King Saud University

King Saud University (KSU) is a public university in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, founded by King Saud bin Abdulaziz in 1957 as the first university of the kingdom, and it ranked 107th in the 2027 QS World University Rankings with a score of 67.4.沙特国王大学（King Saud University，缩写 KSU）是位于沙特阿拉伯利雅得的公立大学，由国王沙特·本·阿卜杜勒阿齐兹于 1957 年创办，是沙特王国第一所大学，在 2027 年 QS 世界大学排名中位列第 107 位，综合得分 67.4。

It was called Riyadh University from 1964 to 1982 before reverting to its founding name, and OpenAlex records 148,489 scholarly works with 6,695,895 citations for the institution.该校 1964 年至 1982 年间曾名利雅得大学，1982 年恢复建校时的原名，OpenAlex 收录该校学术成果 148,489 篇、总被引 6,695,895 次。

History

• King Abdulaziz became king of the newly unified Saudi Arabia in 1932 and began building an education system, and in 1953 his eldest son King Saud acceded to the throne and instituted the Council of Ministers and the Ministry of Education.1932 年阿卜杜勒阿齐兹国王完成沙特统一并着手建立教育体系，1953 年长子沙特国王即位，设立内阁与教育部。

• Prince Fahd, who later became king, served as the first Minister of Education and announced after the first Council of Ministers session that the kingdom would establish a university as a house of culture and science.后来的国王法赫德亲王出任首任教育部长，在内阁首次会议后宣布王国将建立一所兼具文化与科学功能的最高学府。

• In 1957 Royal Decree No. 17 announced the founding of King Saud University, with the stated aim of disseminating knowledge, reviving Islamic civilization and nurturing the young.1957 年第 17 号王室法令宣布成立沙特国王大学，宗旨是传播知识、复兴伊斯兰文明并培育青年。

• Students began study at the College of Arts in the 1957-58 academic year, the first teaching activity of the new institution, which opened within a year of the decree.1957 至 1958 学年文学院开始授课，这是新校设立后的首场教学活动，距王室法令颁布不足一年。

• Between 1958 and 1960 the College of Science, the College of Business later renamed the College of Public Administration, and the College of Pharmacy were established, building the nucleus of the faculty structure.1958 至 1960 年间先后设立理学院、商学院（后改名公共管理学院）与药学院，奠定了学院体系的基本框架。

• Royal Decree No. 112 of 1961 recognized King Saud University as an independent legal entity with its own budget, naming the Minister of Education as its president and requiring every college to have a dean, vice dean and council.1961 年第 112 号王室法令承认沙特国王大学为独立法人实体并设独立预算，规定教育部长兼任大学校长，各学院须设院长、副院长与委员会。

• In 1964 the institution was renamed Riyadh University, a name it retained until 1982.1964 年学校更名为利雅得大学，并沿用该名称直至 1982 年。

• In 1965 the College of Agriculture was established and the university assumed the Colleges of Engineering and Education, which had previously run under the Ministry of Education in cooperation with UNESCO.1965 年设立农学院，学校同时接管原由教育部与联合国教科文组织合作举办的工程学院与教育学院。

• Royal Decree M/11 of 1967 promulgated the statute of Riyadh University and created the Higher Council, the dominant authority that drew policy, budgets and decisions on the creation of new colleges.1967 年第 M/11 号王室法令颁布利雅得大学章程，设立大学最高委员会，统揽政策、预算与新学院设置等决策。

• The College of Medicine opened in the 1969-70 academic year, followed by the Arabic Language Institute inaugurated in 1974-75 to serve students who did not read Arabic.1969 至 1970 学年医学院开办，1974 至 1975 学年设立阿拉伯语学院，服务非阿拉伯语母语学生。

• Royal Decree M/6 of 1972 superseded the 1967 statute, enlarging the Higher Council to five serving or retired university leaders or leading native intellectuals and adding an Academic Council for research oversight.1972 年第 M/6 号王室法令取代 1967 年章程，将最高委员会成员扩至五名现任或卸任大学领导者及本国知名学者，并增设主管学术研究的学术委员会。

• In 1976 the College of Dentistry and the College of Applied Medical Sciences opened on the Riyadh campus, and the Abha campus was launched at the same time with the College of Education.1976 年利雅得校区增设牙医学院与应用医学学院，同期启动位于阿卜哈的校区并设立教育学院。

