School of Oriental and African Studies

The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London
Motto Knowledge is Power
Established 1916
Type Public university
Endowment £22.6m[1]
Chancellor HRH The Princess Royal (Chancellor of the University of London)
President The Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws QC
Principal Professor Paul Webley
Pro-Director Professor Graham Furniss
Students 4,525 [2]
Undergraduates 2,430 [2]
Postgraduates 2,095 [2]
Location London, United Kingdom
UK University Ranking 2011 11th (Guardian)
Affiliations University of London
ACU
1994 Group
'Golden Triangle'
Website www.soas.ac.uk
SOAS Crest
Russell Square campus.
Torrington Square, with SOAS to the left, Birkbeck to the right, and Senate House in the background.
The entrance to the Brunei Gallery(at the Russell Square campus).

The School of Oriental and African Studies (commonly abbreviated to "SOAS", pronounced /ˈsoʊ.æs/ SOH-as or /ˈsoʊ.æz/ SOH-az) is a constituent college of the University of London, specialising in languages, humanities, economics, law and politics concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East. SOAS currently offers over 300 undergraduate Bachelor's degree combinations, and over 70 one-year intensively taught Master's degrees. MPhil and PhD degrees are also available in every academic department.

Founded in 1916, SOAS has produced several heads of state, government ministers, ambassadors, Supreme Court judges, a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, and many other notable leaders in emerging markets, future superpowers and in the Next Eleven. Located in central London, SOAS describes itself as the "world's leading centre for the study of a highly diverse range of subjects concerned with Asia, Africa and the Middle East", and is ranked amongst the top universities in the UK.[3][4]

Contents

Background

The institution was founded in 1916 as the School of Oriental Studies at 2 Finsbury Circus, London, England, the then premises of the London Institution. The School received its Royal Charter on 5 June 1916; admitted its first batch of students on 18 January; and was formally inaugurated by King George V in the presence of the Earl Curzon of Kedleston among other cabinet officials just a month later on 23 February 1917. Africa was added to the school's name and remit in 1938 and the school permanently shifted to Thornhaugh Street, which runs between Malet Street and Russell Square.

For sometime in the mid-1930s, the School was located at Vandon House, Vandon Street, London SW1 (with the library located at Clarence House). However, its move was held up by delays in construction and the half-completed building -- begun in June, 1938 -- took a hit during the Blitz in September 1940. The School was, on Government's advice, evacuated to Cambridge and returned to London to resume work in July 1940. Most colleges of the University of London were evacuated from London in 1939 and billeted on universities all over the provinces. SOAS was transferred, but without its library, to Christ's College, Cambridge. When it became apparent that a return to London was possible, the School returned to the city and was temporarily housed for some months in 1940-41 in eleven rooms at Broadway Court, 8 Broadway, London SW1. From May 1942 SOAS' Japanese department became the centre for training military translators and intelligence officers.[5]

The institution's founding mission was primarily to train British administrators for overseas postings across the empire. Since then the school has grown into one of the world's most notable centres for the exclusive study of Asia and Africa. A college of the University of London, SOAS fields include Law, Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages with special reference to Asia and Africa. SOAS consistently ranks among the top twenty universities in the UK league tables and in 2004 was ranked 44th in the world, 7th in the UK and 11th overall in Europe according to The Times Higher Education Supplement. The SOAS Library, housed in Philips Building (designed at the beginning of the 1970s by Sir Denys Lasdun, and named after the then SOAS Director), is the UK's national resource for materials relating to Asia and Africa and is the largest of its kind in Europe.[6]

The School has grown considerably over the past thirty years, from fewer than 1,000 students in the 1970s to more than 4,500 students today, nearly half of them postgraduates. SOAS is partnered with the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (INALCO) of Paris. INALCO is often considered the French equivalent of SOAS.

Campuses

SOAS is currently split into two campuses within 20 minutes walk of each other. The Russell Square campus is located in Bloomsbury, an area at the corner of the West End known to many tourists for its shops, theaters and nightlife. The main campus was moved there in 1938, and has much expanded since then. The closest Underground station is Russell Square tube station.

The Vernon Square campus in Islington, opened in 2001, is close to Kings Cross Station and only a few hundred yards from Dinwiddy House and Paul Robeson House, exclusive to SOAS students and owned by Shaftesbury Student Housing.

The school also houses the Brunei Gallery, built as a result of an endowment from the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam, and inaugurated by the Princess Royal, as Chancellor of the University of London, on 22 November 1995. Its facilities include exhibition space on three floors, a book shop, a lecture theatre, and conference and teaching facilities. The Gallery stages a comprehensive programme of temporary exhibitions of both historical and contemporary materials which reflect subjects and regions studied at SOAS. On 11 October 2007 the Gallery presented an exhibition drawn from the School's own collections, Objects of Instruction: Treasures of the School of Oriental and African Studies, and a rotating selection from this collection is on permanent display in the Foyle Special Collections Gallery.

