SOAS University of London

Facts and figures

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full time academic staff, the School of Arts is a unique concentration of experts on the arts and cultures of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Alumni and student stories

• "The specialisation of our modules is fantastic and allows you to learn about literatures that you wouldn’t be exposed to anywhere else."

• "The Travelling Africa course took me on a journey across the African continent from Cape Town to Cairo, via Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan and everywhere in between."

  The Travelling Africa course took me on a journey across the African continent from Cape Town to Cairo, via Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan and everywhere in between.

• "SOAS has a long tradition of training future academics, linguists and leaders for the fields of Oriental, African and Middle Eastern cultures."

  SOAS has a long tradition of training future academics, linguists and leaders for the fields of Oriental, African and Middle Eastern cultures. The specialization, particularly in the areas of art, archaeology and language connected to these cultures is in my opinion almost unchallenged in the academic world

• "When I heard about SOAS I immediately knew it was the school for me."

  When I heard about SOAS I immediately knew it was the school for me. An institution like SOAS is the ideal platform for students who want to learn a language and gain insight into a culture. It is also a leading school in Tibetan studies.

• "The insight provided, knowledge delivered and understanding transmitted during lectures, seminars and conferences at SOAS is impressive and requires real personal involvement in the topics."

  The insight provided, knowledge delivered and understanding transmitted during lectures, seminars and conferences at SOAS is impressive and requires real personal involvement in the topics.

• "Studying Islamic Art History at SOAS has been one of the most engrossing, pleasurable and rewarding pursuits I have undertaken."

  Studying Islamic Art History at SOAS has been one of the most engrossing, pleasurable and rewarding pursuits I have undertaken.The SOAS academics I encountered are exemplary. Their scholarship, first hand experiences and enthralling anecdotes brought their subjects to life. Within this rich and rigorous environment, also supported by access to other SOAS departments and the numerous co-curricular resources available in London, it is inevitable that students strive for excellence.

• "SOAS is a vibrant place filled with diversity."

  With the guidance of an eminent team of professors, and the support of the various resources SOAS has to offer, my time here has indeed been very productive, academically and professionally.

• "The UK and especially London is a great place to study. SOAS in particular offers a warm and hearty atmosphere with the opportunity to study at a renowned university and get to know people from everywhere in the world."

  The public transport in London is just great as it is easy to get around and also to get to other cities in the UK. The beautiful cities Cambridge and Oxford are basically around the corner and definitely worth visiting and many other nice British cities and places are also easy to get to from London.

• "My initial impression of SOAS was that it was extraordinarily different. I used to describe it as the ‘United Nations’ to friends and family, because of its diversity."

  I really wanted to study History of Art and I knew that was my calling. After research, I found out that SOAS was a prestigious school with notable alumni and also that I could study History of Art and Law as a joint degree, which is perhaps the only school in the world that offers this at the BA level.

• "More than any other place, the SOAS Music Department allows me to combine my interests in music, philosophy and culture in the Middle East. "

  I've experienced SOAS as a place of profound research and interdisciplinary cooperation, and as home of an inspiring community of people who are connected through their love for music and openness to new ideas.

• "SOAS has helped tremendously in opening up my eyes and ears to how culturally colourful our musical world is. "

  As a future music educator, ethnomusicology has become a highly empowering tool in reinforcing that all our voices are unique and are worthy of being listened to. 

• "As soon as I first walked into the Junior Common Room I said ‘this is what university should be like!’ "

  When I mentioned my interest in ethnomusicology to the academics at my previous university, their instant reaction was SOAS.

• "I would sum up my studies here so far as a white-knuckle intellectual adventure. "

  I would sum up my studies here so far as a white-knuckle intellectual adventure. It has opened doors not only in my mind, but in real life, especially in terms of people I have met.

• "I chose SOAS because it is the only place in London where I could gain a broad knowledge of Music in the Middle East."

  SOAS is a great place to study Ethnomusicology. It has the flavour of the world spread through the music made by the students, lecturers and guests.

Read more alumni and student stories

Our publications

• Culture, Diaspora and Modernity in Muslim Writing

  Ahmed, Rehana and Morey, Peter and Yaqin, Amina, eds. (2012) 

  Abingdon: Routledge. (Routledge Research in Postcolonial Literatures)

• Curating Africa in the Age of Film Festivals

  Dovey, Lindiwe (2015).

  Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan US.

• Framing Muslims: stereotyping and representation after 9/11

  Morey, Peter and Yaqin, Amina (2011)

  Cambridge, Massachussetts, London, England: Harvard University Press.

• Zoë Wicomb & the Translocal: Writing Scotland & South Africa

  Kai Easton (Editor),‎ Derek Attridge (Editor)

  Routledge Research in Postcolonial Literatures