• In 1977 the Graduate College assumed office to organize all graduate programmes across the departments of the university.1977 年研究生院正式设立，统一组织全校各系的研究生教育。

• The College of Medicine at Abha was created by Royal Order No. 3/M/380 of 1979 and formal study began in the 1980-81 academic year, while a branch at Qassim opened in 1980 with agriculture, veterinary medicine and economics.1979 年第 3/M/380 号王室令设立阿卜哈医学院，1980 至 1981 学年正式授课；1980 年卡绥姆分校亦开设农业、兽医学与经济等学科。

• In 1982, at the twenty-fifth anniversary of the university, King Khalid bin Abdulaziz ordered that the name Riyadh University revert to King Saud University, and King Khalid University Hospital opened the same year.1982 年建校二十五周年之际，国王哈立德·本·阿卜杜勒阿齐兹下令将利雅得大学恢复原名沙特国王大学，同年哈立德国王大学医院启用。

• Two further colleges were created in 1983, the College of Computer and Information Science and the College of Architecture and Planning, the latter extended from a department founded inside the College of Engineering in 1968.1983 年新增计算机与信息科学学院和建筑与规划学院，后者由 1968 年设在工程学院的系升格扩建而成。

• The Institute of Languages and Translation was founded in 1990 and was turned into a full-fledged college four years later in 1994.翻译与语言研究所于 1990 年设立，四年后的 1994 年升格为建制完整的语言与翻译学院。

• In 1998 Royal Order No. 7/78/M of 11 March 1419 created King Khalid University in the south, taking branches of Imam University and King Saud University to form the new institution, while the Graduate College was redesignated the Deanship of Graduate Studies.1998 年 3 月 11 日（伊斯兰历 1419 年）第 7/78/M 号王室令在南部组建哈立德国王大学，由伊玛目大学与沙特国王大学的相关分院合并而成，同年学校研究生院改称研究生部。

• From the 2003-04 academic year the Qassim campus became an independent university, and in 2003 the Council of Higher Education approved the promotion of the nursing department into a College of Nursing.自 2003 至 2004 学年起卡绥姆校区独立建校，2003 年高等教育委员会批准将护理系升格为护理学院。

• In 2023 King Saud University was converted into an independent non-profit academic institution, the most recent structural change in its legal status.2023 年沙特国王大学改制为独立非营利学术机构，这是其法律地位上最近一次结构性变化。

• The university has recorded thirteen rectors since its inception, beginning with Abdulwahab Mohammed Azzam in 1957 and reaching Ali M. Masmali from 2025.自建校以来该校先后历任十三任校长，1957 年由 Abdulwahab Mohammed Azzam 出任首任校长，2025 年起由 Ali M. Masmali 接任。

Academics

• Teaching is organised into science colleges, health colleges, humanities colleges and community colleges, together with a preparatory year programme that prepares first-year students before they enter a degree.教学单位分为理科学学院、健康科学学院、人文科学学院与社区学院四类，另设预科项目，为一年级学生进入学位课程前提供预备训练。

• The science colleges are the College of Architecture and Planning, the College of Business Administration, the College of Engineering, the College of Science, the College of Foods and Agriculture, and the College of Computer and Information Sciences.理科学学院包括建筑与规划学院、工商管理学院、工程学院、理学院、食品与农业学院以及计算机与信息科学学院。

• The health colleges comprise the College of Medicine, the College of Dentistry, the College of Pharmacy, the College of Applied Medical Sciences, the College of Nursing, and the College of Prince Sultan for Emergency Medical Services.健康科学学院包括医学院、牙医学院、药学院、应用医学学院、护理学院以及苏丹王子急救医疗服务学院。

• The humanities colleges are the College of Arts, the College of Education, the College of Law and Political Science, the College of Languages and Translation, the College of Tourism and Archaeology, the Arabic Language Institute, the College of Teaching and the College of Physical Education and Sports.人文科学学院包括艺术学院、教育学院、法律与政治科学学院、语言与翻译学院、旅游与考古学院、阿拉伯语学院、教师学院以及体育学院。

• The community colleges are the College of Applied Studies and Community Service, created in 2000 from the Deanship of Community Service and Continuing Education, and the Community College in Riyadh inaugurated in 2001.社区类学院包括应用研究与社会服务学院（2000 年由社区服务与继续教育部改设）与 2001 年启用的利雅得社区学院。

• The College of Science was established in 1958 and offers bachelor degrees in statistics, operations research, geology, geophysics, chemistry, biochemistry, zoology, botany, microbiology, mathematics, financial mathematics and physics.理学院成立于 1958 年，本科专业涵盖统计学、运筹学、地质学、地球物理学、化学、生物化学、动物学、植物学、微生物学、数学、金融数学与物理学。

• The College of Business Administration was established in 1959, holds accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, and comprises nine departments from accounting and finance to marketing and quantitative analysis.商学院成立于 1959 年，已获国际商学院协会认证，下设会计、经济、金融、卫生管理、管理、管理信息系统、市场营销、公共管理与量化分析九个系。

• The College of Engineering began in November 1962 as a joint project of the Saudi Ministry of Education and UNESCO, became an official part of the university in 1969, and now has seven departments.工程学院于 1962 年 11 月作为沙特教育部与联合国教科文组织的合作项目创办，1969 年正式并入学校，现设七个系。

• In that college enrolment rose from 17 students in 1962 to more than 4,000 in 2005, while faculty grew from four members to 210 including lecturers and teaching assistants over the same period.该学院学生人数从 1962 年的 17 人增至 2005 年的 4000 余人，同期师资从 4 人增至 210 人（含讲师与助教）。

• Petroleum engineering and chemical engineering were both established as departments in 1974, surveying engineering in 1988, and industrial engineering in 2002, while civil, mechanical and electrical engineering date from 1962.石油工程与化学工程均于 1974 年设为系，测量工程系设于 1988 年，工业工程系设于 2002 年，土木、机械与电气工程则均始于 1962 年。

• The College of Pharmacy was established in 1959 with five academic departments, namely medicinal chemistry, pharmacology and toxicology, pharmaceutics, pharmacognosy and clinical pharmacy, and it offers a six-year Pharm.D programme.药学院成立于 1959 年，下设药物化学、药理与毒理、药剂学、生药学与临床药学五个学术系，并提供六年制药学博士前课程。

• Undergraduate instruction is given in English and Arabic depending on the major, tuition is free, and generous scholarships are available to Saudi and international students, with an Arabic examination required of applicants from non-Arabic-speaking countries.本科教学语言依专业而定为英语或阿拉伯语，学费全免，并向沙特籍与国际学生提供优厚奖学金，非阿拉伯语国家申请人须参加阿拉伯语考试。

• Research and innovation run through named platforms including the King Abdullah Institute for Nanotechnology, the King Abdullah Center for Consulting and Research approved in 1996, and the Riyadh Techno Valley programme.科研与创新依托多个具名平台，包括阿卜杜勒国王纳米技术研究所、1996 年获批成立的阿卜杜勒国王咨询与研究中心，以及利雅得科技谷计划。

• The university reported 61,412 students and 4,952 administrative staff in 2022, alongside roughly 40,000 enrolled students of whom about 7 per cent are international.2022 年该校报告在校生 61,412 人、行政人员 4,952 人，另据校方口径在校生约 40000 人，其中国际学生约占 7%。

Campus

• The main campus stands in Riyadh at coordinates 24.68773 north and 46.72185 east and covers 2,224 acres, about 900 hectares, in an urban setting.主校区位于利雅得，坐标为北纬 24.68773 度、东经 46.72185 度，占地 2224 英亩，约合 900 公顷，属都市型校园。

• The campus was designed by HOK Architects of St. Louis, Missouri, with the mechanical and electrical systems drawn up by Syska Hennessy Group of New York City.校区由总部位于密苏里州圣路易斯的 HOK 建筑师事务所设计，机电系统由纽约市的 Syska Hennessy 集团完成。

• Construction took place in the 1980s through Blount International, a firm led by Winton M. Blount of Montgomery, Alabama, which had won what was then the largest fixed-price contract in the world at about 5 billion US dollars.校区于 20 世纪 80 年代由总部设在阿拉巴马州蒙哥马利的 Blount International 承建，该公司此前以约 50 亿美元中标当时世界最大的固定总价合同。

• The King Salman Central Library occupies a seven-floor building of 51,400 square metres with more than 4,000 seats, and holds books, periodicals, manuscripts, government publications, theses, dissertations and audiovisual and electronic media.萨勒曼国王中央图书馆为七层建筑，面积 51,400 平方米，设 4000 余个座位，馆藏图书、期刊、手稿、政府出版物、学位论文与音视频及电子资料。

