Northumbria University is an academic institution located in Newcastle upon Tyne in the North East of England. It is a member of the University Alliance. In terms of student numbers the University is the 5th biggest in the UK and the largest in the North East. It also includes the North East’s largest community of taught postgraduate students, ranking in the top 10 biggest providers of taught Postgraduate degrees in the UK. Northumbria University has its origins in three regional colleges: Rutherford College of Technology, which was established by Dr John Hunter Rutherford in 1880 and opened formally by HRH The Duke of York in 1894, the College of Art & Industrial Design and the Municipal College of Commerce. In 1969 these three institutions were amalgamated to form the Newcastle Polytechnic. The Polytechnic became the major regional centre for the training of teachers with the incorporation of the City College of Education in 1974, and the Northern Counties College of Education in 1976. In 1992 Newcastle Polytechnic was inaugurated as the new Northumbria University as part of the UK-wide process in which polytechnics became new universities.