Royal University of Phnom Penh
The Royal University of Phnom Penh (UPP) was first established in 1960 as a result of the efforts of Prince Sihanouk (now King Sihanouk) to modernize Cambodia and focus on education. Built with money largely donated by the French, the Royal University was one of Cambodia's first institutions of higher education and played a significant role in educating Cambodia's urban population before the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge period (1975–1979). The university was closed during this turbulent time and remained vacant until the early 1990s, when efforts were made to reestablish the institution. The university was officially reopened in 1998.
The current university consists of faculties of letters and human sciences and of science. Majors include Khmer literature, geography, psychology, philosophy, sociology, and history. In addition, students may major in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, or computer science. There also is a master's program in education.
The total enrollment of approximately four thousand includes both Cambodians and a small number of international students, with more than 250 faculty and staff members. In 1997 the university opened the Hun Sen Library, the first modern library of its kind to be opened in Cambodia for over seven decades.
Further Reading
Ayres, David M. (2000) Anatomy of a Crisis: Education, Development, and the State in Cambodia, 1953–1998. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press.
Bywater, Margaret A. (1998) "Libraries in Cambodia: Rebuilding a Past and a Future." IFLA Journal 24, 4 (July): 223.
Osborne, Milton. (1994) Sihanouk: Prince of Light, Prince of Darkness. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press.
Pit, C. (2000) "Willing Hands and Hearts: The Rebuilding of the Royal University of Phnom Penh." International Higher Education (Spring). Retrieved 21 August 2001, from: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/soe/cihe/n ewsletter/News19/text10.html.
Wheeler, David L. (1999) "After 30 Years of War and Neglect, Cambodia's Royal U. Begins to Revive." The Chronicle of Higher Education 45, 45 (18 June): A47.
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