Anglo-American University (AAU) is a

private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public student loans, and grant (money ...

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, Czech Republic, providing courses in English. Founded in 1990, it was the first private university in the country to use English as the language of instruction.

History

Anglo-American University was founded in 1990 as the Anglo-American College by Jansen Raichl and Vlasta Raichlová, shortly after the

collapse of communism The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Natio ...

. Their aim was to create a higher education institution that would combine Central European university traditions with US and British academic principles. The college's name in English was later changed to ''university'' instead of college. In 2010, AAU was the first university outside the United States to be invited to apply for institutional accreditation by the

Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) was an organization providing accreditation of public and private universities, colleges, secondary and elementary schools in California and Hawaii, the territories of Guam, American Sam ...

(WASC). This accreditation was approved in 2016, with AAU becoming the first WASC-accredited university in Europe. Courses at AAU were initially organised under the School of

Business Administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

, School of

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at t ...

and

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...

, and School of

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

. The university subsequently added a School of International Relations and Diplomacy (2006) and School of Journalism (2010). In late 2008, John H. Carey II, co-founder and lecturer at the school of law, died, and the AAU School of Law was renamed in his honour as the John H. Carey II School of Law.

Academics

The university offers a preparatory Certificate of Higher Education in Common Law (CertHE Common Law). The university runs bachelor programs in Business Administration and International Relations with various possible specialisations, as well as other bachelor programs in: Humanities, Society and Culture; Politics and Society; Journalism and Communications; Visual Art Studies; and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) using University of London International Programmes Courses. The university also runs several bachelor courses in conjunction with

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in ...

, including Computer Science (B.A. or B.S.), B.B.A. Computer Information Systems, and B.S. Emerging Media and Technology with a minor in either User Experience or Web Development. The university runs master's programs in Humanities, and International Relations and Diplomacy, as well as Master of Law (LLM) programs in International Intellectual Property Law, and Law and Development, using University of London International Programmes Courses. The university offers a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

(MBA) in cooperation with Chapman University, California AAU also offers various courses related to Czech culture, including: * Czech and Slovak Politics * Cities of Central Europe: Prague, Vienna and Budapest * Literature of Prague * Prague Art and Architecture * Czech as a foreign language

Accreditation

Most of AAU's programs are accredited by the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, except the Certificate of Higher Education in Common Law (CertHE Common Law), LLB, LLM, and the

Chapman Chapman may refer to: Businesses * Chapman Entertainment, a former British television production company * Chapman Guitars, a guitar company established in 2009 by Rob Chapman * Chapman's, a Canadian ice cream and ice water products manufacture ...

MBA program, which are offered in cooperation with international partners. Anglo-American University is accredited by the

WASC WASC may refer to: * Supreme Court of Western Australia * WASC (AM), a radio station (1530 AM) licensed to Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States * West Africa Submarine Cable * West African School Certificate The West African Senior School ...

Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), an American accrediting agency which evaluates public and private senior colleges and universities in the western part of the United States. The accreditation was granted in June 2016 for a period of six years. The accreditation was granted on the basis of the university having a sufficient level of compliance with WSCUC's 2013 Standards of Accreditation, and satisfactorily addressing the core commitments to Student Learning and Success, Quality and Improvement, and Institutional Integrity, Sustainability, and Accountability. The MBA program offered in cooperation with Chapman University, California is globally accredited by the

Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, also known as AACSB International, is an American professional organization. It was founded as the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business in 1916 to provide accreditation to ...

AACSB. The Certificate of Higher Education in Common Law (CertHE Common Law) and the LLB and LLM programs are offered in cooperation with the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

University facilities

Campus

AAU’s main campus is located in the newly restored Thurn-Taxis Palace, a cultural monument dating to the 17th century, previously owned by the German Thurn und Taxis noble family and now under the ownership of the city of Prague. The premises consist of 16 classrooms, a computer lab, and a visual arts studio, along with a cafeteria, courtyard and student lounges.

