About the Liberal Arts Multidisciplinary Bachelor's Degree

Liberal Arts programs became widespread in US universities and colleges in the second half of the twentieth century and became a major factor in the rise of American higher education to a leading position in the world. Currently, Liberal Arts programs are actively spreading in European countries.

The fundamental difference between Liberal Arts and traditional university programs is the possibility of combining two study profiles (specializations): main (major) and additional (minor) from the list offered by the Faculty. The possibility of such a choice is reflected in the Russian-language name of the program - Multidisciplinary Bachelor's Degree. In this case, the choice of profile is made not at the time of admission to the university, but after studying the general block of disciplines.

This program structure allows the student to create a truly individualized training program that provides the graduate with a unique set of competencies.

Scientific director of the program– Professor at Oxford University (UK), academic director of programs at the Faculty of Public Administration of the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, member of the editorial board of the journals “New Literary Review”, “Slavic Review” (USA), “Cahiers de Monde Russe” (France) Andrei Leonidovich Zorin.

FAQ

1.Has the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program been accredited??

All areas of study offered within the framework of the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program as main profiles - namely, they are recorded in the state diploma - are accredited according to all the rules.

It is important to take into account that by decree of the President of the Russian Federation, RANEPA was given the right to independently develop and accredit educational standards. The developers of the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program took advantage of this right and made some changes to the existing standards in accordance with the principles of Liberal Arts Education. These changes did not affect the volume and content of the mandatory part of the professional block of disciplines - they fully comply with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standards.

2. Does studying an additional profile increase the load on the student??

In accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standards, a four-year bachelor's program must be completed in 240 credit units, with 1 credit unit equal to 36 academic hours. The multidisciplinary bachelor's program fully meets these requirements. At the same time, any state standard fixes only part of the courses, leaving the university the freedom to determine what the rest of the curriculum will be filled with. In the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program, this opportunity is used to create a “package” of courses in an additional profile. Thus, studying two profiles does not increase the load on the student.

3. Is studying an additional profile to the detriment of the main one??

All requirements of the Federal State Standard for the study of the compulsory part of the block of professional disciplines are fully met within the framework of the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program. Students of traditional programs can, in addition to the compulsory part, study elective and elective courses that complement and clarify the compulsory disciplines. Instead, the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's program offers unique General Block courses (Introduction to Critical Thinking, Great books, etc.) and additional courses. The combination of a general block, a main and an additional profile forms flexible and creative thinking and increases the professional and career opportunities of the graduate.

4.What will be written in the diploma of a graduate of the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's degree program?

The state diploma of the established sample of a graduate of the Multidisciplinary Bachelor's degree program will contain a bachelor's degree in the field of study corresponding to the main profile. The annex to the diploma will list all the courses studied, including additional courses. In addition, graduates of the program will receive a RANEPA certificate, which will specify the main and additional profiles separately.

Peculiarities

1. 1

   Stages of training:

   (1) mastering the general compulsory set of disciplines during the first two semesters,
   (2) choosing a major after 2nd semester and
   (3) choosing an additional profile after the 5th semester.
2. 2

   Tutor support of the educational process

   Tutors help students adapt to the norms and values ​​of academic life and formulate an individual curriculum, advise on issues that arise during independent work, planning further education, and building a professional career.

1. 3

   Unique courses

   • A four-year “Great Books” course, during which students read and discuss with teachers the most significant works for world culture. Over the course of 4 years of study, students will be able to work through 25-30 books on philosophy, economics, sociology, political science, and history.
   • Critical thinking,
   • Professional workshops
2. 4

   International mobility

   An important part of the program is academic, including international mobility. We are talking about the opportunity for students to study and undergo internships in other programs or universities (in Russia or abroad), with the subsequent accounting of credits (“credits”).

