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Essay / The Value of Liberal Arts and Sciences Education
Liberal arts and sciences education began long ago in ancient Greek under the well-known name artes Liberales. There were seven, separated into the trivium and the quadrivium. The trivium contained the basic liberal arts, namely grammar, logic, and rhetoric. When the Church defined education, it expanded the trivium with the subjects of the quadrivium: arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. The Greeks believed that every young man, if he had the means, should be educated in the seven liberal arts in order to participate actively in civic life. The aim of these studies was to make an informed, virtuous and eloquent person. Today, liberal arts remains a renowned form of education, but the methods have changed slightly. For example, this field is now called Liberal Arts and Sciences and is divided into three academic cultures which together include all academic fields. These cultures are the human sciences, the social sciences and the natural sciences. There are many colleges around the world that offer a degree in liberal arts and sciences. An example of a modern-day liberal arts and sciences college is University College Utrecht, a university located in the heart of the Netherlands. In 2012, I applied to become a student at University College Utrecht and was offered admission for the fall semester of 2013. It was a long process to decide which bachelor's program to choose. It was a never-ending doubt between a regular degree and a degree in liberal arts and sciences. It was difficult to make a choice because it was impossible to predict what the future would bring. Today, I am convinced that I made the right decision to pursue a course in Liberal Arts and Sciences. As a liberal arts and sciences student at University College Utrecht, I...... in the middle of an article... are often misinformed or their information is outdated. In summary, I personally believe that a liberal arts and science education is a way of thinking and not a type of institution. Liberal arts and sciences students will have a broader view on subjects due to their multidisciplinary training and in-depth knowledge. This has many advantages over regular undergraduate students. For example, these students will become more valuable members of the community, lead to more innovations, and be more effective and disciplined in conducting research because they are trained in academic skills. One might think that a background in the liberal arts and sciences is too broad to provide a good foundation, but they are generally not well informed. Overall, a liberal arts and sciences education is a better undergraduate program than a regular undergraduate program..