University of Aldesey

The University of Aldesey

Universitas Aldesiensis
Seal of the University of Aldesey
Latin: Cancellarius Magistri et Scholares Universitatis Aldesiensis
Other name	The Chancellour, Masters and Scholars of the University at Aldesey
Motto	Omnia pro Domino
Motto in English	All for the Lord
Type	Corporation by prescription
Established	c. 8th century as a monastic school c. 1256 as a university
Religious affiliation	Church of Nortend
Endowment	~ £101,200,000
Chancellor	Cardinal Dr. William Laseby, Bishop of Chepingstow
Vice-Chancellor	Rt. Rev'd. Dr. Martin Hazel, Vicar-General of Chepingstow
Rector	Rt. W'shipful Dr Thomas Matthew
Students	~ 3,100
Location	Aldesey , Narland , Great Nortend
Language	English, Latin
Colors	Light blue   and white
Sports	Boating and fencing

The University of Aldesey, formally the Chancellour, Masters and Scholars of the University at Aldesey, is one of the three collegiate universities in Great Nortend. It is located in the town of Aldesey in Narland. It is the eldest university in Great Nortend and the second largest after the University of Limmes. The university was founded as a monastic school in the 8th or 9th centuries, and developed into a collegiate university during the 12th and 13th centuries.

It has maintained a traditional curriculum founded upon the liberal arts and the Classics since the middle ages, and all undergraduates must still study traditional classical and mediaeval texts and be fluent in Latin and Greek. Since the 19th century reforms, however, the university has broadened its academic focus, and now has well-developed scientific and humanities departments, in addition to the traditional law, medicine and theological faculties. In 1924, in a plan to improve the standard of female schoolmistresses, the University admitted its first lady students, the first woman receiving the title of Lady of Letters in 1927.

The University is mainly built upon two large natural islands in the River Lither, the Upper and Lower Eyotes, which have over the centuries has been nearly fully covered by the buildings of the university colleges, with the town of Aldesey developing on the outer banks of the river. In 2018, there were around 3,100 students studying at the University of Aldesey, divided between twenty-six colleges with around 120 students each.

Governance

Punts on the River Lither at Dumcourt Bridge.

The University as a body is divided into three nations, to which each student belongs, which determines (to an extent) which colleges are open to him. The twenty-six constituent colleges are independent and responsible for the lodging, education and nourishment of its students. Students are admitted to a college associated with the nation of their hometown through the process of Matriculation, when they formally become members of the University. Henceforth, they are bound by the University's statutes and regulations. The University's statutes, regulations and ordinances are enforced by the University's proctors, policemen and beadles, who have the power to fine and confine, and in extreme cases, to rusticate or ban (expel).

The formal corporate body of the University is known as the Great Congregation, comprised of all masters of the University, who are those students with a Master of Arts or were otherwise a Doctor of Science, Letters, Music, Physic, Laws or Divinity. It has a role in passing University's statutes and regulations, subject to the Chancellour, as well as having control over academic matters such as examinations, rustication, matriculation, the curriculum and lectures, as well as granting graces, dispensations and degrees.

The Congregation, with its large size, normally meets every three years, and delegates its powers to the smaller Minor Congregation, or Convocation of Regent Masters, who have power over academic matters though it cannot pass statutes. Statutes are deliberated upon by the Convocation, and if agreed to, referred back to the entire Congregation, which can accept it or reject it at the triennial meetings or by postal ballot.

Students

It is necessary to matriculate at an academic college or hall to be a student. The Exhibitiones are examinations taken at the end of the Sixth Form to prove scholastic competence and potential entitlement to an exhibition. This is also the examination which forms the principal basis for admission to matriculation. As only independent schools offer the Exhibitiones, state school pupils are unable to enter university by this route. However, as it is not a prerequisite to matriculation, colleges and halls may admit students at their discretion. For example, many matriculate international students, although not all.