Foreign partners

Partners of the Faculty of Liberal Arts:

George Mason University (Washington, USA)
- University of Manchester (Manchester, UK)
- University of British Columbia SALA (Vancouver, Canada)
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology (Wuhan, China)
- Manchester Metropolitan University, Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies (Manchester, UK)
- Bath Spa University (Bath, UK)
- Parma University (Parma, Italy)
- Communication University of China (China, Beijing)
- Universidad Finis Terrae (Chile)
- Riga International Higher School
Economics and Business Administration (Riga, Latvia).
- National University of Public Service (Budapest, Hungary)
- University of Rijeka (Rijeka, Croatia)
- Ariel University (Ariel, Israel)
- Shenyang Normal University (Shenyang, China)

The Presidential Academy teaches a unique course, Great books, or “Introduction to Critical Thinking,” in which students study basic literary works of world culture and are trained in the advanced traditions of humanities education.

The Great books course (“Academic Reading”) takes place as part of the Liberal Arts multidisciplinary undergraduate program. This is an innovative higher education program that has proven its effectiveness in the United States and is becoming widespread in European countries. This is a fairly new direction for our country, which is gaining more and more popularity.

The fundamental difference between Liberal Arts and other programs is that students can combine two profiles of study - basic and additional. In addition, students create their own individual curriculum and can choose the necessary academic disciplines. Much attention is paid to humanitarian training in the multidisciplinary bachelor's degree. The high role of high-quality liberal arts education is recognized both in our country and throughout the world.

The course “Introduction to Critical Thinking,” or Great books, is available to all students of the RANEPA Liberal Arts multidisciplinary undergraduate program, regardless of the field of study. Over four years, they must read and analyze about two dozen works - novels, philosophical works and non-fiction books. This is a very important component of the program, since through classical literary works and their analysis, students are included in the world's intellectual traditions.

Its founders at the Academy, representatives of the RANEPA Institute of Social Sciences, spoke in more detail about the unique Great books course.

Dean of the Faculty of Liberal Arts, Head of the Department of Humanitarian Disciplines, RANEPA, Ph.D. n. Evgeny Mironov:

“We try to instill in our students an intellectual taste for reading quality texts, so that they themselves understand which books deserve attention. It is important that students do not memorize the author's main ideas, but analyze them. We read specific authors not because they are right, but because they asked questions to which answers have not yet been found. But these, of course, are also applied skills: the ability to compare different concepts, systematize knowledge, and develop your own point of view.

The course is structured as follows: we read approximately one book per month. The result is about 20 books for the entire period of study. Variability is possible within the course: at the beginning of their studies, students independently choose which books they would like to study. We created a four-year course so that for students academic reading would become a constant process, a kind of intellectual sport. So that they get used to the fact that they should always have such a smart book in their hands. Almost a reflex: not having a book with you is wrong. The point here is not even the quantity of reading, but its quality. Such experience shapes the scale and systematic thinking. Although regularity also influences the formation of such a habit.

The list, of course, is growing - both thanks to students and thanks to new teachers. After all, any good university teacher has a list of books that, in his opinion, need to be read in order to better understand a particular subject. Our list was formed five years ago. This, naturally, was preceded by a great discussion. Through dialogue and expert exchange, we have chosen the minimum that, in our opinion, should be familiar to an educated person. Of course, any such list is flawed: works can be added to it endlessly.

After the first course, we survey students to find out what they like best. They generally like that the learning experience is completely different from what it was like at school. I think this effect is largely due to the Great books course, because it really is a new experience for them.”

Deputy Head of the Department of Public and Political Communications of the RANEPA, Senior Lecturer Leonid Klein:

“The main problem of school education is that it is fundamentally fragmented. Students are forced to prepare for the Unified State Exam or to write an essay. They don't have time to just talk about the text. We spend from six to eight pairs on one novel. Of course, this is not much for a philology department, it is not enough to write a scientific paper, but it makes it possible to use the text as a source of arguments.

A Liberal Arts education provides a strong humanities foundation for students, and academic reading is a component of it. You can be a manager, a journalist, a political scientist, and so on, but in any case you must have basic humanitarian knowledge. Students must be able to read large texts in full. Otherwise, the question arises whether they are ready to receive higher education at all.

