New paper shows the value of arts and humanities degrees to Wales

A new paper has challenged misconceptions of arts and humanities degrees, showing the value they bring to the economy and society.

Changing the Narrative: valuing Arts and Humanities Degrees, published by The Learned Society of Wales (LSW) for The Open University (OU), highlights the importance of transferable skills which arts and humanities (A&H) graduates can bring to a workplace – including creative thinking, analytical thinking, and technological literacy.

The paper was authored by Dr Richard Marsden and Dr Anna Plassart, senior lecturers in History at the OU’s Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.

It follows an event earlier this year in Cardiff, supported by the LSW and History UK, where academics, employers, students and think tanks came together to debate how graduates in this sector are contradicting some of the misleading narratives about their employment prospects.

Growing sectors

Dr Richard Marsden, senior lecturer at The Open University in Wales said: “Over the last few years, eight of the ten fastest growing sectors in the UK economy have employed more graduates from the arts, humanities and also the social sciences than from any other disciplines.”

Dr Anna Plassart, senior lecturer at The Open University said: “Having transferable skills also means that arts and humanities graduates have more career options and greater flexibility within the workforce than those of many other disciplines.”

The paper recommends that universities work with employers to help A&H students articulate the value of their degrees, as well as working with schools to reduce the decline in those choosing degrees in these areas.