About
The Centre for Western Civilisation aims to recover the meaning of ‘great books’ and to critically evaluate their value and significance. Through an extended major in Western Civilisation students will encounter foundational texts in the Western tradition and develop essential skills in reasoning, writing and argumentation, which are relevant to numerous professional roles and settings. Students will be taught in a pluralistic way to make sure that the future is informed by the rigour that our humanities disciplines can and should inject into decisions about how we best develop fair, prosperous and cohesive societies. Courses will be taught from diverse perspectives, with the primary purpose being to inform, open, mature, and often critical debate about the past.
We offer a creative and diverse curriculum with a strong focus on key intellectual works – artistic, musical, literary – that have shaped western civilisation from antiquity to the current day. The curriculum addresses important questions about human nature, society and the world in small group discussions, and students will develop knowledge and insights applicable to many of the big problems our societies face today.
Established in 2020 with funding from the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation, the Centre for Western Civilisation delivers a sequence of study in Western Civilisation via an extended major in two programs at UQ:
- The Bachelor of Advanced Humanities (Honours) program and;
- The Bachelor of Humanities / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) dual program.
A generous scholarship is available to commencing students studying Western Civilisation in either of the above programs. The value of the UQ Ramsay Undergraduate Scholarship is $32,000 each year for the full-time duration of the program and includes a return economy airfare to undertake an approved Global Experience. Full details on the Scholarship including the rules, eligibility and criteria can be seen on the central scholarships website here.
Western Civilisation program information
Students studying Western Civilisation via an extended major in the Bachelor of Advanced Humanities (Honours) or the Bachelor of Humanities / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) can find program information by clicking below.