Our list includes both fiction and non-fiction. In the first courses we teach works of art, because in any case they are easier than philosophy. For example, we offer two fiction novels to first-year students: “Vanity Fair” and “Demons” or “Don Quixote” and “Robinson Crusoe.” Then the bar rises, and more serious works appear: “The Prince” by Machiavelli, “The Republic” by Plato, “On the Social Contract” by Rousseau. If a student honestly reads these five books, he will already be head and shoulders above those who have not read them. Even if after reading he does not understand anything, this experience will still be useful. After the first year of academic reading, some of our students admit that they find it difficult to communicate with classmates who have not read such books.

The books we call Great books provide insight into world culture. Pasternak also wrote: “He controlled the flow of thought, and only because of that, the country.” This current of thought can only be found in texts; it is on it that all reflections will be built. Not long ago we launched a lecture hall that is based on three pillars: texts, eras, institutions. We talk and discuss important works, trying to show that any culture is built around texts.”

Books to study as part of the Great books course of the Presidential Academy:

Great Novels

1. “Don Quixote”, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. Spanish Renaissance novel about the adventures of the hidalgo Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza. Under the impression of heroic ballads, the main character decides to revive chivalry. On the pages of Cervantes’s satirical work one can find echoes of various currents of European humanistic thought: from Neoplatonism to Christian humanism.

2. “Robinson Crusoe”, Daniel Defoe. A classic English novel about traveler and planter Robinson Crusoe, who is shipwrecked on a desert island and spends 28 years in the wild. Defoe tells a story of moral regeneration, man's infinite potential and his struggle against a hostile world. The novel reflects the ideology of early capitalism and the Enlightenment.

3. “Vanity Fair”, William Thackeray. A classic work about the morals of the British aristocracy during the Napoleonic Wars. The novel with original illustrations by the author was published in the satirical magazine Punch - it took up 20 issues. As Thackeray himself wrote, “Vanity Fair is a novel without a hero”: the writer created a portrait of English high society with all its sins and vices.

4. “Demons”, Fyodor Dostoevsky. One of Dostoevsky's darkest novels. The writer talks about the birth and development of revolutionary terrorist circles in Russia. The prototype of the plot was a real event - the murder of student Ivan Ivanov by Sergei Nechaev’s group “People’s Massacre”. One of the few works in which Dostoevsky does not sympathize with any of the characters: he sharply criticizes revolutionary and atheistic ideas, depicting the moral corruption of terrorists.

Policy

5. “State”, Plato. Plato's dialogue about the ideal state, which is described as reminiscent of a classical communist society. Plato proposes a classification of perfect and imperfect forms of the state (he considers democracy imperfect), discusses justice and the education of citizens. Among other things, the Republic defines the activities of philosophers for the first time. One of the most significant passages is the myth of the cave: an explanation of Plato's doctrine of ideas.

6. “The Prince”, Niccolo Machiavelli. The work of the Florentine philosopher and statesman became the guidance of a skillful ruler. Machiavelli talks about the types of states, methods of seizing and maintaining power, methods of warfare, and the qualities and behavior of a successful ruler. Instead of idealistic ideas about power, the philosopher gives rather pragmatic instructions.

7. “The Social Contract”, Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Treatise by the French Enlightenment thinker on the origins of the state. Rousseau develops the idea of ​​a social contract as the starting point of the state and proposes the concept of democracy (popular sovereignty). The thinker unwittingly became the ideologist of the Great French Revolution, and the ideas of his treatise were embodied in the French Constitution of 1791.

Psychology

8. “Man’s Search for Meaning,” Viktor Frankl. A book by an Austrian psychiatrist, written by him during his imprisonment in the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Dachau. Frankl not only describes the experience of life in concentration camps, but also analyzes what he saw and experienced from the point of view of psychiatry. In the book, he describes for the first time the psychiatric method of working with patients (logotherapy) that he developed and raises eternal questions about the meaning of life, freedom, responsibility, suffering and death.

9. “A little book about a big memory”, Alexander Luria. The work of a Soviet psychologist about a person with phenomenal visual and sensory memory. The scientist watched him for a long time to understand the nature of his features. The book describes all the data obtained during communication with this “experiment of nature.”