• The Palm Mosque won the first prize in the King Saud Competition for the university mosque in 1982, was designed by Dr. Basil Al Bayati on the motif of the palm trunk, and was nominated for the 1992 Aga Khan Award for Architecture.椰枣树清真寺由 Dr. Basil Al Bayati 设计，1982 年在沙特国王大学清真寺设计竞赛中获一等奖，建筑以椰枣树干为原型，并获 1992 年阿卡汗建筑奖提名。

• The university entrance gate was also designed by Basil Al Bayati on a theme of faith and knowledge, formed from two interlocked books whose covers carry verses from the Quran.大学正门同样出自 Dr. Basil Al Bayati 之手，以信仰与知识为主题，由两册相互交叠的书籍构成，封面书写《古兰经》经文。

• Beyond Riyadh the university operates branches at Abha in the south and at Qassim, with community colleges at Jazan and Al-Jouf created under Royal Decree No. 33 of 1997 and later decrees.除利雅得外，学校在南部阿卜哈与卡绥姆设有校区，并依 1997 年第 33 号王室令等法令在赞赞与朱夫设立社区学院。

• King Khalid University Hospital opened in 1982 as an 850-bed facility with more than 20 operating rooms and a dedicated outpatient building, offering free care to all university staff and students.哈立德国王大学医院于 1982 年启用，为 850 张床位的综合机构，设有 20 余间手术室与独立门诊楼，并向全体教职员工免费提供医疗服务。

Reputation

• In the 2027 QS World University Rankings King Saud University is placed 107th in the world with a score of 67.4.在 2027 年 QS 世界大学排名中，沙特国王大学位居世界第 107 位，综合得分 67.4。

• In the 2027 Times Higher Education World University Rankings the university is ranked 216th in the world.在 2027 年泰晤士高等教育世界大学排名中，该校位列世界第 216 位。

• In the 2026-2027 edition of the U.S. News Best Global Universities the university is placed 380th.在 2026 至 2027 年度美国新闻与世界报道最佳全球大学排名中，该校位居第 380 位。

• OpenAlex attributes 148,489 works and 6,695,895 citations to the institution, a research output consistent with its position as one of the largest universities in the Arab world.OpenAlex 为该校记录学术成果 148,489 篇、总被引 6,695,895 次，与其作为阿拉伯世界规模最大大学之一的地位相符。

• Earlier editions place the university in the 101-150 band of the Academic Ranking of World Universities in 2022 and 38th in Asia in the 2023 Times Higher Education Asia ranking.在较早版本的榜单中，该校 2022 年上海软科世界大学学术排名位列 101 至 150 名区间，2023 年泰晤士高等教育亚洲大学排名居第 38 位。

• Regionally the university ranked 4th among Arab institutions in the 2024 QS regional ranking and 7th in the 2022 Times Higher Education Arab ranking.在区域榜单中，该校 2024 年 QS 阿拉伯地区排名居第 4 位，2022 年泰晤士高等教育阿拉伯地区排名居第 7 位。

• The university has no Nobel Prize, Turing Award or Fields Medal laureate among its graduates or faculty, and its most widely recognized distinctions are architectural, such as the 1992 Aga Khan Award nomination for the Palm Mosque.该校毕业生与教师中尚无诺贝尔奖、图灵奖或菲尔兹奖得主，其最受认可的荣誉集中于建筑领域，如椰枣树清真寺获 1992 年阿卡汗建筑奖提名。

• Financial backing for its academic mission comes from an endowment reported at 2.7 billion US dollars in 2013.其学术使命的资金基础来自 2013 年报道的 27 亿美元捐赠基金。

Student life

• The institutional motto is written in Arabic as riyada wa tamayuz and rendered in English as Leadership and Excellence, expressing the university's stated ambition for its graduates.校训以阿拉伯语书写，意为「领导与卓越」（Leadership and Excellence），表达了学校对学生抱负的期许。

• Enrolment at the university has grown to 61,412 students recorded in 2022, with roughly 40,000 students reported by the institution and about 7 per cent of them coming from abroad.学校在校生规模已增至 2022 年记录的 61,412 人，校方口径约 40000 人，其中国际学生约占 7%。

