The University of Pittsburgh of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education is a nonsectarian, coeducational, state-related, public research university. The University was founded in a log cabin near the confluence of Pittsburgh's three rivers in 1787 as a small, private school named The Pittsburgh Academy. In 1819, it was renamed The Western University of Pennsylvania and then renamed again in 1908, as the University of Pittsburgh. The University became state-related in 1966.

The University of Pittsburgh is the most comprehensive educational complex in the tri-state area, enrolling 31,400 students and employing more than 9,600 faculty members, research associates, and staff. The University is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization comprised of 62 eminent doctorate-granting research institutions in the United States and Canada. The University provides a wide range of academic programs and services for the region's 2.4 million people and is an important contributor to the economy of the area. More than $843 million are contributed annually to the local economy by Pittsburgh Campus students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

The 132-acre Pittsburgh Campus (in Allegheny County) is located in Oakland, Pittsburgh's cultural and medical center. Among the more than 90 academic, research, and administrative buildings, and residence halls located at the main campus is the 42-story Cathedral of Learning, which is one of the tallest academic buildings in the world. The Pittsburgh Campus offers certificate, baccalaureate, master's and doctoral programs. Regional campuses are located in Johnstown (in Cambria County) and Bradford (in McKean County) which offer certificate, associate, and baccalaureate programs; in Greensburg (in Westmoreland County) which offers certificate and baccalaureate programs; and in Titusville (in Crawford County) which offers certificate and associate programs and other lower-division curricula. Certificate programs are also available through the University Center for International Studies, which coordinates the international research and interdisciplinary instructional programs at the University. In total, the University offers 367 distinct degree programs and additionally offers numerous dual, joint, and cooperative degree programs. During fiscal year 1997, the University conferred 6,925 degrees.

University of Pittsburgh students account for 5.5 percent of all students enrolled in institutions of higher education in Pennsylvania. At the Pittsburgh Campus, nearly 13,000 students are enrolled full time as undergraduates. Of these, 8,400 are enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences. The College of General Studies offers undergraduate programs for those students who have full-time jobs, or other obligations, and desire to earn their degree by attending part time. The University continues

to serve a broad range of students by promoting increased utilization of instructional technology, such as implementing a program to provide computer network access to every residence hall room within the next few years, and by expanding its efforts in distance learning and continuing education programs.

The University's schools of the health sciences include the Schools of Dental Medicine, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, and the Graduate School of Public Health. These schools share in the academic mission of the University by providing a broad range of programs in education, biomedical research, training, health promotion, diagnosis, and treatment of human disease and disability.

UPMC Health System, which is affiliated with the schools of the health sciences, is the leading integrated delivery system for health care in western Pennsylvania, offering a full range of high-quality, geographically convenient health care services. At the heart of the health system is an internationally renowned academic medical center. The health system's tertiary care hospitals, UPMC Presbyterian and UPMC Shadyside, provide advanced care for all human illnesses, as well as the opportunity to participate in clinical trials of the latest treatments. UPMC medical and surgical programs include the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and the Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, as well as comprehensive services in orthopaedics, geriatrics, occupational and environmental medicine, AIDS and immunology, trauma, ophthalmology and otolaryngology, neurosurgery, and critical care medicine. Psychiatric services are provided at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. The UPMC Health System additionally includes a growing number of community hospitals and other health-related services including the management of physician practices, rehabilitation services, in-home services, retirement living options, a mail-order pharmacy, durable medical devices, technology transfer ventures, and international health care initiatives.

Numerous athletic and cultural events are sponsored by the University each year and are enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of area residents. The University currently competes in 19 athletic programs for men and women. Cultural events include art exhibits, theatre performances, music workshops, and concerts. Visitors from around the world have toured the famed Nationality Rooms which are functional classrooms representing the heritages of the region's many ethnic groups.

The University continues to maintain and further the tradition of offering quality teaching, research, and service to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the world.

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