10. “The Design of Common Things,” Donald Norman. Founder of the Nielsen Norman Group and former VP of Apple talks about classic design missteps and user demands. Norman offers alternative solutions, keeping in mind the needs of consumers and the basics of cognitive psychology.

Society

11. “Democracy in America”, Alexis de Tocqueville. A treatise by a French politician on the American state and society. “Democracy in America” became the first in-depth analysis of US political life: Tocqueville traveled around America for nine months and communicated with representatives of its intellectual elite. The author paid special attention to describing the ideology of democracy, the advantages of federalism and studying the influence of democracy on various spheres of society.

12. “Rise of the Masses”, José Ortega y Gasset. The Spanish philosopher and sociologist Ortega y Gasset created a portrait of a typical resident of European countries in the first half of the 20th century. - “man of the masses”. In his opinion, it was the “revolt of the masses” that became the cause of the political crisis in Europe. The sociologist's work was one of the first studies of mass society and the dangers it brings to the world.

13. “Globalization. Consequences for individuals and society,” Zygmunt Bauman. The British sociologist studied globalization and its impact on the state of the modern world. Bauman draws readers' attention to the threats that global processes entail. But the book is not only about political, economic, social, cultural and religious integration and unification - Bauman also talks about the life of an ordinary citizen of a modern individualized Western society.

Economy

14. “An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations,” Adam Smith. The Scottish economist's treatise became the fundamental work of political economy. Smith summarized all the ideas of scientists over the past century, and also developed the methods and terminology of economic science. Among other things, his concept of the role of power in economic processes (“the state is the night watchman”) subsequently became a classical political economic theory.

15. “Capital”, Karl Marx. Capital is the most famous book in the field of political economy. It is based on a critical analysis of capitalism. Marx was the first to describe and explain the process of formation of surplus value, showed its role in the historical development of capitalist production and studied the relationship between goods and money.

16. “The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money,” John Maynard Keynes. One of the main works in the field of economics of the last century. As a result of the analysis of economic processes at the beginning of the 20th century. (in particular, the Great Depression of the 30s in the USA) Keynes laid the foundations and terminology of macroeconomics. “Keynesianism” dominated academic and government circles in industrialized Western countries until the early 1970s.

Ideas and ideologies

17. “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism”, Max Weber. A treatise by a German economist and sociologist on how religion correlates with the economic system. In particular, Weber considered the Reformation and Protestantism as prerequisites for the emergence of the capitalist system.

18. “Ideology and Utopia”, Karl Mannheim. A study by one of the most influential sociologists of the 20th century. and the founding father of the sociology of knowledge. Mannheim defined utopian consciousness and studied how people perceive reality through the lens of ideology, as well as how ideologies themselves influence society, history and philosophy.

19. “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,” Thomas Kuhn. The American historian's book on the development of scientific knowledge has become one of the most cited in the field of philosophy of science. Kuhn introduced the concepts of “paradigm”, “paradigm change” and “scientific revolution”. According to his concept, scientific knowledge develops spasmodically through scientific revolutions, during which a change in explanatory paradigms occurs.

(Post)modernity

20. “Understanding Media,” Marshall McLuhan. The book by the Canadian philosopher and philologist became one of the first studies in the field of media ecology. McLuhan proposed studying media regardless of their content. Having analyzed the history of the development of means of communication, he comes to the conclusion that the media themselves have always influenced individuals and society (The medium is the message).

21. “The Postmodern Condition”, Jean-François Lyotard. A treatise by the French literary theorist and postmodernist philosopher on the state of scientific knowledge in the postmodern era. According to Lyotard, the modernist approach to science is no longer relevant, therefore the information society requires a new theoretical approach to its description. The scientist developed a functionalist approach to the study of society, and proposed a two-stage model (in which it is easy to recognize bachelor's and master's degrees) as an effective system of higher education.

