List of All U.S. Colleges with a Liberal Arts Major
Liberal arts is the perfect blend of multiple humanities disciplines from students who want to gain knowledge in a variety of interrelated subjects. This major takes interdisciplinary learning to another level, with an emphasis on both varied and intersecting topics. The major can include the humanities and social sciences, as well as a broad overview of the sciences and arts. At present, over 200 colleges in the United States offer liberal arts as a major. Because liberal arts involves a breadth of life skills, such as effective communication and problem solving, the major is applicable to a number of careers across a variety of fields. The eclectic curriculum can prepare you for success whether you want to work in media, education, law, and many other disciplines. Most liberal arts majors will have course requirements in the humanities, including history, literature, history, and philosophy. Another significant portion of the curriculum will come from social sciences, such as anthropology, political science, and sociology. Because the breadth and range of the major varies, students may also take science and math courses. They may also partake in creative courses, such as visual and performance arts. Students who would succeed in this major are those who thrive in a multidisciplinary setting. Because you’ll be learning a variety of subjects, you’ll need to have a genuine love of learning new material and be able to adapt to the different skills required by each subject. You’ll also need to have the skills for critical thinking and analysis, and the ability to draw connections between disparate courses in order to get the most out of your learning. Many of the subjects encompassed by liberal arts also require a strong foundation in reading and writing. You will often have to peruse dense, often theoretical, texts and formulate effective arguments about them via essays. This also means you’ll need to have a receptive ear to feedback, as you will receive ample criticism from peers and professors as you navigate the relevant coursework. Liberal arts provides students with a varied curriculum, encompassing a number of disparate subjects. As they navigate their undergraduate career, students may find themselves gravitating to some subjects over others, often with one or two top favorites. This propensity towards a particular subject may manifest in pursuing graduate school in that specific field. This will allow students to deepen their understanding of a certain realm of academia. Students can also go on to law school, as they will have a solid foundation in creating and articulating their perspective. Business school is also an option, as is medical school, provided the student takes the necessary prerequisites. Popular career paths for liberal arts are as varied as the major itself. Depending on which subjects you enjoyed learning the most, your career will probably reflect only a subset of your undergraduate curriculum. Liberal arts majors that enjoyed history can go on to become historians, archivists, or museum curators. Those whose strengths lied in writing and literature may explore journalism, advertising, or education. There are also plenty of job opportunities in the business sector, with ample opportunities in data analysis, management, and human resources. Living Learning Communities are designated spaces within university houses where students with similar interests can live together. As a liberal arts major, you probably have a propensity for learning and a genuine love of new information, so joining an LLC can be a great way to continue your education outside of the classroom. These areas will help you meet like-minded individuals, and the university usually has resources and holds events specific to your residential theme. For example, there are LLCs related to civic engagement, sustainability, social justice and activism. The University of Southern Indiana even has a Living Learning Community dedicated to Liberal Arts. As a liberal arts major, you’ll want to explore the different offerings at your school and also combine your findings to create a strong interdisciplinary major. Look for schools that allow you to take courses in multiple departments with ease and provide ample concentrations and tracks that allow you to explore subjects more in-depth. You’ll want to avoid schools where exploring multiple topics requires you to graduate later or complete official certificates or minors – unless that is something you are interested in. If you decide not to major in liberal arts but still want a liberal arts experience, you might consider going to a college with an open curriculum. These schools don’t have general education requirements, and as long as you fulfill your major requirements, you can explore classes in many other departments. Liberal arts curricula often involve a lot of text-heavy coursework, such as reading a philosopher’s most famous theories, or familiarizing yourself with the history of a particular country. Assignments are usually writing-heavy and require you to do ample research in order to formulate strong arguments backed with evidence. For this reason, you’ll