Can you help us raise £20,000 for the SOAS Library?  

In April, SOAS is running a spring appeal to raise £20,000 for the SOAS Library. We have reached 50% of our target, so now we need your help to raise another 10k! 

For over 50 years, the SOAS Library has been a cornerstone of learning, research, and discovery.

Housing 1.3 million volumes, it is one of the UK’s five National Research Libraries, offering students, researchers and alumni unparalleled access to knowledge.

Your support can go a long way.

If you studied at SOAS, the Library was probably the place where your ideas first began to take shape. We have recently been able to refurbish the reading room, a previously under-used area of the Library.

Every donations, whether big or small, can help us to continue provide vital resources, study spaces, and expert research assistance to all who rely on the SOAS Library. You will also support the preservation of rare books and manuscripts and new materials for subject and regional collections. 

We are delighted to announce that SOAS has soared in the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026 with four of its subjects ranked in the global top 25 and thirteen in the global top 100. 

Development Studies, ranks second globally, Politics 16, Anthropology 19 and History of Art 24. The subject area of Arts & Humanities is also in the global top 100, ranking 88. 

Other subjects in the top 100, as categorised in the rankings, are History, Linguistics, Sociology, Modern Languages, Archaeology, Classics and Ancient History; Theology, Divinity & Religious Studies. 

Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Joanna Newman MBE, FRSA said: “These outstanding results are a powerful endorsement of the global impact and academic excellence of our teaching and research at SOAS. At a time when deep regional expertise and global perspectives matter more than ever, SOAS continues to lead the way in addressing the world’s most pressing social, political and cultural challenges.” 

International partnerships are at the core of SOAS’s vision for a teaching model that is responsive to the transnational character of our global challenges. 

After launching a joint institute with Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU), a joint one-year MA in Global Affairs and Eurasian Studies at Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan and a joint PhD in Global Development with BRAC University, Bangladesh, we are delighted to announce two new partnerships in Saudi Arabia and Taiwan.

In December 2025, SOAS signed a partnership with the Ministry of Culture for Riyadh University of Arts (RUA)’s College of Heritage and Civilization Studies. SOAS will and RUA will design and deliver specialised academic programmes that promote excellence in heritage and cultural education.  

A joint one-year MA in Global Citizenship, beginning in 2026, has been launched by SOAS and National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU) in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The programme has been built around key themes of equality, citizenship, and social change to help students develop a framework for global equality and sustainable development.

As artificial intelligence continues to evolve at pace, SOAS has announced two new Master’s programmes to prepare graduates for the social, cultural and political challenges of AI. 

The MSc Data Science and Economic Policy is designed for students seeking to combine a solid training in the principles of economic policy and an expertise on data science approaches. The programme allows students to assess economic policies around the world, develop coding skills, apply economic models and understand how data science techniques can guide policy making. 

The MSc in AI and Sustainability explores the complex and evolving relationship between AI technologies and environmental, socio-economic and macrofinancial sustainability. The programme combines rigorous training in the data science foundations of AI with a deep understanding of its broader societal implications.  

Dr Yannis Dafermos, Reader in the Department of Economics, has written on whether AI is exacerbating the environmental crisis, the risks of an AI bubble, and how we should approach visions of an AI driven society. 

The UK Museum Accreditation Scheme, run by the Arts Council Engand and partners, has recently recognised the SOAS Gallery for being managed and governed by the nationally agreed industry standard. 

This accreditation recognises some of the best run museums and galleries in the UK and works to ensure museums are sustainable, focused and trusted, inspiring the confidence of the public and funding and governing bodies. The recognition also acknowledged how the collections at the SOAS Gallery are correctly cared for and developed.  

John Hollingworth, Head of SOAS Galleries and Exhibitions, said:  

“This recognition opens up exciting new opportunities and gives confidence to those who may wish to support the Gallery or contribute to our future collections”. 

The SOAS Gallery has hosted international exhibitions and events associated with the university for 30 years. It reflects the diversity in subjects and regions studied at SOAS, with wider dedication to promoting a better understanding of the art, culture, history and contemporary contexts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East. 

SOAS has received a transformative endowment of £2 million from the Korea Foundation to establish a Chair in Korean Studies. This landmark gift marks a pivotal moment for Korean Studies in the UK and Europe.

The Chair will shape the future of Korean Studies at SOAS and beyond, driving innovation in research and teaching in this key field.

The creation of this new Professorship will be a strategic post, marking a major expansion into a dynamic area of contemporary Korean culture and scholarship, consolidating our leading position as a centre of excellence in Korean Studies. It will also enhance the global visibility and relevance of the field across academic and public discourse.

As home to one of the largest concentrations of Korean Studies experts in Europe, SOAS is uniquely placed to leverage this endowment to broaden academic leadership and expanding interdisciplinary research.

The Chair in Korean Studies will be based in the SOAS School of Arts - led by Charlotte Horlyck, Professor of the History of Korean Art - and will anchor this rapidly growing area of teaching and research.