ECU Online: Flight Path Programs

Liberal Studies Program

Think Critically. Lead Confidently.

ECU’s online Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Liberal Studies helps working adults finish their degree while strengthening the communication, critical thinking and ethical decision-making skills that employers value across industries. Build on your experience, customize your education with optional minors and graduate prepared for greater opportunity.

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Program of Interest*
$429
Cost-Per-Credit
100%
Online, Asynchronous
3.5 Years
Average Time to Completion
4
Optional Minors Available
Overview

An Online Liberal Arts Degree Built Around Your Future

ECU’s online Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Liberal Studies is designed for working adults who have earned college credit and are ready to finish their bachelor’s degree. It’s an excellent fit for professionals whose careers have outpaced their credentials, those seeking promotions that require a completed bachelor’s degree or individuals looking to build broadly applicable skills that translate across industries. Whether you’re advancing in business, government, education, healthcare or public service, this flexible degree helps you build on your experience, customize your studies and graduate prepared for new opportunities.

Go Anywhere With Confidence

ECU’s 100% online Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Liberal Studies helps you finish your bachelor’s degree while building the knowledge and confidence to pursue new opportunities. If you’re working toward a promotion, preparing for greater responsibility or ready to complete the degree you started, this program helps bridge the gap between your experience and the credential many employers expect.

Instead of preparing you for one narrow career path, you’ll develop durable skills that translate across industries. Through five integrated areas of study, coursework in writing, rhetoric, ethics, cultural studies, research and critical analysis strengthens your ability to communicate clearly, evaluate information, solve complex problems and make sound decisions. You’ll also have the flexibility to shape your degree around your goals by adding one of four optional minors in Criminal Justice, Human Development and Family Science, Security Studies or Sociology without extending your path to graduation.

As part of ECU Online, you’ll earn the same respected ECU degree as on-campus students while benefiting from flexible online coursework, a transfer-friendly degree completion pathway and dedicated faculty and student support. You’ll graduate with stronger critical thinking, sharper communication skills and a bachelor’s degree built to keep pace with wherever your career goes next.

Skills You'll Gain

  • Ethical reasoning and critical analysis
  • Writing and rhetoric
  • Social and behavioral understanding
  • Cultural fluency
  • Research and evidence-based argument

5 Areas of Study 

  1. Interpretive and ethical reasoning
  2. Social and behavioral understanding
  3. Global communication and cultural fluency
  4. Research methods
  5. Culminating capstone

Break the Career Ceiling

You've got the experience. Now get the credential that turns it into the promotion, the raise or the seat at 
the table. 

The Human Advantage

Master skills an algorithm can’t replicate; critical thinking, ethical reasoning and persuasion that enable you to be the one making the calls.

Build On What You Know

A holistic admissions review and a structured five-part framework takes into account your work experience so there's no starting over. 

Shape Your Focus

Pair your degree with one of four optional minors and walk away with a credential built around where you’re headed next. 

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Career Outlook

The Skills Employers Keep Looking For

A bachelor’s degree can be the credential that opens the next door. ECU’s online Liberal Studies program helps you pair the experience you’ve already earned with the bachelor’s degree many employers require. Throughout the online liberal arts degree program, you’ll strengthen the communication, critical thinking and ethical decision-making skills valued across business, education, healthcare, government, nonprofit organizations and public service. Because these skills apply across industries, you’ll graduate prepared to grow where you are today or confidently pursue what’s next. Explore career opportunities and their national salary data below.1

General and Operations Manager
Annual Median Salary: $101,280
Management Analyst
Annual Median Salary: $101,190
Market Research Analyst
Annual Median Salary: $76,950
Public Relations Specialist
Annual Median Salary: $69,780
Social and Human Service Assistant
Annual Median Salary: $45,120

9% Growth

Job outlook for management analysts,
2024–2034

87,200 New Jobs

New jobs for market research analysts each year, 2024–2034

449,600 Total Jobs

Number of jobs for social and human service assistants, 2024

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1 U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, 2026

Lisa Ellison

Discover Like a Pirate

“What I love about multidisciplinary program is the diversity of approaches it allows students to explore within a field. It's a powerful way to nurture intellectual curiosity, creative problem solving and mental flexibility."

Director of Interdisciplinary Programs

Lisa Ellison

Curriculum & Courses

Customize Your Degree
Around Your Goals

The online BS in Multidisciplinary Studies: Liberal Studies program is a 120-credit undergraduate degree offered through the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences. It includes 40 hours of general education courses, 42 hours of core courses, 18–21 hours of approved electives or a minor, and 20–23 hours of general electives.

