What is a Liberal Arts Degree and What Can You Do With It?
A liberal arts degree covers a broad range of humanities and social science subjects with the goal of developing well-rounded critical thinkers. Students take courses across disciplines like English, history, art, philosophy, languages, psychology and more. This versatility is why liberal arts graduates thrive in our fast-changing job market. However, some still believe the myth that liberal arts majors struggle to find careers. This comprehensive 2600+ word guide will define liberal arts degrees, highlight valuable skills they build, and showcase the diverse career paths graduates pursue.
An Interdisciplinary Education
Liberal arts programs provide the opposite of narrow vocational training. Instead of specializing in one field, you will sample widely from topics as varied as literature, economics, political science, studio art and anthropology. Exploring different lenses to understand the world fosters creative, adaptive problem solving. Your flexible skill set will transfer across industries.
Over 4 years pursuing a Bachelor of Arts or Science, you will analyze topics from multiple angles. Class discussions encourage debate from different viewpoints. Research papers and projects let you dive deep into subjects you care about. This interdisciplinary approach teaches you how to:
- Communicate clearly and persuasively
- Understand context and cultural diversity
- Research thoroughly and evaluate information critically
- Construct logical arguments and defend ideas
- Collaborate across differences to solve complex issues
These essential skills are why 9 out of 10 employers say liberal arts grads have the dispositions and capabilities to succeed in their workplaces.
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Diverse Career Paths
With a liberal arts foundation, you can launch a career in almost any field from business to government, media, technology or social services. Your breadth of knowledge and transferable abilities open up options.
Here are some top jobs taken by recent liberal arts graduates:
Media and Communications
- Content writer
- Social media manager
- Editor
- Journalist
- Marketing specialist
Museums and Galleries
- Curator
- Fundraising Director
- Education Program Manager
- Exhibit Designer
Government and Non-Profits
- Policy advisor
- Campaign manager
- Lobbyist
- Grant writer
Business and Technology
- Human resources manager
- Project manager
- Sales representative
- Brand strategist
- Product designer
Social Services
- Counselor
- Teacher
- Social worker
- Child welfare advocate
And this is just a small sample! Those who wish to specialize further can pursue advanced degrees in fields like law, medicine, business, education and more.
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The Ongoing Value of Liberal Arts
Critics of studying the humanities and social sciences argue college should have a narrow vocational focus tailored to current workplace needs. They believe liberal arts encourages frivolous intellectual exploration at the expense of professional preparedness. Some even perpetuate the outdated stereotype of liberal arts graduates ending up working in coffee shops.
In reality, studying liberal arts does align with many of today‘s most in-demand jobs according to LinkedIn. Communication skills top the list across all industries – and studying literature, linguistics and writing hone precisely those abilities. Employers also need adaptable problem-solvers to meet new challenges, which a liberal arts education purposefully develops.
Looking at outcomes data also rebuts the myth of liberal arts struggles. A Georgetown University study shows unemployment is low for recent liberal arts graduates at around 5%, on par with chemistry, business and nursing majors. Early career salaries trailed natural sciences and engineering – but exceeded nutrition, retail and several other majors.
Mid-career salaries showed notable growth, especially for liberal arts majors who earned advanced degrees. And crucially – separate Gallup research found over 80% of liberal arts graduates described themselves as deeply interested in their current work.
So in an economy where few expect to work for a single company long-term, the passion liberal arts ignites may have more career value than pre-professional degrees. Busting misconceptions with facts remains critical.
Developing Entrepreneurial Mindsets
Beyond equipping employees, studying liberal arts also cultivates entrepreneurial mindsets. By exploring wide-ranging ideas and taking creative risks, students learn to start their own innovative ventures.
Recent college founders with liberal arts backgrounds include:
- Amanda Southworth of software platform Verena Solutions (Politics)
- Sahil Lavingia of ecommerce startup Gumroad (English)
- Henrique Dubugras of financialtech leader Brex (Math)
Southworth has specifically spoken about her interdisciplinary coursework sparking her interest in technology policy issues. And Brex‘s Dubugras credits his well-rounded education for nurturing creativity beyond pure technical skills.
This ability to link human insight across fields drives invention. So policy reformers should ensure higher education includes space for intellectual exploration, not just narrow pre-professional tracks. The future health of industries depends on it.
Key Benefits of Liberal Arts Degrees
Beyond preparing you for diverse careers, studying liberal arts offers personal growth and life-long learning skills. The advantages include:
1. Develop Versatile, Transferrable Abilities
A computer science grad may have excellent coding abilities. But programming languages change constantly. The well-rounded critical thinking and communication skills from a liberal arts degree will never become obsolete. You gain the flexibility to adapt across roles and industries.
2. Unlock Creativity for Branding Yourself
Rather than slotting into traditional job paths, creative self-starters use multi-faceted talents to stand out. Build a writing blog sharing your interests. Launch an inclusive arts collective. Found a nonprofit to address overlooked social issues. Liberal arts grads aren’t afraid to create their own opportunities.
