Bar-Ilan: Israel's Fastest Growing University for the Past Six Years

Bar-Ilan is one Israel’s largest universities and its fastest-growing university in the past six years.

Bar-Ilan University has ten faculties: Engineering, Humanities, Social Sciences, Life Sciences, Exact Sciences, Law, Education, Jewish Studies (the largest of its kind in the world), Medicine (the only faculty located on its own campus in Safed), and the Interdisciplinary Studies Unit (Mechina Program). In addition, the university is home to over seventy research institutes covering a vast array of fields. It is the academic home of 24 Israel Prize laureates and many other researchers who have won international awards and recognition.

The university is at the forefront of research in fields such as energy and sustainability, medical and life sciences, cyber, nanotechnology, natural language processing, and more. To optimally convey the extensive knowledge accumulated in the university's research laboratories and institutes to students, the Division of Learning and Teaching was established to implement innovative and advanced teaching methods, including the use of digital media and artificial intelligence. Alongside research and teaching, the university places great emphasis on community involvement, through clinics open to the general public, and on the well-being of its students.

Research Excellence 

Bar-Ilan University currently employs some 700 researchers, who are among the best in their fields worldwide. They work in over 70 research institutes and centers, mentoring thousands of students.

The university's researchers are at the forefront of academia and research in Israel and around the world, and are engaged in the hottest research topics occupying the academic world at the dawn of the 21st century.

In the university's laboratories, our researchers are working on developing brain cancer drugs using gold nanoparticles, on archaeological-botanical research that will improve agriculture in the future, on producing fuel that does not pollute the air, on developing pest-resistant plants, on developing artificial intelligence for a robotic guide dog, on using virtual reality technology to improve empathy between people, and so much more. A significant number of the research projects at Bar-Ilan University have become sustainable products that are already improving our quality of life.

Among the university's research institutes are some of the most advanced centers in their fields. These include the Leslie and Susan Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, which combines expertise and tools from the fields of physics, biology, computer science, engineering, pharmacology, psychology, linguistics, and mathematics; the Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, the largest nano center in Israel; the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, which deals with issues related to the Middle East, Israel's national security, and its foreign policy; and the Institute for the Advancement of Integration, which promotes social integration in the education system and whose research findings are applied in the field of education.

In addition, the university operates several impact-driven multidisciplinary research centers, including the Bar-Ilan Center for Smart Cities, which works to improve various aspects of urban life using advanced technologies such as communications, IT, and the Internet of Things, and has been recognized by the European Union as an incubator for digital innovation; and the Dangoor Center for Personalized Medicine, which focuses on areas that advance the field of personalized medicine such as immunotherapy, microbiome, CRISPR, RNA research, and computational biology.

Bar-Ilan researchers partner in hundreds of research collaborations and initiatives with research bodies in Israel and around the globe, with industry, and with public and government institutions, and have won scholarships, grants, appointments, and recognition from dozens of foundations and professional organizations worldwide.

Teaching Excellence

Teaching excellence is one of the pillars of Bar-Ilan University's strategy. The university invests considerable resources in the continuous improvement of teaching quality, and a special department has been established for this purpose: the Division of Learning and Teaching.

Every year, all lecturers participate in workshops and receive tools for teaching excellence, including tools for conveying information in an interesting and curiosity-arousing manner, increasing motivation, group facilitation, active teaching, and the use of illustrative tools.

Smart classrooms and innovative active learning spaces have been set up throughout the campus, serving as a platform for advanced and experiential teaching. The university makes sure to stay up-to-date with all the innovations in the field of teaching, collaborates with dedicated centers in Israel and around the world, and takes part in conferences and seminars to share knowledge about effective and high-quality teaching.

As part of its goal to promote teaching excellence, the university places special emphasis on student satisfaction. Every semester, the university conducts a survey to examine the level of satisfaction with the courses being taught. Outstanding lecturers are recognized and appreciated. Lecturers who receive low scores receive personal counseling and pedagogical tools to help them improve and convey knowledge optimally.

The university staff, both academic and administrative, is also available outside the lecture hall or research laboratories, and undertakes to provide every student with personal attention, through graduation and even beyond. Our investment in students is evident: Bar-Ilan consistently receives among the highest ratings in the Teaching Quality Index of the National Union of Israeli Students' satisfaction survey, compared to other research universities.

Jewish Leadership

Alongside the extensive research and advanced teaching that takes place at the university, Bar-Ilan has also undertaken a third mission – to cultivate the next generation of leadership in the Jewish world. Accordingly, the university’s Faculty of Jewish Studies is not only the largest in its field in the world, but also one of the most active and prolific. The Faculty of Jewish Studies holds a wide variety of events, conferences and seminars that expose students and the general public to the entire Jewish spectrum. The university also cultivates a vibrant Jewish identity in campus life – marking holidays and special periods in the Jewish tradition; in open conferences that combine different fields of science with Jewish studies; in ceremonies and events such as Kabbalat Shabbat and Birkhat Ha’Ilanot (the blessing on blossoming trees in the spring); as well as in the wide array of courses and workshops taught within the Helene & Paul Shulman School for  Basic Jewish Studies.

