Ask twenty people what they think about the term "liberal arts education," and you'll likely get twenty different responses, and those responses will probably contain as many misconceptions as facts. Let's clear up the myths:
All liberal arts students are politically liberal. False. Students of all political beliefs graduate with liberal arts degrees. The word "liberal" in liberal arts has nothing to do with politics. It's rooted in the Latin term "artes liberalis," in which "artes" referred to the general skills that a "free person" (liberalis) needed to master in order to contribute meaningfully to society.
Math and science aren't liberal arts subjects. False. Chemistry, physics, astronomy, and mathematics are all liberal arts disciplines. Many people assume otherwise because these fields also fall under the STEM umbrella; however, from the Middle Ages until today, these subjects have been included in the liberal arts as well. The liberal arts also encompass the humanities (English, theater, music) and the social sciences (economics, history, psychology). College majors focused on preparing for a specific career, such as engineering, nursing, or business, are generally not considered liberal arts degrees.
You can only get a liberal arts degree from a small college. False. You can get a liberal arts education at many different institutions, from small liberal arts colleges to large research universities. Many people mistakenly believe liberal arts studies are confined to smaller liberal arts colleges. In fact, every major American research university offers extensive undergraduate programs across a variety of liberal arts disciplines. Nearly all research universities, from large publics to elite privates, have an undergraduate liberal arts college.
A liberal arts degree doesn't prepare you for a specific career. Maybe. A liberal arts education is not designed to prepare students for one specific career path, but that doesn't mean it leaves graduates without marketable skills. Critical thinking, written and verbal communication, research, and problem-solving are all skills that liberal arts programs cultivate and that employers across nearly every field value. Many liberal arts graduates also find that the flexibility of their degree allows them to pivot between careers or industries more easily than graduates with narrowly focused training. That said, a degree alone isn't enough. Like all college students, liberal arts majors should seek out internships, work experience, and extracurricular activities to help build their resumes and gain practical, real-world experience.
Liberal arts majors all end up working at Starbucks. False. Just ask liberal arts majors who went on to become CEOs of Goldman Sachs, Whole Foods, HBO, Disney, Hewlett-Packard, American Express, and Merck, among many others. (The longtime CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, was also a liberal arts major.) The Hamilton Project, an economic policy initiative of the Brookings Institution, analyzed data from the National Center for Education Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau and found that liberal arts majors work across all sorts of careers and industries, including science and technology.
Liberal arts majors have skills employers want and need. True. Research shows that employers value the types of skills that liberal arts studies foster. In one study conducted by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), 91% of employers surveyed agreed that when hiring recent college graduates, a demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than a specific college major. These are precisely the skills a liberal arts education is designed to build. Liberal arts majors should be just as intentional about career preparation as students in more career-oriented majors. This means connecting with career services early on, seeking out internships, co-ops, and applied learning opportunities, attending professional development panels, and actively networking, all while taking advantage of the scheduling flexibility a liberal arts education typically provides.
Liberal arts majors don't make as much money as engineering or business majors.
It depends. How much any individual earns over a career is shaped by career choice, experience, location, employer, and personal drive; no two graduates in any major earn the same. Engineering majors do tend to land the highest average starting salaries among all degree holders, and some liberal arts majors start below the median for college graduates overall. However, research from the AAC&U and other studies shows that while some graduates with liberal arts degrees start at lower income levels, their income tends to increase at a faster rate over time, closing much of the initial gap.
Want to explore typical career paths and salary data for your major? The Hamilton Project offers an interactive tool based on census data showing the most common careers pursued by graduates in over seventy undergraduate majors, along with median salary comparisons over the course of a career.