University History

September 6, 1962 saw the arrival of the first students of the American College in Paris, a two-year, junior college located within the American Church in Paris at 65 quai d’Orsay. The vision for the college originated with AUP founder Lloyd DeLamater, a 40-year old US Foreign Service officer, and became a reality with ideological support from the leaders of Paris’ major American institutions (the American Library, the American Cathedral, the American Church and the American Hospital). Enrolling 103 students in its inaugural class, who were largely children of American service members and expatriates living in post-World War II Europe, the College met a need for post-secondary schooling, fully open to American children, in which they could maintain routine progress towards an American Bachelor’s degree without returning to the United States.

As geopolitics played out on the world stage and US military presence decreased throughout Europe over the next decade, the nature of ACP’s student body was transformed with the times. By 1975, over half of ACP’s students were non-American. In 1978, The American College in Paris became accredited as a four-year, degree granting college. In recognition of its growing scope and international nature, ACP dropped the word “College” – a word which connotes high school outside of the US – from its name. To clarify its status as an institution of higher learning, ACP became The American University of Paris in 1988. Master’s programs were added to the University’s program offerings in 2005. Authorized by the Rectorat to offer American degrees since 1964, AUP is currently applying for French institutional recognition and accreditation.