The Japanese style roof garden on top of the Brunei Gallery was built during the Japan 2001 celebrations and was officially opened by the sponsor, Haruhisa Handa, an Honorary Fellow of the School, on 13 November 2001. The garden is dedicated to Forgiveness, which is the meaning of the kanji character engraved on the garden’s granite water basin. Peter Swift, a designer with experience of adapting Japanese garden design principles to the British environment and climate, conceived the garden as a place of quiet contemplation and meditation as well as a functional space complementary to the Gallery and its artistic activities.

The school also hosted the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, one of the foremost collections of Chinese ceramics in Europe, however, as of April 2009 the collection has been loaned to and is now on public display in Room 95 of the British Museum. The present library building (by Sir Denys Lasdun) was added in 1973, the Brunei Gallery in 1995, and an extension to the library building opened in 2004 (the second phase of this expansion was completed in 2006).

The Centenary Masterplan conceives of the development of two new buildings, and a substantial remodelling of existing space to realign and develop the entrance and two areas within the Old Building. The cost estimates for the Centenary Masterplan settle at around £73m for the total project. The full implementation of the School’s Centenary Masterplan will deliver approximately 30% additional space, approximately 1000 sq metres.

Reputation

SOAS is world famous as a "leading centre for the study of a highly diverse range of subjects concerned with Asia, Africa and the Middle East." [7] Although it is debatable whether University League Tables can accurately compare the quality of small specialized research institutions such as SOAS to general universities with tens of thousands of students and departments in nearly every academic discipline, or even to other specialised institutes with completely different kinds of focuses, [8], in 2005, SOAS placed 4th among United Kingdom universities in a Guardian poll.[9] In the subject tables of this poll, SOAS was placed 3rd for Anthropology, 4th for Economics, 3rd for History and History of Art, 6th for Law, 5th for Music, 3rd for Politics, and 3rd for Theology and Religious Studies. The History Department obtained a rare 6 research rating in the last government assessment, placing it as only one of three departments in the country to achieve such a status.

The Times Higher Education world rankings place SOAS 44th in the world, 7th in the United Kingdom, and 11th in Europe. SOAS is also regarded for its focus on small group teaching with a student-staff ratio of only 11:1 and some departments 6:1 (although postgraduate students have at times been used to fill in for academic staff). SOAS currently features in the world's top 50 Universities for Arts & Humanities, according to the QS World University Rankings.[10]

SOAS trains government officials on secondment from around the world in; Asian, African and Middle Eastern languages, especially in Arabic and Mandarin Chinese. It also acts as a consultant to several government departments and to companies such as Accenture and Deloitte - when they seek to gain specialist knowledge of the matters concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East.[11]

UK University Rankings
2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998
Times Good University Guide 33rd[12] 24th[13] 18th[14] 18th[15] 15th 19th[16] 22nd 27th[17] 23rd= 14th 14th 6th
Guardian University Guide 12th 8th[18] 11th[19] 6th 6th[20] 4th[21] 4th[21] 4th[22]
Sunday Times University Guide 33rd[23] 24th[24] 21st[24] 21st[25] 18th[26] 29th[26] 14th[26] 38th[26] 25th[26] 13th[26] 11th[26]
Daily Telegraph 24th[27] 10th= 12th[28]
FT 17th[29] 13th[28] 6th[30] 13th[31] 6th[32]
Independent / Complete 15th[33] 9th[33] 24th[33] 15th[33]

Management

Outside the SOAS Faber Building, 24 Russell Square, commemorating T. S. Eliot's years at Faber and Faber.

2006 - present Paul Webley is the current Director and Principal of SOAS. He was previously Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor and Professor of Economic Psychology at the University of Exeter.

2001-2006 Colin Bundy spent five years as Director and Principal of SOAS (and three years as Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of London). In 2006, he accepted appointment as Warden of Green College, Oxford.[34]

1996-2000 Professor Bundy's immediate predecessor was Sir Tim Lankester KCB, was Director and Principal 1996-2000 and left the School to become President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford.[35]

Department of Linguistics

The SOAS Department of Linguistics was the first ever linguistics department in United Kingdom, founded in 1932 as a centre for research and study in Oriental and African languages. J. R. Firth, known internationally for his original work in phonology and semantics, was Senior Lecturer, Reader and Professor of General Linguistics at the school between 1938 and 1956.

Faculties at SOAS

Faculty of Law and Social Sciences

The Faculty of Law and Social Sciences consists of five academic departments, one faculty centre and eight departmental centres:

Departments

Faculty Centres

Departmental Centres

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities contains five Departments, one faculty centre and nine departmental centres:

Departments

Faculty Centres

Departmental Centres

Faculty of Languages and Cultures

The Faculty of Languages and Cultures consists of a Language Centre, seven academic departments, two faculty centres and four departmental centres:

Departments

Faculty Centres

Departmental Centres

Note: At present, where The Language Centre employs its own staff and administers language only courses, the respective departments manage language acquisition in their courses.