22. “Fluid Modernity”, Zygmunt Bauman. Fluid modernity is a transition from a structured world to a more fluid state free from conditions and boundaries. Zygmunt Bauman described this transitional state of the postmodern world, created a portrait of the modern individual and explained how this transformation affects the life of society and individuals.

Particular attention is paid to the course of thoughtful reading: students of different specialties and profiles over four years must read and analyze about two dozen works - novels, philosophical works and non-fiction books. “Theories and Practices” talked with the creators of the unique Great Books course, developed specifically for RANEPA, and are publishing a list of books that need to be read in full to be considered an educated person.

About a powerful humanitarian base, world culture and communication with former classmates

Leonid Klein senior lecturer, deputy head. Department of Public and Political Communications at ION RANEPA

The main problem of school education is that it is fundamentally fragmented. Students are forced to mindlessly prepare for the Unified State Exam or writing an essay. They don't have time to just talk about the text. We spend from six to eight pairs on one novel. Of course, this is not much for a philology department, it is not enough to write a scientific paper, but it makes it possible to use the text as a source of arguments.

In general, education within the framework of Liberal Arts is a powerful humanitarian basis for students, and academic reading is part of the ideology. You can be a manager, a journalist, a political scientist, and so on, but in any case you must have a humanitarian cushion. The course helps ensure that students can read large texts in their entirety. Otherwise, the question arises: are they even ready to receive higher education if they are not able to master 400 pages?

Our list includes both fiction and non-fiction. In the first courses we teach works of art, because in any case they are easier than philosophy. For example, we offer two fiction novels to first-year students: “Vanity Fair” and “Demons” or “Don Quixote” and “Robinson Crusoe.” Then the bar rises and more serious works appear: “The Prince” by Machiavelli, “The Republic” by Plato, “On the Social Contract” by Rousseau. If a student honestly reads these five books, he will already be head and shoulders above those who have not read them. Even if after reading he does not understand anything, this experience will still be to his advantage. After the first year of academic reading, some of our students admit that they find it difficult to communicate with classmates who have not read such books.

The books we call Great Books provide insight into world culture. Pasternak also wrote: “He controlled the flow of thought, and only because of that, the country.” This current of thought can only be found in texts; it is on it that all reflections will be built. Not long ago we launched a lecture hall, which is based on three pillars: texts, eras, institutions. We talk and discuss important works, trying to show that any culture is built around texts.

About intellectual taste, quality reading and the inferiority of any such list

Evgeniy Mironov, Head of the Department of Humanitarian Disciplines, RANEPA, Candidate of Historical Sciences

We try to instill in our students an intellectual taste for reading quality texts, so that they themselves understand which books deserve attention. It is important that students do not memorize the author's main ideas, but analyze them. We read specific authors not because they are right, but because they asked questions to which answers have not yet been found. But these, of course, are also applied skills: the ability to compare different concepts, systematize knowledge, and develop your own point of view.

The course is structured as follows: we read approximately one book per month. The result is about 20 books for the entire period of study. Variability is possible within the course: at the beginning of their studies, students independently choose which books they would like to study. We created a four-year course so that for students academic reading would become a constant process, a kind of intellectual sport. So that they get used to the fact that they should always have such a smart book in their hands. Almost a reflex: not having a book with you is wrong. The point here is not even the quantity of reading, but its quality: such experience shapes the scale and systematic thinking. Although regularity also influences the formation of such a habit.

The list, of course, is growing - both thanks to students and thanks to new teachers. After all, any good university teacher has a list of books that, in his opinion, need to be read in order to better understand a particular subject. Our list was formed five years ago. This, naturally, was preceded by a great discussion. Through dialogue and expert exchange, we have chosen the minimum that, in our opinion, should be familiar to an educated person. Of course, any such list is flawed: works can be added to it endlessly.

After the first course, we survey students to find out what they like best. They generally like that the learning experience is completely different from what it was like at school. I think this effect is largely due to the Great Books course, because it is truly a new experience for them and they no longer feel like schoolchildren.

