Higher Education and the Liberal Arts

17/10/2010

Addressing higher education and the liberal arts, Dr. Ian Newbould explained its broad approach, its appeal and its students.

Students do not just attend a university to acquire a degree. Rather they develop a set of skills that enable them to meet the complex challenges that they face when they leave the security of the classroom. Dr. Ian Newbould, President of Richmond, The American International University in London explains how the liberal arts prepare students to adapt to an ever-changing world in which they find themselves.

Dr. Newbould has a fascinating perspective of the different educational systems of Canada, the United States and now Britain, where he has been President of three different universities. The similarities amongst the student bodies have repeatedly impressed him. Irrespective of their backgrounds, students are focused on pursuing degrees that place them on the first rung of the corporate ladder.

One constant in his career has been his professional involvement, first as an historian teaching in Holland and Canada and then as a university administrator, in smaller learning environments that emphasized the liberal arts model. His strong belief is that students flourish in smaller universities that are primarily undergraduate in nature. In this environment, the university is able to nurture each student as an individual and support them in developing through academic, social and cultural perspectives. Student support systems have a real meaning when groups of hundreds, rather than thousands, of students come under the university’s guidance. Students are taught by highly qualified senior faculty members from the outset in classes that rarely involve more than two dozen students. In large universities, many undergraduate students are taught by graduate students and never see a full-time professor until their third or fourth year. When faculty members make themselves available outside of class times, as has been his experience, they are able to make a real difference for students who seek them out for academic guidance.

A liberal arts undergraduate program is an ideal academic structure for students. Whilst there are many descriptions of the term 'liberal arts', the essential feature is the ability to study a wide range of academic subjects in the first and second years before specializing in one or two academic disciplines. There are a number of advantages to this approach. First, most students do not know what it is that they plan to do in life. The ability to study a wider range of subjects opens their minds to areas of study that they might never have discovered. The same holds true for students who have a good idea of what they plan to do.

Increasingly, one reads of British students who study at American universities and marvel at the ability to taste a wide spectrum of subject areas, currently not the practice in British universities. A student who is intent on studying international finance learns a great deal by being able to study history, photography or a foreign language alongside their finance courses. As the president of a large Canadian insurance company once said, this is the one time in a person’s life when they can learn about civilizations and societies, about history and ideas, about religions and philosophy. It broadens the mind, it widens the ability to think and to analyze. It makes a person fit for life, no matter what profession the graduate chooses. Business leaders are virtually unanimous in looking for graduates who can think clearly, understand wider notions of thought, analyze issues and demonstrate the ability to master large amounts of information. A liberal arts education provides an opportunity to so develop.

One of the great strengths of Richmond, The American International University in London, is the international character of its' student body. With students from over 140 countries, there is another dimension to the learning and teaching experience, that of learning and appreciating other cultures at close proximity. A class in political science or international relations might have as many nationalities as it has students. Differing perspectives in discussion become the norm rather than the exception. They learn to share and respect others opinions and coexist in the same classroom. Moreover, the decision to leave the comfort of one’s culture, to break away from the cocoon of home and friends, has profound importance for that student’s future. Students at Richmond stand out from the norm because of their adventurous desire to experience a wider world. These are traits that graduate schools and employers are keen to benefit from.

Students are young people with goals, dreams, hopes and insecurities. They are developing as young adults. A small, liberal arts university is the ideal setting for that maturation, both academically and personally. Together with an international environment such as that of Richmond, Paris, Rome or Tokyo and the ingredients of a productive future are there. Students who can achieve their goals in this caring environment are most assuredly “fit for life”.

Learn more about the history of the Liberal Arts at: The History of the Liberal Arts

Special thanks to the Fulbright organization who originally published this article.

To learn more about the Fulbright program please go to:

Fulbright

Link to this page: http://www.richmond.ac.uk/n/982.aspx