How to evaluate $ \lim \limits_{n\to \infty} \sum \limits_ {k=1}^n \frac{k^n}{n^n}$?

An asymptotic expansion can be obtained as below. More terms can be included by using more terms in the expansions of $\exp$ and $\log$. $$ \begin{align} \sum_{k=0}^n\frac{k^n}{n^n} &=\sum_{k=0}^n\left(1-\frac{k}{n}\right)^n\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^n\exp\left(n\log\left(1-\frac{k}{n}\right)\right)\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}\exp\left(n\log\left(1-\frac{k}{n}\right)\right)+O\left(ne^{-\sqrt{n}}\right)\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}\exp\left(-k-\frac{1}{2n}k^2+O\left(\frac{k^3}{n^2}\right)\right)+O\left(ne^{-\sqrt{n}}\right)\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}e^{-k}\exp\left(-\frac{1}{2n}k^2+O\left(\frac{k^3}{n^2}\right)\right)+O\left(ne^{-\sqrt{n}}\right)\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}e^{-k}\left(1-\frac{1}{2n}k^2+O\left(\frac{k^ 4}{n^2}\right)\right)+O\left(ne^{-\sqrt{n}}\right)\\ &=\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}e^{-k}-\frac{1}{2n}\sum_{k=0}^{\sqrt{n}}k^2e^{-k}+O\left(\frac{1}{n^2}\right)\\ &=\frac{e}{e-1}-\frac{1}{2n}\frac{e(e+1)}{(e-1)^3}+O\left(\frac{1}{n^2}\right) \end{align} $$ Several steps use $$ \sum_{k=n}^\infty e^{-k}k^m=O(e^{-n}n^m) $$ which decays faster than any power of $n$.

Just for reference: With aid of some fancy theorem, you can skip most of hard analysis. As in other answers, we begin by writing

$$ \sum_{k=1}^{n} \left( \frac{k}{n}\right)^n \ \overset{k \to n-k}{=} \ \sum_{k=0}^{n-1} \left( 1 - \frac{k}{n}\right)^n \ = \ \sum_{k=0}^{\infty} \left( 1 - \frac{k}{n}\right)^n \mathbf{1}_{\{k < n\}}, $$

where $\mathbf{1}_{\{k < n\}}$ is the indicator function which takes value $1$ if $k < n$ and $0$ otherwise. Now for each $0 \leq k < n$, utilizing the inequality $\log(1-x) \leq -x$ which holds for all $x \in [0,1)$ shows that

$$ \left( 1 - \frac{k}{n}\right)^n = e^{n \log(1 - \frac{k}{n})} \leq e^{-k}. $$

Since $\sum_{k=0}^{\infty} e^{-k} < \infty$, by the dominated convergence theorem we can interchange the infinite sum and the limit:

$$ \lim_{n\to\infty} \sum_{k=1}^{n} \left( \frac{k}{n}\right)^n = \sum_{k=0}^{\infty} \lim_{n\to\infty} \left( 1 - \frac{k}{n}\right)^n \mathbf{1}_{\{k < n\}} = \sum_{k=0}^{\infty} e^{-k} = \frac{1}{1 - e^{-1}}. $$