• Female students are served by their own disciplinary panel and by a dedicated centre that supervises their academic progress, either directly through female faculty or through a closed television network.女生由专门的纪律委员会管理，并设有专门机构督学，或由女教师直接指导，或通过封闭电视网络进行监督。

• Access is shaped by a preparatory year programme and by free tuition, with scholarships offered to both Saudi and international students who join the university.入学路径由预科项目与全免学费共同支撑，学校同时向考入的沙特籍与国际学生提供奖学金。

• Continuing education runs through the College of Applied Studies and Community Service, which grew out of a deanery created to extend university teaching beyond the degree system.继续教育由应用研究与社会服务学院承担，该院由面向学位体系之外推广大学教学的机构改设而来。

• English-language support at all levels is provided by the Languages Unit, which underpins the English-medium undergraduate programmes alongside Arabic-medium ones.校方语言部在各层级提供英语支持，支撑以英语授课的本科课程与以阿拉伯语授课的课程并行。

• The university operates on a multi-campus model with residential and study life centred on the Riyadh campus and on the branches at Abha and Qassim, and the sources consulted do not document a separate residential college system.学校实行多校区办学，住宿与学习生活以利雅得主校区及阿卜哈、卡绥姆两处分校为中心，所查资料未记载独立的学院制住宿体系。

Notable people

• King Saud bin Abdulaziz, king of Saudi Arabia from 1953 to 1964, founded the university in 1957 through Royal Decree No. 17 to address the shortage of skilled workers in the young kingdom.沙特·本·阿卜杜勒阿齐兹（1953 至 1964 年任沙特国王）是学校创办人，1957 年以第 17 号王室法令设立大学，以缓解年轻王国的技术工人短缺。

• Prince Fahd bin Abdulaziz, the first Minister of Education and later King of Saudi Arabia, announced the creation of the university and committed the monarchy to promoting higher education.法赫德·阿卜杜勒阿齐兹亲王是首任教育部长、后任沙特国王，他在内阁首次会议后宣布设立该大学，并承诺推进高等教育。

• Abdulwahab Mohammed Azzam served as the first rector of the university from 1957 to 1959, immediately after the College of Arts opened for its first students.Abdulwahab Mohammed Azzam 于 1957 至 1959 年担任首任校长，就任时文学院刚刚迎来首批学生。

• Ali M. Masmali has served as rector from 2025, the thirteenth head of the university, while Abdullah Al-Salman held the post from 2024 to 2025.Ali M. Masmali 自 2025 年起担任校长，是该校第十三任负责人，Abdullah Al-Salman 则于 2024 至 2025 年任职。

• Mohammad bin Salman, an alumnus of the university, serves as Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia.穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼是该校校友，现任沙特阿拉伯王储兼首相。

• Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, an alumnus, has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia.Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud 为该校校友，曾任沙特阿拉伯外交大臣。

• Fahad Al-Jalajel, an alumnus, has served as Minister of Health of Saudi Arabia.Fahad Al-Jalajel 为该校校友，曾任沙特阿拉伯卫生大臣。

• Hamad bin Mohammed Al Al-Sheikh, an alumnus, has served as Minister of Education of Saudi Arabia.Hamad bin Mohammed Al Al-Sheikh 为该校校友，曾任沙特阿拉伯教育大臣。

• Saleh Abdullah Kamel, an alumnus, founded and chaired Dallah Al Baraka, one of the largest business groups in the region.Saleh Abdullah Kamel 为该校校友，是达拉集团（Dallah Al Baraka）的创始人兼董事长，该集团是本地区规模最大的商业集团之一。

• Rania Nashar, an alumna, is a businesswoman who led Samba Financial Group as chief executive.Rania Nashar 是该校女校友，为企业家，曾任 Samba Financial Group 首席执行官。

• Nourah al-Qahtani is a professor of modern literature and criticism at the university, while Saad Albazei teaches English and comparative literature.Nourah al-Qahtani 是该校现代文学与批评教授，Saad Albazei 讲授英国文学与比较文学。

• Basil Al Bayati, the architect of the Palm Mosque and the university entrance gate, won first prize in the 1982 King Saud Competition and studied at the College of Engineering in Baghdad.椰枣树清真寺与大学正门的建筑师 Dr. Basil Al Bayati 于 1982 年在沙特国王大学竞赛中获一等奖，他早年曾在巴格达工程学院求学。