School of Oriental and African Studies, London

Situated in the heart of London, SOAS has acquired a global reputation for the high quality Asia, Africa and Middle East programmes it offers to over 3,000 students from 110 countries Situated in Russell Square, in the heart of London, over the past 88 years the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) has acquired a global reputation for its high quality Asia, Africa and the Middle East research and studies. Affiliated with London University SOAS has over 3,000 students, instructed by over 200 research-cum-teaching faculty on its musters. It’s a testimony to the quality of its study and research programmes that students from 110 countries represent one-fourth of its enrollment. Within Britain as well SOAS enjoys an excellent reputation. The 2001 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) of the education ministry ranked SOAS among the top research institutions in the country, with ten of the 15 departments rated the maximum 5 or 5*. Founded in 1916, SOAS which offers specialist degrees in the languages and cultures of Asia and Africa has acquired new relevance in the contemporary globalised world. Its wide range of undergraduate, postgrad, doctoral and certificate degree programmes in the humanities and social sciences as well in several non-European languages is unmatched by any institution of this genre. Comments Prof. Colin Bundy, director and principal of the school: “SOAS is synonymous with intellectual excitement and academic achievement. Students who study here are passionate about their subjects and are dedicated to expanding their knowledge of the world around them. In the sphere of higher education, SOAS remains a place that dares to be a little different. It is our academic focus on the languages, cultures and societies of Africa, Asia and the Middle East that makes us distinctive. At SOAS, students have an opportunity unparalleled in British higher education to learn more about the most urgent issues confronting two-thirds of humankind.”  London. The political, financial and cultural capital of Britain, London attracts millions of visitors each year drawn to its wealth of galleries, theatres and museums, palaces, parks and squares, restaurants and shops, not to mention famous and familiar landmarks such as Big Ben, the red bus, the black cab and the tower of London. SOAS is sited in the epicentre of London. Students can walk to the British Library, the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace, sip coffee in Soho and do light shopping in Oxford Street. Further afield are the museums of South Kensington and galleries and theatres of the South Bank. For those who believe that there’s more to the academic experience than study, London is another city by night. ‘Cosmopolitan’ does not do justice to the number of cuisines available and the range of theatre (West End and fringe), cinemas, music, clubs, pubs, social and cultural events, lectures and discourses on offer. Campus facilities. SOAS has two campuses — in Russell and Vernon squares. The Russell Square campus is situated in the legendary Bloomsbury area, the birthplace of Fabian Socialism, and is surrounded by other colleges and buildings…