Great Novels

"Don Quixote"

Spanish Renaissance novel about the adventures of the hidalgo Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza. Under the impression of heroic ballads, the main character decides to revive chivalry. On the pages of Cervantes’s satirical work one can find echoes of various currents of European humanistic thought: from Neoplatonism to Christian humanism.

"Robinson Crusoe"

A classic English novel about traveler and planter Robinson Crusoe, who is shipwrecked on a desert island and spends 28 years in the wild. Defoe tells a story of moral regeneration, man's infinite potential and his struggle against a hostile world. The novel reflects the ideology of early capitalism and the Enlightenment.

"Vanity Fair"

A classic work about the morals of the British aristocracy during the Napoleonic Wars. The novel with original illustrations by the author was published in the satirical magazine Punch - it took up 20 issues. As Thackeray himself wrote, “Vanity Fair is a novel without a hero”: the writer created a portrait of English high society with all its sins and vices.

"Demons"

One of Dostoevsky's darkest novels. The writer talks about the birth and development of revolutionary terrorist circles in Russia. The prototype of the plot was a real event - the murder of student Ivan Ivanov by Sergei Nechaev’s “People’s Retribution” group. One of the few works in which Dostoevsky does not sympathize with any of the characters: he sharply criticizes revolutionary and atheistic ideas, depicting the moral corruption of terrorists.

Policy

"State"

Plato's dialogue about the ideal state, which is described as reminiscent of a classical communist society. Plato proposes a classification of perfect and imperfect forms of the state (he considers democracy imperfect), discusses justice and the education of citizens. Among other things, the Republic defines the activities of philosophers for the first time. One of the most significant passages is the myth of the cave: an explanation of Plato's doctrine of ideas.

"Sovereign"

The work of the Florentine philosopher and statesman became the guidance of a skillful ruler. Machiavelli talks about the types of states, methods of seizing and maintaining power, methods of warfare, and the qualities and behavior of a successful ruler. Instead of idealistic ideas about power, the philosopher gives rather pragmatic instructions.

"Social Contract"

Treatise by the French Enlightenment thinker on the origins of the state. Rousseau develops the idea of ​​a social contract as the starting point of the state and proposes the concept of democracy (popular sovereignty). The thinker unwittingly became the ideologist of the Great French Revolution, and the ideas of his treatise were embodied in the French Constitution of 1791.

Psychology

"Man's Search for Meaning"

A book by an Austrian psychiatrist, written by him during his imprisonment in the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Dachau. Frankl not only describes the experience of life in concentration camps, but also analyzes what he saw and experienced from the point of view of psychiatry. In the book, he describes for the first time the psychiatric method of working with patients (logotherapy) that he developed and raises eternal questions about the meaning of life, freedom, responsibility, suffering and death.

"A little book about a big memory"

The work of a Soviet psychologist about a person with phenomenal visual and sensory memory. The scientist watched him for a long time to understand the nature of his features. The book describes all the data obtained during communication with this “experiment of nature.”

"Design of common things"

Founder of the Nielsen Norman Group and former VP of Apple talks about classic design missteps and user demands. Norman offers alternative solutions, keeping in mind the needs of consumers and the basics of cognitive psychology.

Society

"Democracy in America"

A treatise by a French politician on the American state and society. “Democracy in America” became the first in-depth analysis of US political life: Tocqueville traveled around America for nine months and communicated with representatives of its intellectual elite. The author paid special attention to describing the ideology of democracy, the advantages of federalism and studying the influence of democracy on various spheres of society.

"Rise of the Masses"

The Spanish philosopher and sociologist Ortega y Gasset created a portrait of a typical resident of European countries in the first half of the 20th century - a “man of the masses.” In his opinion, it was the “revolt of the masses” that became the cause of the political crisis in Europe. The sociologist's work was one of the first studies of mass society and the dangers it brings to the world.

"Globalization. Consequences for individuals and society"

The British sociologist studied globalization and its impact on the state of the modern world. Bauman draws readers' attention to the threats that global processes entail. But the book is not only about political, economic, social, cultural and religious integration and unification - Bauman also talks about the life of an ordinary citizen of a modern individualized Western society.

