The University of Toronto (U of T, or simply Toronto) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated north of the city’s Financial District on the grounds that surround Queen’s Park. It was founded by Royal Charter in 1827 as King’s College, the first institution of higher learning in the colony of Upper Canada. Originally controlled by the Church of England, the university assumed the present name in 1850 upon becoming a secular institution. As a collegiate university, it comprises twelve colleges that differ in character and history, each retaining substantial autonomy on financial and institutional affairs.

Academically, the University of Toronto is noted for influential movements and curricula in literary criticism and communication theory, known collectively as the Toronto School. The university was the birthplace of insulin and stem cell research, and was the site of the first practical electron microscope, the development of multi-touch technology, the identification of Cygnus X-1 as a black hole, and the theory of NP completeness. By a significant margin, it receives the most annual research funding of any Canadian university.

The Varsity Blues are the athletic teams that represent the university in intercollegiate league matches, with particularly long and storied ties to gridiron football and ice hockey. The university’s Hart House is an early example of the North American student centre, simultaneously serving cultural, intellectual and recreational interests within its large Gothic-revival complex.

The University of Toronto ranked as the nation’s top medical-doctoral university in Maclean’s magazine for twelve consecutive years between 1994 and 2005, and places 24th in the Academic Ranking of World Universities, 18th in the Newsweek global university ranking, and 29th overall in the Times Higher Education ranking. The university has educated two Governors General and four Prime Ministers of Canada, four foreign leaders, fourteen Justices of the Supreme Court, and has been affiliated with nine Nobel laureates.

University of Toronto
Latin: Universitas Torontonensis
Motto Velut arbor ævo (Latin)
Motto in English As a tree through the ages
Established March 15, 1827
Type Public university
Endowment C$1.286 billion
Chancellor David Peterson
President David Naylor
Faculty 2,551
Staff 4,795
Undergraduates 33,371
Postgraduates 11,638
Location Toronto, Ontario, Canada
43°39′42″N 79°23′42″W / 43.66167°N 79.395°W / 43.66167; -79.395Coordinates: 43°39′42″N 79°23′42″W / 43.66167°N 79.395°W / 43.66167; -79.395
Campus Urban, 71 hectares (176 acres)
Former names King’s College (1827–1849)
Colours Blue White
Nickname Varsity Blues
Athletics CIS, OUA, CUFLA
44 varsity teams
Affiliations AAU, ACU, AUCC, G13, IAU, URA, WUN
Website utoronto.ca

York supports a student population of approximately 60,000 and staff of 7,000, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. It has eleven faculties, including the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Schulich School of Business, Osgoode Hall Law School, Glendon College, Faculty of Fine Arts, Faculty of Health and the Faculty of Environmental Studies, as well as 24 research centres.

York University has always enjoyed a strong participation in the Canadian Space Program. The Faculty of Science and Engineering is Canada’s primary research facility into Martian exploration and has designed several space research instruments and applications currently used by NASA.

York University

Motto: Tentanda via
(“The way must be tried”)
Established: 1959
Type: Public
Endowment: $306 million (CAD)
Chancellor: Roy McMurtry
President: Mamdouh Shoukri
Staff: 7,000
Undergraduates: 45,890
Postgraduates: 4,796
Location: Toronto, ON, Canada
Campus: Urban / suburban, 2.17 km²
Sports teams: York Lions
Colours: Red and white
Affiliations: AUCC, IAU, COU, CIS, OUA, CUSID, Fields Institute, Ontario Network of Women in engineering, CBIE, CUP.
Website: yorku.ca