The University of Hertfordshire has decided to close all eight Humanities undergraduate programmes in English Language and Linguistics, English Literature, Creative Writing, History and Philosophy. The reason given for these cuts is that the programmes are ‘no longer financially viable’. We have been given no other information about the courses, redundancies, or our futures at the University, even though we have requested it. These decisions have been made without staff consultation. 

These closures follow a longstanding disregard for the Humanities at Hertfordshire, as our School was first merged with Education and then within the year merged again into the School of Creative Arts. At each stage, the University has shown a lack of belief, care, or vision for what a Humanities education is and can be. This sits alongside the removal of Languages as Minors in the Humanities degrees, the closure of many joint programmes, and the absence of meaningful marketing. We were asked last year to redesign our degrees, and we all spent months on this project and were recruiting for them until last week; these courses have not had the chance to run, yet are being cancelled. 

While we were told that finances are the reason for the course closures, the Vice Chancellor sent out an email the next day stating that ‘The University remains in a stable financial position, and these decisions are not being taken in response to an immediate financial crisis, but as part of a responsible approach to maintain a strong, focused and sustainable academic portfolio’. We thus question the argument of financial viability. We also question the explicit message that a Humanities education is not ‘strong’ or ‘focused’.

The VC’s email also said that ‘We must be clear about where we can offer the strongest experience, the best outcomes, and the greatest opportunities for our students. Taking measured decisions now allows us to focus our efforts and investment on areas of strength and future growth, ensuring that we continue to offer a high-quality, relevant and competitive portfolio for our students’. We again refute the implication above, as our applied Humanities programmes - which combine subject expertise and career-enhancement - have a proven track-record of providing excellent ‘experiences’, the best ‘outcomes’ and many ‘opportunities’ for our students. We receive consistently excellent student feedback, whether at modular level or in the National Student Survey, and do well with any number of student metrics that the University purports to care about, such as the race-based awarding gap, progression and retention, failure rates, and others. 

We also know that Humanities subjects do offer ‘high-quality, relevant and competitive’ education, and there are multiple surveys and studies to prove this. The British Academy ‘Qualified for the Future’ report (2020), for example, provides extensive evidence that the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (AHSS) produce graduates that are ‘highly employable’, have ‘greater flexibility and choice’ of jobs than their STEM colleagues, and ‘underpin key sectors of the economy’ (indeed, the fastest-growing sectors). They are graduates who ‘have the skills that employers value now’ as well as ‘skills for the future workplace’.

The University of Hertfordshire also prides itself as being a ‘widening access’ institution, but the closure of these courses means that prospective students from Hertfordshire can no longer study Humanities in their own county, causing a ‘cold spot’ for the discipline and the students. This is a decimation of student opportunity.

We, the undersigned, stand against the closure of Humanities courses at Hertfordshire.

PLEASE sign this petition to support staff and students in Humanities at the University, and do leave comments below as you see fit