# to the school...to the university



## NeNuN

Alguien me puede explicar por qué no se dice:
-I', going to *the* school or I'm in *the* university
-I'm at *the* school or I'm at *the* university

No estamos hablando de un colegio o universidad en general sino de la *mia*

Cuando voy o estoy en algun sitio ¿cuándo se pone the y cuando no? No lo entiendo...

Gracias de antemano


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## horsewishr

I'm not sure if by "going to" you mean "asistir" or "va hacia"  (I would interpret it as asistir)

If you said "I'm going to the university" I would ask you "Which one??"  The University of Michigan??  The University of Florida??  For what it's worth, in the US, we don't say "I'm in the university.  We say "I'm in college."

If you're in a car, driving toward the University, you'd say "I'm going to the University."


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## NeNuN

horsewishr said:


> I'm not sure if by "going to" you mean "asistir" or "va hacia"  (I would interpret it as asistir)
> 
> If you said "I'm going to the university" I would ask you "Which one??"  The University of Michigan??  The University of Florida??  For what it's worth, in the US, we don't say "I'm in the university.  We say "I'm in college."
> 
> If you're in a car, driving toward the University, you'd say "I'm going to the University."



I'm going to the university : voy a la universidad or college i don't care.
But you say: i'm in the college or i'm al the college

Prepositions are my personal nightmare!!!

but what I really know is if you put "the" or not. Go to the school or go to school...this is muy real doubt


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## Dama_J

Hi NeNuN: There are lots of different structures with these, but in general:

"I'm at *the* university" or "I'm at *the* school" --> This refers to a specific school, but NOT your own. As mentioned above, the logical response is "which one?" unless the person knows which university you're talking about.  
E.g. you're scheduled to give a speech at an elementary school; your friend knows that but calls you: "Oh, hi! I'm already at the school; can I call you back?".

"I'm at school" = I'm currently at *my* school or university -- the one I normally attend or teach at (In Canada, at least -- this is what I would say if I was on my university's campus). Likewise: "John is at school" = he is at *his* school/university.

I go to university. I go to school. I'm in school. --> these mean that I study at a school or university, in general -- it could be any one.

Espero que te ayude!


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## NeNuN

Dama_J said:


> Hi NeNuN: There are lots of different structures with these, but in general:
> 
> "I'm at *the* university" or "I'm at *the* school" --> This refers to a specific school, but NOT your own. As mentioned above, the logical response is "which one?" unless the person knows which university you're talking about.
> E.g. you're scheduled to give a speech at an elementary school; your friend knows that but calls you: "Oh, hi! I'm already at the school; can I call you back?".
> 
> "I'm at school" = I'm currently at *my* school or university -- the one I normally attend or teach at (In Canada, at least -- this is what I would say if I was on my university's campus). Likewise: "John is at school" = he is at *his* school/university.
> 
> I go to university. I go to school. I'm in school. --> these mean that I study at a school or university, in general -- it could be any one.
> 
> Espero que te ayude!



Muchísimas gracias!!!!very clear!!! I think I can difference each one now!


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## ogeido

Hi all,

I know this discussion is pretty old , however, there's something that's still not clear to me after reading it .

When I want to express that I'm at my school / college ,etc..( the one I normally go to ) but laying emphasis on it as a physical place , would it be correct to include *the definite article* ?:

1 ) Today I had to go to *the* college/ university _( meaning the college I attend everyday ) _to take my last exam.

2 ) ( on the phone) ... *A *says :" what are doing ? " -*B* : " I'm at *the* college / university waiting for my Anatomy class..."

3) Today I had to go (on)to *the* campus to take my last exam = Today I had to go to *the* college / university to.....  ( I guess these sentences convey the same message and are correct.

Are the exmaples above correct ? if not , how would you express the same idea ?

Thank you in advance .


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## ogeido

can someone please help me out ? 

thank you


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## inib

Ogeido, personally I wouldn't use "the" in your sentences 1 and 2, even in the specific situations that you mention.
I use a slightly different way of explaining it, which seems to work generally:-
You don't use the article with the words school/university/college, prison/jail, bed, hospital and church/mosque if you go there, or are there to do what one normally does there - this means that you study at school - that includes taking exams, stay in prison when you've committed a crime, sleep in bed , stay in hospital when you are ill and go to church to attend mass/a service.
Examples:
The children are at school (If nobody tells us the contrary, we assume they are studying)
I was in hospital for 2 weeks when I had appendicitis
The thief was sent to prison for 9 months
I go to church every Sunday
I go to bed at 11 o'clock
BUT we use the article when you are in/go to these places for a different motive
Examples:
My mother went to *the* school to talk to my teacher
She works at *the* hospital 3 days a week
I went to *the* prison to visit my father
She went back to *the* church to look for her lost earring
The doctor told me to lie on *the* bed
To be honest, I can't quite make up my mind about your "campus" example.
Hope it helps


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## ogeido

Thank you very much , Inib.