IFCELS

IFCELS (International Foundation Courses and English Language Studies), lies outside the university's faculty structure and runs a number of foundation courses for students wishing to enter higher education in the UK.

Located in the Faber building, this department is one of the largest departments in the school with currently over 250 foundation students as well as a large number of pre-sessional and in-sessional students.

Regional and interdisciplinary centres

SOAS also includes six regional and 28 interdisciplinary centres apart from its faculties and academic departments. These are responsible for many vigorous programmes of activities such as conferences, colloquia, seminars and publications.

Regional centres

Departmental and other centres

Students' accommodation

Many SOAS students are accommodated in the college's own halls of residence: Dinwiddy House (located on Pentonville Road in Kings Cross) and Paul Robeson House, a block away from Dinwiddy House, on Penton Rise; SOAS students are also eligible to apply for places in the University of London intercollegiate halls of residence, such as Connaught Hall and Goodenough College.

Most students in college or university accommodation are first-year undergraduates. The majority of second, third and fourth-year students and postgraduates live out.

A UNITE accommodation, named Elisabeth Croll House, is currently being built on the Vernon Square Campus, due to be completed in late 2009, available for students from September 2009.

Some students are also selected to live in International Students House, London.

Students' Union

SOAS has an active Students' Union. In recent years the Students' Union has been particularly vocal in anti-war protests, and been active in reducing its carbon footprint. Recent campaigns by the union have involved campaigning for extended library opening hours, against closure of the Hindi, and for higher pay for the SOAS cleaners and staff, to prevent further walk out strike action like the walk out in 2005. It has also gone through an environmental audit and has started to actively tackle environmental issues within its student union and in the university. Adopted motions are decided upon by vote at a UGM, usually held at least twice a term.

The union elects three full-time co-presidents a year, who have separate responsibilities; and there are many part-time officers working with them who have specific briefs. Since a revision of the Union's constitution it has been possible for a Union General Meeting to elect an honorary president to serve a one-year term. The post has previously been held by former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone whilst the current Hon. President is Burmese political activist and SOAS alumna Aung San Suu Kyi.

OpenAir Radio

SOAS runs its own radio station, OpenAir Radio, based on the 5th floor of the Russell Square Building. The initial Restricted Service Licence ran from November until 16 December 2005, and broadcast on 101.4FM over a three mile radius in the Camden/Central London area. The remit of the station is world music, culture and current affairs, with programmes focusing on Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America. OpenAir programmes include everything from local news to international media analysis, and cookery programmes to DJ sets.

OpenAir is currently broadcasting over the internet and also providing shows as podcasts at [2].

Notable students and alumni

Royalty

Government and politics

Media/writers

Academia

Music and the arts

Business and finance

Religion

Notable academics

Principals

Faculty of Law and Social Sciences

Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Faculty of Languages and Cultures

