HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences was established in 1866, the same year in which the Syrian Protestant College, now the American University of Beirut, was established. On December 13, 1866, the first class was held, attended by sixteen students, and in 1870, the first five students graduated. Arabic, which was the language of instruction since the inception of the college, was replaced by English in 1882. In 1900, the School of Commerce was established, and was later incorporated into the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

AUB in general, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences in particular, have survived many crises since 1866 including two world wars, regional and local wars, student strikes, and economic crises. In spite of all these hardships, the faculty has continued to develop and to maintain its high academic standards.

In the mid-seventies, the University undertook a major planning exercise, which was known as the Horizon 2000 Plan, and was aimed at reorganizing the University as a whole. Several changes were introduced in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences as a result: a number of departments and programs (Fine and Performing Arts, Religious Studies, and European Language and Literature) were cancelled, and a few others were either merged (e.g., Psychology and Sociology/Anthropology) or became independent from the faculty (e.g., Education and the University Orientation Program). In the past few years, the faculty has attempted a major self-review, particularly in its academic programs, faculty composition, and graduation requirements. Several master's degree programs were introduced (e.g., Computer Science and Financial Economics), or re-introduced (e.g., Middle Eastern Studies) and a separate department of Computer Sciences was created. Furthermore, the faculty is the major contributor to the Center for Advanced Mathematical Studies, a research center of the University, established in 1997. In 2000, the School of Business, which was part of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, became an independent school, and Education became once more a department in Arts and Sciences. In fall 2001, the Central Research Science Lab was established to promote scientific research in the faculty and at the University at large. Currently, the Faculty is trying to reactivate some of the PhD programs which it had in the 1960s and 1970s, including Arabic, Islamic History, and Physics, and to launch a PhD in the Department of Biology.