Editing SOAS University of London (section)

===1945–present===
[[File:Colonial Students in Great Britain- Students at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, England, UK, 1946 D29302.jpg|thumb|left|A student from [[Northern Rhodesia]] at SOAS in 1946]]
In recognition of SOAS's role during the war, the 1946 Scarborough Commission (officially the "Commission of Enquiry into the Facilities for Oriental, Slavonic, East European and African Studies")<ref name=aim-scarb-comm>{{cite web |title=Commission of Enquiry into the Facilities for Oriental, Slavonic, East European and African Studies |url=http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cgi-bin/vcdf/detail?coll_id=6029&inst_id=19&nv1=search&nv2= |website=aim25.ac.uk |access-date=12 August 2015 |year=1945 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073725/http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cgi-bin/vcdf/detail?coll_id=6029&inst_id=19&nv1=search&nv2= |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> report recommended a major expansion in provision for the study of Asia and the school benefited greatly from the subsequent largesse.<ref name="independent">{{cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/professor-sir-cyril-philips-523619.html | location=London | work=The Independent | date=19 January 2006 | access-date=17 July 2013 | first=M. E. | last=Yapp | title=Professor Sir Cyril Philips | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318105907/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/professor-sir-cyril-philips-523619.html | archive-date=18 March 2014 | url-status=live }}</ref> The [[SOAS School of Law]] was established in 1947 with [[Seymour Gonne Vesey-FitzGerald]] as its first head. Growth however was curtailed by following years of economic austerity, and upon Sir [[Cyril Philips]] assuming the directorship in 1956, the school was in a vulnerable state. Over his 20-year stewardship, Phillips transformed the school, raising funds and broadening the school's remit.<ref name="independent" />

A college of the University of London, the School's fields include [[Law]], [[Social Sciences]], [[Humanities]], and [[Languages]] with special reference to Asia and Africa. The SOAS Library, located in the Philips Building, is the UK's national resource for materials relating to Asia and Africa and is the largest of its kind in the world.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2005/dec/17/choosingadegree.highereducation/ |title=What's it like at SOAS |first=Matthew |last=Phillips |date=17 December 2005 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=17 December 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140920175824/http://www.theguardian.com/education/2005/dec/17/choosingadegree.highereducation |archive-date=20 September 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> The school has grown considerably over the past 30 years, from fewer than 1,000 students in the 1970s to more than 6,000 students today, nearly half of them postgraduates. SOAS is partnered with the [[Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales]] (INALCO) in [[Paris]] which is often considered the French equivalent of SOAS.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ambafrance-uk.org/IMG/pdf_100917_EC_Brochure_115x170_pdf_SG.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=6 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130520085552/http://www.ambafrance-uk.org/IMG/pdf_100917_EC_Brochure_115x170_pdf_SG.pdf |archive-date=20 May 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

In 2011, the [[Privy Council of the United Kingdom|Privy Council]] approved changes to the school's charter allowing it to award degrees in its own name, following the trend set by fellow colleges the [[London School of Economics]], [[University College London]] and [[King's College London]]. All new students registered from September 2013 will qualify for a SOAS, University of London, award.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/ReviewsAndReports/Documents/School%20of%20Oriental%20and%20African%20Studies/School-of-Oriental-and-African-Studies-University-of-London-IRENI-13.pdf|title=SOAS, University of London an Institutional Review by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education|date=23 May 2016|website=Qaa.ac.uk|access-date=20 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221061515/http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/ReviewsAndReports/Documents/School%20of%20Oriental%20and%20African%20Studies/School-of-Oriental-and-African-Studies-University-of-London-IRENI-13.pdf|archive-date=21 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2012, a new visual identity for SOAS was launched to be used in print, digital media and around the campus. The SOAS tree symbol, first implemented in 1989, was redrawn and recoloured in gold, with the new symbol incorporating the leaves of ten trees, including the [[English Oak]] representing England; the [[Ficus religiosa|Bodhi]], [[Acer palmatum|Coral Bark Maple]], [[Teak]] representing Asia; the [[Brachystegia glaucescens|Mountain Acacia]], [[Dacryodes edulis|African Pear]], [[Lasiodiscus]] representing Africa; and the [[Phoenix dactylifera|Date Palm]], [[Pomegranate]] and [[Ghaf]] representing the Middle East.<ref>[http://www.soas.ac.uk/visualidentity/generalfaqs/ SOAS Visual Identity FAQs, SOAS, University of London] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130427121118/http://www.soas.ac.uk/visualidentity/generalfaqs/ |date=27 April 2013 }}. Soas.ac.uk (12 October 2012). Retrieved 17 July 2013.</ref>