TheAmerican University of Armenia (AUA) (Armenian:Հայաստանի ամերիկյան համալսարան, ՀԱՀ;Hayastani amerikyan hamalsaran,HAH) is a private, independent university inYerevan,Armenia that is accredited by theWestern Association of Schools and Colleges Senior College and University Commission. It is the first U.S.-accredited institution in the formerSoviet Union that provides undergraduate and graduate education.[9]
It was founded in 1991, Armenia's first year of independence, by theArmenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), theUniversity of California (UC), and theArmenian government. The university is the country's first institution modeled on Western-style higher education, committed to teaching, research, and service; it offers 12 master's and 9 bachelor's degrees.[10]
The idea of opening an American-style institution of higher education in Armenia originated in the late 1980s. When Armenia was struck by a devastatingearthquake in 1988 the country, then stillpart of the Soviet Union, was opened to unprecedented international humanitarian and technical assistance. A number ofearthquake engineers from the West helped in the reconstruction of the disaster zone. In 1989, Yuri Sarkissian, thenrector of theYerevan Polytechnic Institute, suggested to Armen Der Kiureghian, Professor of Civil Engineering at theUniversity of California, Berkeley, that an Armenian technical university based on the Western model ought to be established to foster educational progress in Armenia. The proposition was narrowed to the creation a graduate university on the American model. Der Kiureghian and another earthquake engineer, Mihran Agbabian, Professor Emeritus at theUniversity of Southern California, set out to realize the goal. A number of American and Armenian academics supported the concept of the university. Der Kiureghian and Agbabian, along with the late Stepan Karamardian, formerly Dean of theA. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management at theUniversity of California, Riverside, presented their proposal to the Armenian government.[11][12] Agbabian became the founding president in 1991 and served until 1997.[13]
TheArmenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and theUniversity of California (UC) helped realize AUA. The Armenian government—in particular the Ministry of Higher Education and Sciences (now the Ministry of Education and Science)—offered financial and logistical support for the university despite the turbulent political and economic circumstances in Armenia between 1989 and 1991. The AGBU underwrote a significant portion of the operational funding; when the UC was asked for its assistance in founding the university, its presidentDavid P. Gardner appointed a task force led by Senior Vice President for Academic AffairsWilliam R. Frazer to evaluate the possibility of an affiliation between AUA and UC. After the task force's visit to Armenia in July 1990, theRegents of the University of California voted unanimously in favor of an affiliation, through which UC provides technical support and experience for the growth of AUA and collaborates with AUA in preparing its faculty.[11]
The university was formally established on September 21, 1991,[1][2] the day Armenia held anindependence referendum, and opened two days later.[14] AUA began instruction with 101 students,[11] who were enrolled in an intensive English-language program, which later grew into three graduate degree programs.[15] In 1993, AUA's first commencement took place when 38 students received graduate degrees in Business and Management,Industrial Engineering, andEarthquake Engineering.[15] AUA Extension, a program offering short courses and training programs, was established in 1992.[15]
The university's two central buildings, the Main Building and the Paramaz Avedisian Building, are located at 40Marshal Baghramyan Avenue in central Yerevan.[17]
The university's main building, informally known as the "old building" (հին մասնաշենք),[18] housed the Political Enlightenment House of the Central Committee of theArmenian Communist Party during the Soviet period.[19] It was granted to the AUA on September 21, 1991, by the government.[2][20] It has six floors and originally had lecture halls, auditoriums, laboratories, library facilities, and offices.[21] It houses classrooms and administrative offices.[22] The main building hassolar panels on its rooftop, which have a capacity of around 50kilowatt-hour (kWh) and photoelectric capacity of 5 kWh, which ensures the continuous operation of the entire system.[23]
Construction on the Paramaz Avedisian Building (PAB) began in 2005.[15] It was designed by Gagik Galstyan[24] and opened its doors on November 1, 2008. Located next to the main building,[25] it encompasses 100,000 sq ft (9,300 square metres) of space, housing classrooms, seminar rooms, laboratories, research centers, and faculty offices.[22] Built in 2018, AUA's Student Union adjoins the Paramaz Avedisian Building (PAB).[26]
AUA Center is located at 9 Alex Manoogian Street in central Yerevan.[17] It is a multiple-use rental facility suitable for business or not-for-profit organizations. It has two conference and meeting rooms and a large auditorium.[27] The center was established in 1999 through the financial support of the U.S. government.[14]
In 2005, AUA acquired the Hye Business Suites Hotel at 8 Mher Mkrtchyan Street in central Yerevan through a donation by Vartkes Barsam. The hotel accommodates visiting faculty and students while generating additional income for the university.[28][29] TheUnited States Agency for International Development (USAID) awarded $300,000 to renovate and upgrade the building.[30]
Two buildings were donated by philanthropists K. George and Dr. Carolann Najarian in 2016. Following the completion of AUA's Student Residence, construction began on the Najarian Center for Social Entrepreneurship in 2021. Many of the university's journalism and writing courses are taught there.[31]
Founded alongside AUA in 1991, the AGBU Papazian Library bears the name of the Papazian family in recognition of their generous support to the university.[32] As of June 2024[update] the library held 30,676 printed books, 672,058 digital resources, and various media formats including CDs, DVDs, and cassettes.[33] The library has received significant donations from notableArmenian Americans, including historianRichard G. Hovannisian who donated 1,338 books, and scholarVartan Gregorian, who donated over 600 primarily English-language titles in 2014.[34]
The AUA was accredited by theWestern Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Senior College and University Commission in 2006. It received candidacy status for accreditation in 2002,[35] becoming the first university in theformer Soviet Union to be accredited by a U.S. educational institution. Accreditation means degrees issued by the AUA have a status equal to those issued in the U.S.[36] By 2013, the university had received accreditation from WASC and a license from the Armenian Ministry of Education and Science to offer four-year education.[37]
David Akopyan, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative a.i. in Syria, graduated from Master of Business Administration (MBA) program in 1993
Emil Babayan, Deputy Prosecutor General (since 2013) who holds a degree of Master of Laws from 2001[38]
Sedrak Barseghyan, Adviser to Minister-Chief of Government Staff of Armenia (since 2013). Class of 2009.[39]
Tevan Poghosyan, a member of parliament fromHeritage party (since 2012) who graduated from the faculty of Political Sciences and International Relations in 1996[41]
Hovhannes Avoyan, chief executive officer and Founder ofPicsart, who graduated as a Master of Political Sciences and International Relations in 1995.
