Fo Guang University (佛光大學; lit. Buddha's Light University) is located in Jiaoxi Township, Yilan County, Taiwan. It was founded by the Mahayana Buddhist Fo Guang Shan monastic order in 2000 and as such represents the culmination of education efforts of the order that started in 1963 with establishing Chinese Buddhist Research Institute at Fo Guang Shan. A gradualist approach was adopted in developing the campus as a part of a plan for the overall area. The Ministry of Education granted approval on July 20, 2000, and the school formally opened in September that year. The Schools of Humanities and Sociology were the first to be founded during the initial phase of establishment. By introducing the undergraduate and postgraduate level of education, Fo Guang is gradually developing into a full-rounded university. Currently, it comprises College of Arts and Humanities, College of Social Sciences and Management, Institute of Technology and Buddhist Research Institute. Nowadays, its total enrollment is 2,350 students; the university library holds more than 253,000 volumes.