Flagship in language
As with so many other naval terms, flagship has crossed over into common parlance, where it means the most important or leading member of a group. It also come to be an adjective, as in the "flagship product" of a manufacturing company. A flagship station is also the "home" station of a broadcast network.
from wikipedia
A flagship store of clothing or grocery chain may get new products first to check out how they shold be marketed or what their success may be at other stores. It may also just look "fancier" and have more features and square footage. A flagship journal could be the most respected publication in that field.
The "flagship university" discussion is a hot one in Texas:
Interesting article on comparison between Texas and California systems in success in creating flagship universities -
http://tspweb02.tsp.utexas.edu/webar...01_s04_UT.html
How many do we need? How many can we afford? California has nine, though with a much larger population. In time, Texas should have six—in addition to UT-Austin and A&M, one in the Dallas area, one in San Antonio, one in Houston, one in Lubbock—but not all at once; they should be put on a track to reach flagship status over a period of years.
Examples:
Texas State -
http://www.shsu.edu/~org_sga/legisla...Evaluation.pdf
http://www.universitystar.com/main/article?aid=295
UT-Arlington -
http://www.theshorthorn.com/archive/...110603-03.html
U of Houston -
http://www2.egr.uh.edu/news/Make_UH_next_flagship.html
Also in the "race" are U of North Texas, UT-Dallas, UT-San Antonio, Texas Tech.
Like
33girl said, there are many different variables/definitions for naming a flagship university, and they usually include "the University of Insert State Name Here". U of Virginia, U of Michigan, Cal-Berkeley, and U of Texas are just some examples.
Do a
google search for flagship university and you will see the different definitions, perceptions, and debate on what the flagship status entails, if it is important, and if a university should pursue it.
Some definitions of a flagship university you will find out there:
Flagship public universities = 147 public universities designated as “national universities” in U.S. News and World Report, America’s Best Colleges, 1999. They offer a full range of undergraduate majors, as well as master’s and doctoral degrees. Many place strong emphasis on research and receive funding for their research endeavors.
a university that performs extensive research, has a high quality doctoral programs, and benefits other schools in the system as well as having national prestige
Research Productivity• External funding• Number of undergraduate/graduate students and programs• Quality of undergraduate/graduate students and programs• Quality of campus life• Collaborations and Outreach (image)
ETA: some clarification on Texas universities.