The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University, or simply Birmingham) is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It is a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research universities and a founding member of Universitas 21. It received its charter in 1900 as a successor to Mason Science College and the 1825 Birmingham Medical School. Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain an official royal charter. The student population includes around 16,500 undergraduate and 8,000 postgraduate students, making it the largest university in the West Midlands region, and the 11th largest in the UK. As of 2006-07 it is the fourth most popular English university by number of applications. The annual income of the institution for 2007-08 was £411.6 million, with an expenditure of £393.2 million. Birmingham has the ninth largest financial endowment of any British university at approximately £85 million in 2009.