Community Outreach

As a university rooted in the heart of the urban space and bordering no less than four cities, Bar-Ilan places special emphasis on community involvement. The university initiates many social projects and encourages faculty members and students to take part and be influential and benefitIsraeli society.

Among Bar-Ilan's social projects, the practical clinics are particularly noteworthy, offering the general public professional assistance and treatment, free of charge or at a symbolic cost, in a variety of fields. In the clinics of the Faculty of Law, for example, legal guidance and representation are offered in areas such as civil law, assistance to women in family matters, the rights of people with disabilities, the elderly and Holocaust survivors, mediation and conflict resolution, support for victims of crime, promoting equality and environmental regulation. The Community Service Clinic of the Department of Psychology offers individual and group psychological treatment for people coping with trauma, loss and grief, for people coping with disabilities and physical illnesses, and for people coping with difficulties in personal identity and interpersonal relationships.

The Continuing Education Unit of the School of Social Work operates four clinics: a clinic for couple and family therapy, a clinic for couple intervention following post-traumatic distress, a clinic for play therapy, and a clinic for virtual reality therapy.

The university also works for the community in the field of health. The Azrieli Faculty of Medicine in the Galilee established the Russell Berrie Galilee Diabetes SPHERE project, with the aim of fighting the diabetes epidemic in the Galilee, in collaboration with health services, local councils, and government ministries.

The School of Optometry and Vision Science offers free vision tests to the general public and operates the Vision Therapy Clinic, the Low Vision Specialty Clinic, and the Contact Lens Specialty Clinic. In addition, the school operates a mobile clinic, equipped with modern and advanced equipment, which reaches community spaces for underprivileged populations in the periphery, such as sheltered housing and day centers for the elderly and Holocaust survivors.

At the same time, the university also considers future generations, and operates several centers through the Faculty of Education whose goal is to promote education in Israel, including Da-Gan - The National Center for the Advancement of Mathematical, Scientific, Technological Literacy in Preschool Education; the Hadad Center focusing on learning disabilities; the Harris Program specializing in early childhood pedagogy; the Baker Center, which operates an educational program for children with Developmental Delays; HaLev, The Center for Simulation in Education, which develops innovative simulation workshops for effective learning; and more.

Bar-Ilan University’s Youth Center offers enrichment classes and summer camps for children and youth, with the aim of encouraging curiosity and scientific thinking from a young age, and nurturing tomorrow’s researchers who will ensure a better future for us all.

Student Satisfaction

Bar-Ilan University invests heavily in the well-being of its students, with the aim of making the formative student years a pleasant and enriching experience.

To start with, the university places great emphasis on the learning environment: Bar-Ilan's campus was awarded the title of "the most beautiful academic campus" by the Council for a Beautiful Israel. It has 540 dunams of well-kept gardens and lush vegetation, including story gardens designed in the spirit of philosophical stories and ideas, and inviting seating areas.

The buildings are connected by paths that encourage walking and connecting with nature. The campus is not only beautiful, but also green: it has ecological pools, an experimental green wall, and great emphasis is placed on waste recycling and advanced methods for saving energy, paper and water. In addition, the campus is fully accessible to people with disabilities. The campus includes two dormitory complexes and has everything needed to maintain a comfortable routine: from a mini-market, through an office supply store, post office, bank, gym and even a shoe repair shop.

Bar-Ilan's students have constant and ongoing support on all matters. 

Academically, the university offers admission assistance, support and accessibility to students with learning disabilities, new immigrants, tourists, students from the periphery and diverse populations. First-year students are entitled to mentors who will personally guide them through their studies. Students who need academic, social and emotional support can contact the Student Advancement and Success Division, which offers tutoring, social mentoring, lectures and workshops on developing learning skills, CBT workshops and exam preparation.

Financially, the university offers over 140 scholarships of various types, including excellence scholarships, scholarships based on socio-economic background, incentive scholarships based on origin or gender, and scholarships offered for social activity. Bar-Ilan's Scholarship Division is prepared to assist every student in applying for a scholarship or fund.

Socially, the university invests in performances and activities, a regular fair with various stands, and special events to mark noteworthy occasions and red-letter dates. The university's Student Union organizes a variety of events for the enjoyment and well-being of students, including parties, active breaks, courses and workshops, and a social pub, and operates several clubs and societies. Our investment in students is the reason why Bar-Ilan is the university with the fastest growing student body in the past six years.

Bar-Ilan University in Numbers

• Approximately 20,500 students are studying for an academic degree at Bar-Ilan University
• Approximately 6,200 students take part in enrichment courses, certificate studies and other study programs at Bar-Ilan University
• Bar-Ilan University has approximately 130,000 alumni
• Bar-Ilan University has 834 senior faculty members
• Bar-Ilan University has 10 faculties: Life Sciences, Social Sciences, Education, Jewish Studies, Humanities, Exact Sciences, Law, Engineering, Medicine and the Interdisciplinary Studies Unit
• Bar-Ilan University has 47 departments and schools in a wide range of fields
• Bar-Ilan University has 119 research institutes, 24 research centers and 61 chairs
• Bar-Ilan University has 101 international research collaborations
• Bar-Ilan University has 706 active grants
• Bar-Ilan University has 26 libraries, with over one million titles and access to dozens of electronic databases