Many books and other works of fiction are set in, or refer to, fictional universities.[1] [2] These have been said to "feature abundantly, persistently, and increasingly in popular culture texts"[3] and in an "array of media including novels, television, film, comic books, and video games".[4] This list includes identifiable fictional universities or other institutions appearing to offer degree-level qualifications. Individual Oxbridge colleges (i.e. parts of the English universities of Oxford and Cambridge) are not included as there are separate lists of these.
| University name | Creator | Original medium | Location | Comments | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banting University | scriptwriters | TV | Canada | The prestigious, highly selective Banting University is located in Kingston, Ontario. It becomes a setting for Paige Michalchuk's storylines in season 6 of . | ||
| data-sort-value="Bantshire" | University of Bantshire | data-sort-value="zzza" | Anonymous | Internet | UK | Parody website and Twitter feed commenting on UK Higher Education, described as "the Banksy of the education social media world".[5] [6] [7] |
| Borchester University | data-sort-value="zzzv" | Various | Other | UK: England | Name used to disguise a university which was the subject of Angela Thody's 2012 study of emeritus professors.[8] [9] [10] The University is also used as an example in a variety of teaching materials for language learning.[11] [12] Borchester is the fictional county town of fictional Borsetshire, in the English Midlands, scene of the long-running BBC Radio series The Archers. | |
| data-sort-value="Bums" | The University of Bums on Seats | data-sort-value="cynical" | Cynicalbastards.com | Internet | UK: England | "Formerly Peckham Polytechnic". A satirical invention reflecting the changing UK Higher Education system, online since at least 2001.[13] [14] |
| data-sort-value=Burston1 | Burston Central University | data-sort-value="cooper" | Chris Cooper (pseudonym) | Internet | UK: England | Also the associated "University College of North Burston". Not to be confused with "The University of Burston" (established 1863) in the same town. Setting of The Unknown Tutor, published in December 2012 in the "Wading Through Treacle" blog and later republished. Burston is 4 hours' drive from Prestatyn in north Wales, but otherwise unlocated.[15] [16] |
| data-sort-value=Burston2 | University of Burston | data-sort-value="cooper" | Chris Cooper (pseudonym) | Internet | UK: England | Established 1863 and not to be confused with Burston Central University in the same town. Featured in The Unknown Tutor, published in December 2012 in the "Wading Through Treacle" blog and later republished. |
| data-sort-value=Carrbridge | University of Carrbridge | Examiners in the Natural Sciences Tripos at the University of Cambridge | Other | UK: Scotland | Carrbridge is a village in the Scottish Highlands. The university and its Porterhouse College featured in statistics questions in Cambridge Natural Sciences Tripos examination papers at least from 2008 to 2011.[17] | |
| Cheng Dong University | data-sort-value="In a Good Way" | In a Good Way scriptwriters | TV | Taiwan | Setting for the TV series In a Good Way[18] | |
| Christminster University | data-sort-value="Hardy, Thomas" | Thomas Hardy | Novel | UK: England | Jude's destination in Jude the Obscure, based on Oxford[19] | |
| Clyde University | data-sort-value="Sea of Souls" | Sea of Souls scriptwriter | TV | UK: Scotland | The Clyde is Glasgow river. Clyde's Department of Parapsychology is the setting for this BBC TV series written by David Kane. Jordanhill College, Glasgow, was used to represent the university in exterior shots.[20] [21] | |
| Dartmouth University | data-sort-value="Bain, Sam" | Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong | TV | UK: England | The former university of main characters Mark and Jeremy in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show. Not to be confused with Dartmouth College. | |
| data-sort-value="Edgestow" | University of Edgestow | data-sort-value="Lewis, C. S." | C. S. Lewis | Novel | UK: England | In the novel That Hideous Strength; had four colleges: Bracton College, Northumberland College, Dukes College, St. Elizabeth's College.[22] Lewis described the fictional Edgestow as a small university town more beautiful than either Cambridge or Oxford.[23] |
| Euphoric State University | Novel | US | Located in the fictional town of Plotinus in the fictional state of Euphoria, the employer of Morris Zapp who makes an academic exchange with Philip Swallow of Rummidge, England, in Changing Places.[24] | |||
| Felpersham University | data-sort-value="Archers" | The Archers scriptwriters | Radio | UK: England | University in the fictional cathedral city of Felpersham in Borsetshire, attended by several characters from the long-running BBC radio series The Archers.[25] [26] | |
| data-sort-value="Fibchester" | Fibchester University | National Union of Students | Other | UK: England | Subject of case studies in NUS training courses[27] [28] | |
