The university of queensland (the "university") was established by an ACT of parliament in 1909 to disseminate knowledge and promote scholarship through the operation of a university in brisbane, australia. Today, the university is a premier research and teaching institution in australia, with approximately 55,000 students and 7,410 full-time equivalent employees. The university has departments or "faculties" in the areas of arts, business, economics and law, engineering, architecture and information technology, health sciences, medicine, science, and social and behavioral sciences. In addition, the university has eight other institutes, including the institute for molecular bioscience, queensland brain institute, global change institute and the queensland alliance for agriculture and food innovation. It operates through over 34 sites throughout queensland and has additional involvement with a large number of other centers and institutes.