- published: 11 Dec 2012
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Coordinates: 55°56′50.6″N 3°11′13.9″W / 55.947389°N 3.187194°W / 55.947389; -3.187194
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university. Edinburgh receives approximately 47,000 applications every year, making it the third most popular university in the UK by volume of applicants. Entrance is intensely competitive, with 12 applications per place in the last admissions cycle. It was the fourth university to be established in Scotland and the 6th in the United Kingdom, and is regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. The university is ranked the top rated in Scotland and the 6th and 7th in Europe according to the 2011 QS and Times Higher Education Ranking Globally, the 2011 QS rankings placed the university 20th in the world. It is the only Scottish university to be a member of both the elite Russell Group, and the League of European Research Universities, a consortium of 21 of Europe's most prominent and renowned research universities. In addition, the University has both historical links and current partnerships with prestigious academic institutions in the United States and Canada, including members of the Ivy League and U15.
Edinburgh (i/ˈɛdɪnbʌrə/ ED-in-burr-ə; Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Èideann) is the capital city of Scotland and the seat of the Scottish Parliament. It is the second largest city in Scotland and the seventh most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a 30 square miles (78 km2) rural area. Located in the south-east of Scotland, Edinburgh lies on the east coast of the Central Belt, along the Firth of Forth, near the North Sea.
The city was one of the historical major centres of the Enlightenment, led by the University of Edinburgh, helping to earn it the nickname Athens of the North. The Old Town and New Town districts of Edinburgh were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 in recognition of the unique character of the Medieval Old Town and the planned Georgian New Town. It covers both the Old and New Towns together with the Dean Village and the Calton Hill areas. There are over 4,500 listed buildings within the city. In May 2010, it had a total of 40 conservation areas covering 23% of the building stock and 23% of the population, the highest such ratios of any major city in the UK. In the 2011 mid-year population estimates, Edinburgh had a total resident population of 495,360.