There are nine universities and several dozen colleges in Israel, which are recognized and academically supervised by the Council for Higher Education in Israel. In addition, Israel founded a university in Ariel in the West Bank, which is recognized and academically supervised by the Council for Higher Education in Judea and Samaria. As many course offerings are varied, Israeli universities are considered to be of top quality, and they are inexpensive to attend. Israel's quality university education is largely responsible for spurring the country's high tech boom and rapid economic development.