Higher Education in the United States

There is no national system of higher education in the United States. Basically, American higher education developed its own pattern by the adaptation of two traditions: the collegiate tradition of England and the university tradition of the continent.
In the USA there is no consistent distinction between the terms “college” and “university”. The general tendency, however, is to call a college a higher educational institution offering courses of instruction leading to the Bachelor’s degree; a university is a college or a group of colleges or departments offering courses of institution leading not only to the Bachelor’s degree but also to the Master’s and the Doctoral degrees.