Undergraduates are graded into seven ranks — noblemen, gentlemen, exhibitioners, commoners, battelers and servitors. Most colleges and halls have abolished servitors; however some still retain the rank. Different ranks of undergraduates are entitled to different styles of gowns and headdress which mark their status. Students are required to wear the gown of their status whenever they are in public, unless otherwise dispensed with or engaging in exempted activities (such as physical exercise). Undergraduates and their different ranks are subordinate to Bachelors and Masters of Arts, who theoretically rank as equals to bachelors and doctors of higher faculties.

Women are only admitted to Saint Elisabeth House, which was established in 1915 as the only provision for ladies when the Ladies’ University Houses Act was passed in 1923. Not being formally an academic hall or college, its female students study for the titles of Lady of Letters and Mistress of Letters only. Lady students are admitted to the University, rather than matriculate; however, they enjoy much the same status otherwise as male students.

Faculties

As with the two other Erbonian universities, the University of Aldesey has four faculties in the mediaeval university tradition, being the Faculties of Arts, Physic, Laws and Divinity. Other than monks and friars, students enter the university in the Faculty of Arts, and read for their Bachelor of Arts, and usually, for their Master of Arts, which allows them to pursue further degrees.

Faculty of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

The Bachelor of Arts (Baccalaureus Artium B. A.) degree is the most common undergraduate degree. After Matriculation, the freshman takes a short oral Minores examination de sophismatibus at the end of his first year. Thereafter the student is known as a sophist. He sits the Responsiones at the end of the second year, which include written papers in camera and a short oral viva voce examination de quaestione respondens. The student in his third year then becomes a questionist. During Lent that year, the questionist performs his Determinationes. This involves written papers in camera and oral viva voce disputations. After this, the masters vote de scientia et moribus and then the determiner „sues” for his Bachelor of Arts. Bachelors then usually take the next year off to complete his year of compulsory military service, before returning if he wishes to take his Master of Arts.

The curriculum for the Bachelor of Arts involves attendance at lectures, supplemented with repetitions (tutorials), disputations (debates) and declamations (formal submissions or readings of essays). Lectures for undergraduates are given by regent masters and involve exposition and instruction of the subject matter, as well as questions and discussion. The lectures are divided broadly into Philosophy (Ethics, Metaphysics, Logic and Natural) and History (Ancient, Biblical, Modern and Natural). Students must choose which lectures they attend, provided they attend the minimum number of lectures in each field.

Master of Arts

The academic dress of a Master of Arts.

The Master of Arts (Magister Artium M. A.) is the culmination of the four-year course in the Arts. The bachelor dedicates himself to one field of his choice, attending lectures and disputations, and giving repetitions to the undergraduates. At the end of the year or when he feels ready, the bachelor undertakes his Quodlibetica examination, which again consists of papers in camera and an oral viva voce disputation. After a vote of the masters de scientia et moribus, worthy candidates are presented to the Chancellour of the University, the Lord High Chancellour, and receive the licentia docendi. The bachelor take an oath inter alia to incept within ten years.

A Master of Arts takes a seven years to attain (“twenty-one terms after Matriculation”). By the 19th century, the licentiate took only four years to attain. However, inception still occurs at the end of the student’s twenty-first year after Matriculation. On the afternoon before, the inceptor takes part in a formal disputation known as Vesperies. The next day during mass, the new Master of Arts receives his ring and academic hood. By statute he is bound to give a brief first lecture known as his Principium, dispute for a month and lecture as a regent master for a year after inception, unless he had matriculated in a higher faculty. However, these acts are commonly dispensed with by grace.

Lady and Mistress of Letters

The titles of Lady of Letters and Mistress of Letters are given to lady students who complete a three and four year course in the Arts respectively, as for a Bachelor and Master of Arts. The principle difference is that there is a greater focus on „softer” academic topics, such as text analysis, music and visual arts, Biblical history and ethics, and less emphasis on formal logic, natural philosophy, modern history and politics. Nonetheless, lady students still receive a solid grounding in the humanities of all kinds, including Latin and some Greek.

