Lebanese University

About Lebanese University

Lebanese University is an independent, state-recognized, degree-granting institution and Lebanon’s official public university. Its origins date to 1951, when the Higher Normal School and Institute of Statistics were established. Decree No. 2883 of 1959 organized the university, and legislation adopted in 1967 established its academic, administrative, and financial autonomy. The institution developed into a geographically distributed national university after 1975. Faculties and institutes now operate through branches in Beirut and its suburbs as well as Mount Lebanon, North Lebanon, South Lebanon, and the Beqaa. The central administration remains in Beirut. Several specialized units—including medical sciences, dentistry, pharmacy, agriculture, and the doctoral schools—are concentrated in the Beirut area rather than replicated across every region. The university’s official academic structure includes 19 faculties and institutes. Its role combines higher education, scientific research, continuing training, and public service. This breadth gives students access to fields ranging from law, humanities, and social sciences to engineering and health professions, but the experience is decentralized: academic rules, admissions processes, facilities, and available specializations depend on the relevant faculty and branch. Prospective students should therefore evaluate Lebanese University at the faculty-and-location level, not solely through the general university profile. Institution-wide registration through SISOL opened on 21 July 2026 for all faculties, branches, and centers for the 2026–2027 academic year, confirming current operation.

Lebanese University opened the first phase of institution-wide registration for 2026–2027 through SISOL on 21 July 2026. That announcement applies to all faculties, branches, and centers, but it does not replace faculty-specific admissions notices. Candidates must consult the relevant faculty because application periods, capacity limits, examinations, and registration steps differ by program. The university’s general enrollment guidance asks new students for the Lebanese Baccalaureate or its officially recognized equivalent, identity or civil-status documentation, certified photographs, a financial stamp, and any applicable competitive-examination payment. Online enrollment is available where the faculty enables it; elsewhere, documents are submitted to the faculty or institute in person. International candidates may face additional residence, authorization, certificate-equivalency, and document-certification requirements. Selective programs use separate procedures. For 2026–2027, economics and business administration required a bachelor’s entrance examination with mathematics, economics, and foreign-language components. Fine arts and architecture published program-specific application windows and examinations, while dentistry scheduled assessments for entry into its second year. Master’s admissions may distinguish professional and research tracks and may require an entrance examination, especially for applicants transferring from another university or faculty. Dates quoted in early 2026 announcements may already have passed as of 20 August 2026. Applicants should use the newest faculty notice and verify whether later rounds remain open. University-wide registration being open does not itself establish eligibility for a selective program.

Lebanese University organizes its teaching across humanities and social sciences, technology and health, and three doctoral schools. Its official faculty directory includes letters and human sciences, information, education, law and political and administrative sciences, tourism and hospitality, economics and business administration, fine arts and architecture, and social sciences. Science-oriented and professional units include technology, agriculture, public health, pharmacy, science, medicine, engineering, and dentistry. The university officially documents bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD study, but entry and progression are faculty-specific. Some programs admit students directly after the Lebanese Baccalaureate or an officially recognized equivalent; others use a competitive entrance examination, aptitude assessment, file review, interview, or admission at a later year. For example, 2026–2027 fine-arts and architecture admissions included separate examinations for fields such as architecture, interior design, visual communication, film, musicology, fine arts, and theater. Economics and business administration scheduled distinct bachelor’s and master’s entrance procedures, while dentistry published a competitive route into its second year. Program language also varies. The 2026–2027 economics and business entrance examination offered French and English options, with some examination components also available in Arabic. Students should not assume that a language arrangement in one faculty applies elsewhere. Graduate applicants must likewise check whether they are applying to a professional master’s, research master’s, specialized master’s, or doctoral track and whether prior study must align with the proposed specialization. The faculty announcement, rather than the general university calendar, is the controlling source for current prerequisites and assessment details.

