Experiential Learning

We strive to give you a balanced education. All of the programs in the Faculty of Liberal Arts include both in-class and experiential/applied learning, so you’ll understand the "why" as well as have the know-how to make a difference.

Two Credentials in Four Years

Many of our programs include an option to complete a graduate certificate from Conestoga College (offered here on the Laurier Brantford campus) during your four years at Brantford — a certificate that counts towards your Laurier bachelor's degree. For example, you can gain a Human Resource Management certificate while also working towards a BA (Honours) Human Rights. Our Digital Media and Journalism has applied courses offered by Conestoga College integrated throughout all four years. You could also gain a certificate in Sustainable Business Management.

Serving your Community

Courses that include time working with people and organizations in the community can bring classroom knowledge to life. We offer a number of courses that get you out there learning from practitioners in the field, from archival work with the Brant Historical Society, to grant-writing for a church community, to in-depth reporting and a multimedia presentation on an local issue for a capstone seminar. Community Service-Learning courses offer you a chance to work with community organizations for credit.

Apply Your Learning Abroad

Go to Ghana on an internship at an NGO; help build a house in El Salvador; study the history of World War One while in the battlefields of France and Belgium; gain insight into the lives of migrant workers both here and in Mexico. In addition to a variety of study-abroad opportunities offered by Laurier, Liberal Arts faculty organize a number of experiences that connect directly to our programs.

Student Research

Research something that interests you, with mentorship from a faculty member. Liberal Arts is committed to providing you with the chance to stretch yourself and give substance and rigour to your passions. Our Research Apprenticeship Program allows exceptional undergraduate students to work with a faculty mentor on a project of their own choosing. In addition, some of our programs offer senior undergraduate courses with a significant research component. Fourth-year Digital Media and Journalism students produce a capstone multimedia project based on journalistic research in the community. Students in the Social Justice and Community Engagement master's program undertake a major research project as the culmination of their degree. Some students may also have the chance to work directly with a faculty member as research assistants.

Getting You Job-Ready

Our programs prepare you for your life’s work and they also prepare you for the job market, even if you're applying for your first job. Professionalization seminars and skill-building throughout the curriculum get you ready to present yourself and the skills you have to prospective employers and graduate schools.

Applied Minors and Options

Alongside your major, most students have the opportunity to take an option or minor that can add engaged and immersive experiences to their majors. The Faculty of Liberal Arts offers interdisciplinary minors in Indigenous Studies, Professional Writing or Public History and options in International Development and Issue Advocacy.

Earn a BA and an Law Degree in Six Years

The Laurier-University of Sussex partnership allows you to complete a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) in six years. Gain the skills and knowledge to be a great lawyer or advocate; understand contextual and sociological issues surrounding the law and human rights through pairing the LLB with either Human Rights or Law and Society.