23 Humanities Degree Programs in Lithuania

How does language influence communication? What role can I play in establishing a dialogue between people of different cultural backgrounds? What languages can I learn to facilitate inter-European or inter-Asian contact? If you find yourself grappling with any of these questions, or wondering how studying can help you to answer them all, language studies might be for you. At MRU, we offer bachelor studies in English for Specific Purposes and the Second Foreign Language – a high-end education of 3 and a half years, perfect for those seeking to enter into the fascinating field of philology and to find work in a multicultural environment.  

The Bachelor in Russian Philology programme is open to candidates with no Russian proficiency. Learning of the Russian language shall commence upon the student’s admission. Studies with a perfect balance of language and literature also provide knowledge of Slavic culture and ties between Russian literature and culture and Lithuania.

The Doctoral Program in Communication and Information Studies organized at Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) in Kaunas (Lithuania) aims to address the pressing issues in the contemporary and dynamically evolving field of media and communications, which is shaped by politico-economic, socio-cultural, and technologic factors, and explores media infused societal transformations and communicative impact on individual, groups, and social dimensions.

The Bachelor in Lithuanian Studies programme allows you to learn the Lithuanian language, and to get acquainted with the linguistic situation, literature, culture, history, and social and political life of Lithuania. It is flexible and open to the student’s interests study programme: you will be able to choose 25% of the subjects according to your interests in various fields. You can study language, literature and socio-cultural phenomena, choose subjects from other disciplines (politics, history, management, pedagogy, etc.), or study one of more than 20 languages.

Sociolinguistics and Multilingualism (SoMu) is an international joint-degree study programme offered by Vytautas Magnus University (VMU), Kaunas, Lithuania, Johannes-Gutenberg University (JGU), Mainz, Germany, Stockholm University (SU), Stockholm, Sweden, and the University of Tartu (UT), Tartu, Estonia. SoMu trains a new generation of sociolinguists who will possess a broad scholarly and practical understanding of the parallel use of multiple languages in Europe and a professional awareness of multilingualism’s social dynamics and its cultural, political, and socioeconomic impact in varying European contexts.

The aim of the study program Foreign Languages and Cultures is to train well-qualified bachelors in the Humanities with a broad range of knowledge and competencies, who have a knowledge of Italian, French, or German (C1 level) and an additional foreign language (B2 level). Graduates will grasp the fundamentals of linguistics, literary studies, translation, intercultural communication, and production of spoken and written texts, and become familiar with the culture of a chosen country, its history, and political and economic situation. Students will be able to translate from the source into the target language and vice versa, interpret and analyze different countries’ cultural phenomena in the European and global context. Graduates will be able to apply their linguistic, communicative, cultural, social, and other competencies in professional and academic areas.

The English Studies programme offers a specialist qualification in English literature, cultural studies, and linguistics. It combines theoretical and empirical analysis of the role of the English language, culture, and literature in modern society. The programme features three balanced blocks of courses in linguistics, literature, and culture, with an optional specialisation in Media Linguistics. This track provides a solid foundation in contemporary linguistic research, equipping students for careers in research, teaching, and language-related fields.

The study program in theory and critics of arts is realized within interdisciplinary context with focus on three areas: theory and history of architecture, musicology. Programme‘s doctoral students are encouraged to apply various theoretical models and methodological tools of humanities, social and technological sciences besides the classical methods of the critics of arts using both internal scientific resources of Kaunas University of Technology and those of their international partners. Graduates of various university studies are accepted to the doctoral programme with regard to their scientific experience within the selected topic.

The Russian Studies programme offers a comprehensive examination of Russian literature, culture, and linguistics through two specialised tracks: Media Linguistics and Literature, Linguistics, Culture. It aims to develop proficient analysts and researchers who are equipped to address contemporary societal needs. Students engage critically with Russian texts of various genres, tackling both theoretical and practical challenges related to the current state of the Russian language, literature, and culture. Graduates are prepared to excel in professional settings and contribute meaningfully to (inter)cultural communication, making them well-suited for diverse roles in academia, media, and cultural institutions.

The Eastern European and Russian studies program is devised to provide you with a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the region, including its political, economic, and cultural particularities, and to develop the academic and analytical skills that will enable you to analyze, evaluate and assess key political and social processes within this dynamic and exciting region of the world.

The Master in Languages and Cultures of the Nordic and Baltic Sea Region is an umbrella programme that allows students to deepen their knowledge of the culture and language studied (Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Russian, Latvian, Polish or German) as well as consistently broaden their specialisation to include a cross-cultural perspective. Several thematic courses are offered that target the socio-cultural developments of the community studied in the broader context of Eastern, Central and Northern Europe.

The fact that this study programme was awarded European Master’s in Translation Quality Label (EMT) speaks for itself: KTU is the place where the best translators of technical texts are educated. The highest rating in the European Union for translation master’s studies means that your degree will take you places.

PhD Summer School focuses on development of key competences required for achieving best results in successful defense of the doctoral dissertation and identifying further research directions. Therefore topics of our PhD Summer Schools include: management of scientific research data, writing of scientific articles, analysis of the subtleties of project management, research integrity and ethics, intellectual property and patent system, communication skills development, etc.

The Bachelor in English Philology programme offers students the solid written and spoken communication skills required for workplace success in English (C1–C2), as well as the fundamentals of English linguistics, literature and the culture of English-speaking countries.

The goal of the Program specialization Society, Culture and Communication is to train highly-qualified graduates in sociology and communication who would be able to identify and analyse social problems and cultural processes, to expertly conduct sociological and communication research, to explain, compare and evaluate social processes and to apply creatively their research skills in the fields of communication and information science.