References

  1. ↑ [1]
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Table 0a - All students by institution, mode of study, level of study, gender and domicile 2005/06". Higher Education Statistics Agency online statistics. http://www.hesa.ac.uk/holisdocs/pubinfo/student/institution0506.htm. Retrieved 2007-03-31. 
  3. ↑ "guardian.co.uk | Education". London: Browse.guardian.co.uk. 2008-01-17. http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education?SearchBySubject=true&Subject=University+ranking&Institution=Soas&Go=Go. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 
  4. ↑ "League Table of UK Universities 2009". The Complete University Guide. http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/single.htm?ipg=6524. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 
  5. ↑ Sadao Ōba The 'Japanese' war: London University's WWII secret teaching programme p.11
  6. ↑ "About SOAS Library". Soas.ac.uk. http://www.soas.ac.uk/library/about/. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 
  7. ↑ "The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) - University of London". SOAS. 2010-04-21. http://www.soas.ac.uk/. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 
  8. ↑ UK University Rankings
  9. ↑ "Institution-wide". London: The Guardian. 2005. http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education?SearchBySubject=true&FirstRow=0&SortOrderDirection=&SortOrderColumn=&Subject=Institution-wide&Institution=&Tariff=6. Retrieved 2006-08-10. 
  10. ↑ "THE - QS World University Rankings 2009 - Arts and Humanities". QS Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd.. 2009. http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2009/subject-rankings/arts-humanities. Retrieved 2009-10-14. 
  11. ↑ "Interface - Previous Client". School of Oriental and African Studies. http://www.soas.ac.uk/business/interface/clientlist/. 
  12. ↑ "The Times Good University Guide 2010". The Times (London). http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  13. ↑ "The Times Good University Guide 2009". The Times (London). http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  14. ↑ "The Times Good University Guide 2008". The Times (London). http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/gug/gooduniversityguide.php. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  15. ↑ "The Times Good University Guide 2007 - Top Universities 2007 League Table". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,102571,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  16. ↑ "The Times Top Universities". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,32607,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  17. ↑ "Times Good University Guide 2003" (PDF). University of Nottingham. http://www.nottingham.edu.my/News/News/Documents/2002/Nottingham%20wins%20in%20popularity%20stakes.pdf. 
  18. ↑ "University ranking by institution". The Guardian (London). http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education?SearchBySubject=true&FirstRow=&SortOrderDirection=&SortOrderColumn=&Subject=University+ranking&Institution=. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  19. ↑ "University ranking by institution". The Guardian (London). http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education?SearchBySubject=&FirstRow=29&SortOrderDirection=&SortOrderColumn=GuardianTeachingScore&Subject=University+ranking&Institution=. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  20. ↑ "University ranking by institution". The Guardian (London). http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education/2006?SearchBySubject=&FirstRow=20&SortOrderDirection=&SortOrderColumn=GuardianTeachingScore&Subject=Institution-wide&Institution=. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "University ranking by institution". The Guardian (London). http://education.guardian.co.uk/universityguide2005/table/0,,-5163901,00.html?start=40&index=3&index=3. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  22. ↑ "University ranking by institution". The Guardian 2003 (University Guide 2004) (London). http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/unitable/0,,-4668575,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  23. ↑ "The Sunday Times Good University Guide League Tables". The Sunday Times (London). http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/stug/universityguide.php. Retrieved 2009-03-03. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "The Sunday Times University League Table" (PDF). The Sunday Times (London). http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/stug2006/stug2006.pdf. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  25. ↑ "The Sunday Times University Guide 2005". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8404-1246752,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 26.5 26.6 "University ranking based on performance over 10 years" (PDF). London: Times Online. 2007. http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/pdfs/univ07ten.pdf. Retrieved 2008-04-28. 
  27. ↑ "University league table". The Daily Telegraph (London). 2007-07-30. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=HXFCSGXMNVABTQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2007/07/30/ncambs430.xml. 
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 "The 2002 ranking - From Warwick". Warwick Uni 2002. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/academicoffice/ourservices/planning/businessinformation/academicstatistics/2002/table_81.xls. 
  29. ↑ "The FT 2003 University ranking". Financial Times 2003. http://www.grb.uk.com/448.0.html?cHash=5015838e9d&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=9&tx_ttnews%5Buid%5D=9. 
  30. ↑ "FT league table 2001". FT league tables 2001. http://specials.ft.com/universities2001/FT3HLLAN6LC.html. 
  31. ↑ "FT league table 1999-2000". FT league tables 1999-2000. http://specials.ft.com/ln/ftsurveys/industry/pdf/top100table.pdf. 
  32. ↑ "FT league table 2000". FT league tables 2000. http://specials.ft.com/ln/ftsurveys/industry/scbbbe.htm. 
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 "The Independent University League Table". The Independent (London). 2008-04-24. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/the-main-league-table-2009-813839.html. Retrieved 2010-05-23. 
  34. ↑ "Oxford Blueprint, Vol 6, Issue 11". University of Oxford. 1 June 2006. http://www.ox.ac.uk/blueprint/2005-06/0106/14.shtml. Retrieved 2006-08-10. 
  35. ↑ "About SOAS: Sir Tim Lankester KCB". School of Oriental and African Studies. http://www.soas.ac.uk/about/index.cfm?navid=2583. Retrieved 2006-08-13. 
  36. ↑ Tweedie, Neil (2008-04-01). "Sufiah Yusof - child genius revealed as prostitute". London: The Guardian. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?xml=/portal/2008/04/01/ftgenius101.xml. Retrieved 2008-04-08. 
  37. ↑ Churcher, Sharon (2005-09-01). "Does Mandelson have a female love rival?". London: Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-52304/Does-Mandelson-female-love-rival.html. Retrieved 2008-06-08. 
  38. ↑ Jane Perrone (2003-12-18). "Weblog heaven | Media | guardian.co.uk". London: Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2003/dec/18/weblogs. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 
  39. ↑ East Asian Institute: Staff: Current Staff: Chairman
  40. ↑ Peter Robb (2006-02-02). "Obituary: Sir Cyril Philips | Education". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/feb/02/guardianobituaries.highereducation. Retrieved 2010-04-29. 

External links

The 1994 Group of research-led British universities

Bath • Birkbeck • Durham • East Anglia • Essex • Exeter • Goldsmiths College • Institute of Education • Lancaster • Leicester • Loughborough • Queen Mary • Reading • Royal Holloway • School of Oriental and African Studies • St Andrews • Surrey • Sussex • York