Colleges with best/worst names

<p>And what do you make of Holy Cross being run by the Jesuits and Notre Dame being run by the Holy Cross Fathers?</p>

<p>Like: Stanford, Princeton, Wellesley, Vanderbilt, Julliard (fave!), Macalester, Emory</p>

<p>Dislike: Duke (unlike many, I see), Ball State, Bob Jones, Simon's Rock College of Bard</p>

<p>I have no idea where in the thread this will appear, but it is in reference to talk of Amherst:</p>

<p>"People mispronounce Amherst all the time"</p>

<p>Traditionally by residents of the town Amherst (that the college is in) and the area it is pronounced without the H, like "Amerst". So this is not a mispronunciation, it is acceptable with or without the H (unless a townie hears you, and then they get annoyed if you say the H :-)). I'm not sure which way you were refering to but both work.</p>

<p>Great names: Columbia (I go into ecstasies every time I think about the place), Berkeley, Wellesley (I like the extra e's), Princeton, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Julliard</p>

<p>Eh names: Brown (the shortened name of my old middle school is Brown, so I've always linked the university to the MS), Harvey Mudd (reminds me of the clothing brand), Kalamazoo, Goucher (it reminds me of grouches), Occidental (reminds me of dentists for some reason)</p>

<p>Interesting ones: Bard College (I always think of, well, the Bard)</p>

<p>Olaf College - theeee worst.</p>

<p>Ursinus. They tried to recruit my S for lacrosse and he absolutely refused to consider a school whose name sounded like a body part.</p>

<p>lmao haven't heard of that one but surprised no less</p>

<p>I like Wake Forest</p>

<p>This was posted in the Cal forum 2 years ago….</p>

<p>Apart from the “normal” hallmarks of an elite university, how much do you guys think the appeal of a university’s name plays a role in its prestige or perceived prestige? </p>

<p>Most would agree that certain universities have more “appealing” names than others. Oddly enough, I think the top elites have very distinctive, “appealing” names: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford… Hopefully, these names aren’t appealing simply because we’ve been brain-washed to think so. Regardless, I really do think a distinctive, catchy name helps a university to stand out and makes it easier for the general public (nationally and internationally) to recognize the university. </p>

<p>Before I go any further – I’m hoping for this to just be a fun, jovial discussion. To those who want to make this thread otherwise, please go somewhere else. </p>

<p>It’s hard to identify what makes a good university name (and vice versa), but dare I try? </p>

<p>Characteristics that make a university’s name more appealing: </p>

<ol>
<li>Must be catchy and easy to remember (Sorry Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, and University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill) </li>
<li>Generally 1 or 2 syllables (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, and Duke fit the bill). </li>
<li>Starts/Ends in a solid (consonant) sound (Princeton, Stanford). </li>
<li>Follows the convention of “______ University.” (i.e. Harvard University – Sorry University of Pennsylvania) </li>
<li>Is able to withstand the “one word” test. In other words, can you refer to the university without having to mention “university” or “U?” (Haaahvad, Duke, and Berkeley pass this test.) </li>
<li>Your school’s name is M.I.T. or CalTech (or Harvard, or Yale, or Princeton, or Stanford, or Berkeley).<br></li>
</ol>

<p>Characteristics that make a university’s name less appealing: </p>

<ol>
<li>Your school’s name is Stanford University. Oh c’mon. This is a Cal forum.<br></li>
<li>Follows the convention of “University of _______ .” (Sorry University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, and University of Illinois- Urbana-Champaign – whew!) </li>
<li>Anything that even hints that it might be a state university (God forbid!) (Sorry University of Chicago, University of Pennsylvania, and Washington University (St. Louis)). Washington U gets a bonus for the “(St. Louis)” </li>
<li>Being named after a color (Brown, especially Brown! Or Purdue… oh oops, that’s not a color – it just sounds like something that’s a certain color). </li>
<li>Being named after a direction (Northwestern?). </li>
<li>Being named after a toothpaste (Colgate). </li>
<li>Being named after a food staple (Rice, Cornell). </li>
<li>Having more than 1 word in the university’s name. Case in point: Johns Hopkins. I don’t mean to just pick on Johns Hopkins. There’s also Case Western, Carnegie Mellon, … Ahhhhh!! Already too many words to remember! </li>
<li>Using exclusively everyday commoners’ words as part of the name: Case Western, Brown, and Rice. </li>
<li>Also, God forbid your school’s name is “_____ college.” A ‘university’ is so much more better than a ‘college.’ So much more.<br></li>
<li>Names with too many consonants, too many syllables, or otherwise just too d**n difficult to say (Columbia, Vanderbilt, Dartmouth – try saying Dartmouth 5 times in a row) </li>
<li>Your university’s name is not Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Caltech, or Stanford. (Ok, maybe not Stanford.)</li>
</ol>

