Is there a rule of thumb when to use "the" in front of universities? [duplicate]

Solution 1:

Generally speaking, it's the University of (for example) Durham or Durham University.

If the University is named after a person, only the second style is used: John Moores University.

Solution 2:

Different schools do it differently. A good way to tell is to search for the school on Google. If the school's official website uses the article, use it. If not, skip it. It's pretty arbitrary otherwise. For example:

• The Ohio State University
• Ohio University
• The University of Akron
• University of Dayton

There are a few dozen more conflicting examples all right here in Ohio. :)

When you do include the article, capitalize it if it's the first word of the sentence. Otherwise don't. It's an article, not part of the school's name. Do not talk about The Ohio State University. Talk about the Ohio State University.