University of Utah is a public, co-educational institution of higher education, located on 1,500 acres in Salt Lake City, in the eastern foothills of of the Rocky Mountains and home of the "Utes." It is the oldest and largest public higher education institution in Utah. The university began in February 1850, as the University of Deseret, founded by the General Assembly of the tentative state of Deseret. The University of Deseret became the University of Utah in 1894, anticipating the U.S. Congress's action to admit Utah into statehood, in 1896. Also in 1894, the university acquired 60 acres of Fort Douglas, land granted by the Congress. Classes opened on this location in October 1900. By the end of 1930, the university had acquired more acreage from Fort Douglas for its expansion programs. The Experimental Station of the School of Mines, the Biological Survey of Utah, the Geological Survey of Utah, and the Bureau of Economic and Business Research, were organized. Today, the University of Utah has an enrollment of more than 26,000 students. A major and rapidly expanding research institution, the university offers majors in 72 subjects at the undergraduate level and more than 90 major fields of study at the graduate level including law and medical schools. The university is also a pioneer in technology transfer and frequently ranks first in the nation in number of inventions per million dollars expended for research.