Founded in 1842, the University of Notre Dame is the nation’s leading Catholic research university, providing a distinctive voice in higher education that is at once rigorously intellectual, unapologetically moral in orientation, and firmly embracing of a service ethos. Rated among the top 20 of all U.S. institutions of higher learning, Notre Dame ranks second nationally in the percentage of students who study abroad and has seen research funding increase from $87 million to $141.5 million in the past decade. The University is organized into four undergraduate colleges — Arts and Letters, Science, Engineering, and the Mendoza College of Business — the School of Architecture, the Keough School of Global Affairs, the Law School and the Graduate School. It is located adjacent to the city of South Bend, Indiana, in a region with a population of more than 300,000, and is widely known for the beauty of its campus, including the Golden Dome of the Main Building, the world’s most recognized university landmark.