The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences commenced operating together with the establishment of the Ruhuna University College as an affiliation to the University of Colombo. When the University of Ruhuna appeared as a fully-fledged university, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences underwent a radical change as an academic body. Currently, it remains as a well-established faculty offering Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral Degrees in a wide spectrum of disciplines of diverse fields.

The Humanities and Social Sciences is the largest faculty of the university having approximately a student body of 3000 undergraduates and an annual intake of over 500 students. The faculty offers over 400 course modules in 13 diversified disciplines through nine departments, one unit and two centers operating under its aegis.

The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences grooms the students for a professional and disciplined life by providing them with a broad understanding of the traditions that operate in a wide range of humanistic and social science disciplines; by achieving in them an ability to apply the subject knowledge they gather in class and field to solving problems and carrying out tasks in the contemporary world; and by improving their capacity for independent and critical thinking, logical analysis, effective communication, and well-informed participation in teamwork. Hence, the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Arts Honors degree programmes constitutes classroom work, field activities, and independent readings and writings with hands-on research, and project work.