By . Their mottos might suggest to uninitiated visitors from abroad that Latin is still the lingua franca of our universities. Lux with its implication of enlightenment, along with truth (veritas), and knowledge (scientia) are among the favored terms, from Harvard’s veritas by way of Yale’s lux et veritas to Berkeley’s fiat lux and Michigan’s artes, scientia, veritas.
Probably no campus bristles with more Latin inscriptions than Princeton, even though its motto—Dei sub numine viget—promises that we will thrive under the auspices of the deity rather than truth. The mantelpiece in Procter Hall of the Graduate College announces bonus intra melior exi  (“You’re good when you arrive; be better when you leave”)—an inscription (from a North African temple of Aesculapius) that a dean can still find useful in welcoming incoming students and bidding farewell to graduating Ph.D.s, as well as greeting potential donors. More...