want to make sure your perspective school has ample archival resources. You’ll want to be able to complete hours of research without the additional burden of gaining access to documents or online archives. A common stigma against liberal arts is that the field is so vague that these majors are often overlooked for job opportunities. As a result, many colleges have cut their liberal arts programs or treat it as a sort of “catch-all” for undecided individuals. To maximize your education and career opportunities, you should look for schools that don’t shy away from the subject, but rather, embrace it and properly validate it as a major. You’ll want to look for institutions that prioritize career opportunities for individuals in this major and help you gain work experience through internships during your time as an undergraduate. School City State Samford University Birmingham Alabama Troy University (Alabama) Troy Alabama Northern Arizona University | NAU Flagstaff Arizona University of Arkansas at Little Rock | UA Little Rock Little Rock Arkansas Azusa Pacific University | APU Azusa California California Polytechnic State University | Cal Poly San Luis Obispo California California State University, Stanislaus | Stanislaus State Turlock California California State Polytechnic University, Pomona | Cal Poly Pomona Pomona California California State University, Fresno | CSU Fresno Fresno California California State University, Fullerton | CSU Fullerton Fullerton California California State University, East Bay | CSU East Bay Hayward California California State University, Long Beach | Long Beach State Long Beach California California State University, Los Angeles | Cal State LA Los Angeles California California State University, Northridge | CSUN Northridge California University of California, Riverside | UC Riverside Riverside California University of California, Santa Barbara | UCSB Santa Barbara California Humboldt State University | HSU Arcata California University of La Verne La Verne California Loyola Marymount University | LMU Los Angeles California Mills College Oakland California Pepperdine University Malibu California University of Redlands Redlands California San Diego State University | SDSU San Diego California University of San Diego | USD San Diego California San Francisco State University | SF State San Francisco California San Jose State University | SJSU San Jose California Santa Clara University Santa Clara California Saint Mary’s College of California | St. Mary’s Moraga California Sonoma State University | SSU Rohnert Park California Thomas Aquinas College Santa Paula California Westmont College Santa Barbara California Colorado State University | CSU Fort Collins Colorado University of Connecticut | UConn Storrs Connecticut University of New Haven | UNH West Haven Connecticut Quinnipiac University Hamden Connecticut Sacred Heart University | SHU Fairfield Connecticut Wesleyan University Middletown Connecticut University of Delaware Newark Delaware Wilmington University New Castle Delaware American University Washington Washington DC Georgetown University Washington Washington DC Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Daytona Beach Florida Florida Atlantic University | FAU Boca Raton Florida Flagler College Saint Augustine Florida Florida International University | FIU Miami Florida University of Georgia Athens Georgia Mercer University Macon Georgia University of Hawaii at Manoa | UH Manoa Honolulu Hawaii Augustana College Rock Island Illinois Bradley University Peoria Illinois University of Chicago Chicago Illinois Columbia College Chicago Chicago Illinois Elmhurst College Elmhurst Illinois University of Illinois at Chicago | UIC Chicago Illinois University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | UIUC Champaign Illinois Illinois Institute of Technology | Illinois Tech Chicago Illinois Illinois State University | ISU Normal Illinois Knox College Galesburg Illinois Lake Forest College Lake Forest Illinois National Louis University | NLU Chicago Illinois Northern Illinois University | NIU Dekalb Illinois Northwestern University Evanston Illinois Roosevelt University Chicago Illinois Southern Illinois University Carbondale | SIU Carbondale Illinois Trinity International University | TIU Deerfield Illinois Ball State University | BSU Muncie Indiana University of Evansville Evansville Indiana University of Southern Indiana | USI Evansville Indiana Indiana State University | ISU Terre Haute Indiana Indiana University Bloomington | Indiana Bloomington Indiana University of Notre Dame Notre Dame Indiana Cornell College Mount Vernon Iowa Dordt College Sioux Center Iowa Drake University Des Moines Iowa Iowa State University Ames Iowa University of Iowa Iowa City Iowa Northwestern College Orange City Iowa University of Kansas Lawrence Kansas Bellarmine University Louisville Kentucky University of Kentucky Lexington Kentucky University of Louisville Louisville Kentucky Spalding University Louisville Kentucky Transylvania University Lexington Kentucky Union College (Kentucky) Barbourville Kentucky Louisiana State University | LSU Baton Rouge Louisiana University of Maine Orono Maine Johns Hopkins University | JHU Baltimore Maryland University of Maryland, College Park | Maryland College Park Maryland Morgan State University Baltimore Maryland St. John’s College | SJC (Maryland) Annapolis Maryland Washington College Chestertown Maryland American International College | AIC Springfield Massachusetts Assumption College Worcester Massachusetts Becker College Worcester Massachusetts Bentley University Waltham Massachusetts Curry College Milton Massachusetts Emmanuel College (Massachusetts) Boston Massachusetts Endicott College Beverly Massachusetts Fisher College Boston Massachusetts Harvard University Cambridge Massachusetts University of Massachusetts Lowell | UMass Lowell Lowell Massachusetts Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MIT Cambridge Massachusetts Merrimack College North Andover Massachusetts Northeastern University Boston Massachusetts Regis College (Massachusetts) Weston Massachusetts Smith College Northampton Massachusetts University of Massachusetts Dartmouth | UMass Dartmouth North Dartmouth Massachusetts Suffolk University Boston Massachusetts Western New England University | WNE Springfield Massachusetts Westfield State University Westfield Massachusetts Andrews University Berrien Springs Michigan Central Michigan University | CMU Mount Pleasant Michigan Grand Valley State University | GVSU Allendale Michigan Michigan Technological University | Michigan Tech Houghton Michigan Oakland University Rochester Hills Michigan St. Olaf College Northfield Minnesota Blue Mountain College | BMC Blue Mountain Mississippi University of Mississippi | Ole Miss University Mississippi Mississippi State University | MSU Mississippi State Mississippi University of Southern Mississippi | Southern Miss Hattiesburg Mississippi Lincoln University (Missouri) Jefferson City Missouri Maryville University Saint Louis Missouri University of Missouri-Kansas City | UMKC Kansas City Missouri Missouri University of Science & Technology | Missouri S&T Rolla Missouri University of Missouri-St. Louis | UMSL Saint Louis Missouri Stephens College Columbia Missouri Washington University in St. Louis | WashU Saint Louis Missouri Westminster College (Missouri) Fulton Missouri Montana Tech of the University of Montana | Montana Tech Butte Montana Montana State University | MSU Bozeman Montana University of Montana Missoula Montana University of Montana Western | UMW Dillon Montana University of Nebraska-Lincoln | UNL Lincoln Nebraska University of New Hampshire | UNH Durham New Hampshire Rowan University Glassboro New Jersey Ramapo College of New Jersey | RCNJ Mahwah New Jersey Rider University Lawrenceville New Jersey Rutgers University‚ÄìCamden Camden New Jersey Seton Hall University South Orange New Jersey Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken New Jersey University of New Mexico | UNM Albuquerque New Mexico New Mexico State University | NMSU Las Cruces New Mexico Cazenovia College Cazenovia New York Columbia University New York New York Cornell University Ithaca New York Baruch College | CUNY Baruch New York New York City College of New York | CCNY New York New York Fordham University Bronx New York Hobart and William Smith Colleges | HWS Geneva New York Hofstra University Hempstead New York Ithaca College Ithaca New York New School New York New York New York University | NYU New York New York Pace University New York New York Rochester Institute of Technology | RIT Rochester New York University of Rochester Rochester New York St. Lawrence University Canton New York Sarah Lawrence College Bronxville New York Skidmore College Saratoga Springs New York St. John Fisher College Rochester New York St. John’s University Queens New York State University of New York at Purchase | SUNY Purchase Purchase New York Syracuse University Syracuse New York Union College (New York) Schenectady New York Utica College Utica New York Appalachian State University Boone North Carolina Belmont Abbey College Belmont North Carolina East Carolina University | ECU Greenville North Carolina Fayetteville State University | FSU Fayetteville North Carolina North Carolina A&T State University | N.C. A&T Greensboro North Carolina University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | UNC Chapel Hill North Carolina University of North Carolina at Greensboro | UNC Greensboro Greensboro North Carolina North Carolina Central University | NCCU Durham North Carolina North Carolina State University | NC State Raleigh North Carolina University of Akron Akron Ohio Bowling Green State University | BGSU Bowling Green Ohio University of Cincinnati Cincinnati Ohio Cleveland State University | CSU Cleveland Ohio Denison University Granville Ohio Miami University Oxford Ohio Otterbein University Westerville Ohio University of Toledo Toledo Ohio Xavier University Cincinnati Ohio Youngstown State University Youngstown Ohio Oklahoma State University | OSU Stillwater Oklahoma Oklahoma City University | OCU Oklahoma City Oklahoma University of Oklahoma Norman Oklahoma University of Tulsa Tulsa Oklahoma Oregon State University | OSU Corvallis Oregon Portland State University | PSU Portland Oregon Warner Pacific University Portland Oregon Carnegie Mellon University | CMU Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Cedar Crest College Allentown Pennsylvania Drexel University Philadelphia Pennsylvania Duquesne University Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Gannon University Erie Pennsylvania Haverford College Haverford Pennsylvania Immaculata University Immaculata Pennsylvania Indiana University of Pennsylvania | IUP Indiana Pennsylvania Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) Lincoln University Pennsylvania Penn State Brandywine Media Pennsylvania Pennsylvania State University | PSU University Park Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania | UPenn Philadelphia Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh | Pitt Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Point Park University Pittsburgh Pennsylvania St. Francis College | SFC Loretto Pennsylvania St. Joseph’s University | SJU Philadelphia Pennsylvania University of Scranton Scranton Pennsylvania Temple University Philadelphia Pennsylvania Thomas Jefferson University Philadelphia Pennsylvania Villanova University Villanova Pennsylvania West Chester University | WCUPA West Chester Pennsylvania Widener University Chester Pennsylvania Providence College Providence Rhode Island Rhode Island College | RIC Providence Rhode Island Roger Williams University | RWU Bristol Rhode Island University of South Carolina Aiken | USC Aiken Aiken South Carolina University of South Carolina | USC Columbia South Carolina Coastal Carolina University | Coastal Conway South Carolina University of South Carolina Upstate | USC Upstate Spartanburg South Carolina Augustana University Sioux Falls South Dakota South Dakota State University Brookings South Dakota University of South Dakota | USD Vermillion South Dakota Belmont University Nashville Tennessee East Tennessee State University | ETSU Johnson City Tennessee University of Memphis Memphis Tennessee Middle Tennessee State University | MTSU Murfreesboro Tennessee Tennessee State University | TSU Nashville Tennessee Tennessee Technological University | Tennessee Tech Cookeville Tennessee Union University Jackson Tennessee Texas A&M University-Commerce Commerce Texas University of Houston Houston Texas Howard Payne University | HPU Brownwood Texas St. Edward’s University Austin Texas University of St. Thomas (Texas) Houston Texas Sam Houston State University | SHSU Huntsville Texas University of Texas at Austin | UT Austin Austin Texas Texas Tech University | TTU Lubbock Texas Utah State University Logan Utah Bennington College Bennington Vermont Champlain College Burlington Vermont Middlebury College Middlebury Vermont University of Vermont | UVM Burlington Vermont George Mason University Fairfax Virginia Hampton University Hampton Virginia James Madison University | JMU Harrisonburg Virginia Liberty University Lynchburg Virginia University of Richmond University of Richmond Virginia Shenandoah University Winchester Virginia University of Virginia | UVA Charlottesville Virginia Evergreen State College Olympia Washington University of Puget Sound Tacoma Washington Seattle Pacific University | SPU Seattle Washington Seattle University Seattle Washington Washington State University | WSU Pullman Washington University of Washington Seattle Washington Whitworth University Spokane Washington West Virginia University | WVU Morgantown West Virginia St. John’s College | SJC (New Mexico) Santa Fe New Mexico Soka University of America Aliso Viejo California California State University Channel Islands | CSU Channel Islands Camarillo California Notice a school that’s missing? Email us and let us know! Before assessing your chances of attending a college holistically, you’ll need to know how you stand academically. This is because many selective schools use the Academic Index to filter out applicants based on select criteria. This is the admissions committees’ way of ensuring you’re academically comparable to previously accepted students and that you’ll be able to rise to the challenge of their school’s curriculum. There are also qualitative components of your application that help determine your fit with the school, namely, your essays and extracurricular profile. Each school has its own culture, which is an amalgamation of factors like their traditions, staff, learning environment, resources, and reputation. Admissions officers are looking for students who would fit into the school community. Trying to determine your chances of attending a college based on this holistic approach can be difficult. For expert input, we recommend you try our Chancing Engine (it’s free!). Unlike other chancing calculators, it takes into account a large portion of your individual profile, including academic stats and more qualitative factors like extracurriculars. We'll send valuable information to help you strengthen your profile and get ready for college admissions.Overview of the Liberal Arts Major
What to Look for in a College as a Liberal Arts Major
Living Learning Communities
Interdisciplinary Coursework
Archival Resources
Internship and Career Opportunities
List of All U.S. Colleges With a Liberal Arts Major
What Are Your Chances of Acceptance?
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