University of International Relations (UIR; simplified Chinese: 国际关系学院; traditional Chinese: 國際關係學院; pinyin: Guojì Gūanxì Xúeyuàn) is an institute of higher education located in Beijing that was first established in 1949 to train foreign affairs cadres. The University's role within the bureaucracy of the People's Republic of China is subject to some debate: Chinese government sources and the University's website maintain that it operates under the Ministry of Education, but other sources contend that the University is affiliated with Chinese intelligence agencies, namely the Ministry of State Security (MSS), and that its purpose is to train intelligence personnel. According to the private intelligence company Stratfor, the University is where most of the Ministry of State Security's intelligence agents receive their training, having been recruited out of high school on the basis of high test scores, language ability, and a lack of international travel or contacts. The University is located in China's capital city, Beijing, and is adjacent to the Summer Palace and the Old Summer Palace.