s definitions are still slightly misleading. There is a _tendency_ for institutions with “university” in the name to be more likely to offer degrees higher than a bachelor’s degree (master’s, doctorates) and there is a _tendency_ for insitutions with “college” in the name to offer _only_ bachelor’s degrees. But it is still only a tendency. Without checking, it is not safe to make any assumptions about “X College” just because it uses the word “college” and not “university” in its name. I don’t know what you mean by “only a tendency”. The overwhelming majority of self-designated “colleges” in the United States offer only a bachelors degree. (Again note that a “college” may be part of a larger university that also grants graduate degrees). The overwhelming majority of self-designated “universities” grant post graduate degrees. True, there are a handful of exceptions, but if an institution calls itself a University but does not award post graduate degrees, then I would say that it is being misleading–putting aside, of course, schools like McDonald’s “Hamburger University” that use the term “University” somewhat ironically. [Dictionary.com](http://Dictionary.com) definition of “college” as["An institution of higher learning that grants the bachelor’s degree in liberal arts or science or both"](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=college) [Dictionary.com](http://Dictionary.com) definition of “university” as [“An institution for higher learning with teaching and research facilities constituting a graduate school and professional schools that award master’s degrees and doctorates and an undergraduate division that awards bachelor’s degrees.”](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=university) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-a-roommate-not-a-roommate/316267.md?page=2)