New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (also called New Mexico Tech, and originally known as the New Mexico School of Mines) is a university located in Socorro, New Mexico. Noted for its undergraduate and graduate school opportunities, New Mexico Tech offers over 30 bachelor of science degrees in technology, the sciences, engineering (including mineral engineering), management, and technical communication, as well as graduate degrees at the masters and doctoral levels. New Mexico Tech is considered one of the best small science and engineering schools in North America. A recent National Science Foundation study of Baccalaureate Origins of S&E Doctorate Recipients in the U.S. ranked New Mexico Tech as 15th in the nation, as well as the number one ranked public institution. New Mexico Tech is a relatively small (approximately 2000 students as of 2010) research- and teaching-oriented university focused on science and engineering. The institution was founded by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature in the year 1889 as the New Mexico School of Mines to both boost the territorial economy and teach mining specialties on the college level.