Institute of technology, and polytechnic, are designations employed in a wide range of learning institutions awarding different types of degrees and operating often at variable levels of the educational system. It may be any institution of higher education and advanced research or vocational education, specializing in science, engineering and technology or different sorts of technical subjects. It may also refer to a secondary education school focused in vocational training. The term polytechnic comes from the Greek πολύ (polú or polý) meaning "many" and τεχνικός (tekhnikós) meaning "arts". The term institute of technology, for its part, is often abbreviated IT; the term is not to be confused with information technology.

While the terms institute of technology and polytechnic are synonymous, the preference concerning which one is the preferred term varies from country to country.