Baylor University, or simply Baylor, is a private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the first educational institutions west of the Mississippi River in the United States. Located on the banks of the Brazos River next to I-35, between the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and Austin, the university's 1,000-acre (400-hectare) campus is the largest Baptist university in the world. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees.