Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)
University of Essex

Student rating

(4.3)

Curious about studying Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)at University of Essex? We've gathered all the key details—entry requirements, modules, fees, and more. Hear from real students by checking out reviews, or take the next step by booking an open day to explore it for yourself.

Different course options

DATA SOURCE:

UNISTATS, UCAS

Qualification

Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Location

University of Essex

Study mode

Full Time

Start date

Oct 2026

Duration

4 Year

Course info

Knowledge is rooted in the experiences of people across the world. It is created from memory, culture, landscape and myth. This knowledge is often split into separate ‘disciplines’ such as those in the sciences, maths, history, geography, literature and art. However, true knowledge does not recognise these boundaries; the world is complex, interconnected and networked. Our course is for you if you love studying a variety of subjects, and want to maintain this breadth of knowledge at university. With the opportunity to major in History, Literature, Art History, Philosophy, Politics, Media Studies or Sociology, you broaden your horizons by exploring the ways in which the humanities and social sciences help us to think imaginatively and critically about the worlds we live in. You take modules which cover the historical foundations of the humanities, challenge dominant worldviews, and explore innovative and subversive essays and manifestos. The flexible structure of this course allows you to choose a range of optional modules across literature, film, philosophy, history of art, history, linguistics, politics, sociology and modern languages. The types of issues and problems you might explore include: - How commercial and independent films interpret human relationships - How to compose your own writing, inspired by the great essayists - Important philosophical questions about life, death and religion - Great works of art and literature - Languages Based within our Interdisciplinary Studies Centre (ISC), the choice is yours: you choose your modules based on your own background and interests. You engage with unusual, controversial, and provocative ideas, so that you can use the humanities and social sciences to become critically aware and possess the tools to change the world for the better.

What students say

katie shoobridge

University of Essex

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

the uni is a really nice area with so much greenery, I would imagine it would be even nicer in the summer. We are experiencing a lot of strikes currently and potentially a lot more so I am missing out on a lot of learning and therefore struggling in some of my lessons.

Read full review

Ash Higgins

University of Essex

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

Essex uni is an incredibly supportive university. I have ADHD and chronic fatigue that has impacted my studies quite significantly, but they have helped me both practically with study skills and emotionally to make sure the stress doesn’t get too much. All my classes are very interesting and moodle is a well structured learning platform to learn outside of class.

Read full review

Saul Traquino

University of Essex

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

in my opinion the university as a whole is really good in most areas unfortunately I do think there’s been a little bit of a decline recently not with the opportunities of student experience but with the amount of students who are engaging in certain student opportunities. I know with my experience in the rugby club we’ve had significantly less signups as opposed to recently years and the student nightclub offering less available nights out. Despite this, I do still think that the students union hasn’t at all slowed down with what they've been trying to accomplish. I’m still having a very good student experience here despite something still being able to be improved a little bit.

Read full review

Anastasiia

University of Essex

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

As an Art History PhD student at the University of Essex, my experience has been very positive overall. The strongest aspect by far is the support from my School. There is dedicated funding for extra training (such as courses or summer schools) and for conferences, including attendance even if you’re not presenting. Over the course of the PhD, this covers travel, accommodation, and fees in the UK or abroad. I’ve also benefited from fieldwork funding and support for external academic events, which has been invaluable for my research. That said, there are some downsides. I’m not a big fan of the campus environment—the brutalist architecture feels more depressing than inspiring to me—and Colchester is quite quiet, although London being just an hour away helps a lot. I’m also not especially impressed by campus services, particularly the value for money in student housing and the limited affordable healthy food options. Overall, though, I’d rate my experience a strong 4+ out of 5. The academic support, funding opportunities, and supportive research culture more than make up for the negatives, and I feel taken seriously as an overseas student.

Read full review

Lunna Castillo Guzman

University of Essex

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

The best part of the uni is the students union and the departments support of the students. the worst part is being in a place removed from most of the important opportunities for my career path, some of the processes are difficult for international students

Read full review

Read all reviews

Modules

Modules (Year 1)

Ways of Reading (30 credits) - Core

Interdisciplinary Research and Problem-Solving: An Introduction (15 credits) - Core

The world does not have disciplines; it has problems. What's more, the most important problems we face - problems like climate change, migration, sustainable economic production, democratic governance, and so on - cannot be solved with the tools of any single discipline. Such problems require collaborative, creative, and interdisciplinary approaches, and this module introduces students to this type of interdisciplinary thinking. Students will learn how to approach complex problems by drawing on theories and methods from multiple disciplines, learning how to think flexibly and work with others to find creative solutions to real-world problems.

