Liberal Arts

Study mode:On campus Study type:Full-time Languages: English
Local:$ 13.7 k / Year(s) Foreign:$ 21.8 k / Year(s) Deadline: May 31, 2025
59 place StudyQA ranking:10647 Duration:2 years

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With some of Australia's leading scholars and innovators in the inter-disciplinary fields of biography, public culture and digital humanities, and national cultural institutes and archives at your fingertips, there's no better place to study liberal arts than ANU.

Incorporating public heritage, history and writing, archives, biographical research and digital humanities studies, a Master of Liberal Arts allows you to draw on our innovative world leading staff and strong industry connections and partnerships to develop your professional expertise and experience.

You can take a broad range of courses, or choose to specialise in:

  • Public humanities and culture
  • Biographical research and writing

Career Options

Employment Opportunities

A Master of Liberal Arts will advance your career in the professional museums, collections or heritage sectors, the public service, government and non-government organisations, and academia. It also leads in to our active PhD program.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the skills and knowledge to:

  1. Reflect critically with sophisticated analysis on the key concepts from the various disciplines that contribute to the broad field of Liberal Arts.
  2. Demonstrate a critical understanding of, and engagement with the historical, political, institutional and cultural frameworks for contemporary practices in one or more of museums, heritage arena, visual cultures, public humanities and biographical research and writing in Australia and internationally.
  3. Demonstrate effective communication and independent conceptual thinking and research relevant to the field.
  4. Develop a strong and critical understanding of interdisciplinary methodologies and theoretical debates alongside an ability to apply these in professional contexts.

The Master of Liberal Arts requires completion of 96 units, which must consist of:

A minimum of 12 units from completion of research courses from the following list:

HUMN8007 Cultural and Environmental Heritage Research Project

HUMN8012 Writing, World Histories and Lives: Research Project

HUMN8013 Writing, World Histories and Lives: Special topics

HUMN8017 Writing, World Histories and Lives: Extended Research Project

HUMN8018 Cultural and Environmental Heritage: Extended Research Project

HUMN8022 Physical Conservation of Historic Heritage Places

HUMN8023 Human Rights and Humanitarian Law

HUMN8024 Digital Humanities: Theories and Projects

HUMN8026 Writing in the Public Sphere

HUMN8027 Critical issues in Heritage and Museum Studies

MUSC8004 Internship 1

MUSC8005 Internship 2

MUSC8008 Museums, Art and Society in the Asia-Pacific

MUSC8009 Museums and Collections: Research Project

MUSC8011 Museums and Collections: Extended Research Project

 

Either:

 24 units from completion of one of the following specialisations:

Biographical Research and Writing

Public Humanities and Culture

 

A maximum of 36 units from completion of courses on the following list:

ANCH6013 Ancient World in Film

ANCH6014 Homer and the Trojan War

ANCH6023 State, sanctuary and community: archaeology of settlement and memory in ancient Greece

ANCH6101 Cultures in conflict: Greeks, Romans and others in southern Italy and Sicily

ANCH6501 Travellers and Geographers in Antiquity

ANCH6502 Bad neighbours: evidence of Athenian life from 4th century law-court speeches

