Bar-Ilan University (BIU, , ''Universitat Bar-Ilan'') is a public

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are "the key sites of Knowledge production modes, knowledge production", along with "intergenerational ...

in the Tel Aviv District city of

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan (, ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv, and is part of the Gush Dan, Gush Dan metropolitan area. It is home to a Diamond Exchange District (one of the world's major diamond exch ...

, Israel. Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is Israel's second-largest academic university institution. It has 20,000 students and 1,350 faculty members. Bar-Ilan's mission is to "blend

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

tradition with modern technologies and scholarship and the university endeavors to ... teach the Jewish heritage to all its students while providing nacademic education." The university is among the best in the Middle East in the fields of computer science, engineering, engineering physics and applied physics. In 2024, the university was donated $260 million, one of the biggest donations to a university in Israeli history.

History

First Graduation at Bar Ilan University - Ogden Reid 1959

Bar-Ilan University has Jewish-American roots: It was conceived in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

in a meeting of the American Mizrahi organization in 1950, and was founded by Professor Pinkhos Churgin, an American Orthodox

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

and educator, who was president from 1955 to 1957 where he was succeeded by Joseph H. Lookstein who was president from 1957 to 1967. When it was opened in 1955, it was described by ''The New York Times'' "as Cultural Link Between the sraeliRepublic and America". Presidents who followed were

Max Jammer Max Jammer (; born Moshe Jammer, ; 13 April 1915 – 18 December 2010), was an Israeli physicist and philosophy of physics, philosopher of physics. He was born in Berlin, Germany. He was Rector and Acting President at Bar-Ilan University from 19 ...

(1967–77), Emanuel Rackman (1977–86), Michael Albeck (1986–89), Ernest Krausz (1989), Zvi Arad (1989–92), and Shlomo Eckstein (1992–96). The university was named for Rabbi Meir Bar-Ilan (originally ''Meir Berlin''), a Religious Zionist leader who served as the inspiration for its establishment. Although he was trained in Orthodox seminaries in Berlin, he believed there was a need for an institution providing a dual curriculum of secular

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

studies and religious

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

studies. BIU's student population is diverse and includes both Jewish and non-Jewish students. Jewish students must take at least five courses in Jewish studies in order to graduate; non-Jewish students can choose general courses instead. These are available as academic Jewish studies courses, as well as through more traditional Torah study, offered primarily by the ''Machon HaGavoah LeTorah'', established in the 1970s. The "Machon" operates a Kollel / Bet midrash for men, and a Midrasha for women. The Kollel offers traditional

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...

studies with an emphasis on

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

and

Halakha ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Torah, Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is ...

(Jewish law), while the midrasha offers courses in " Tanakh" (The Bible), practical Halakha, and ''Machshavah'' (Jewish philosophy). The Midrasha is the largest in Israel. These programs are open to all students free of charge. Yitzhak Rabin's convicted assassin, Yigal Amir, was a student of law and computer science at Bar-Ilan, prompting charges that the university had become a hotbed of political extremism. One of the steps taken by the university following the 1995 assassination was to encourage dialogue between

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...

and

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

students. Under university president Moshe Kaveh (1996–2013), Bar-Ilan underwent a major expansion, with new buildings added on the northern side of the campus. New science programs have been introduced, including a multidisciplinary brain research center and a center for

nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers (nm). At this scale, commonly known as the nanoscale, surface area and quantum mechanical effects become important in describing propertie ...

. The university has placed

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

as one of its priorities, and this includes excavations such as the Tell es-Safi/Gath archaeological excavations and the recently opened Bar-Ilan University/

Weizmann Institute of Science The Weizmann Institute of Science ( ''Machon Weizmann LeMada'') is a Public university, public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, fourteen years before the State of Israel was founded. Unlike other List of Israeli uni ...

joint program in Archaeological Sciences. Bar-Ilan's Faculty of Law made headlines in 2008 by achieving the highest average Israeli bar exam grade of 81.9 by its graduates. Daniel Hershkowitz was university president from 2013 to 2017. Arie Zaban was elected as the president of the university in 2017. In June 2024, the university received a $260 million donation from the estate of an anonymous American donor, the largest bequest in the university's history and the second largest ever to an Israeli university. The donation is earmarked for science and technology, specifically to recruit researchers, build laboratories, and create partnerships.

