9 Step Guide to Earning Your Master of Liberal Studies Degree at Rollins
Indulge your curiosity. Debate important ideas. Sharpen your self-expression. In Rollins’ Master of Liberal Studies (MLS) Program, you’ll join fellow lifelong learners in a lively exploration of history’s great ideas and greatest thinkers. You’ll take deep dives into everything from art and literature to philosophy and psychology, refining how you think, broadening your worldview, and spurring on your quest for intellectual enlightenment. At every step, you’ll receive individualized attention and unconditional support from the South’s top professors as you develop new connections and perhaps discover a newfound purpose.
1. Enrich Your Life
In Rollins’ MLS Program, you won’t just acquire new knowledge. You’ll also develop new ways of thinking and expressing yourself. You’ll find like minds and grow by integrating disparate ideas. You’ll update and curate your worldview through analysis of philosophy, history, art, literature, humanities, politics, religion, and psychology. Even when your degree is complete, you’re never done learning. Our alumni regularly return to Rollins to engage in enriching events like masterclasses and book clubs.
2. Designed to Fit Your Life
From work to family, you have a lot going on. We get it. That’s why we designed our Master of Liberal Studies programs specifically for students like you. Our courses meet one night per week and are conveniently timed to suit your schedule. While Rollins offers online support services for everything from submitting your admission application to registering for classes, you’ll never be on your own thanks to the personalized attention of our dedicated faculty and staff. Get a taste of our individualized approach by scheduling a chat with one of our counselors.
3. Personalized Learning Environment
With an average class size under 10 students, our personalized learning environment is designed to maximize engagement and support, and thanks to our low student-faculty ratio, our expert professors have the freedom to focus on you. At Rollins, you’ll work collaboratively with faculty on every aspect of your intellectual journey, from the development of a thesis project to field studies in places like India, Italy, and France. But don't just take our word for it—see for yourself. Schedule a visit today and get a firsthand look at our commitment to engaged learning.
4. Choose Your Academic Adventure
At Rollins, you’ll have the flexibility to craft an educational journey that aligns with your interests and passions. In addition to six core courses, you’ll choose six electives or an equivalent number of masterworks courses to complete the program. Our elective courses diversify the curriculum by focusing on applying great texts to contemporary issues or comparing Western ideas with those of other cultures. Our Masterworks courses focus on a single great work or idea and allow students to dive deep into an interesting, intellectually challenging topic.
5. Build an Intellectual Network
Each MLS cohort completes the core curriculum of 24 credits in lockstep, creating the opportunity for students to develop relationships with one another that facilitate classroom discussion in an atmosphere of trust and respect. The sense of community fostered by the lockstep core curriculum results in an active and engaged community of alumni who continue to share their intellectual interests after graduation.
6. Advance Your Career
The Rollins MLS program prepares students for the rapidly changing job market by teaching students to think broadly, deeply, and critically. As technology and artificial intelligence make more and more jobs obsolete, the value of a graduate-level liberal arts education is increasing. From critical thinking and effective communication to creative problem solving and persuasive writing, MLS students develop the kind of future-proof knowledge and skills that the employers of today and tomorrow demand.
7. Make Your Mark
Students in the Master of Liberal Studies program graduate having completed a polished piece of work that represents their unique interests but also merges the contemporary learnings of the MLS program with tangible, real-world application. These projects also provide mentorship from faculty who help guide you throughout the process and offer individualized attention, ensuring your success.
8. Streamlined Admission
Our holistic admission process provides an individual approach to each applicant and our application process is as simple as 1…2...3, that's right, simply submit your application, official transcripts, and letter of recommendations, we will take it from there. Don’t worry - you’re not alone in the process. Rollins offers support for everything from submitting your admission application to registering for classes, you’ll never be on your own thanks to the personalized attention of our dedicated faculty and staff.
9. Helping to Fund Your Future
In addition to intellectually enriching classes, Rollins College offers scholarships. The Master of Liberal Studies program’s award is worth $2,000 per year to fully admitted students with a 3.0 GPA or higher. This means you could be a little closer than you think to reaching your academic goals.
Medhdi Taifi, '10 MLS
Clearing Operations Manager - Business Systems at Robinhood
"My career is in finance and being a part of the Master of Liberal Studies program was a breath of fresh air and a source of invaluable knowledge. It helped reshape my ideas and provided me with a rich and unique perspective filled with arts, literature, and philosophy topics. It was life-changing."
Natalie Zanini ‘21 MLS
Social Science Teacher - Innovation Montessori Ocoee
Take The Next Step
Hi, my name is Kelsey and I will be your primary contact throughout your application and admission journey. I will help you to better understand our admission process and provide guidance along the way. Discover how Rollins is designed to fit your life and career goals today by scheduling a one-on-one conversation.
