Worcester College Challenge

Worcester has nine colleges and universities. The oldest, founded in 1843, is the College of the Holy Cross, the oldest Roman Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest in the U.S. Worcester Polytechnic Institute (1865) has strengths in engineering and biotechnology. Clark University, founded in 1887, is located in the Main South area. It has historic strengths in psychology and geography. The University of Massachusetts Medical School (1970) and the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences - Worcester Campus (2000) are relative newcomers to the city. The University of Massachusetts Medical School is ranked fourth in primary care education among America's 125 medical schools in the 2006 U.S. News & World Report annual guide "America’s Best Graduate Schools."^[10] Other colleges and universities located in Worcester include Worcester State College, Assumption College, and Quinsigamond Community College. Defunct institutions include Oread Institute (closed 1934), Worcester Junior College (merged with Nichols College-1989), and Central New England College (closed 1989).

Many of these institutions participate in the Colleges of Worcester Consortium. This independent non-profit collegiate association operates and facilitates cooperation among the colleges and universities. One example is its inter-college shuttle bus and student cross registration. The consortium includes all academic institutions in Worcester County, whether within or outside the city boundaries.