With more than 35 years of recognized academic and managerial experience, Dr. Salim Kanaan joined the University of Balamand (UOB) in November 2019, in a dual role as Vice President for Enrollment Management and Alumni Relations.

Dr. Kanaan received his Ph.D. in Basic Medical Sciences (Microbiology) from the American University of Beirut (AUB) in 1984 and pursued his academic training at the University of Pennsylvania (Fulbright Scholarship), then Georgetown University, and ultimately at the George Washington University.

Prior to joining UOB, Dr. Kanaan’s extensive career combines academic influence (Assistant Professor, Chairperson) with administrative responsibilities. He joined AUB as a full-time Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology in 1988, contributing to fundraising, supervision of student extra curricular activities, and supporting students throughout their admission processes and job seeking. Along with the academic duties, he directed the Student Affairs and Financial Aid Office at the Off-Campus Program (OCP) of AUB from 1988 till 1990. Throughout his term he structured the office to refine its mission and future plans, monitored budgets and supervised all departments and financial aid processes. He was then appointed as the Director of the Academic and Administrative Units at OCP till 1991.

Dr. Kanaan taught a number of undergraduate and graduate courses in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Faculty of Medicine. He also supervised the Master Degree thesis for a number of students and has published over 50 publications and abstracts in international refereed journals. He chaired in 1997 the Department of Biology at the AUB main campus till 1999.

In 1999, he was appointed to structure and direct the first Office of Admissions at AUB and subsequently to direct the Office of Financial Aid upon the request of AUB President John Waterbury and late Provost Peter Heath in 2001.

Under Dr. Kanaan’s leadership, the offices of Admissions and Financial Aid grew up to include more than 21 full-time staff members, 15 student employments and a working budget of over 37 million dollars.

The number of graduate and undergraduate applications tripled under his leadership and the University almost doubled the number of students enrolled, while the financial aid budget increased from $7 million in 2007 to reach $34 million in 2019.

Dr. Kanaan also served as a consultant of the Regional External Programs of AUB (REP) on Admissions and Financial Aid for a large number of Universities in Lebanon and the MENA Region including Al Mana’ College of Health Sciences (Dammam, Saudi Arabia), Rafic Hariri University (Lebanon), Ahfad Univesity for Women (Khartoum, Sudan), Fahd Bin Sultan University (Tabouk, Saudi Arabia), University College of Bahrain (Manama, Bahrain) and Dhofar University (Dhofar, Oman). His consulting involved guiding procedures to improve admissions and recruitment efforts, to name a few.

Today his leadership and dedication to the University of Balamand (UOB) as Vice President for Enrollment Management and Alumni Relations serves a vital role in developing the growth of the University.