Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences - History

History

While Harvard traces its origins to 1636, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences only came into existence in the late nineteenth century. From 1820 until 1872, Harvard consisted of the College and the three professional schools (in law, medicine, and divinity), with the later additions of the Dental School, the Lawrence Scientific School, and the Bussey School of Agriculture. The Governing Boards established a Graduate Department in 1872 to administer and recommend candidates for the degrees of master of arts, master of science, Doctor of Philosophy, and Doctor of Science. In 1890, the Governing Boards merged separate faculties of the Lawrence Scientific School and the College into a single Faculty of Arts and Sciences, a deliberative body responsible for instructing and recommending candidates for the degrees of Master of Arts, Doctor of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy. The Graduate Department became the Graduate School of Harvard University. In 1905, the name changed to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The Lawrence Scientific School opened in 1847 and marked Harvard's first major effort to provide a systematic program in engineering and the physical sciences. In 1905, the Lawrence Scientific School became the Graduate School of Engineering. In 1948, the School merged with the Department of Engineering Sciences and Applied Physics in FAS to form the Division of Applied Sciences. In 2007, the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences formally became the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Coordinates: 42°22′27.15″N 71°06′59.62″W / 42.3742083°N 71.1165611°W / 42.3742083; -71.1165611