3 universities offering liberal arts degrees to address global issues

A liberal arts degree can prepare you for any job. You can pursue a career in marketing, where you use your writing and communication skills to create compelling campaigns. Or you could work in human resources, using your understanding of psychology and sociology to manage teams effectively. The possibilities are seemingly endless.

Much of this is down to how a liberal arts degree provides a well-rounded education in various subjects such as literature, history, philosophy, and social sciences. By mastering these subjects, you will develop your  critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills – all highly valued in a wide range of industries. To sweeten the deal, a report has even found that liberal arts majors experience rapid wage growth in their late 30s and early 40s, thanks to this suite of useful soft skills.

Want a strong start to a long-lasting career? The following liberal arts schools in Europe can offer you just that — and more.

Studying at The American University of Rome means getting opportunities to touch, see, and feel the history of civilisation under your very feet. Source: The American University of Rome

The American University of Rome

The American University of Rome offers more than just a bachelor’s degree. As a student here, Rome is your classroom. With an average class size of 14 students, lessons are often taught on-site throughout the city where your professors will guide you through Rome’s offerings in an intimate learning environment encouraging in-depth group discussions. Field trips happen frequently too to expose you to new cultures, languages, and traditions around Italy.

An AUR education is as interdisciplinary and global as it is experiential. You’ll learn alongside people from all backgrounds, cultures, and experiences, a process that’ll turn you into a global citizen and master of cross-cultural understanding by the time you graduate. And by fusing the American liberal arts educational approach with Rome and Europe’s rich historical and contemporary context, you get a broad-based, interdisciplinary education that prepares you for diverse careers and global challenges.

At the oldest university of American degree-granting status in the Eternal City, you can choose from a suite of programmes that’ll help you succeed in the 21st century. The Bachelor Degree in Communication & Digital Media gives you a deep understanding of communication theory and how it applies to intercultural communication, organisational communication, and the management of social networks and mass media. It’s great for anyone aspiring to work in global communications. Meanwhile, the Bachelor Degree in International Relations and Global Politics partners with Roman and European organisations to prepare you for international career pathways in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. The Bachelor Degree in Film, fully taught in English and one of the few full-time film degrees in Italy, covers all aspects of film making including directing, shooting, editing, writing, and sound. Apply to The American University of Rome.

The Bachelor of Arts in Culture, Politics and Society programme adapts an experiential learning approach where you will have the opportunity to learn outside the classroom. Source: Central European University

Central European University

Located in Vienna, Austria, the Central European University offers all-English bachelor’s degrees that look at issues like good governance, sustainable development, and social transformation by combining the region’s historical, cultural, and social diversity from a global perspective. With students originating from more than 100 countries, the university encourages discussions regarding subjects such as emerging democracies, transitional economies, media freedom, nationalism, human rights, and the rule of law, all coming from different perspectives.

In the Bachelor of Arts in Culture, Politics and Society programme, you will learn how to determine facts from fake news, analyse various information sources, seek inspiration from different fields, draw concrete conclusions, and present ideas using data and digital tools upon graduation.

After your first year here, you can major in either Cultural and Historical Studies, Political, Legal, and Governmental Studies, or Social and Environmental Studies with 11 minor specialisations you can choose according to the career path you have planned.

With a student-to-faculty ratio of 7:1, you will receive individual attention from leading professors and researchers with whom you will explore how society works from various angles. Outside the classroom, you will have the opportunity to discover Vienna and apply theory to practice, enhancing your learning experience here.

The University College Groningen is the only university college in the Netherlands to require undergraduates to work on interdisciplinary projects. Source: University College Groningen/Facebook

University College Groningen

Project management, analytical skills, and intercultural competencies are in demand by employers and master’s degree programmes today. That is why the University College Groningen emphasises those skills in its Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts and Sciences programme, a feature that will prepare you for many career paths.

Home to over 120 nationalities, the programme follows the American principles of Liberal Arts and Sciences, standardising the study while giving the opportunity to learn in an international and interdisciplinary environment.

Students of the programme can choose to specialise in one of three majors – Sciences, Social Sciences, or Humanities. Every major has several courses that you can freely combine according to your academic interests and ambitions, giving an interdisciplinary approach to your studies. The programme also offers a chance to study abroad for an average of 20 weeks, letting you explore different countries with different perspectives.

Throughout your three years in the programme, you will not be in classrooms but also work on a series of projects outside of them in interdisciplinary teams. This will develop your creativity when addressing complex challenges as you work in a different environment with peers from different backgrounds.

As the only university college in the Netherlands to require bachelor’s students to work on interdisciplinary projects, you will collaborate with faculty members and industry experts to tackle real-world issues.

*Some of the institutions features in this article are commercial partners of Study International