Heidelberg is a city of science and has been for many years. Germany’s oldest university city has ten higher education establishments and over 38,000 students. Education starts at an early age: Heidelberg has the country’s best childcare provisions. Its universities are also world-beaters: academic staff based here have won no fewer than 56 Nobel prizes. As recently as June 2012, Heidelberg University was again awarded ‘elite establishment’ status under Germany’s Excellence in Higher Education initiative. An impressive one in three of all Heidelbergers have a university qualification.