ABOUT AL-QUDS BARD COLLEGE

Al-Quds Bard College is committed to liberal arts education to create possibilities and lead to discoveries on students’ personal, academic, and professional levels. The undergraduate curricula emphasize a harmonious balance between general knowledge and specific specialization. Their designs aim to immerse students in diverse academic activities in natural and social sciences, computing, humanities and practicing arts.

The AQB Master of Arts in Teaching introduces a new model of theories and practices to the Palestinian school system. AQB equips Palestinian teachers with tools which empower them and their students inside and outside classrooms. AQB takes pride in its commitment to civil society and education, where such a role fills a gap that exists in the society.

Al-Quds Bard College is a place to think and act creatively.

AQB is the result of a comprehensive dual-degree-partnership, founded in 2009 between Al-Quds University in Palestine and Bard College in the United States. AQB is the only dual degree liberal arts college in the Levant region.

Al-Quds University was founded in 1984 in Abu Dis, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem. For many centuries Abu Dis has been the last stop for pilgrims & other travelers before entering into the walled city of Jerusalem. A branch of the ancient Silk Road passed in front of the Al-Quds University campus.

Bard College is a liberal arts educational institution founded in 1860 on the Hudson River in Annandale, New York. Out of approximately 4,000 universities and colleges in the United States, Bard College is the only one that has a dual degree undergraduate program with a Palestinian university.

In addition, AQB has added under its autopsies two masters programs from Al-Quds University. The Master of American Studies and the Master of European Studies. Students studying in these two programs have access to AQB facilities and academic resources.

AQB offers 10 bachelor’s degree programs, Molecular Genetics, Biology, Computer Science, Economy-Policy-& Social Thought, (EPST), Human Rights and International Law, Urban Studies, Digital Communication, Media and the Arts, and Literature and Society, and English Language & Literature. The college has a dynamic mix of faculty from Palestine, Europe, the United States, and around the world.

Additionally, the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program serves teachers in history, sciences, biology, English, and mathematics. The MAT program came into reality as a response to a significant need for change in Palestinian public and private education. In this regard AQB’s liberal arts approach comes to value individuals by adopting small classroom models, essay-based exams, and departing from the traditional classic education. It is distinguished by its interdisciplinary programs that overlap in harmony and sequence. This uniqueness contributes to the mainstream-education by adding the liberal arts catalyst that encourages students to think creatively, embed reflective writing, openness, search with curiosity, and be ready for their future.

THE M.A. IN EUROPEAN STUDIES PROGRAM, Now under the auspices of Al-Quds Bard College,It is implemented in close cooperation with Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHUD), Germany, and divided into two parts: The first/preparatory year (two semesters) takes place at AQB/AQU. A second year (two semesters) in an international program at HHUD which will be possible for those students who fulfill the respective entry requirements. They will have the chance to graduate with an HHUD Master's degree. The program serves young professionals who wish to pursue higher education and a career. The program provides a full scholarship.

THE M.A. IN AMERICAN STUDIES PROGRAM is Now under the auspices of Al-Quds Bard College, the program is poised to take advantage of its connections to prestigious American institutions, as well as universities and organizations around the world. The program is ideal for individuals who wish to pursue advanced graduate studies, as well as for young professionals who wish to advance to leadership positions within their field. The program provides partial scholarships up to 75% of the tuition.

AQB is constantly bringing more talents and resources into the university in order to provide students with the necessary knowledge, facilities, and technologies to thrive in a globalizing world. AQB graduates have gone on to top–ranking graduate institutions, including Oxford University, Central European University, SOAS of the University of London, Syracuse University, and AQU’s School of Medicine. They have also received highly competitive awards for graduate study, including the HESPAL, the DAAD, and the OSF, and the Chevening. Furthermore, Al-Quds Bard won the first place in the MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship in 2024. Moreover, about 90% of AQB’s 576 BA graduates have found employment in their field and/or gone on to postgraduate study.

Over the past decade, AQB has graduated more than 619 MAT scholars who are now serving as teachers and leading educators in governmental schools, ministry of education departments, or private schools, locally and internationally.