The University of Essex received its royal charter in 1965 and is now one of the UK's leading academic institutions. It always been dedicated to research and scholarship of the highest international standards. The most recent national Research Assessment Exercise underlined the University's achievement, placing it tenth overall in the UK. The departments of Economics, Government and Sociology were awarded 5-star ranking for research of special distinction;, while the departments of Accounting, Finance & Management, Art History, Electronic Systems Engineering, History, Law, Philosophy and Psychology received a grade 5 for research of national and international excellence. Teaching is also of a very high standard, with the average score awarded by the Quality Assurance Agency placing Essex sixth out of all the English universities. The single-site campus, just three kilometres from the centre of the historic town of Colchester, is set in over 200 acres of beautiful parkland. As the University was conceived as a university town it incorporates teaching buildings, student housing, shops, banks, bars and cafes, a theatre and gallery, and sports facilities all on the one site. This mixture of activity creates a friendly and cosmopolitan campus. All overseas students are guaranteed a single room (with internet access) in University accommodation for the duration of their course. In addition to ready access to computing facilities, students make substantial use of the Library, to which the University devotes considerable resources. The Library occupies one of the most attractive buildings on campus, overlooking the lakes and parkland, and its light and airy interior provides ideal conditions for quite study with some 1,100 reader places. The term-time opening hours of 84 hours on seven days a week are unusually long. The University exhibits diversity and a strongly international character. Though relatively small, with around 7,400 students of whom 2,200 are postgraduates, over 25% of the students come from 120 overseas countries, with additional numbers from within the European Union. The fact that so many live on campus results in a lively community. Visitors to Essex almost invariably remark on the very friendly and informal atmosphere - one of the advantages of a compact campus where people quickly get to know each other. London is only fifty minutes by train, and the University's location at Colchester in the south-east of England with its excellent transport links bring it within easy reach of Europe. Colchester, Britain's oldest recorded town and its first capital, is today a thriving modern town offering some of the finest leisure facilities in Eastern England. Known as the cultural capital of the county of Essex, Colchester has a number of museums and galleries, an arts centre, a theatre and a multi-screen cinema. The town also has excellent shopping facilities with both large department stores and smaller specialist shops and boutiques. The great variety of restaurants, coffee houses, wine bars, pubs and nightclubs ensure that the town offers something for everyone. Students will find, however, that many of their needs are catered for in the University itself.