Academics

Bar-Ilan University has nine faculties: Exact Sciences,

Life Sciences This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that involve the scientific study of life – such as microorganisms, plants, and animals including human beings. This science is one of the two major branches of natural science, ...

Social Sciences Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of society, societies and the Social relation, relationships among members within those societies. The term was former ...

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

Humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...

, Jewish Studies,

Medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

Engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, and Law. There is also a special Unit of Interdisciplinary Studies. At the undergraduate level, as mentioned, ten courses in Jewish studies related subjects are required from all students. Bar-Ilan offers several special programs, including its international B.A. program, taught entirely in English, and is the first university in Israel to offer a full undergraduate program taught entirely in English. Currently, students can choose between a B.A. degree in interdisciplinary social sciences, where students can choose between a macro track in economics, political sciences, and sociology, or the Micro Track in Criminology, Psychology, and Sociology, or a major in communications, with a minor in either

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

. The degrees are internationally recognized and are open to students from all over the world. In addition, Bar-Ilan offers a preparatory program that readies new immigrants for Israeli colleges. The university also runs a one-year overseas program called '' Torah Im Derech Eretz Program'', which combines traditional Kollel

studies in the morning, separate for men and women, as well as co-ed general university studies and

Jewish history Jewish history is the history of the Jews, their Jewish peoplehood, nation, Judaism, religion, and Jewish culture, culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures. Jews originated from the Israelites and H ...

classes in the afternoon. Many American students enrolled in regular programs of study in the university also take these Jewish history classes to fulfill their Jewish studies requirements. Bar-Ilan also houses several research institutions such as the above-mentioned Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, focused on

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions, and its disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, ...

, which may have their own requirements.

Awards and recognition

The Bar Ilan Responsa Project was awarded the

Israel Prize The Israel Prize (; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor. History Prior to the Israel Prize, the most significant award in the arts was the Dizengoff Prize and in Israel ...

in 2007. The university's Bible project, in danger of being eliminated by continued budget cuts, was saved at the last minute by an anonymous donor. In its capacity as a

business school A business school is a higher education institution or professional school that teaches courses leading to degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, s ...

, Bar-Ilan was placed as the fourth best business school in Africa and the Middle East in the 2010 QS Global 200 Business Schools Report.

Notable alumni

* Zvi Arad (1942–2018) – mathematician, former president of Bar-Ilan University and of the Netanya Academic College * Ami Ayalon – former head of the

Shin Bet The Israel Security Agency (ISA; , (GSS); ), better known by the Hebrew acronyms, acronyms Shabak (; ; ) or Shin Bet (from the abbreviation of , "Security Service"), is Israel's internal Security agency, security service. Its motto is "''Magen ...

and member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the President of Israel, president and Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister, approves the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet, and supe ...

for the Labor Party. * Michael Ben-Ari – Israeli politician and formerly a member of the Knesset for the National Union Party. * Kotel Da-Don – Croatian Orthodox rabbi of the Bet Israel community in Zagreb. * Avi Dichter – former minister of home front defence. Former

director. * Yuval Diskin – 12th director of the Israeli Internal Security Service

. * Esther Farbstein – Holocaust scholar * Baruch Fischer - Professor Emeritus in the Andrew and Erna Viterbi Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Technion * Tzipi Hotovely – Israeli diplomat and former politician who serves as the current ambassador of Israel to the United Kingdom. Formerly deputy minister of foreign affairs, minister of diaspora affairs, minister of settlement affairs, and as a member of the Knesset for the Likud Party *

Gila Gamliel Gila Gamliel-Demri (; born 24 February 1974) is an Israeli politician who currently serves as Ministry of Science, Technology and Space, Minister of Science and Technology, and also as a member of the Knesset for Likud. She also previously serv ...