| data-sort-value="Gallifrey" | Doctor Who scriptwriters | TV | Extraterrestrial | Located on fictional planet Gallifrey, source of the Thirteenth Doctor's doctorate. Merchandise available on eBay and Etsy indicates that it was established in 1963 and known as "Time Lord Academy".[29] | ||
| data-sort-value="Gloucester" | data-sort-value="Lodge, David" | Novel | UK: England | Setting of Thinks ... [30] Not to be confused with the real University of Gloucestershire. | ||
| data-sort-value="Hilldene" | University of Hilldene | data-sort-value="Rendell, Ruth" | Ruth Rendell | TV | UK: England | Alma mater of DI Burden's daughter Pat in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries episode The Mouse in the Corner; filmed at Southampton[31] |
| data-sort-value="Inverdoon" | University of Inverdoon | data-sort-value="Linklater, Eric" | Eric Linklater | Novel | UK: Scotland | The protagonist of Linklater's semi-autobiographical White Maa's Saga attends medical school at this Scottish university, either identified as University of Aberdeen or set in a town which is "a thinly veiled combination of Aberdeen and Inverness".[32] [33] |
| data-sort-value="Dillon" | Novel | Ireland | Dublin based setting for novels including Death in the Quadrangle (Faber, 1956; republished 2009)[34] [35] | |||
| Kirke University | data-sort-value="Campus" | Campus scriptwriters | TV | UK: England | Setting for the semi-improvised sitcom Campus[36] | |
| data-sort-value="Limerick" | University College Limerick | data-sort-value="Lodge, David" | Novel | Ireland | Employer of a character in Small World [37] | |
| Lowlands University | data-sort-value="Davies, Andrew" | TV | UK: England | Setting for A Very Peculiar Practice[38] Possibly based on Warwick. | ||
| Manchester Medlock University | data-sort-value="Fresh Meat" | Fresh Meat scriptwriters | TV | UK: England | Setting of TV comedy series Fresh Meat[39] The Medlock is a river in Greater Manchester. | |
| data-sort-value="Maximegalon" | University of Maximegalon | data-sort-value="Adams, Douglas" | Radio | Extraterrestrial | From the BBC Radio series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.[40] | |
| data-sort-value="Muri" | data-sort-value="Benjamin, Walter" | Other | Switzerland/Germany | Fabrication of a university through various references and fake documents as an extended satire on academic procedures.[41] [42] | ||
| data-sort-value="North Norfolk" | University of North Norfolk | data-sort-value="Griffiths, Elly" | Elly Griffiths | Novel | UK: England | The title character of Griffiths' Ruth Galloway series heads the department of forensic archaeology at this university near King's Lynn, Norfolk (which is not in North Norfolk local authority district).[43] [44] |
| data-sort-value="North Yorkshire" | data-sort-value="Parry, Susan" | Susan Parry | Novel | UK: England | Near Harrogate. Features in the novel Grand Depart (2013, Viridian Publishing,) and other books by the same author, as the employer of central character Dr Millie Sanderson.[45] | |
| data-sort-value="Norwich" | University of Norwich | data-sort-value="Frayn, Michael" | Film | UK: England | In the 1986 film Clockwise, written by Frayn and directed by Christopher Morahan, headmaster Brian Stimpson (Cleese) sets off to deliver a speech at this fictional university[46] Scenes depicting the university were filmed at King Edward's School, Birmingham and the University of Birmingham.[47] Not to be confused with the real University of East Anglia established 1963 in Norwich, or the real Norwich University of the Arts which gained university status in 2013. | |
| Oxbridge University | data-sort-value="Thackeray, William Makepeace" | William Makepeace Thackeray | Novel | UK: England | Location of the St Boniface College attended by the eponymous hero of Thackeray's novel Pendennis.[48] The Oxford English Dictionary defines Oxbridge as "Originally: A fictional university" and cites Thackeray as its earliest reference.[49] The term is now more commonly used as a portmanteau term for the English universities of Oxford and Cambridge. | |
| Pennbrook University | Boy Meets World scriptwriters | TV | US | Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Pennbrook University is the fictional institution of which the main characters of Boy Meets World attend beginning in season 5. The university becomes a main setting for the remainder of the series. It is believed to be based on Saint Joseph's University and the University of Pennsylvania.[50] | ||
| Poltowan University | data-sort-value="Smith, Nicola K." | Nicola K. Smith | Novel | UK: England | Set in a fictional town somewhere west of Falmouth, Cornwall, this university is the setting for Smith's 2019 novel A Degree of Uncertainty (Compass,) featuring tensions between students and residents.[51] | |
| data-sort-value="Poppleton" | Poppleton University | data-sort-value="Taylor, Laurie" | Newspaper | UK: England | Nether Poppleton and Upper Poppleton are real villages just outside York. Also used by HESA as an example in official documentation[52] [53] | |
| Rummidge University | data-sort-value="Lodge, David" | Novel | UK: England | Setting of the Campus Trilogy: Changing Places, Small World and Nice Work "A thinly-veiled portrait of Birmingham".[54] | ||
