The Value of Studying an Arts & Humanities Masters

The Arts and Humanities have an obvious appeal to anyone interested in exploring different human stories, values and ideas (together with their history) but what do else do they teach you to do? Ally Faughnan, one of our 2018 FindAMasters Scholarship winners, explains what's drawn her to a Masters in the Arts & Humanities and what she's gaining from it.

As a Liberal Arts graduate and current Arts and Cultural Management postgraduate student, my studies have covered a broad array of Arts & Humanities subjects. Despite both of these courses being research-led rather than vocational, they have taught me a variety of skills that are transferrable into the workplace. Now in my final year of university education, I can look back and see what I’ve learnt from my Arts & Humanities degrees. I hope this will encourage other students to think about the value of a Masters and how it can help you build skills that are beneficial when transferring into the working world.

You will also learn to how to improve your writing skills during an Arts & Humanities degree. This might seem obvious, but you shouldn’t overlook it. Learning to cultivate a professional tone of voice is not only useful for writing essays but it will help you to communicate with colleagues and produce other forms of written work to a high standard.

You will also learn to how to improve your writing skills during an Arts & Humanities degree. This might seem obvious, but you shouldn’t overlook it. Learning to cultivate a professional tone of voice is not only useful for writing essays but it will help you to communicate with colleagues and produce other forms of written work to a high standard.

Research is an integral part of so many different jobs. It’s also a big part of what you’ll do on a Humanities Masters. From reading around your subject to studying for an essay, understanding how to do quality research is an invaluable skill and you will use it a lot when you graduate.

It is not only in research-specific jobs that this skill is used. In fact, in almost every role, research is the first part of a new project: whether you’re coming up with a new product, writing an article or planning a marketing strategy. Every Arts and Humanities degree involves some level of research and this will give you the practise needed before utilising these skills at work.

Every essay you do for your degree is developing your written voice. Starting at university and living in a new city can be quite daunting. Yet, even amongst the thousands of students passing through campus every day, your personal experiences and individual opinions are so important. Your degree will give you experience – and confidence – in putting them forward and backing them up.

You will also learn to how to improve your writing skills during an Arts & Humanities degree. This might seem obvious, but you shouldn’t overlook it. Learning to cultivate a professional tone of voice is not only useful for writing essays but it will help you to communicate with colleagues and produce other forms of written work to a high standard.

The abstract nature of many Arts and Humanities degrees leave you with a lot of room for questions. For example, Literature students are encouraged to critically analyse books to find their hidden meanings and History students must explore a range of historical accounts to piece together timelines. In the same way, the working world is open to questions. Having a critical eye will allow you to work effectively and help to encourage improvement in whatever job you take.

On average, Arts & Humanities degrees have lower contact hours than many other courses. You may find this is even more likely at Masters level. However, this is does not make them any less valuable. Students are expected to undertake at least double the amount of time doing independent study to the amount of time spent in lectures and seminars. This independent study helps to improves your time management skills and teaches you the importance of prioritising tasks.

The independence of an Arts & Humanities degree also gives you the freedom and opportunity to develop your interests outside of the course materials. Joining a university society, working a part-time job or taking an internship will help to broaden your experiences. This is not only great for your portfolio or CV but it gets you networking with people who might be your future colleagues.

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