universities

The improved literacy and communications of the Renaissance era went hand-inhand with an increasing respect for intellectual training for professions such as medicine, theology, and the law. To create well-rounded and educated citizens, major universities were established throughout western Europe: at Ferrara, Turin, and Parma in Italy; Bordeaux and Nantes in France; Copenhagen and Uppsala in Scandinavia; Frankfurt and Tubingen in Germany; Saragossa and Valencia in Spain; and at Kraków, Poland. The University of Paris, which taught the liberal arts and theology, remained the model for institutions throughout northern Europe, awarding bachelor's degrees and training students of the upper classes—all male—in a fundamental classical learning of grammar, rhetoric, and ethics.

For cities and their lords, the university was a mark of prestige. It represented advanced thinking, enlightened rule, the new trend of humanistic learning and scholarship, and the generous patronage of town fathers and aristocrats. Universities competed for renowned professors, who in turn attracted the best scholars. Members of the expanding middle class, at the same time, sought out higher education for their sons, who trained themselves in the law, medicine, and for careers as administrators and diplomats. The University of Bologna in northern Italy became a center for the study of the revived Roman law,

Within the university, students attended lectures by professors, who spoke and debated in Latin. The courses relied on the teachings of ancient philosophers such as Aristotle, Galen, Hippocrates, and the Arab scientist Avicenna. Following the humanistic philosophy, students critically examined classical texts, studying the original language, whether Greek or Latin, in order to get at the intended meaning. This was an important break with medieval higher education, in which professors simply handed down the accepted traditional interpretation of the ancient texts and students were discouraged from critical thinking.

After a course of study, the student was put through a degree examination by professors and scholars, who tested his mastery of the subject and his ability to defend his ideas in open debate. The bachelor's degree enabled further study, while the master's was a license to teach. The doctorate was awarded for scholars devoted to the study of a particular field and the contribution of original knowledge to that field. Most universities during the Renaissance had several hundred students, while the largest at Bologna and Paris had a few thousand. Students within the universities organized themselves according to their homelands. At the largest universities these student unions held considerable power, making demands for better working and living conditions and in some places passing on the hiring of new professors by the university.

See Also: Aristotelianism; humanism