The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greek: Εθνικόν και Καποδιστριακόν Πανεπιστήμιον Αθηνών), usually referred to simply as the University of Athens, is the oldest university in Southeast Europe and has been in continuous operation since its establishment in 1837. Today, it is the second-largest institution of higher learning in Greece, with more than fifty thousand undergraduate students. It is one of the top ranking universities in Greece, and ranked 177th in the world according to the Times Higher Education-QS World University Rankings 2009. The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens was founded on May 3, 1837, and was housed in the residence of architects Stamatis Kleanthes and [{Eduard Schaubert]], on the north east slopes of the Acropolis. It was the first University not only in the newly established Greek State but in all the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean in general.