Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU) / Kiel University was founded back in 1665. It is Schleswig-Holstein's oldest, largest and best-known university, with 27,000 students and around 3,700 members of staff. It is also the only fully-fledged university in the state. Seven Nobel prize winners have worked here. The CAU has been successfully taking part in the Excellence Initiative since 2006.