Ways of Knowing (15 credits) - Core

This interdisciplinary module explores the rich diversity of ways of knowing the world. We examine different frameworks of knowing that have characterised and shaped human societies historically and today.

Beyond the BA: Skills for the Next Step - Core

This course introduces key academic, professional and personal skills to support a successful transition beyond undergraduate study. Students develop confidence in critical thinking, communication, teamwork and self reflection while exploring future study and career options.

Modules (Year 2)

Addressing the Environmental Crisis: Historical Origins, Current Causes, Sustainable Solutions (15 credits) - Core

How have contemporary societies been shaped by the legacies of the Enlightenment, colonialism, and the different phases of capitalism? This interdisciplinary module helps you to critically understand some of the key forces and processes that have shaped the challenges we face in the 20th and 21st century. It is divided into three broad themes; Empire, The Self, and Nature. We’ll be examining processes of ‘othering’ that were intrinsic to colonialism; changing conceptions of the self; as well as both the causes of and potential solutions to the ecological crisis we are confronting today. The module is co-taught by academics from Art History, ISC, LiFTs, Philosophy, Psychoanalytic Studies and Sociology. This module has been designed to enable students to integrate their subject knowledge with an understanding of sustainable development, acquiring the skills and competencies essential for addressing the urgent sustainability challenges of the 21st century.

Module Options

Placement Year

Liberal Arts

DATA SOURCE:

UCAS/IDP Connect

Tuition fees

Student living

per year

Students from

DATA SOURCE:

UCAS / IDP Connect

Latest reviews

How University rating students rated:

University rating

Overall rating

4.3

5 stars

40%

4 stars

45%

3 stars

11%

2 stars

1 star

Latest Art History reviews

Art History

Pippilotta Finke

University of Essex

Reviewed: 18/01/24

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

I came as an abroad student and was absolutely blown away by the campus life, social support, opportunities and societies. I honestly can't think of a worst thing, it was a bit impractical that the assignment deadlines for international students were shortened so that we could still upload our texts but that was a minor thing.

Read full review

Anastasiia

University of Essex

Reviewed: 19/01/24

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

All university staff are very supportive people always there for you to help. Thw student union is arguably one of the best in the country, and, the most important thing, the quality of taught courses is very high. However, the campus isn't nice-looking, and the quality of university accommodation needs to be improved.

Read full review

Student Reviewer

University of Essex

Reviewed: 05/03/25

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

The atmosphere is exceptional, with all people being very nice and friendly and services designed to meet even the most sophisticated needs! I don't like the campus look though, but the facilities themselves are good.

Read full review

Emily Elkes

University of Essex

Reviewed: 28/02/24

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

I think the student union is very involved with planning events which helps to bring students together and make new friends. I have also found this is the case for societies. I believe a bigger focus on mental health and student support could really benefit the university. Also the health centre could be looked at, as while it is in a very useful place for students to access, I have found it’s not easily accessible to organise appointments.

Read full review

Jessie Lu

University of Essex

Reviewed: 19/01/24

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

Best aspect: Lots of diversity, many different cultures, club on campus, big library, lots of sports an society events Could be improves: Better food at the food outlets, separate trash for student accommodations

Read full review

Mineli

University of Essex

Reviewed: 27/02/25

Liberal Arts (Including Placement Year) - BA (Hons)

The best aspect of my uni experience so far has been the people. There is a massive population of international students here which makes it a great place to be in. The student union is also very active and there's a decent amount of event happening weekly, from volunteering opportunities to markets and nights at the uni bar and club. The worst aspect for me personally would be that while the University Campus is a really beautiful place to be, Colchester is some what slow paced. Because of this, finding jobs does prove difficult, especially when all of the students jobs on campus are gone.

Read full review

Read all reviews