Economy

"An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations"

The Scottish economist's treatise became the fundamental work of political economy. Smith summarized all the ideas of scientists over the past century, and also developed the methods and terminology of economic science. Among other things, his concept of the role of power in economic processes (“the state is the night watchman”) subsequently became a classical political economic theory.

"Capital"

Capital is the most famous book in the field of political economy. It is based on a critical analysis of capitalism. Marx was the first to describe and explain the process of formation of surplus value, showed its role in the historical development of capitalist production and studied the relationship between goods and money.

"The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money"

One of the main works in the field of economics of the last century. As a result of the analysis of economic processes at the beginning of the 20th century (in particular, the Great Depression of the 30s in the USA), Keynes laid the foundations and terminology of macroeconomics. “Keynesianism” dominated academic and government circles in industrialized Western countries until the early 1970s.

Ideas and ideologies

"The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism"

A treatise by a German economist and sociologist on how religion correlates with the economic system. In particular, Weber considered the Reformation and Protestantism as prerequisites for the emergence of the capitalist system.

"Ideology and Utopia"

A study of one of the most influential sociologists of the 20th century and the founding father of the sociology of knowledge. Mannheim defined utopian consciousness and studied how people perceive reality through the lens of ideology, as well as how ideologies themselves influence society, history and philosophy.

"Structure of Scientific Revolutions"

The American historian's book on the development of scientific knowledge has become one of the most cited in the field of philosophy of science. Kuhn introduced the concepts of “paradigm”, “paradigm change” and “scientific revolution”. According to his concept, scientific knowledge develops spasmodically through scientific revolutions, during which a change in explanatory paradigms occurs.

(Post)modernity

"Understanding Media"

The book by the Canadian philosopher and philologist became one of the first studies in the field of media ecology. McLuhan proposed studying media regardless of their content. Having analyzed the history of the development of means of communication, he comes to the conclusion that the media themselves have always influenced individuals and society (“The medium is the message”).

"The Postmodern State"

A treatise by the French literary theorist and postmodernist philosopher on the state of scientific knowledge in the postmodern era. According to Lyotard, the modernist approach to science is no longer relevant, therefore the information society requires a new theoretical approach to its description. The scientist developed a functionalist approach to the study of society, and proposed a two-stage model (in which it is easy to recognize bachelor's and master's degrees) as an effective system of higher education.

"Fluid Modernity"

Fluid modernity is a transition from a structured world to a more fluid state free from conditions and boundaries. Zygmunt Bauman described this transitional state of the postmodern world, created a portrait of the modern individual and explained how this transformation affects the life of society and individuals.

Preview: Philosophy and the Seven Liberal Arts. Miniature from the book of Gerrada of Landsberg “Hortus Deliciarum” (1167-1185).

Modern foreign education includes a teaching model that is unfamiliar to Russian audiences, but widespread in other countries, called Liberal Arts. Originating in Europe, during antiquity, as a set of seven sciences that formed the basis for further obtaining philosophical knowledge about the world, this model became the prototype of liberal education and received recognition throughout the world. Currently, there are no universities offering university education according to the Liberal Arts model except in Antarctica, and their number continues to grow. This model of education is most widespread in the USA, where about 600 universities, in almost all states, build their educational process in accordance with the principles of Liberal arts.

Liberal education focuses on teaching the humanities and social sciences, but also includes the study of the exact sciences, such as mathematics. It represents a fundamental base from a number of disciplines that can be selected and combined at will, allowing you to receive a unique education and prepare for admission to a master's program. The peculiarity of education according to the Liberal Arts model, in contrast to traditional university education, is the ability to combine several profiles of education. When choosing the main direction of study (major), you can choose an additional one (minor), which is not directly related to the main direction, but is of interest to the student himself. The opportunity is provided to independently build the educational process, in accordance with internal choice. So, for example, having chosen economics as a basic subject, you can supplement it with psychology, journalism or PR.