Inspite of the fact that I already knew the things you have explained in your post above, I was wondering how to express a situation where you are at school/ college ,etc, and you are referring to your school, hospital, whatever, as _your current location or as the physical building you are at_ and not precisely meaning that you are there studying , as a patient, etc... It was a bit hard to explain , however, thanks to your reply it's clear now .

As for " on (the) campus" , It's usually said by Americans, so it was likely to sound unfamiliar to you. 

Thank you once again for taking the time to answer.

Regards.

PS: My doubt arose after reading another similar thread where a native English speaker said that " at / in the college " could mean that you are currently at  (your) college ( laying emphasis on "college" as the physical building where you currently are , rather than the activity it implies.

here's the link in case you would like to take a look :

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=634984


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## inib

I'd also like to point out, Ogeido, that my reply was meant to be an addition to, not a contradiction of the above replies in this thread...just in case this was not clear.
Actually, the thread you have linked seems a bit more confusing to me because it mixes the issue of the article with _in_ vs _at_, and the different uses of _college_, according to different countries.
Because of these international (and maybe even regional differences) maybe not everybody will agree with me, but returning to one of your sentences...



> 1 ) Today I had to go to *the* college/ university _( meaning the college I attend everyday ) _to take my last exam.


...I maintain that I wouldn't use _*the*_, unless I were talking about a centre that is not my habitual one (the one where I'm enrolled).
The same goes for your sentence 2.


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## ogeido

thank you once more, Inib. You've been very kind to read and reply to my questions.

Regards.


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## gengo

Ogeido, I think it is different in the UK, but in the US we usually say "school" for everything from kindergarten up to a university graduate program.  Therefore, we don't use an article for the cases you mention, most of the time.

Using your examples:
1) Today I had to go to school (meaning the college I attend everyday) to take my last exam.
2) (on the phone) ... A: What are you doing? B: I'm at school waiting for my anatomy class.

This is how most Americans would say these.  However, there are situations in which we use the article.  For example, "to be at school" usually means to be there during normal hours, taking classes.  If, however, you went there for a basketball game in the evening, you would say "John is at *the* school."  This means that he is in the physical location of the school, but not attending classes.


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## ogeido

Thank you , Gengo, Your explanation is very helpful.

By the way, Have you ever heard something like : Yesterday I went *to campus* to hand in my essay ?, I ran across this in another thread and I had never heard of that before reading that thread. From what I understood it could be used in a similar way as School, e.g.:

Yesterday I went to school ( or *campus*, college, etc,) to hand in my essay.

Thank you so much for your help.

Regards.


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## gengo

No, I haven't, but it's possible that some people say it that way.  I would always use an article before campus.


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## AndresTM

A lo que ya se ha dicho quiero añadir, ogeido, que _según mi experiencia_ la frase "on the campus" tiene un uso más limitado que "on campus." "On campus" es usada con mucha frecuencia, especialmente cuando estás hablando con alguien que, como tú, va al campus universitario con frecuencia, y no necesariamente sólo para realizar actividades académicas.
—John, I've been looking for you like a madman! The play starts in an hour—are you even _on campus_?
—No, I'm in prison. I'll fill you in on the details the minute I get out.

"In college" (sin artículo) se usa para referirse a la cualidad de estar matriculado en una universidad:
—Are you in college?
—No, I'm working for my dad's company.
O:
—When he was in college, he used to think he was the smartest guy on the planet.
"In college" se usa aun si tu universidad no se llama "* College" (e.g., Boston College, Amherst College). Yo estudié en Northwestern University, pero aun así digo "when I was in college," no "when I was in university" o "in the university" 

No te preocupes si se te antoja muy complicado el tema. El inglés es my simple para unas cosas, pero bastante poco intuitivo en otras


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## ogeido

gengo said:


> No, I haven't, but it's possible that some people say it that way.  I would always use an article before campus.



In that thread , it is even suggested that it could be " on campus" with no article whatsoever, but according to what you say it's probably a regional thing. So I shouldn't attach too much importance to it.

Thank you once more for your great help.

Saludos.


PS: here's the link to the aforementioned thread  just in case you would like to have a look:

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=2202389 ( post # 7)


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## ogeido

Gracias Andres, al momento de publicar mi mensaje no vi que habías respondido.

De verdad muy buena tu ayuda.

Saludos.


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## gengo

ogeido said:


> In that thread , it is even suggested that it could be " on campus" with no article whatsoever, but according to what you say it's probably a regional thing.