Curriculum Overview & Degree Requirements

This program is built around the skills that continue to matter, no matter how technology changes the workplace. Through five integrated areas of study — interpretive and ethical reasoning, social and behavioral understanding, global communication and cultural fluency, research methods, and a culminating capstone — you’ll strengthen your ability to analyze complex issues, communicate persuasively, evaluate evidence and solve problems from multiple perspectives. Rather than focusing on one narrow discipline, the curriculum helps you develop the adaptable, human-centered skills employers consistently value across industries.

You’ll also have the flexibility to shape your degree around your goals. Choose from four optional minors in Criminal Justice, Human Development and Family Science, Security Studies or Sociology to add focused expertise without extending your time to graduation. Your minor fits within the program’s built-in elective hours, allowing you to personalize your education while keeping your path to completion on track. Your capstone experience challenges you to apply what you’ve learned through the lenses of Integrative Learning, Critical Analysis and Reflection, Interdisciplinary Communication, and Application and Identity, creating a project that reflects your academic growth and professional direction.

Degree Breakdown

General Education 40 Credits
Interdisciplinary Core 42 Credits
Optional Minor Courses 18–21 Credits
General Electives 20–23 Credits

Sample Courses

Coursework in ECU’s online Liberal Studies program is designed to help you think more critically, communicate more effectively and make better decisions in every stage of your career. Grounded in writing and rhetoric, ethics, cultural studies and interdisciplinary inquiry, the curriculum develops durable skills in critical analysis, persuasive communication, ethical reasoning and evidence-based argument that technology can’t replace. Throughout the program, you’ll connect ideas across disciplines, build on your professional experience and demonstrate your growth through an interdisciplinary capstone that prepares you to lead with confidence in a rapidly changing workplace.

Introduces major ethical theories and to questions such as: What is justice? What is virtue? What are human rights? What is happiness?

Choose FROM 4 Optional minors

Pair your Liberal Studies degree with one of four optional minors to gain targeted expertise for your career goals. Because each minor is built into the program, you can specialize without adding time to graduation.

Criminal Justice + Liberal Studies

Where Critical Thinking Meets Public Service.

Think beyond a single discipline. You’ll combine perspectives from the humanities, social sciences and criminal justice to better understand how crime, public policy, legal systems and human behavior intersect. You’ll strengthen your communication, critical analysis and ethical reasoning skills, giving you the ability to approach complex justice challenges with a broader perspective and make informed decisions in a wide range of professional settings.

Career Outlook

  • Compliance Specialist
  • Victim Services Advocate
  • Community Outreach Coordinator
  • Legal Assistant
  • Government Program Coordinator
  • Policy Analyst

Sample Courses

  • Comparative Criminal Justice
  • Introduction to Social and Political Philosophy
  • Civil Liability in Criminal Justice
  • Introduction to Ethics
  • Writing, Rhetoric, and Social Movements
Criminal Justice + Liberal Studies

Human development & Family Science + Liberal Studies

Build Better Outcomes for People and Families.

Combine Liberal Studies with a Human Development and Family Science minor to better understand how people grow, develop and interact throughout life. Coursework explores family systems, human development and community well-being while strengthening skills in communication, ethical reasoning and problem-solving skills. Graduate prepare to work effectively with individuals, families and communities in meaningful ways.

Career Outlook

  • Family Services Coordinator
  • Youth Program Coordinator
  • Human Services Assistant
  • Community Health Worker
  • Social Services Assistant
  • Patient Services Coordinator

Sample Courses

  • Services for Children with Severe Emotional Disturbances
  • Theories of Child Development
  • Statistics in Child/Family Studies
  • Seminar in Family Relations
  • Readings in Aging Studies
Human development & Family Science + Liberal Studies

Security Studies + Liberal Studies

See Every Side of the Challenge.

Better understand today’s security challenges from multiple perspectives. Drawing on political science, criminal justice, history, geography and related disciplines, you’ll learn to evaluate risks, analyze information and understand how organizations respond to complex domestic and global security issues. Graduate ready to tackle problems that rarely fit within a single discipline.

Career Outlook

  • Intelligence Analyst
  • Risk Management Specialist
  • Business Continuity Coordinator
  • Foreign Affairs Analyst Assistant
  • Defense Program Analyst
  • Government Affairs Coordinator

Sample Courses

  • National Government
  • Research Design for Political Science
  • Policy and Practice of Security
  • The United States and Middle East
  • American Foreign Policy
Security Studies + Liberal Studies

Sociology + Liberal Studies

See the Patterns That Shape People.

Develop a broader understanding of the social forces that shape individuals, organizations and communities. You’ll study institutions, culture, inequality and group behavior while strengthening communication, research and analytical skills. The combined disciplines in this degree pairing help you understand how people think and how the systems around them influence behavior and opportunity.

