Association of American Universities was founded in 1900 by a group of 14 doctorate degree-granting universities in the United States to strengthen and standardize U.S. doctoral programs. The association consists of more than 60 U.S. universities and two Canadian universities. AAU provides a forum for the development and implementation of institutional and national policies promoting programs in academic research and scholarship and undergraduate, graduate, and professional education. AAU holds two membership meetings annually. Some of its member institutes include Harvard University, Indiana University, Iowa State University, California Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, McGill University, Michigan State University and New York University. AAU is a member of the American Council on Education and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.