Dean's Welcome

I extend a warm welcome to all commencing and continuing students in the Faculty of Arts. As a student in the Faculty you are embarking on one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. The Faculty strives to offer teaching, learning and research opportunities for students, an enriching education that will lay the foundation for future employment and at the same time be intellectually, socially and culturally rewarding.

Our society needs people skilled in critical analysis, people with the insight, creativity and imagination to transform information into something meaningful. We need people with the capacity to communicate knowledge to others in accessible and informed ways. We need people who can interpret the world in which we live, understand how it works and how we might make it better for future generations.

Increasingly these are the skills that employers are seeking in all their workers and these are precisely the talents you will develop in undertaking your studies in the Faculty of Arts. In this diverse and stimulating intellectual climate you will have the opportunity to explore many fields in the humanities and social sciences, developing new ideas and ways of seeing the world.

An education in the humanities and social sciences, however, is more than just a means of fitting you for the demands of a career. By introducing you to the riches of the humanities, the social sciences, languages, music and the arts, the Faculty seeks to develop new horizons for all its students to help them achieve their potential as productive, fulfilled, creative, imaginative, tolerant and useful citizens. We believe that what you learn here will stand you in good stead for the rest of your lives, not just your working lives.

You are joining a body of about 6,900 students, almost 5,900 of whom are undergraduates with an academic staff of about 300 and 80 administrative staff. Students come from a diversity of backgrounds: Australian and overseas born, English and non-English speaking backgrounds, domestic and international students, students of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background, recent school leavers and older students who may have begun or completed other forms of vocational or higher education, with a range of employment experiences all creating a vibrant and diverse student population. We urge you to embrace the opportunities provided by the University and the Faculty to the full.

Associate Professor Anne Dunn
Acting Dean of Arts