What is a Liberal Arts Education?
Despite what it sounds like, a liberal arts education has nothing to do with which direction you lean politically. It's also not centered around the fine arts. Instead, it provides knowledge and opportunities that can be applied to your everyday life.
So what does that mean? Don't worry, in this article, we answer the most common questions that students ask when looking into liberal arts colleges.
How is a liberal arts education different from other kinds of education?
In addition to courses required by your major, liberal arts courses expand your knowledge in history, social science, English, and other courses that give you lifelong skills to broaden your vocational options as well as your understandings. You'll also engage with the world in a completely different way than you would if you just took classes specific to your chosen major.
What are the benefits of a liberal arts education?
Having background knowledge in art, English, culture, history, mathematics and more could end up enhancing your future career in ways that you might not even begin to imagine. You'll graduate college feeling as if you received the knowledge of an additional major, simply because you were exposed to a greater understanding of how the world functions.
How will a liberal arts education help me find a job?
Employers seek individuals with the types of skills a liberal arts curriculum provides. These skills include strong writing, communication, problem solving and team building skills. Without general education courses, it is possible that you might not strengthen your abilities in some, or any, of these areas.
How would a liberal arts education affect my career path?
A well-rounded education teaches multiple skillsets and gives you a variety of opportunities to become successful in more than just one area. Let’s say you choose a major, graduate and get a job in that field. A few years down the road, you decide you want to pursue a new avenue in life. Due to your liberal arts foundation, you will be better prepared to transition into this new career because your have a variety of transferable skills fit for the task.
The skills and experiences that you gain are timeless and can be applied and carried throughout your life. A liberal arts education prepares you for both a career and a lifetime of transitioning jobs and engaging the world, preparing you not only for life four years after college, but 24 years after college and more.
A degree centered in the arts and sciences
Bluffton University’s general education program includes four foundational courses called the Bluffton Blueprint to help you develop a core of resiliency for the changes that come with life. Additional courses, which you get to choose, help you build competencies in lifelong skills.