University library

AAU has a university library with a collection of 19,000 books, predominantly in English. AAU students, staff and faculty also have access to the collections held by the

Institute of International Relations Prague The Institute of International Relations Prague (IIR) is a public research institution that produces basic and applied scientific research in the field of international relations. Dr. Ondřej Ditrych is the director of the IIR. The founder of th ...

, the Institute for Contemporary History, Academy of Sciences, and other libraries in

. The library also hosts music and

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics o ...

performances, readings, and discussion groups.

Exhibition gallery

AAU has an exhibition gallery name , art, SPACE, which displays photography, paintings, installations, and sculptures by faculty and students. , art, SPACE operates under the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and is also used to showcase coursework in

digital photography Digital photography uses cameras containing arrays of electronic photodetectors interfaced to an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to produce images focused by a lens, as opposed to an exposure on photographic film. The digitized image ...

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile art ...

and other creative courses.

Scholarships

AAU runs a system of merit-based

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...

s, allowing exceptional students to study at the university for free, based on academic achievement as measured by a student's Grade Point Average (GPA).

Student life

AAU's Student Council is an independent body that represents students' interests in university plans, policies, and procedures; secures student representation in university governance; elects one representative for the Academic Council; and organizes various student activities. The Student Council consists of 10 members, plus two exchange students and one external adviser each semester and/or academic year. Council members are elected by the students at the beginning of each semester. Student clubs running at AAU include basketball club, chess club, cooking club, dance club, film club, football club, photography club, program board, a volunteering club called "Helpful Hands", and yoga club. AAU's student body includes full-time, exchange and

study abroad International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internati ...

students of many different nationalities.

Lennon Wall

''Lennon Wall'' is AAU's student magazine, which takes its name from the John Lennon Wall, a monument to freedom of expression located near the university. The magazine describes itself as "a nonpartisan platform for aspiring reporters and future writers", independent from the university.

Sexual harassment allegations

An article published on A2larm.cz on 16 July 2018 detailed accusations from two former students that AAU had failed to properly enforce their sexual harassment policy and failed to protect their students. On 17 July 2018, AAU responded with a statement categorically denying the accusations, stating that an investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment was ongoing, as required by AAU's policy on disciplinary procedures. Members of AAU's staff and upper management took to Facebook to defend their position soon after the initial article was published, clashing with both students and readers on A2larm's page, as well as AAU's public account. On 18 July 2018, A2larm announced that they would continue to investigate after being contacted by both students and staff of AAU with additional allegations of abuse and harassment, but has not filed anything since the announcement. On 20 July 2018 the AAU President issued a press release addressing both cases reported in the article and announced action that would be taken by AAU. AAU pledged to revise the existing procedures and also to re-establish the AAU sexual harassment task force. In response to A2larm.cz's articles alleging sexual harassment at AAU, WSCUC, the university's American accreditation body, reviewed AAU's rules and procedures in response to a complaint filed by a third party. WSCUC reported a “structured and rigorous process for addressing complaints related to sexual harassment and misconduct”, and on 10 August 2018 confirmed that AAU meets WSCUC's standards.

Notable alumni

* Klára Poláčková - The first Czech woman to climb

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow hei ...

. *

Alexandra Udženija Alexandra Udženija (born 8 November 1975) is a Czech politician of Serbian descent. Biography She studied economics at the University of Economics in Prague (VŠE) and other schools. In 2003 she joined the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) and repres ...

- Deputy Leader of the Civic Democratic Party (2014–present). *

Oz Karahan Oz Karahan is a Cypriot political activist, columnist and current president of the Union of Cypriots. Life and political career Born in 1990, Oz Karahan spent his youth in Famagusta before moving back to Larnaca where part of his family origin ...

- Cypriot political activist, President of the

Union of Cypriots The Union of Cypriots ( el, Ένωσις Κυπρίων; tr, Kıbrıslılar Birliği) is a progressive and Cypriot nationalist political organization in Cyprus. The Union of Cypriots campaigns for a unitary Cypriot state, the restoration of the ...

References

External links

Anglo-American University websitePer Curiam, Anglo-American University Law Review website
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1990 Educational institutions in Prague Universities in the Czech Republic 1990 establishments in Czechoslovakia Schools accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges