While ACU Ballarat's introduction of a BA has been under consideration for some time, it has been accelerated to give local students the option of studying an undergraduate Bachelor of Arts without having to travel to a Melbourne university.

It will begin initially as a pilot program tailored to the study interests of those taking part and be built on in future years.

"We know there's a market for it, schools constantly ask us for it, and this will give us the opportunity to see what the interest is and see what we can do," said ACU Ballarat campus dean Professor Bridget Aitchison.

"We will develop a program that serves the local community next year and if that goes well will start to expand the local offering depending what the interest is in which areas of the arts."

Lecturers would be drawn from current staff, new staff, and staff from other campuses as well as offering combined online lectures with other sites supplemented with face to face tutorials.

Professor Aitchison said arts and humanities "underpin what a university is and does". "We know job-ready is important and ACU are known nationally for our education, nursing, paramedicine and physiotherapy ... but arts and humanities are so important because they underpin those other disciplines.

"They teach critical thinking skills and create well-rounded students who have exposure to that as well as job ready programs ... giving skills applicable to many different jobs."

Professor Aitchison called for anyone interested in studying a Bachelor of Arts in Ballarat next year to visit the ACU Open Day on Sunday August 14 and talk to staff.

"What we need to dialogue with the community is which particular program their interest is in, how we can bring that unique first year curriculum to Ballarat and how we work with the local community and students in western Victoria ... who have been considering arts but don't want to go to uni in Melbourne.

"We have such great infrastructure and expertise in the area we can be a bit bespoke for this trial."

ACU dean of arts Professor Joy Damousi said understanding arts, humanities and social sciences was essential.

"No major modern issue can be meaningfully addressed without arts, humanities and social sciences perspectives. An understanding of the insights that these disciplines offer is essential to achieving tangible progress on our most pressing contemporary problems," she said.

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Among the staff likely to be part of the arts program next year are historians Dr Benjamin Mountford and Dr David McGinniss.

"Ballarat is a city rich in arts, culture and history and a key centre for the creative industries in regional Victoria. The opportunity to study the arts, humanities and social sciences are as important for students in the regions as they are in the city. The arts are essential for building vibrant communities," Dr Mountford said.

Postdoctoral research associate Dr David McGinniss said Ballarat was the perfect place to understand the histories and cultures of Australia.

"This is where so many social and political movements in this country have started. We'd love to see tomorrow's big thinkers and revolutionaries learning and researching with us here in Ballarat on their way to change the rest of the world."

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