Andrew Hess is the Director of the Southwest Asia and Islamic Civilization Program at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Additionally, Professor Hess directs the Contemporary Turkish Studies Program as well as a number of Foreign Service Training Programs in collaboration with The Fletcher School and the governments of Kuwait, Qatar, Armenia and Saudi Arabia. Professor Hess annually instructs four courses at The Fletcher School which cover the history, culture, politics and globalization of Southwest Asia as well as the Muslim former Soviet republics of Central Asia and the Caucasus. Professor Hess’ research interests cover the petroleum industry and the impact of science and technology on Southwest Asia.

Professor Hess’ professional experience is diverse and includes service as an officer in both active and reserve components of the US Marine Corps (1954-1968), a project engineer and foreman for Youngstown Sheet and Tube (1957-1960), and various executive positions within the Saudi Arabian-American Oil Company (1978-1984).

In addition to a variety of journal articles and book reviews, Professor Hess has also published The Forgotten Frontier: A History of Sixteenth Century Ibero-African Relations. Profesor Hess’ academic appointments included professorships and administrative positions at the American University of Cairo (1966-1967), Temple University (1967-1978), and The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (1984-Present).

Like the rest of his life, Professor Hess’ education is as diversified and includes a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan(1950-1954), an MBA from Kent State University (1958-1960), an MA in European History from the University of Pittsburgh (1960-1961), and an AM and PhD in Middle Eastern Studies from Harvard University (1961-1966). Professor Hess has also studied overseas in Spain, Turkey and Morocco. Professor Hess has speaking abilities in Arabic, Turkish, Spanish, and French as well as reading abilities in classical and modern Arabic, Ottoman Turkish, Modern Turkish, Persian, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and French.