‘Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts encourages you to think, evolve, excel’: Director

NEW DELHI: Shweta Sinha Deshpande, director, Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts (SSLA), believes that liberal arts education is the answer to today’s world which is “volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous”. While speaking with Careers360 she talks about the programme’s interdisciplinarity, placements, job market and many more. Edited excerpts.

Q. Why should one choose liberal arts at the UG level? What distinguishes Symbiosis University’s liberal arts programme from other similar programmes?

A. Opting for the liberal arts at the undergraduate level offers several advantages in today’s rapidly changing world. With its multi-, trans-, and interdisciplinary approach, liberal arts education provides a holistic understanding that is crucial for navigating the complexities of the 21st century. SSLA’s liberal arts programme stands out due to its focus on agility, adaptability, and the ability to perceive connections within diverse fields. This program equips students with the skills needed to contribute meaningfully to organisations and communities.

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Q. How would you advocate for a liberal arts course in a university that offers a wide range of disciplines? How does the current curriculum meet the needs of students?

A. The importance of liberal arts within a university offering a wide range of disciplines lies in its distinct outcomes and contributions. At our institute, the programme is designed to provide students with in-depth subject knowledge, the ability to make transdisciplinary connections, holistic development, and the acquisition of industry-relevant skills. This aligns perfectly with the skill-building goals outlined in key documents such as the NEP 2020, India Skills Report 2021, and the World Economic Forum Report 2020.

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Q. Can you elaborate on the interdisciplinary approach of the curriculum?

A. The liberal arts programme at SSLA engages with the pedagogy in two ways – by going in depth to understand a discipline and by exploring the interconnectedness through a wider lens. The in-depth engagement takes place in the major and minor subjects that a student chooses to study; and the interdisciplinary explorations take place in core and elective courses.

A student can tailor their subject combinations through major, minor and elective courses. This makes the learnings of each student unique and suited to their aptitude, interests and future aspirations. The curriculum is kept relevant through benchmarking to global standards and by regular course rationalisation. Industry experts as visiting and guest faculty also help in bringing practice oriented learning to the classrooms.

Q. How does the institute prepare students for the job market, given the broad and sometimes abstract nature of liberal arts education?

A. The choice-based interdisciplinary approach may give liberal arts an abstract image, but it is in fact a structured, holistic and interconnected approach to education as is offered at SSLA. Students pursue courses within their major and minor areas of specialisation along with Internships and Dissertations offering both industry and academic experience through their UG programme. This is additionally augmented with core and elective courses which add the interdisciplinary training and skill-building, that give liberal arts graduates an added advantage over single discipline centric specialisations.

For a student pursuing a professional specialisation such as Media Studies with Anthropology or a combination of Computer Studies with Philosophy, is not an abstract choice but provides the skills to understand and contextualise people and cultures, use historical data to infer the present; understand the way people consume media, along with the technical skills in the industry they chose to pursue. The core courses help them acquire skills in writing, communication, adapting to diversity, and information technology, which are the need of the hour.

The World economic forum speaks of the 21st century skills, which include foundational literacies, competencies and character qualities; which is what the liberal arts programme offers at SSLA. Graduates from a Liberal Arts programme would be a suitable candidate for organisations such as the United Nations, any corporate house, think tank, media house, NGOs or institute of higher education.

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Q. What are the opportunities in research, internships and exchange programmes?

A. These are interwoven into the programme because research, industry connect and internationalisation form an integral part of the SSLA philosophy. There are core courses on research methodology. Students have to complete a research project based on their degree and a compulsory final year seminar where they have to write a research paper. Students also have to do an internship in their major discipline.

Under the Global Immersion Programme, students get to go abroad to study on an exchange programme with our international partners.

Q. What are some of the biggest challenges for UG liberal arts students? How are you addressing them?

A. Liberal arts education is new and niche in India. There is an information gap between institutes offering liberal arts courses and its stakeholders such as candidates, parents and industry. Our admission and outreach team holds webinars and seminars on a regular basis to bridge this gap.

In the case of industry, the challenge is that of not matching with the shelving practice of the corporate institutions. Our interdisciplinary approach makes us spill out of the box, but that is our USP. So while our students may not fit into one box or one shelf, they are capable of fulfilling the requirements of several.

Q. Can you share some success stories?

A. Our alumni have chosen different fields to work in, based on their major and minor combinations. The broad skills are similar, but the disciplinary training is specific to the specialisations they chose to pursue. Hence, the sectors in which they are employed also vary. You will find them contributing in most of the globally-recognised organisations, including the UN, World Bank, Teach for India, Ernst and Young, Tata Group, among others.

Our alumni who have proceeded to higher education have chosen counselling, environmental planning, culture studies, neuroscience etc in globally ranked institutions. Some of our students choose to pursue a masters before they seek out opportunities in the workforce while others join the workforce immediately after their LA degree.

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Q. And placements?

A. We train our students not for their first job, which is what a placement programme organises, but provide them with skills for careers that they intend to pursue. As we are an undergraduate programme, almost 50% of our students go for higher education and the other 50% opt to work or gain work experience before moving on for higher studies. We provide diverse specialisations and do not offer a single programme such as a BBA or computer studies or a political science programme.

For those who reach out to us with a desire to work after graduating, we have a career cell which helps students identify avenues, provide support in reaching out to corporates, not for profit organisations and government sector opportunities.

Q. What advice would you give students who want to pursue liberal arts?

A. In the rapidly-evolving 21st century, technological advancements continually reshape our lives, creating a dynamic and uncertain environment. The term ‘VUCA’ – volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous – aptly describes this world. To navigate it effectively, creative and innovative approaches are essential, requiring the ability to connect dots, think critically, solve problems, and thrive in diverse settings. These are the key skills that Liberal Arts education fosters. At SSLA, we cultivate an environment that encourages you to ‘think, evolve, and excel’.

The liberal arts programme at SSLA engages with the pedagogy in two ways – by going in depth to understand a discipline and by exploring the interconnectedness through a wider lens. A student can tailor subject combinations through major, minor and elective courses. This makes the learnings of each student unique and suited to their aptitude, interests and future aspirations.