The American University of Armenia is a private, independent university in Yerevan, Armenia that is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior College and University Commission. As of 2015, it is the first and only U.S.-accredited institution in the former Soviet Union that provides undergraduate and graduate education.
It was founded in 1991, Armenia's first year of independence, by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), the University of California (UC), and the Armenian government. The university is the country's first institution modeled on Western-style higher education, committed to teaching, research, and service; it offers master's degrees in nine fields and bachelor's degrees in five fields. The undergraduate program was introduced in 2013.