I wasn't referring to that thread, but to ogeido's question about "went to campus."  I have NEVER heard that used, and I don't think anyone says it.  "On campus" is a different matter, and it is indeed used, in the sense of "on school property."


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## ogeido

gengo said:


> I wasn't referring to that thread, but to ogeido's question about "went to campus."  I have NEVER heard that used, and I don't think anyone says it.  "On campus" is a different matter, and it is indeed used, in the sense of "on school property."



Hi, Gengo,

I knew you were referring to my question and not to that thread , But I pointed it out because all that  "on/to-campus" issue appears there, particularly in one specific post by an american forero.

Thank you once again for your great inputs.


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## gengo

Disculpa, ogeido, ni me di cuenta de que estaba contestando tu mensaje.  Hoy estoy muy espeso (aun más que siempre).


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## ogeido

gengo said:


> Disculpa, ogeido, ni me di cuenta de que estaba contestando tu mensaje.  Hoy estoy muy espeso (aun más que siempre).



No te preocupes, pues como siempre, estoy agradecido de tus respuestas.

Saludos.


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## ribran

gengo said:


> I wasn't referring to that thread, but to ogeido's question about "went to campus."  I have NEVER heard that used , and I don't think anyone says it.



I'm from a big college town, and no one here would bat an eye at it...


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## gengo

ribran said:


> I'm from a big college town and no one here would bat an eye at it...



It was probably an overstatement to say that no one says it, because I guess it wouldn't sound that bad, but I still can't imagine myself saying it unless there were some specific reason for specifying the campus, as opposed to the school.

I mean, if someone asked you where you had gone, and you had gone to the university library, which of the following would you be more apt to say?

I went to the school.
I went to campus.

Of course, you might say something else, but I want to know which of these two you would choose.  With the preposition "on," I often use "campus."  He lives on campus, they eat on campus, etc.  But not with "to."  That was my point.


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## ribran

_I went to campus_, without a doubt.


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## gengo

ribran said:


> _I went to campus_, without a doubt.



Learn something new every day.  That sounds horrible to my ear, but there you go.


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## ribran

gengo said:


> Learn something new every day.  That sounds horrible to my ear, but there you go.



Well das jus' how we say it.


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## ogeido

Now that " campus " has been brought up again , I'd like to be sure of its use.

Is it the same to say " I went to campus in the morning " and " I went to college/ school in the morning "?

Can "campus" replace the word "college " in contexts like that?


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## gengo

ogeido said:


> Is it the same to say " I went to campus in the morning " and " I went to college/ school in the morning "?
> 
> Can "campus" replace the word "college " in contexts like that?



You will get different answers from ribran and me, but I will say that "go to college" is never (in my part of the world) used to mean going to the physical location, but rather is used to mean attending college in general.

So, I would say:
I went to college in California.
I went to (the*) school in the morning.

 * Without the article, this means that I went to attend classes.  With with the article, it means that I went to the school property for some other reason.

I would not say I went to campus, ever. I would, however, say I went to *the* campus (e.g., to see what it was like).


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## ogeido

yeah, " go to campus"  sounds pretty odd to me, so that's why I ask about it, because I'd like to figure out under what circumstances this phrase is normally used, especially because it takes no article, which makes it even harder to understand. 

Let's see what ribran says.

Gracias Gengo.


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## ribran

gengo said:


> You will get different answers from ribran and me, but I will say that "go to college" is never (in my part of the world) used to mean going to the physical location, but rather is used to mean attending college in general.
> 
> So, I would say:
> I went to college in California.
> I went to (the*) school in the morning.
> 
> * Without the article, this means that I went to attend classes.  With with the article, it means that I went to the school property for some other reason.



I agree with this, 100%. 

For me, "I went to *the *school" is nearly always equivalent to "I went to campus" (that is, for some reason other than to attend classes).

*When I say "I went to campus," I'm always referring to a college/university campus. The plots of land on which elementary, middle and high schools are located are often called campuses (_All students must stay on campus during school hours_), but a high schooler certainly wouldn't say, "OK, I'm off to campus now."


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## ogeido

Thank you very much ribran , at last I have understood when to use that word.

I really appreciate your help.

Saludos.


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## gengo

I googled "I went to campus" and got 211,000 hits, which is small enough to indicate that the usage is not widespread, but large enough to indicate that some people do indeed say this.  I'm not sure if this is a regional difference (ribran is in Texas and I'm in California), or just matter of personal style, but again, I have never heard anyone say it, and it sounds very odd to me.

Language is a tangled vine!


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## ogeido

I see, at least if I ever hear it said, I will know right away what the speaker is referring to.

Thank you very much, gengo, ribran and all those who did take the time to read and reply to my questions.


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