The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583,it is a public research university in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university. Edinburgh receives approximately 47,000 applications every year, making it the third most popular university in the UK by volume of applicants. Entrance is intensely competitive, with 12 applications per place in the last admissions cycle. According to QS Academic Reputation 2011-2012, University of Edinburgh is placed first in Scotland, 5th in the UK, and 20th in the world in terms of academic reputation.[25] It is ranked 49 in the world, 6 in the UK in reputation by Times Higher Education in 2012.[26] The University of Edinburgh is a member of the Russell Group of research-led British universities and, along with Oxford and Cambridge, one of several British universities to be a member of both the Coimbra Group and the LERU (League of European Research Universities). The University is also a member of Universitas 21, an international association of research-led universities.