Higher Degrees

The higher faculties are those of Laws, Physic and Divinity, in which the University admits students to bachelor's degrees and doctorates. By ancient statute all students in higher faculties must have incepted as Master of Arts first before graduating with their higher degree. A student after gaining his licentia docendi to incept may choose to matriculate in one of the higher faculties. Study for the bachelor's degree involves Collationes, Generales and Particulares examinations, the doctors voting de scientia et moribus. At the end of the third year, the student will incept as Master of Arts. Thereafter, he takes his may sue for his bachelor.

After attaining bachelorhood, the bachelor may seek to obtain a doctorate after up to another four years of study or research. He then takes his Sollempnes examinations with a thesis and public viva voce disputation. Thereafter, the doctors vote de scientia et moribus to present him to the Chancellour to receive his licentia docendi in order to allow him to incept as a doctor after several years following his Vesperies and Magisterium disputations.

Science and Letters

Further study in the Faculty of Arts is also possible in science or letters. This proceeds as a three-year course culminating in a Bachelor of Science or Letters, followed by up to four years study to become a Doctor of Science or Doctor of Letters. Doctorates are also given in music, but these are only awarded honoris causa for composition. Students generally choose a similar field as they studied for in the Master's of Arts degree, although study is progressively more by research than instruction.

Colleges

A student in college fencing colours.

The University has twenty-six colleges or halls, which are permanent independent corporate bodies. College traditions form the distinct university culture at the University of Aldersey (and at the other two Erbonian universities). Each student and master is a member of a college, and lives „in college” during his entire time at university. Furthermore, he attends repetitions, disputations and declamations in college, only going elsewhere for lectures. With only around 120 students per college, the college becomes the student's „university family”.

Each college has its own college colours, songs, celebrations and sporting teams. The main sports are academic fencing and boating (rowing), although the school games including stinning and cricket continue to be popular recreations. Daily activities of collegemen including compulsory attendance at chapel at Mattins and Vespers wearing surplices instead of gown. After Mattins and breakfast in college, students attend lectures in the morning. Then after luncheon, they may have repetitions, disputations and declamations in college. After Vespers students are forbidden to leave college. On Saturdays there are no academic activities, whilst on Sundays, students, depending on the college, are expected to attend Tierce, High Mass and Compline in chapel as well. Each college also has its own Officer Cadet company, for students completing their muster service.

Students usually wear their college colours in college. The colours, which form a uniform of sorts, include at its minimum the college cap and the college gown. There are special tunics and breeches for fencing and blazers and shorts for rowing. When otherwise in casual dress, the college tie or college scarf may also be worn. At lectures and university examinations and ceremonies, academic dress must be worn instead, including black tailcoat, bands, academic square cap and college gown.

Saint Elisabeth Hall, the hall for women, is not a college, but functions effectively as one. Naturally there are different recreations, and lady students do not fence or row, or participate in armed service. They still are bound to attend chapel multiple times daily. There are no college colours; however, academic dress consisting of a gown and type of bonnet is worn.

List

The twenty-six colleges and halls are listed below by nation, any associated common school in brackets. Saint Elisabeth Hall is not part of any nation.

Chepingstow (Locumforiensis)

Students from Middle Erbonia and Lorecia.

• Staithey College
• Clairiddel College
• Tilley and Eversham College
• Lady (Annunciation) College
• Wistfin College (Chepingstow School)
• Middle College
• Polchard's College
• New College
• Old College (Martinhall School)

Ostrey (Australis)

Students from Lesser Erbonia and Teudallum.

• All Saints’ College
• Bailmorden College
• West College
• Buckgate College (St Arnold's School)
• Christ's College
• Saint Peter ad Vincula College
• Cholstave College (Allord College)
• Dryard College

Hoebride (Hambriensis)

Students of Hambria and elsewhere.

• Goldman's College
• Holy Ghost College
• Blasius College
• Holy Trinity College
• Mancourt College
• Saint Lucy College (Siel College)
• Flemey College (Flemey School)
• Prince's College

See also

• Education in Great Nortend