| data-sort-value="Saint Luke's University " | St Luke's University | Doctor Who scriptwriters | TV | UK: England | Fictional university in Bristol where the Twelfth Doctor taught and Bill Potts worked, first appearing in series 10, episode one The Pilot. Filming used the buildings of Cardiff University.[55] | |
| data-sort-value="Saint Rule's" | St Rule's University | data-sort-value="Oliphant, Margaret" | Story | UK: Scotland | Setting of Oliphant's 1896 short story "The Library Window", based on University of St Andrews.[56] | |
| data-sort-value="Saint Sebastian's" | St Sebastian's University | data-sort-value="zzza" | Anonymous | Novel | UK: England | Setting of A Campus Conspiracy, published anonymously in 2006 but attributed to Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok.[57] [58] |
| Scumbag College | data-sort-value="Young Ones" | The Young Ones scriptwriters | TV | UK: England | College attended (or not) by the four flat-sharing students in 1980s BBC TV series The Young Ones, written by Ben Elton, Rik Mayall and Lise Mayer. A highlight was the four's appearance as the college's team on TV quiz show University Challenge confronting Footlights College, Oxbridge.[59] [60] | |
| Meme | China | A non-existent Chinese university with fair admissions policies, reasonable fees, great teaching and otherwise Utopian. | ||||
| Skerryvore University | data-sort-value="Bridie, James" | Play | UK: Scotland | A Scottish university, the setting of Bridie's 1939 play What Say They?, which was adapted into the 1952 comedy film You're Only Young Twice.[61] [62] Skerryvore is an uninhabited island off the west of Scotland, beyond Tiree. | ||
| Smithdale University | scriptwriters | TV | Canada | The fictional university attended by several characters in . Based on and filmed at York University in Toronto, Ontario. | ||
| Streeling University | data-sort-value="Asimov, I" | Isaac Asimov | Novel | Trantor | Workplace of Hari Seldon and the other psychohistorians, Book: Foundation. Issac Asimov. | |
| Sweet Valley University | data-sort-value="Pascal, Francine" | Francine Pascal | Novel | US | Setting for 63 YA novels by Pascal and ghost-writers (published 1993-2000), part of the Sweet Valley High franchise.[63] | |
| data-sort-value=Tayside | University of Tayside | Traces scriptwriters | TV | UK: Scotland | Located in Dundee, Scotland, and hosts the Scottish Institute of Forensic Science and Anatomy (SIFA), the setting for the seriesTraces, made by Alibi and shown on BBC One. Filming locations include University of Bolton.[64] Also branded as "Tayside University".[65] | |
| Toronto University | scriptwriters | TV | Canada | A fictional public university from the Canadian teen drama series . Based on the University of Toronto, this institution is where numerous Degrassi graduates attend for higher education. As its name suggests, it's located in Toronto, Ontario. | ||
| Tuktoyaktuk University | data-sort-value="zzza" | Anonymous | Clothing | Canada: NWT | A clothing manufacturer in the real Tuktoyaktuk, a hamlet in Canada's Northwest Territories, sold celebrated teeshirts and sweatshirts from this fictional institution.[66] [67] | |
| data-sort-value="Pratchett, Terry" | Novel | Extraterrestrial | In the city of Ankh-Morpork on Discworld.[68] | |||
| Watermouth University | data-sort-value="Bradbury, Malcolm" | Novel | UK: England | Setting of The History Man; "bears more than a passing resemblance to the University of East Anglia"[69] | ||
| Weissnichtwo University | data-sort-value="Carlyle, Thomas" | Thomas Carlyle | Novel | Germany | This home institution of main character Professor Diogenes Teufelsdröckh is the backdrop of the ironic treament of then contemporary German philosophical currents in the 1831 novel Sartor Resartus.[70] | |
| Wetherton University | data-sort-value="Hill, Reginald" | Reginald Hill | TV | UK: England | The local university is mentioned in some episodes of Dalziel and Pascoe, the BBC TV series set in fictional Wetherton, Yorkshire.[71] [72] | |
| Wetwang University | data-sort-value="Yorkshire Post" | Yorkshire Post columnist? | Newspaper | UK: England | Wetwang is a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire[73] | |
| Winchester University | data-sort-value="Simien, Justin" | Justin Simien | Film | US | The 2014 film Dear White People is set in this fictional Ivy League university.[74] Not to be confused with the real University of Winchester in England. | |
| Wrottesley Polytechnic | data-sort-value="Jacobson, Howard" | Howard Jacobson | Novel | UK: England | Sefton Goldberg, the central character of Jacobson's 1980 novel Coming From Behind, is an unhappy lecturer at this English polytechnic "somewhere in the debased and deteriorating Midlands".[75] [76] Inspired by Jacobson's experiences as a lecturer at Wolverhampton Polytechnic.[77] | |
| Ziggoreth University | data-sort-value="Asimov, I" | Isaac Asimov | Novel | Ziggoreth | In co-operative nephelometric research with Streeling University (q.v.). Book: Foundation. Issac Asimov. |
Note that the red brick university in England in which Kingsley Amis sets Lucky Jim is unnamed.