The University of Bremen (German Universität Bremen) is a university of approximately 23,500 people from 115 countries that are studying, teaching, researching, and working in Bremen. It has become the science center of North West Germany. It is one of 11 institutions which were successful in the category "Institutional Strategies" of the Excellence Initiative launched by the Federal Government and the Federal States. The university was also successful in the categories "Graduate Schools" and "Clusters of Excellence" of the initiative.