More schools than Pitt in Pittsburgh

The beauty of attending an urban university is that there is always something to do and… The beauty of attending an urban university is that there is always something to do and somewhere else to go for a change of scenery. Though Pitt boasts the city’s name in its title, there are several other universities in the ‘Burgh, all worthy of exploration.

Here are a few within or just outside of Pitt’s Oakland neighborhood:

Carlow University

Originally called Mount Mercy College upon its opening in 1929, Carlow University was an all-women’s campus. After World War II under the GI Bill, the university began admitting men and changed its name in 1969.

Today, 95 percent of the Catholic university’s 1,565 undergraduates are women.

Carlow is located at 3333 Fifth Ave., on the outskirts of Pitt’s campus.

The school is liberal arts-based and divided into schools of natural science and mathematics, humanities, management, nursing, social change and education.

Carnegie Mellon University

Walk down Forbes Avenue, past Schenley Plaza and the Carnegie Science Center, and you will hit the perpendicular-running Craig Street, the unofficial intersection of Pitt’s campus and Carnegie Mellon University. The street of eclectic shops and restaurants has recently become the subject of attention for CMU administration as they throw out ideas of annexing the area, making it part of their campus.

But continue on and you’ll reach the official home of the 5,849 undergraduate Tartans. CMU’s campus is hard to miss with its sprawling lawn. The university, best known for its computer science and technology programs, also offers an array of other specialized undergraduate degrees.

Aside from its state-of-the-art Robotics Institute and its discoveries, CMU has hit the headlines most recently because of the words of computer science professor Randy Pausch.

Pausch, who has outlived the projection given by doctors when diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, delivered his final lecture last fall. Media around the world caught wind of his words about life in its waning moments, and he has become both a local celebrity and inspiration around the globe.

Chatham University

Located in Shadyside, Chatham University is the broad title under which three distinct schools can be found: Chatham College for Women, College for Graduate Studies and College for Continuing and Professional Studies.

Chatham College for Women is home to 875 female undergraduate students. It is a liberal arts college founded in 1869 as Pennsylvania Female College with the intention of empowering women.

Chatham College offers more than 30 majors. Bachelors’ degrees are only awarded to women but in the two other schools – both of which offer post-baccalaureate degrees – are awarded to both men and women.

Recently, the university accepted a donation of the 388 acres of Eden Hall Farm in Richland Township, Pa., from the Eden Hall Foundation. This will make Chatham University the largest campus in Allegheny County.

Duquesne University

Duquesne sits on the outskirts of Downtown Pittsburgh. Atop the Bluffs in Uptown, the private Catholic university overlooks the Monongahela River.

Ten schools of studies are offered to the undergraduate population of 5,837. Each, respectively, specializes in business administration, natural and environmental sciences, music, pharmacy, health sciences, education, law, leadership and professional advancement, nursing and liberal arts.

The Spiritans, a missionary group of Roman Catholic priests that formed in Paris in 1703, founded Duquesne in 1878.

The Tamburitzans, a multicultural song-and-dance group that was formed in 1937, began at Duquesne and is currently the nation’s oldest company of its kind, according to the school’s Web site.

Duquesne is also home to the NCAA Division-I Dukes.

For those who are not opposed to braving the territory outside of Oakland and its immediate surroundings, there are several other schools in and around the city of Pittsburgh. They include the Community College of Allegheny County, La Roche College in the North Hills, Downtown’s Point Park University and Robert Morris University in Moon Township.