At the session of the Academic Council of the State Engineering University of Armenia on October 2, 1996, a decision was made to establish the Kapan branch of the State Engineering University of Armenia on the basis of the Kapan Student Council for the strategic purposes of providing the industrial enterprises of Syunik region with engineering personnel, ensuring socio-economic development and scientific and technical progress.
The birth of the branch was officially registered on April 3, 1997. It was registered in the RA State Register as a “SEUA Kapan Educational Complex” state budget institution, which started the legal activity of the branch.
On December 20, 2002, the Kapan Educational Complex was reorganized, renamed the Kapan Branch of the State Engineering University of Armenia State Non-Commercial Organization, and on October 26, 2009, the Kapan Branch of the State Engineering University of Armenia (Polytechnic) State Non-Commercial Organization.
In the 1996-1997 academic year, 125 students were studying in the branch with a bachelor’s degree program in “Subsoil Engineering” and “Computer Engineering”. At present, about 400 students with the following specialties study in the branch with the bachelor (existing և distance) educational program. “Information Technologies”, “Informatics and Applied Mathematics”, “Enterprise Economics and Management (in Mining)”, “Construction, Production of Construction Materials and Structures”, “Mineral Exploration-Development”, “Metallurgy and Materials Science”. If in the 1996-1997 academic year in the branch 3 candidates of sciences were taught, now the branch has 2 doctors of sciences, professors and 13 candidates of sciences, 11 of which are from the main teaching staff.
The educational process is organized in the branch and is implemented in two faculties.
Faculty of “Natural Sciences and Information Systems”, which includes the chairs of “Mathematics and Natural Sciences”, “Humanities”, “Physical Education” and “Information Technologies, Informatics and Automated Systems”, Faculty of “Technology and Sectoral Economics”, which includes the chairs of “Mineralogy and Construction”, “Metallurgy and Materials Science” and the branch of the chair of “Sectoral Economics and Management-1” of Yerevan Educational Complex.
Close partnerships have been established with the Kapan branch and three large mining companies in the region: Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine CJSC, Dundee Precious Metals Kapan CJSC and Agarak Copper and Molybdenum Combine. Close partnerships have also been established between 30 other organizations and enterprises, due to the production and pre-graduation internships of the branch students have become coordinated and purposeful, which enables them to complete the preparatory stage of the engineering training process in the production base of the client organization; professional training in accordance with the requirements of the client and the specifics of future work.
During its existence, the branch has produced 1750 graduates, most of them work in a number of enterprises of the region and the republic, and some of them already hold managerial and responsible positions in those enterprises.
In a relatively short period of time, due to the efforts of SEUA and Kapan branch management, teaching staff and the financial support of Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine CJSC, Kapan, which has no university traditions, was established in Kapan.
SEUA (NPUA) Kapan Branch was headed by Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Alvaro Antonyan (until 1997), Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Homer Abrahamyan (1997), Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Seyran Balasavaryan (1997-2012) Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor Lernik Petrosyan (2012-2016). On February 15, 2017, Arthur Kostandyan, Candidate of Economic Sciences, Associate Professor, was elected Director of the Kapan Branch of NPUA.
Doctor of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor Vache Yepremyan (until February 2013), Founding Director, Candidate of Technical Sciences, associate Professor Alvaro Antonyan (until October 2013) was taught in the branch. Their untimely death is a heavy and painful loss for the branch.