The State University of New York at Binghamton is a public research university in the U.S. state of New York. It is commonly referred to as Binghamton University (abbreviated BU) or SUNY Binghamton. Since its establishment as Triple Cities College in 1946, the school has evolved from a small liberal arts college to a large doctoral-granting institution. Presently consisting of six colleges and schools, it is now home to more than 16,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Binghamton is one of the four university centers in the State University of New York (SUNY) system.