– Israeli politician for the Likud Party. Formerly minister for social equality, and minister of environmental protection * Anat Guetta – chair of the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) since 2018 * Michael Harris – named the best Israeli in the field of academics, as one of "The 10 Most Successful Israelis in 10 Different Fields in the World" by '' Maariv'' in April 2012. * Joseph Klafter – chemical physics professor, the eighth president of Tel Aviv University * Joshua Kulp – Talmudic scholar * Norman Lebrecht (born 1948) – British commentator on music and cultural affairs, and novelist *

Tzipi Livni Tziporah Malka "Tzipi" Livni (, ; born 8 July 1958) is an Israeli politician, diplomat and lawyer. A former member of the Knesset and leader in the center-left political camp, Livni is a former Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Israel), foreign mini ...

– Israeli lawyer and politician, head of the Opposition from 2009 to 2012. Formerly minister of justice, and in charge of negotiations with the Palestinians * Gadeer Mreeh (born 1984) – first woman of

Druze The Druze ( ; , ' or ', , '), who Endonym and exonym, call themselves al-Muwaḥḥidūn (), are an Arabs, Arab Eastern esotericism, esoteric Religious denomination, religious group from West Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic ...

descent to become a member of the

* Orit Peleg – professor of biophysics at the University of Colorado * Zehorit Sorek (born 1975) – LGBTQ rights activist

Notable faculty

* Doron Aurbach * Nathan Aviezer * Moshe Bar * Avi Bell * Pinkhos Churgin * Cyril Domb * Shlomo Eckstein * Avraham Faust * Adam Ferziger * Jonathan Fox * Hillel Furstenberg * Ruth Halperin-Kaddari * Oren Harman * Shlomo Havlin * Arye L. Hillman *

* Efraim Karsh * Mordechai Kedar * Sarit Kraus * Ernest Krausz * Baruch Kurzweil * Aren Maeir * Nina Pinto-Abecasis * Arie Reich * Tamar Ross * Mary Schaps * Daniel Sperber * Avraham Trahtman * Eli Vakil * Zeev Zalevsky

Gallery

File:Bar-Ilan University. Engineering (11908490355).jpg, Faculty of engineering File:(המרכז לחקר המוח ע"ש לסלי וסוזאן גונדה (גולדשמיד (11795483624).jpg, Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center File:בית הרב יעקובוביץ - מרכז סמי שמעון ללימודי פילוסופיה אתיקה ומחשבת ישראל (11908099463).jpg, Centre for the study of philosophy, ethics and Jewish thought File:הטריפלקס לננוטכנולוגיה ע"ש לסלי וסוזן גונדה גולדשמיד (11513855913).jpg, Nanotechnology building File:הפקולטה_לרפואה_(15472290024).jpg, Bar-Ilan Faculty of Medicine File:PXL 20240221 141928029.jpg, Bar-Ilan Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science

References

External links

*
BIU History

Bar-Ilan University – Study Programs for Olim/Foreign Students

Bar-Ilan University details in WHED (World Higher Education Database) Website (IAU-001455)Bar-Ilan responsa website

Bar-Ilan Faculty of Medicine

Bar-Ilan Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials (BINA)

Bar-Ilan Faculty of Law
*
Bar-Ilan Students Union
*
Amigos Latinoamericanos de la Universidad de Bar-Ilan
{{authority control Universities and colleges established in 1955 Orthodox Jewish universities and colleges Buildings and structures in Ramat Gan Religious Zionism Research institutes in Israel Universities in Israel Education in Tel Aviv District 1955 establishments in Israel Law schools in Israel