Burse, originally signifies a purse. In middle-age writers it is more particularly used for a little college or hall in an university, for the residence of students, called burseoles or bursarii. In the French universities it still denotes a foundation for the maintenance of poor scholars in their studies. The nomination to burse is in the hands of the patrons and founders thereof. The burse of colleges are not benefices, but mere places assigned to certain countries and persons. A burse becomes vacant by the bursar's being promoted to a cure.

BURSÆ mucosæ. See Anatomy, p. 8.