The Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS) program brings today’s headlines into conversation with classic statements on humanity’s most enduring questions. Students investigate how our cultural, social, and natural worlds intersect in order to understand issues in our own lives in their full complexity. Together, they examine a variety of materials across a wide array of academic disciplines in order to integrate disparate insights into a view of the whole. All the courses in the MALS program are run as small, discussion-based, Socratic seminars. Students develop close working relationships with each other and program faculty, whose expertise represents the range of traditional arts and sciences. In addition to intensive seminars, students work individually with program faculty on either a focused capstone project of their devising or on a problem-based project in which they integrate knowledge and insights from across the liberal arts.

The Online Master of Arts in Liberal Arts is designed to provide graduate-level opportunities for students to pursue studies not provided by traditional department programs. Geared towards non-traditional students (especially working adults), the degree helps students pursue personal enhancement and serves as an incubator for programs of study not currently formally created. This program is ideal for students to reestablish their academic careers after professional or personal hiatus in a manner suited to their uniquely developed interests as well as time constraints.

LST students begin the program with two foundational courses, one ancient and one modern. The LST Foundation courses (Ancient and Modern) serve to give incoming LST students a broad background in some of the key texts and ideas of world civilization. In addition, they provide the LST students with an introduction to the skills and expectations which are consistent with graduate level work in the humanities and social sciences.

Earn a master’s degree from NC State that meets your professional goals and your unique interests. Our Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS) program puts you in charge: design your course of study, combining courses from different disciplines across the university. With our guidance, you build your own concentration, based on your interests, aspirations, and goals. Complete the program at your own pace, on your own terms. Your interdisciplinary MALS education broadens your horizons and cultivates skills valuable to employers – like thinking critically, communicating effectively, and synthesizing diverse perspectives.

Through the Liberal Studies program, you will critically explore and intensively examine the core issues of our time. The MA in Liberal Studies offers practical writing tools and guided in-depth study in cross-disciplinary courses taught by renowned faculty, who share the values of rigorous critical inquiry and thoughtful expression.