The current dean, Claudine Gay, assumed the position in August 2018. The deans of Harvard College, GSAS, SEAS, and DCE report to the dean of FAS, as do various academic deans, administrative deans (including those responsible for finance, development, faculty personnel policy, undergraduate admissions and financial aid), and the directors of various research centers and institutes. History While Harvard College traces its origins to 1636, the body called the Faculty of Arts and Sciences only came into existence in the late nineteenth century. From 1820 until 1872, Harvard University consisted of the college and three professional schools (in law, medicine, and divinity). The governing boards established a Graduate Department in 1872 to administer and recommend candidates for the degrees of Master of Arts, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy, and Doctor of Science. In 1890, the governing boards merged separate faculties of the Lawrence Scientific School and the College into a single Faculty of Arts and Sciences. The Graduate Department later became the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The Lawrence Scientific School opened in 1847 and marked Harvard's first major effort to offer a formal program in science and engineering. In 1948, the School merged with the Department of Engineering Sciences and Applied Physics in FAS to form the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences. In 2007, the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences formally became the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. On June 3, 2015, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences was renamed the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, following a $400 million gift by Harvard Business School alumnus John A. Paulson. References External links