New university course offers ‘bite-sized’ education

Want to go back to university without committing to one set course of study units? - the newly-launched Centre for the Liberal Arts and Sciences may just be the path for you.

Under the direction of philosophy lecturer Jean-Paul De Lucca, the course will offer students the possibility to sign up for individual courses and tailor-make their own academic path, instead of signing up to a course wholesale.

The study units within the course are also widely varied: with everything from Byzantine history to beekeeping and photography being offered.
“The programme offers an alternative and more flexible path to university education for those who might not wish or not be able to commit themselves to three or five years of full-time or part-time study,” de Lucca said.

“It neither replaces nor competes with existing courses, but brings an innovative addition to the many opportunities offered by the University of Malta by targeting especially – although not exclusively – adult and returning learners who might wish to study subjects they’re interested in at their own pace, be it for personal growth or professional development.”

Covering a broad spectrum of subjects which incorporate, for the most part, areas related to art, culture, history, science and psychology, the Programme for the Liberal Arts and Sciences (PLAS) can supplement any number of academic or professional interests that its students may be otherwise pursuing on a ‘full time’ basis.

De Lucca said that the ‘Liberal Arts and Sciences’ banner that the course is held under is linked to an old tradition “which can be traced all the way back to classical antiquity, where it was understood as the kind of broad education that was needed for the formation of a well-rounded, free (liber) citizen who would be better placed to contribute positively to the community”.

Although its origins are European, de Lucca says that during the last couple of centuries, “the liberal education model has been particularly popular in the United States but suffered a decline in Europe as a result of the tendency to place an exclusive focus on specialisation, sometimes at the expense of the wider picture.”

De Lucca adds that apart from offering a more varied and holistic presentation of disciplines, the course structure – that of ‘bite-sized’ study units which can be cherry-picked by students – caters to the realities most ‘returning’ students face when they decide to go back to university.

“Many people who would like to start or go back to university when they are older are likely to have to juggle their studies with other commitments, such as family and work… this programme is responsive to changes in society such as the need for more flexibility for continuing education as well as the increasing demand for flexibility in the job market,” de Lucca said.

More information and a full course programme are available on http://www.um.edu.mt/clas