Key Highlights

• Lebanon’s official public university and a state-recognized degree-granting institution
• First academic unit established in 1951; university formally organized by decree in 1959
• National branch network extending beyond Beirut into multiple Lebanese governorates
• Institution-wide registration opened in July 2026 for the 2026–2027 academic year

Student Life & Environment

Student life is distributed across numerous faculties and branches, so facilities and activities are not uniform across the institution. Central university administration includes units for library management, cultural affairs, sports activities, campus management, and student affairs and professional orientation. The Library Management Unit coordinates faculty libraries, lending, cataloguing, and access to books and periodicals across branches. Undergraduate housing is available at the Rafik Hariri University Campus in Hadath. Eligibility is limited to students enrolled in faculties located within that campus, and residence is allocated by published priorities rather than guaranteed. Considerations include the distance between a student’s main home and the campus, the attendance demands of the program, and academic results. Applicants must complete a separate housing process and wait for an official decision. Campus access is controlled: current rules require authorization for vehicle entry, permits for student transportation, and proof of status for pedestrian access. Residents are also subject to entry-hour and housing regulations. The university has an established National Union of Lebanese University Students, intended to represent students and encourage scientific, cultural, social, and sporting activity. Central support also includes the Students Affairs and Professional Orientation Office. Because the university is decentralized, prospective students should ask their intended branch which clubs, library services, sports facilities, food options, accessibility arrangements, and student support are operating locally in 2026–2027.

Location & Surroundings

The database’s Beirut location reflects Lebanese University’s central administration and the institution as a whole, not a single consolidated campus. The university’s academic footprint extends across Lebanon. Its history page identifies branches in Beirut and the suburbs, Mount Lebanon, North Lebanon, South Lebanon, and the Beqaa, created in part to make study accessible without requiring daily travel across regions. The Rafik Hariri University Campus is in Hadath, southeast of central Beirut, and accommodates several faculties as well as eligible undergraduate housing. Other official campus listings include the Fanar and North campuses, while individual faculty announcements identify additional teaching or examination locations such as Ashrafieh, Tripoli, Aley, Nabatieh, Rashaya, Forn el Chebbak, Deir el-Qamar, and Mont Michel. Not every subject is available at every branch. Medical sciences, dentistry, pharmacy, agriculture, and the doctoral schools are identified by the university as remaining in the Beirut area. Location is therefore an academic decision as well as a lifestyle choice. Applicants should confirm the exact branch for their program, required in-person attendance, examination venue, transportation options, and whether a later stage of study moves to another campus before committing.

Costs & Career Outcomes

Lebanese University’s enrollment-fee page publishes different LBP schedules for Lebanese and Palestinian students versus other Arab and foreign students, and separates applied from non-applied faculties. It also distinguishes bachelor’s, master’s or postgraduate, and PhD enrollment and lists possible additional charges for social security, competitive entrance examinations, admission tests, language training, and certain specialized graduate study. However, the page does not clearly label the academic year to which the displayed enrollment totals apply. Those amounts should therefore be confirmed directly with the relevant faculty before a 2026–2027 financial decision and are not reproduced here as assured current tuition. Some 2026–2027 faculty announcements provide narrower, current charges. Economics and business and fine arts and architecture each listed an LBP 1,000,000 entrance-examination fee and an LBP 50,000 financial stamp for the cited admissions exercises. These are application-stage charges, not the full cost of attendance. Housing fees are determined separately, and students should budget for transportation, food, study materials, connectivity, and any faculty-specific laboratory or equipment requirements. No verified institution-wide 2026–2027 living-cost estimate was found. For career preparation, Centre MINE is the university’s Center for Careers, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Its stated responsibilities include improving employability and professional integration, strengthening links with businesses, supporting innovation, and developing an incubator for student projects. The Students Affairs and Professional Orientation Office provides additional orientation functions. Availability of placements and programming can vary, so students should request current opportunities from their faculty rather than assume a university-wide internship guarantee.