ANCH6504 Warfare in the Greek and Roman worlds

ANCH6505 A region in antiquity: Gallipoli and western Turkey

ANTH8041 Photography in Social Context

ARCH8104 An Introduction to Cultural and Environmental Heritage

ARTH6043 Modernism and Postmodernism in Art and Design: 1850-2000

ARTH6045 Curatorship Theory and Practice

ARTH6050 Photography: A history in art

ARTH6056 Art and architecture of Southast Asia: Tradition and Transformation

ARTH6057 The art and politics of collecting

ARTH6598 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art

ARTH8004 Exploring Asian Art in Asia

ARTH8013 East-West Interactions in Art

ARTV6104 Cool old masters

ARTV8100 Points Of View

ARTV8107 Arguing Objects

DART8067 New Media Innovation and research 1

DART8071 New Media Innovation and research 2

ENGL6020 16th, 17th and 18th Century Literature

ENGL6021 Nineteenth Century US Literature

ENGL6022 19th and 20th Century Literature

ENGL6023 Jane Austen History and Fiction

ENGL6024 Australian Crimes: Crime Narratives on Page, Stage and Screen

ENGL6025 Contemporary Australian Writing

ENGL6026 Creative Writing 3 Advanced Fiction

ENGL6027 Empire and its Fictions

ENGL6028 Literature and Human Rights

ENGL6029 Modern American Fiction

ENGL6030 Modern Australian Drama

ENGL6031 Modernist Literature 1890-1940

ENGL6032 Poetry in English from Shakespeare to Postmodernism

ENGL6033 Post-Colonial Literature

ENGL6034 Renaissance Drama

ENGL6035 20th Century American Drama

ENGL6036 Victorian Literature

ENGL8018 Re-Making Literature: Topics In Reading And Analysing Genre

ENGL8019 Reading Context: Topics In Production And Reception Of Texts

ENGL8021 Creative Reading: Topics In Theory, Methodology And Interpretation

EURO8003 The European Union: Regional Integration in Comparative Perspective.

GREK6101 Intermediate Ancient Greek

GREK6112 Continuing Ancient Greek

GREK6125 Advanced Ancient Greek

HIST6007 Making History

HIST6110 Approaches to History

HIST6121 Electric Citizens: The Rise of the Modern Media in the United States 1865-2000

HIST6133 Human Variations and Racism in Western Culture c 1450-1950

HIST6213 Real Men: Manhood and Identity in the Western World

HIST6229 Sexuality in Australian History

HIST8003 Digital Histories and Biographies

HIST8004 Biographical Research Project

HIST8010 Biographical Practices

HIST8011 Writing Biography

HIST8012 Oral History, Memory and Life Writing

HIST8013 Australian Dictionary of Biography Internship

HIST8016 Settler Societies and Indigenous Encounters

HIST8021 Readings in History

HUMN8001 Interdisciplinary Humanities Research: Methods, Theories and Skills

HUMN8006 Best Practice in Managing Heritage Places

HUMN8008 World Rock Art: Global Perspectives on Rock Art Research

HUMN8009 Biography and Society

HUMN8010 Material Culture Studies

HUMN8019 World Heritage: conserving cultural heritage values

LATN6002 Continuing Latin

LATN6101 Intermediate Latin

LATN6125 Advanced Latin

LING6001 Introduction to the Study of Language

LING6002 Language and Society

LING6005 Language Change and Linguistic Reconstruction

LING6015 Language, Culture and Translation

LING6018 Languages in Contact

LING6021 Cross Cultural Communication

LING6103 Language, Power and Identity

LING6311 Language and Social Interaction

LING6023 Dictionaries and Dictionary-makingMUSC8006 Indigenous Collections and Exhibitions

MUSC8012 Understanding Learning in Museums and Heritage

MUSC8013 Museum Education and Heritage Interpretation Study Tour

MUSC8016 Museum Learning: The Politics of Dress

MUSC8017 Museums and Collections: Key Concepts and Practices

MUSC8018 Exhibition Design and Delivery

 

Or:

 A maximum of 60 units from completion of courses on the following list:

ANCH6013 Ancient World in Film

ANCH6014 Homer and the Trojan War

ANCH6023 State, sanctuary and community: archaeology of settlement and memory in ancient Greece

ANCH6101 Cultures in conflict: Greeks, Romans and others in southern Italy and Sicily

ANCH6501 Travellers and Geographers in Antiquity

ANCH6502 Bad neighbours: evidence of Athenian life from 4th century law-court speeches

