Established in 1701 in New Haven, Conn., Yale University was the third institution of higher education established in the United States. The university is a founding member of the Association of American Universities and has one of the largest endowments of any institution of higher education in the world. Made up of 14 schools, including one of the most selective law schools in the country, Yale offers more than 2,000 undergraduate courses in the liberal arts and sciences. More than 40 of these courses are available free of charge to the public through Open Yale Courses, thanks to the Open Educational Resources initiative launched in 2001.