Artashes Emin, translator, former Honorary Consul of Canada. Graduated as a Master of Law in 1999.[42]
Anna Simonyan, Federal MP Candidate for Bloc Quebecois & Commission Members and founder of Clove a start up with offices in Yerevan, Montreal and San Francisco. Graduated with an MBA in 2001.
According to a 2009 business report by theMichigan State University, "according to those interviewed, the only reputable MBA program in Armenia is offered in Yerevan at the American University of Armenia".[7] According to a 2004 report titled "Corruption Levies Heavy Toll on Armenian Universities" by theEmbassy of the United States to Armenia, the AUA is seen by its alumni as the only "clean", non-corrupt university where "students' assessment is performance based" in Armenia.[citation needed] As of 2004[update], the AUA was one of four universities in Armenia teachingpublic administration.[59]
At his 2015 AUA Commencement Speech, U.S. AmbassadorRichard Mills said: "AUA is like no other university in Armenia. At no other school are you challenged to think critically like you are here. As an extension of our well-regarded University of California system, AUA has planted and nurtured informed critical thinking skills that will stand you in good stead throughout the rest of your lives."[60]
At a June 1994 fundraising banquet for the AUA, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Harry Gilmore stated that the university was one of the "islands of light" in an Armenia caught in war and economic hardship, where people had been living without heat and light for several years. Gilmore praised the university as follows:[61]
To me, the American University of Armenia exemplifies what is best about Armenian education. When you walk in the doors of the American University, you feel a sense of energy, of purpose. When you look in the computer lab, and see the students at work stations, you could be in any American University. But I think there are very few universities in the United States where the students work with such dedication and enthusiasm. There is another difference--when you talk to the students, you learn they are not there just for themselves, they are there because they want to make Armenia a better place to live for future generations.
On May 2, 2018, during theVelvet Revolution, a long list of AUA faculty members signed an open letter "unequivocally support[ing] the Armenian people's peaceful movement to restore social democratic values and fair, transparent elections." The letter added: "We support the students, workers, and other citizens of Armenia who are collectively saying no to oligarchic rule, corruption, a biased judiciary, and other socio-economic injustices."[74]
^ab"AUA Factbook 2023-2024 (Summary Version)"(PDF).Office of Institutional Research & Analysis, American University of Armenia. American University of Armenia. 26 December 2024. Retrieved20 October 2025.
^abHuddleston, Patricia; Linz, Susan J. (2009)."Doing Business in Armenia – Local CEOs Are Optimistic"(PDF).GlobalEDGE Business Review.3 (7).Michigan State University: 1.Archived(PDF) from the original on 2016-10-11. Retrieved2016-01-29.Civic involvement of Armenian diasporans resulted in the founding and support of the American University of Armenia, a U.S. accredited graduate institution affiliated with the University of California. [...] according to those interviewed, the only reputable MBA program in Armenia is offered in Yerevan at the American University of Armenia.
^"Solar Energy".minenergy.am. Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia.Archived from the original on 2016-03-15. Retrieved2016-01-31.
^"Hotels / Minotel Barsam Suites".hotels.am.Archived from the original on 2016-02-07. Retrieved2016-01-28.In the meantime, you will be making a contribution to the development of Armenia because funds from the Barsam Suites directly support the American University of Armenia scholarship fund to the benefit of many talented students of the University.
^"AUA Factbook 2023-2024 (Summary Version)"(PDF).Office of Institutional Research & Analysis, American University of Armenia. American University of Armenia. 26 December 2024. Retrieved20 October 2025.
^"Discussion on Us-Armenia Relations With Students".armenia.usembassy.gov. Embassy of the United States, Yerevan. 3 March 2009. Archived fromthe original on 1 February 2016....the American University of Armenia, one of the country's leading academic institutions.
^Nemtsova, Anna (1 May 2015)."Why Armenia Won't Be Dragged Behind a New Iron Curtain".The Daily Beast.Archived from the original on 2016-02-16. Retrieved2016-02-08.The American University of Armenia, AUA, is at the top of Armenia's most popular universities for its approach to higher education focused on freedom of speech, critical thinking and independent research.
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