Career Outlook

  • Community Relations Coordinator
  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Coordinator
  • Market Research Assistant
  • Workforce Development Specialist
  • Organizational Development Coordinator
  • Public Affairs Assistant

Sample Courses

  • Race, Gender, Class
  • Social Class and Inequality
  • Environment and Society
  • Sustainable Cities
  • Seminar on Immigration
Sociology + Liberal Studies
Emily C.,

Coach quote

I've worked with students who are dealing with job changes, family stuff, and serious self-doubt, sometimes all at once. What I try to give them is consistency. I'm a real person who picks up the phone, responds to messages, and helps them figure out the next step when things get hard. That's really what this is about.

Emily C.,
Flight Path Success Coach

Accreditation

When you earn a degree from East Carolina University, you earn more than a credential. You earn the reputation of a university that's spent more than a century serving students who are determined to make a difference.

East Carolina University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral degrees. Questions about the accreditation of East Carolina University may be directed in writing to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, GA 30033-4097, by calling (404) 679-4500, or by using information available on SACSCOC’s website.

Accreditation &   Academic Excellence
Admissions & Transfer

General Admissions &
Transfer Credit Criteria

You’ll find that ECU is a place where people know you for more than what you do; we see you for who you are and who you’ll grow into. As such, we are committed to equality of opportunity and do not discriminate based on race/ethnicity, color, genetic information, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, political affiliation and veteran status.

24+ Transfer Credits

At least 24 transferable credit hours from the last or current institution attended.

2.0 Minimum GPA

A minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 in all attempted coursework.

Grade of C- or Better

A grade of C- (1.7) or higher in coursework is required to be considered for transfer.

Good Academic Standing

Applicants must be in good academic standing at their current or most recent institution.

Official Transcripts

Official transcripts are required from all colleges and universities previously attended.

A Completed Application

Submission of ECU’s online application for admission, including all required materials.

Admissions Notes

Current ECU students should email [email protected] before completing a Flight Path program application.

  • Meeting the minimum admission requirements doesn’t guarantee admission nor does it guarantee admission into your academic program of interest.
  • Offers of admission are extended on the basis of a competitive review process and are subject to enrollment limits.
  • Only courses with a grade of “C-” or higher from regionally accredited institutions are eligible to transfer and can be used to gain admission.

Mail Official Transcripts to:

Office of Undergraduate Admissions
Mail Stop 517
East Carolina University
Greenville, NC 27858-435

We also accept electronic transcripts from most transcript services. Please request to have them sent directly to [email protected].

Tuition for North Carolina Residents

To qualify for in-state tuition rates, North Carolina residents must first confirm their in-state status by completing an application through the Residency Determination Service (RDS). To learn more about how to apply for NC residency, please refer to the North Carolina Residency page.

Technology Requirements

  • A PC (Windows 10 or newer) or Mac (macOS 11 or newer) computer manufactured within the last 4-5 years. 
  • Built-in microphone and speakers, or a dedicated computer headset for clearer communication and reduced background noise. 
  • Internet connectivity with a minimum speed of 15 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload speeds. 
  • Chromebook devices are currently not recommended by any academic programs at ECU due to several limitations.

Chromebook devices are currently not recommended by any academic programs at ECU due to several limitations. For more information on tech requirements, visit our technology page.

Tuition & Financial Aid

Tuition & Financial Aid

Cost Snapshot

ECU’s online Flight Path programs are designed to make earning your degree affordable, transparent and predictable.

  • In-state tuition: $429 per credit hour*
  • Out-of-state tuition: $510 per credit hour*

Tuition may vary by program and is subject to change. 

View Full Tuition Details

Financial Aid Overview

Financial aid options may be available to help cover the cost of your degree, including federal aid, grants, scholarships and loan programs.

  • Federal financial aid available for eligible students
  • NC state grants and scholarships may apply
  • ECU grants and scholarships for qualifying students
  • Military and veteran benefits may be applicable
Explore Financial Aid Options

Meet Your Faculty

Lisa Ellison

Lisa Ellison

Ph.D.
Director of Interdisciplinary Programs, Senior Teaching Instructor of Classical Studies

Lisa Ellison is Director of Interdisciplinary Programs and Senior Teaching Instructor of Classical Studies at East Carolina University, where she leads curriculum development for...

Read Full Bio

Not Sure Which Program Is Right for You?

Our admissions team can help you explore your options. Flight Path is designed for students returning with 24 or more college credits who want a focused path to graduation.

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EXPLORE OTHER ONLINE PROGRAMS

Frequently Asked Questions

ECU’s online liberal arts degree allows you to build on previous college credit while developing broad professional skills in communication, ethical reasoning, research, critical thinking and problem solving that apply across industries.

How Can We Help?

We’re here to help you find the best way forward.

Filling out a quick form connects you with an ECU admissions representative who will answer your questions, review your options and help you chart the best path to your degree. It's a conversation focused on your goals, not a sales pitch.

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