Another feature of the model is its flexibility: the student does not need to decide on the choice of direction before entering the university; this can be done later, already during the learning process, when there are more opportunities to make an informed choice. The training itself takes place in small groups, which allows for personal contact between the teacher and the student and receiving instant feedback. This approach promotes deep involvement in the process, gives new impetus, and awakens interest in classes.

The term “liberal arts” appeared in the Hellenistic era to designate seven disciplines, defined in antiquity as the activities of freeborn people and full members of society. These arts, or sciences, were divided into two parts: the trivium - grammar, rhetoric and dialectics, which were studied first (hence the term "trivial sciences") and the quadrivium - geometry, arithmetic, music and astronomy, the next stage of preparation for understanding the world.

Now the list of taught disciplines has expanded significantly and adapted to changing economic conditions. Such education meets many of the challenges that modern society poses to specialists. For example, in this way it is possible to train specialists in several fields at the same time, which is a fundamental difference from the traditional highly specialized approach, where students develop professional skills for a specific job.

Such specialists are in high demand in the labor market. Employers prefer college graduates with liberal education because they have the skills needed to adapt to changing jobs. The most in-demand skills in a liberal arts education at all times include written and oral communication skills, the ability to solve complex problems, and get along well with other people.

As in ancient times, a liberal education provides an excellent foundation for further study in health, law, business and other fields. Students trained under the Liberal Arts model are readily accepted into professional programs in various specialties.

Graduates have the necessary skills to become valuable members of society. The value of a liberal education goes far beyond its economic value. The ability to communicate and think critically, to express one's thoughts orally and in writing are the most valuable qualities for life in modern society. It produces graduates who can adapt and thrive in an ever-changing world.

According to research by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), the nation's leading association dedicated to the quality, vitality and public profile of undergraduate liberal arts education, such students are highly sought after by employers and have higher incomes than graduates of traditional universities. There are more Nobel laureates among them.

In the USA, there is a whole category of universities specializing in undergraduate education according to the model described above: the so-called Liberal Arts colleges. Typically, these educational institutions are very prestigious, and getting into them is often no easier than getting into leading universities. The difference is that in such colleges they pay less attention to the scientific work of the teachers and more to the learning process itself: in such colleges you will find fewer outstanding scientists, but quite possibly more brilliant teachers. In Russia, the Liberal Arts education model is presented in two universities: St. Petersburg State University and RANEPA.

Svetlana Batalina

In 2012, the Liberal Arts department was created at RANEPA, which in 2014 received the status of Faculty. The initiator of the creation of the program was the rector of the Academy V.A. Mau. In interviews and articles, he has repeatedly spoken about the relevance of combining the training of specialists in such traditional academic areas as public policy, management, PR and economics with broad multidisciplinary training.

The scientific director of Liberal Arts College is Andrei Leonidovich Zorin, one of the leading cultural historians and specialists in higher education in Russia, who has many years of teaching experience in the USA and is currently a professor at Oxford University. The first dean of the faculty was the author of the concept of the Bachelor of Liberal Arts, candidate of historical sciences Evgeniy Vladimirovich Mironov. Today this post is occupied by Alexander Borisovich Mishin.

The development team took advantage of the Academy’s right to create its own educational standards, given to it, along with several other Russian universities, by the President of the Russian Federation. Currently, the Liberal Arts College of RANEPA and the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences of St. Petersburg State University are the only educational institutions in Russia offering this kind of program.

Distinctive features of the Liberal Arts College program:

Stages of training: mastering the general compulsory set of disciplines in the General block; choice of major specialization (major) after the 2nd semester; choosing an additional profile of study (minor) after the 5th semester; a combination of theoretical training and practice, starting from the 4th semester.

Tutor support of the educational process. Tutors help students adapt to the norms and values ​​of academic life and formulate an individual curriculum, advise on issues that arise during independent work, planning further education, and building a professional career.

Subjects that are not traditional for Russian universities. The program includes a four-year Great Books course, during which students read and discuss with teachers significant works of world culture. The Writing and Critical Thinking course combines elements of Applied Philosophy and Academic Writing.