Are you ready to discover the enduring insights of the greatest thinkers, poets, and artists of Western civilisation? Are you curious about the forces and factors that enabled distinctively Western achievements, such as those that led to the birth of modern science in the West?
Courses and scholarships
The application process for the 2026 Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation and the associated Ramsay Scholarship are currently being finalised. At this time, you will not be able to access the application portal or apply for this course.
Previously published application dates and steps are also subject to change.
To receive course and application updates, complete our expression of interest, or contact our Future Students team on 1300 367 869 or email futurestudents@uow.edu.au
Degree information
Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation - A degree for the intellectually fearless
Through the study of great works of art, literature, religion, science, philosophy and politics, you will become part of a conversation about ideas that have changed the world as we know it. The skills you acquire from participating in this conversation will equip you for meeting the contemporary challenges humanity faces today with insight, open-mindedness, and the ability to reflect on the nature of what is true, right, and good.
In a learning environment of small, focused groups, you will join a conversation that has been going on since the days of Plato and Aristotle in which you will hear from diverse voices within and beyond it. You will grapple with abiding questions that touch upon our deepest humanistic concerns about love, death, truth, justice, beauty, democracy, and the challenges of being and becoming an individual within a society.
We're currently finalising the details for the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation for 2026. Confirmation will be available soon.
In the meantime, our UOW Future Students Team is here to help you explore other opportunities at UOW - contact us today to find out.
Q: What is distinctive about the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation?
A: We have designed a curriculum that takes students on a chronologically ordered journey through great periods and epochs of intellectual and artistic change in the West and challenges them to think for themselves.
At each stage of their journey, students will engage directly – in depth and detail – with exemplary classic works and masterpieces of Western art and literature. By learning directly from these works, students will cultivate open, critical minds. Our ambition is to put students into a live conversation with the great minds of the past so they can understand what those minds have to say to us today.
Philosophical reflection and analysis are also at the heart of our program. By joining the great conversation, our students will grapple with concepts they may not otherwise question, such as ethics, aesthetics, philosophy of religion and political philosophy.
By becoming acquainted with foundational epistemological and metaphysical debates such as those between rationalists and empiricists, idealists and realists, students will confront questions about the nature of the self, truth and reason.
Q: What is the origin of Western Civilisation degrees?
A: Western civilisation degrees have a special provenance and proud history. The first of their kind, a degree called Contemporary Civilisation in the West, was created for Columbia College of Columbia University in 1919.
It was born out of an effort to restore public faith in Western Civilisation's powerful artistic, literary and philosophical heritage after German forces had tragically misused the "defence of western civilisation" as justification for atrocities committed during the Great War.
This liberal arts degree was designed to teach ‘student officers about the civilisation they had been tasked with defending’ during WWI. The course evolved into a peace studies degree and later became part of Columbia University’s core curriculum. It continues to be one of Columbia University’s most successful and valued programs of study to this day.
Q: What kind of student will study the degree?
A: Students who are intellectually curious and interested in asking questions about received views and assumptions.
Our liberal arts program takes inspiration from the American Philosopher, Robert Hutchins, and his idea of the great conversation. Hutchins wrote in 1952, “Nothing is to remain undiscussed. Everybody is to speak [their] mind. No proposition is to be left unexamined.”
Students will be confronted with questions about the very idea of Western civilisation and its influences on contemporary thought and practice. A major aim of the degree is for students to ask fundamental questions about what they are studying and to give reasons for the views they adopt.
Our ambition is to instil a spirit of open questioning in all of our students and to equip our students to reason about and evaluate possible answers to those difficult questions.
As with our other arts and humanities offerings, they will learn how to think, not what to think.
Q: What is the application process to study the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation?
A: Refer to the 'How to apply' information on this page.
Q: Can students defer an offer?
A: Yes, students can defer an offer to study the degree however scholarship offers cannot be deferred.
Q: Can this degree be studied part-time?
A: Yes, the degree can be completed part-time however only full-time students are eligible to receive a scholarship.
Q: Can students undertake the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation as part of a double degree program?
A: Yes, students are able to study the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation as a double degree combination with the Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of International Studies, Bachelor of Creative Arts, or Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economics.
Q: Will mature aged applicants be considered for a place in the degree?
A: Yes, mature aged applicants are invited to apply.
Q: Who will teach the degree?
A: From 2019 to 2021, UOW will hire nine academics to teach the degree. A global search will be conducted for the best and most suitable academic talent.
These colleagues will have the normal UOW academic contracts, including normal loading for research, and will accrue research leave entitlement at the normal rate.
Q: Where will graduates expect to find employment?
A: Graduates will be prepared for the future with invaluable transferrable skills. There is a demonstrated need for erudite graduates who can think and reason critically and creatively and who can communicate clearly. They will be well placed to be leaders in the knowledge economy, ready for careers in sectors including civil society, business and government, and ready to tackle the challenges facing Australia and the world.
