Dalhousie University is a large public research university located in Nova Scotia, Canada. The university operates three campuses in Halifax and a fourth campus in Bible Hill. It also runs two satellite medical school campuses in Saint John, New Brunswick, and in Cape Breton. The university offers more than 200 degree programs. These programs span 13 undergraduate, graduate, and professional faculties. It also holds membership in the U15, a group of Canada’s leading research-intensive universities.
The institution began as Dalhousie College in 1818. George Ramsay, the 9th Earl of Dalhousie and Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, founded the college as a nonsectarian institution. Education reformer Thomas McCulloch served as its first principal. The QS World University Rankings 2026 placed Dalhousie University at #283.