| abstract | - Her Royal Majesty's University of Sierra (commonly referred to as the University of Sierra or abbreviated as US) is a national public university system with eighteen campuses and two affiliated law schools in sixteen PSAs of the Kingdom of Sierra. It is the largest four-year public university system in Anglo-America. It is one of the three national higher education systems in Sierra (the other two being the Sierra National University and Sierra Community Colleges systems), although each individual PSA (with the exception of those in the Deseret) are responsible for the majority of individual funding and campus administration. The current University of Sierra system was established in 1868 by a statutory charter established by Parliament (in response to a letters patent issued by King Smith I), which was also responsible for the creation of the two other higher education systems. The University of Sierra is governed by the Board of Regents, which consists of 20 individuals, 18 of which are appointed from each campus, and 2 of which are appointed by the Prime Minister on behalf of the Queen. The President of the Board of US is elected among the board members to serve as the first among equals. As of fall 2016, it has a combined student body of 545,042, and 28,000 staff members, as well as 3.7 million living alumni across all of its campuses. It has one of the largest student bodies and faculty staff in the Americas, and has consistently ranked as some of the world's top university systems. The University of Sierra campuses in Berkeley and Porciúncula have both ranked in the Top 10 universities worldwide by numerous sources, and its other campuses have perennially been featured on top universities listings. Researchers and faculty members tied with its campuses have been amassed over 60 Nobel Prizes since the system's foundation. The University of Sierra's alumni have included twelve K.S. prime ministers, several foreign heads of states, 22 living billionaires, and over 30 Nobel Prize laureates. Although student tuition is relatively high, the high amount of endowment provided to the system has provided most of its students affordable pricing through financial aid. The University of Sierra was established in 1868 under the National Tertiary Education Act, a statute passed by Parliament that ordered the establishment of the Ministry of Education, and the creation of three distinct institutions, among them including the University of Sierra, the Sierra National University, and Sierra Junior Colleges (later renamed the Sierra Community Colleges) systems. The University of Sierra was specifically created for students who desired to pursue professional careers and doctorate degrees, with an emphasis on research, and theoretical learning, as opposed to the Sierra National University which was geared towards students who desired practical, career-oriented education. US was also provided its own charter, and to be governed by a Board of Regents, which would enjoy institutional autonomy from the national government including the Ministry of Education with a few exceptions. The Board of Regents alone, in most cases, has general authority and jurisdiction over each and every one of its campuses in all of the PSAs, and is responsible for providing and maintaining general curriculum, policies, and internal organization. Over the years, the Board of Regents have allowed its campuses to exercise a great degree of individual autonomy, and has primarily concerned itself with the fair allocation of funding, and investigating and administrating discipline against faculty and staff. Although the federal government annually provides direct funding to US, in nearly all of the campuses, nearly half of each campus funding is directly subsidized by their respective PSA.
|
