Careers
Our BA Liberal Arts degree is designed to develop the professional skills that employers seek in graduates.
These skills are embedded in our course content, teaching approach, and assessments. You will also have the opportunity to complete unique professional development certificates and engage in different work placements.
Co-curricular certificates
We offer a range of unique certificates outside of the curriculum as a way of continuing your professional development. These certificates are designed to develop skills that have been identified by employers as being vital for success in the workplace. Your attainment of these certificates will be recorded on your Higher Education Achievement Report, which you can show to employers.
Certificate of Professional Communication
This certificate aims to develop your professional communication skills and promote your understanding of the working environment. Workshops will explore theories and concepts around communication in relation to the world of work. Using this preparation, you will undertake a short work placement which concludes the certificate.
Hear from one of our graduates, Tom, about his experience of the Certificate of Professional Communication:
Certificate of Coaching Practice
This certificate aims to develop your ability and confidence to conduct effective coaching conversations. You will have the opportunity to practice the key skills — such as listening to understand, asking open questions, and building rapport and trust — that enable you to coach well. These skills are useful in many other contexts, including teaching, consultancy, and managing people.
Certificate of Sustainability Consultancy (Auditing)
On this certificate, you will develop your consultancy skills by undertaking a sustainability-related audit. In a team, you’ll focus on one aspect of sustainability on campus and explore ways of addressing the problem. You will report findings and recommendations to the client, an internal University partner.
Carbon Literacy Certificate
This online certificate is the first step for students to become carbon literacy trainers or consultants. Students will learn to communicate about climate change, adapting their message to different audiences, and how to use tools to induce change for a more sustainable future, both individually and as part of collective initiatives.
Work placements
We encourage you to undertake a work placement during your degree. This will enable you to engage in the world of work and learn about the professional environment. It’s an opportunity for you to apply theory to practice, develop skills, learn from industry professionals as well as explore a future career path. This ultimately supports you in developing your employability skills and prepares you for future employment. The two work placement options are:
1. Year-long work placement
You will complete a four-year degree and your work placement will take place in your third year. The work placement can take place in the UK or globally and after completion, you will return to Warwick for your final year. Your year-long work placement will be formally recognised on your Higher Education Achievement Report.
2. Short work placement
We also support students to undertake shorter work placements throughout the year.
As part of the Certificate of Professional Communication, you will undertake a short four-week work placement which takes place during the summer. This placement will be formally recognised on your Higher Education Achievement Report.
Our students have been successful in securing work placements with employers from the private, public, and third sectors. These employers include research institutions, governmental bodies, NGOs, media organisations, fashion companies, environmental consultancies, financial consultancies, and many others. They have undertaken diverse roles such as Marketing Assistant, Researcher, Project Officer, and Editor.
"Placements are a great opportunity to gain experience in a professional environment"
"I chose to do an intercalated (year-long) work placement because it provides the opportunity to apply and hone skills which you have learnt during your education, on a more practical level. It also offers the chance to learn new abilities, which might not be learnt through standard education systems."
Eva | Liberal Arts Graduate
Year-long work placement at a fashion digital retailer
Support
We have a dedicated Employability and Placement Manager in the School for Cross-faculty Studies who will provide you with one-to-one careers guidance. They work in collaboration with employers, so you’ll be supported in securing appropriate work placements. You will have access to specialist pre-placement advice, guidance and preparation, as well as ongoing support during your placement.
You will also have access to the University's Student Opportunity resources (including careers counselling, employment advice, and job fairs).
Skills
As more students attend university and competition in the job market increases, employers are recognising that graduates with broad skills and flexible approaches can be more valuable than disciplinary specialists. Students from a Liberal Arts background hone valuable skills that might be left underdeveloped in other degrees*, preparing them for resilience and adaptability in a highly competitive graduate labour market.
We are dedicated to helping you prepare for your life after Warwick. During your time with us, you will learn key skills that can be applied to any position in industry or future study. The skills you develop will be transferable, useful for both academic and non-academic careers.
If you are thinking about postgraduate education, our course will suit your future studies due to our strong emphasis on research-led teaching and undergraduate research. We will encourage you to bring your own interests into any module, aligning ourselves with your goals.
When starting work, you will be equipped with skills that employers are actively seeking as the world of employment changes. Liberal Arts thinking is making existing organisations stronger and can even open the door to cutting edge jobs that don't exist yet**.
"The fundamental skills of liberal arts learning - critical thinking, reading comprehension, logical analysis, argumentation, clear and persuasive communication - prepare students very well for work life." Scott Hartley, The Fuzzie and the Techie
The skills of a Liberal Arts graduate
- Capacity for intellectual leadership
- Practical skills for generating original research
- Critically innovates across disciplinary boundaries
- Competence in designing bold and creative solutions
- Ability to see an issue from multiple perspectives
- Capacity for self-directed learning
- Aptitude in quantitative and qualitative data analysis
- Resourceful and adaptable in different situations
- Scientifically, culturally, and digitally literate
- Able to engage in complex ethical decision-making
- Active and engaged global citizen
*'That 'Useless' Liberal Arts Degree Has Become Tech's Hottest Ticket', Forbes, 2015.
** "What Can You Do With That (Useless) Liberal Arts Degree? A Lot More Than You Think", Forbes, 2016.Link opens in a new window
Careers
Graduates from Liberal Arts courses pursue a wide range of careers. With a Liberal Arts degree from Warwick, you will equally have a range of career opportunities available to you. The variety of opportunities will depend on your chosen route/pathway.
Liberal Arts graduates tend to gravitate towards research-intensive and/or leadership roles, where they can use their critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Some examples of what our alumni have gone on to do after graduating include:
Further study
- Applied Data Science
- Critical Approaches to Children's Literature
- Dance Performance
- Democracy and Comparative Politics
- Economy and Society
- Film and Media
- Human Rights and Politics
- Humanitarian Engineering
- Ecocritical approaches to Italian literature
- Law and the Legal Practice
- Security, Intelligence, and Strategic Studies
Employment
- Assistant Producer | Broadcast Media
- Audit Graduate Trainee | Accounting
- Data Management Consultant | Information and Technology Services
- Engagement and Co-design Officer | Government Body
- Junior Strategist | Marketing and Advertising
- Marketing Coordinator | Consumer Electronics
- Research Associate | Financial Services
- Retail Operations Analyst | Consumer Electronics
- Sustainability Advisor | Environmental Services
- Trainee Solicitor | Legal Practice
6th
Warwick is the 6th most targeted university by the UK's top 100 graduate employers
(The Graduate Market in 2022, High Fliers Research Ltd.)
91.7%
91.7% of students on our Liberal Arts course agree with the statement 'The skills and knowledge I have developed during my course will be those I will need for my future career.'
Careers destinations
To find out more about careers destinations for Liberal Arts graduates, take a look at Dr Sherah Wells' report: