Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (usually referred to as Rutgers University or just Rutgers, US: /rʌtɡərz/), is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American Revolution. Rutgers was originally a private university affiliated with the Dutch Reformed Church and admitted only male students, but evolved into a coeducational public research university. Rutgers is one of only two colonial colleges that later became public universities, the other being The College of William and Mary.
Rutgers was designated The State University of New Jersey by acts of the New Jersey Legislature in 1945 and 1956. The three campuses of Rutgers are in (1) New Brunswick and Piscataway, (2) Newark and (3) Camden. The Newark campus was formerly the University of Newark, which merged into the Rutgers system in 1946, and the Camden campus was created in 1950 from the College of South Jersey. Rutgers is the largest university within New Jersey's state university system. The university offers more than 100 distinct bachelor, 100 master, and 80 doctoral and professional degree programs across 175 academic departments, 29 degree-granting schools and colleges, 16 of which offer graduate programs of study. Rutgers is the only flagship public university that is not normally referenced by the state of its location (i.e. University of Iowa, University of Maryland etc.).
Two decades after the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) was established in 1746, ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church, seeking autonomy in ecclesiastical affairs in the American colonies, sought to establish a college to train those who wanted to become ministers within the church. Through several years of effort by Rev. Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen (1691–1747) and Rev. Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh (1736–1790), later the college's first president, Queen's College was chartered on 10 November 1766. Established as the trustees of Queen's College, in New-Jersey in honor of King George III's Queen consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1744–1818). The charter was signed and the young college was supported by William Franklin (1730–1813), the last Royal Governor of New Jersey and illegitimate son of Benjamin Franklin. The original charter specified the establishment both of the college, and of an institution called the Queen's College Grammar School, intended to be a preparatory school affiliated and governed by the college. This institution, today the private Rutgers Preparatory School, was a part of the college community until 1959. The location of New Brunswick was chosen over Hackensack because the New Brunswick Dutch had the support of the Anglican population as well, making the royal charter easier to obtain.