<p>ha sweet post.</p>

<p>"6. Being named after a toothpaste (Colgate)."</p>

<p>Ha! That is quite funny. Excellent post...</p>

<p>I like Princeton for some reason... it sounds royal and "rich". I also like Georgetown because it sounds... very "classy". Oxford and Cambridge too.
For some reason though, Pepperdine sounds like a toothpaste or some kind of flossing material... peppermint, pepperdine. ANd berkeley sounds like a name you'd name your dog... "come here berkeley, good girl"</p>

<p>Another characteristic that makes a university’s name more appealing:</p>

<p>Its known as much by its location as its name -- Annapolis, Kings Point, West Point.</p>

<p>Sorry, but New London and Colorado Springs just don't cut it.</p>

<p>pepperdine always makes me think of pepperidge farm... which in turn makes me think about cinnamon bread... which in turn makes me go downstairs and EAT SOME.</p>

<p>Ok, Valparaiso University?</p>

<p>Puget Sound is odd..</p>

<p>Transylvania is creepy.</p>

<p>TCU is confusing.</p>

<p>Now is Sewanee an indian tribe or what?</p>

<p>Scripps College? Ok.</p>

<p>Samford? What, do you mean Stanford?</p>

<p>Saint Olaf College? Catholic,and never had of a Saint called Olaf.. same with Saint Anselm.</p>

<p>Millsaps? Good Lord...</p>

<p>Middlebury equals Pillsbury.</p>

<p>Miami in Ohio..and etc.</p>

<p>Marlboro College.. like the cigarette?</p>

<p>Lynchburg? AH, like lynching??</p>

<p>Lake Forest, Wake Forest...confusing.</p>

<p>Kalamazoo,is that serious?</p>

<p>Harvey Mudd? Oh man..</p>

<p>Gustavus Adolphus.</p>

<p>Dusquesne's, and Bowdoin's pronunciationa are tough..</p>

<p>College of the Ozarks, hmmmm?</p>

<p>What's a Catawba?</p>

<p>Bryn Mawr? Say what?</p>

<p>Just good fun, guys. Hope that no one is offended.</p>

<p>Pomona.</p>

<p>A Southern saying that expresses the plight of Mona.</p>

<p>You know Mona, don't you? She lives in the trailer down the way, drunken bum of a husband who beats her, failed to get into an Ivy, six sniveling kids at her feet. The poor woman...</p>

<p>Lynchburg is in Lynchburg, VA. </p>

<p>The Worst:
Not a fan of Bridgewater - sure, I know it's named after a place, but what is the alternative? BridgeMud?</p>

<p>Why are we all beating up on my alma mater, founded by Charles Tufts? Okay, okay, maybe there's a reason we call ourselves "Jumbos" instead of "Tuftionians." That brings up another characteristic of a "good" school - should be able to add -ian to the end without much hassle. Princetonian, Harvardian; not Colgatian.</p>

<p>Trinity. Trinity of WHAT? Holy Cross puts the "Holy" in there, so why not Holy Trinity?</p>

<p>Bates. Do they have a hotel there?</p>

<p>Eckerd. It's a drugstore, people!</p>

<p>George Mason. With GW and Georgetown in the area, why not go by "Mason" and at least be different from the other Revolutionary War namesakes in the 10 miles surrounding the DC/VA border? </p>

<p>TCNJ. Let's be a little more specific, people. </p>

<p>UC-Boulder. I always picture a big rock.</p>

<p>Fisher. Where's Price? Is Mattel opening a competing school?</p>

<p>While we all beat up on Northwestern, how about Northeastern?</p>

<p>Best name: Carnegie Mellon University... it just sounds so official.</p>

<p>Worst name: University of Pennsylvania. Seriously IT IS LIKE 100X better than Penn State so STOP THINKING UPENN = PENN STATE. Just change the name to Wharton University and be done with it.</p>

<p>Bob Jones University............................................(silence)</p>

<p>ha oh. and when I was younger, I thought Brigham Young = Bring 'Em Young. Which is to say, I thought it was a college where all the child prodigies were sent who were enrolling in college early. Which is to say, I was certainly not a..."child prodigy"</p>