University of Cambridge

         The University of Cambridge is rich in history - its famous Colleges and University buildings attract visitors from all over the world. But the University's museums and collections also hold many treasures which give an exciting insight into some of the scholarly activities, both past and present, of the University's academics and students.

The University of Cambridge is one of the world's oldest universities and leading academic centres, and a self-governed community of scholars. Its reputation for outstanding academic achievement is known world-wide and reflects the intellectual achievement of its students, as well as the world-class original research carried out by the staff of the University and the Colleges.

Many of the University's customs and unusual terminology can be traced to roots in the early years of the University's long history, and this booklet looks to the past to find the origins of much that is distinctive in the University of today.
The University of Cambridge[note 1] (abbreviated as Cantab in post-nominal letters;[note 2] also known as Cambridge University) is a collegiate public research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, Cambridge is the second oldest university in the English-speaking world and the world's fourth-oldest surviving university.[7] It grew out of an association of scholars who left the University of Oxford after a dispute with the townspeople.[8] The two ancient universities share many common features and are often jointly referred to as "Oxbridge".

Cambridge is formed from a variety of institutions which include 31 constituent colleges and over 100 academic departments organised into six schools.[9] The university occupies buildings throughout the city, many of which are of historical importance. The colleges are self-governing institutions founded as integral parts of the university. In the year ended 31 July 2015, the university had a total income of £1.638 billion, of which £397 million was from research grants and contracts.[10] The central university and colleges have a combined endowment of around £5.89 billion, the largest of any university outside the United States.[11] Cambridge is a member of many associations and forms part of the "golden triangle" of leading English universities and Cambridge University Health Partners, an academic health science centre. The university is closely linked with the development of the high-tech business cluster known as "Silicon Fen".

Students' learning involves lectures and laboratory sessions organised by departments, and supervisions provided by the colleges. The university operates eight arts, cultural, and scientific museums, including the Fitzwilliam Museum and a botanic garden. Cambridge's libraries hold a total of around 15 million books, 8 million of which are in Cambridge University Library which is a legal deposit library. Cambridge University Press, a department of the university, is the world's oldest publishing house and the second-largest university press in the world.[12][13] Cambridge is regularly included among the world's best and most reputable universities by most university rankings.[14][15][16] Beside academic studies, student life is centred on the colleges and numerous pan-university artistic activities, sports clubs and societies.

Cambridge has many notable alumni, including several eminent mathematicians, scientists, economists, writers, philosophers, actors, politicians. Ninety-two Nobel laureates have been affiliated with it as students, faculty, staff or alumni.[17] Throughout its history, the university has featured in literature and artistic works by numerous authors including Geoffrey Chaucer, E. M. Forster and C. P. Snow.