ANCH6504 Warfare in the Greek and Roman worlds

ANCH6505 A region in antiquity: Gallipoli and western Turkey

ANTH8041 Photography in Social Context

ARCH8104 An Introduction to Cultural and Environmental Heritage

ARTH6043 Modernism and Postmodernism in design

ARTH6045 Curatorship Theory and Practice

ARTH6050 Photography: A history in art

ARTH6056 Art and architecture of Southast Asia: Tradition and Transformation

ARTH6057 The art and politics of collecting

ARTH6598 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art

ARTH8004 Exploring Asian Art in Asia

ARTH8013 East-West Interactions in Art

ARTV6104 Cool old masters

ARTV8100 Points Of View

ARTV8107 Arguing Objects

DART8067 New Media Innovation and research 1

DART8071 New Media Innovation and research 2

ENGL6020 16th, 17th and 18th Century Literature

ENGL6021 Nineteenth Century US Literature

ENGL6022 19th and 20th Century Literature

ENGL6023 Jane Austen History and Fiction

ENGL6024 Australian Crimes: Crime Narratives on Page, Stage and Screen

ENGL6025 Contemporary Australian Writing

ENGL6026 Creative Writing 3 Advanced Fiction

ENGL6027 Empire and its Fictions

ENGL6028 Literature and Human Rights

ENGL6029 Modern American Fiction

ENGL6030 Modern Australian Drama

ENGL6031 Modernist Literature 1890-1940

ENGL6032 Poetry in English from Shakespeare to Postmodernism

ENGL6033 Post-Colonial Literature

ENGL6034 Renaissance Drama

ENGL6035 20th Century American Drama

ENGL6036 Victorian Literature

ENGL8018 Re-Making Literature: Topics In Reading And Analysing Genre

ENGL8019 Reading Context: Topics In Production And Reception Of Texts

ENGL8021 Creative Reading: Topics In Theory, Methodology And Interpretation

EURO8003 The European Union: Regional Integration in Comparative Perspective.

GREK6101 Intermediate Ancient Greek

GREK6112 Continuing Ancient Greek

GREK6125 Advanced Ancient Greek

HIST6007 Making History

HIST6110 Approaches to History

HIST6121 Electric Citizens: The Rise of the Modern Media in the United States 1865-2000

HIST6133 Human Variations and Racism in Western Culture c 1450-1950

HIST6213 Real Men: Manhood and Identity in the Western World

HIST6229 Sexuality in Australian History

HIST8003 Digital Histories and Biographies

HIST8004 Biographical Research Project

HIST8010 Biographical Practices

HIST8012 Oral History, Memory and Life Writing

HIST8011 Writing Biography

HIST8013 Australian Dictionary of Biography Internship

HIST8016 Settler Societies and Indigenous Encounters

HIST8021 Readings in History

HUMN8001 Interdisciplinary Humanities Research: Methods, Theories and Skills

HUMN8006 Best Practice in Managing Heritage Places

HUMN8008 World Rock Art: Global Perspectives on Rock Art Research

HUMN8009 Biography and Society

HUMN8010 Material Culture Studies

HUMN8019 World Heritage: conserving cultural heritage values

LATN6002 Continuing Latin

LATN6101 Intermediate Latin

LATN6125 Advanced Latin

LING6001 Intro to Study of Language

LING6002 Language and Society

LING6005 Language Change and Linguistic Reconstruction

LING6015 Language, Culture and Translation

LING6018 Languages in Contact

LING6021 Cross Cultural Communication

LING6103 Language, Power and Identity

LING6311 Language and Social Interaction

LING6023 Dictionaries and Dictionary-makingMUSC8006 Indigenous Collections and Exhibitions

MUSC8012 Understanding Learning in Museums and Heritage

MUSC8013 Museum Education and Heritage Interpretation Study Tour

MUSC8016 Museum Learning: The Politics of Dress

MUSC8017 Museums and Collections: Key Concepts and Practices

MUSC8018 Exhibition Design and Delivery

 

24 units from completion of elective courses offered by ANU

Specialisations

  • Biographical Research and Writing 
  • Museum Education and Heritage Interpretation
  • Public Humanities and Culture

A Bachelor degree or international equivalent with an average mark of at least 65%

All applicants must meet the University's English Language Admission Requirements for Students

Applicants with a Bachelor Degree or Graduate Certificate in a cognate discipline may be eligible for 24 units (one semester) of credit.

Applicants with a Graduate Diploma or Honours in a cognate discipline may be eligible for 48 units (one year) of credit.

Cognate disciplines

History, Ancient History, Museum Studies, Politics, Sociology, Archaeology, Social Sciences, Philosophy, English, Gender Studies; Fine Arts; Creative Arts; Anthropology; Classics; English; Environmental Management; Environmental History; Visual Arts.

ANU offers a wide range of scholarships to students to assist with the cost of their studies.

Eligibility to apply for ANU scholarships varies depending on the specifics of the scholarship and can be categorised by the type of student you are.  Specific scholarship application process information is included in the relevant scholarship listing.

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