Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is a private research university in Troy, New York, and one of the oldest technological universities in the United States. The school is known for its highly ranked engineering programs.
Rensselaer was founded in 1824 when Stephen Van Rensselaer, a wealthy merchant and land speculator, donated $135,000 to build an academy of science at his estate in Troy. RPI was established as a privately endowed institution of higher learning on March 7, 1824. It began as a single school: its first class graduated in June 1826 with eight graduates. In 1832 it merged with two other schools and became Troy Polytechnic School.
The institute’s main campus is located on U.S. Route 7 (Broadway) between I-787 (New York State Thruway) and I-90 (New York State Thruway). The main campus is bordered by Watervliet Shaker Road on the north side and the town of Colonie to the south side of US Route 7. The campus is divided into four major areas: North Campus (the original campus), Central Campus, South Campus (the athletic fields and practice facilities) and East Campus (the River Building).
RPI’s student body swells from approximately 6,000 undergraduate students to more than 15,000 when graduate students are included, making it one of the largest private universities in the country. The school offers more than 100 majors across seven schools: architecture; engineering; information technology and web science; management; science; arts and humanities; and applied engineering sciences (AES).