3. Gain Social Awareness and Responsibility
Exploring anthropology, sociology and ethics grows your capacity for understanding different cultures and perspectives. You will consider complex social dynamics and your own civic responsibilities in communities. These lessons nurture conscientious, engaged citizens.
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Advice for Thriving as a Liberal Arts Major
Pursuing a liberal arts degree offers amazing latitude for charting your own course based on passions. But students should strategically supplement their intellectual freedom with practical experience and targeted career development.
Choose Courses Aligned With Interests
Balance required credits across disciplines with electives delving deep into subjects you love. An English major fascinated by linguistics can study foreign languages and psycology too. Mix it up based on what engages your curiosity and where you might apply knowledge.
Seek Internships and Voluteer Opportunities
Career exploration comes through real-world experience. Spend summers interning at a museum to try out art curation or work for a policy nonprofit to taste government affairs. Follow interests through short-term jobs and volunteering while networking.
Analyze In-Demand Skills to Showcase Adaptability
Reference resources like the LinkedIn Jobs on the Rise list and Burning Glass skill reports to see where your abilities align with employer needs. Show how a philosophy major’s critical thinking or a linguistics focus on data analysis applies.
Tell Your Story Powerfully on Resumes and in Interviews
Liberal arts students must intentionally connect the dots for employers about their talents. Learn to write highly compelling resumes highlighting research, communication abilities and other relevant skills. Prepare professional narratives explaining your personal passion and purpose.
Network Creatively Across Sectors
Attending narrowly targeted job fairs may provide limited options. Instead, put yourself in rooms with diverse leaders by volunteering for committees or cultural organizations aligned with social issues you care about. Schedule informational interviews and ask for introductions from professors or family friends working in fields of interest.
Following this well-rounded approach will help unlock possibilities. The key is undertaking some career planning, even as you retain college’s freedom to explore intellectually.
Prominent Liberal Arts Graduates
Examining individual stories of prominent leaders with liberal arts backgrounds provides inspiring examples of just what this versatile degree can enable.
Lisa Jackson – EPA Administrator
Lisa Jackson served as Environmental Protection Agency Administrator overseeing critical Obama-era regulations. She attributes her chemical engineering degree with providing scientific literacy, while a subsequent Master‘s focused on policy analysis. This pairing prepared her to evaluate impacts on economics and public health while grounding decisions in research. Jackson now leads environmental programming for Apple, bringing an interdisciplinary lens.
Susan Hockfield – Harvard President
Neuroscientist Susan Hockfield became the first life scientist appointed President of Harvard University in 2004. She pursued doctoral research after realizing her early liberal arts education lacked crucial exposure to experimentation. This motivated efforts as president to encourage more students to experience hands-on science. Her tenure also expanded the arts on campus for balanced learning.
Darren Walker – Ford Foundation President
Current Ford Foundation President Darren Walker oversees $16 billion in endowments funding worldwide social change efforts. He drew on his urban studies degree‘s interdisciplinary social justice lens in prior work revitalizing Harlem. This community engagement taught him how supporting housing, jobs and culture together enables neighborhoods to flourish – a lesson influencing funding strategies.
These leaders showcase how liberal arts offered academic freedom to discover their own pathways. Their circuitous routes developed multidisciplinary perspectives shaping impact today. This degree can launch public service and social impact careers – not just creative industries.
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The Value of Liberal Arts Thinking to Society
A revival of civics education with roots in the liberal arts would serve America’s divided democracy. Analyzing debates on free speech, voter rights or immigration reform through historical and sociocultural lenses provides context for compromise. And literary stories nurture empathy across difference. Revitalizing societal commitments to the human pursuits that most deeply define shared humanity can heal fissures.
Leaders must make that case even amid calls for education’s primary economical purpose to prepare workforces. A Pew poll found 60% of adults want increased civic education and news literacy for K-12 students. And desperate cries for unity suggest humanities matter more than ever.
Policies should therefore incentivize higher education’s role in advancing the soul of democracy. Expand funding for intercultural liberal arts programs bridging divides. Include humanities scholars on policy advisory boards. Challenge technology to uplift civic dialogue. Truth and reason remain the cornerstones of justice.
We all have a responsibility to nurture these lasting values in future generations – while preparing them for life’s practical realities too. College, when pursued as more than just career training, offers a critical window for both intellectual awakening and skill building. Graduates who embrace this privilege will lead lives of purpose and rewarding work.
Conclusion – An Investment With Lasting Rewards
Pursuing a liberal arts degree provides no guarantees about specific job titles after graduation. But the skills and qualities it cultivates promise something more valuable – adaptability and purpose for navigating lifelong changes. You gain communication talents attuned to understanding human needs, analytical abilities to explain complex challenges, and creativity for problem solving. This toolset transfers across future careers.
By exploring journalism, neuroscience and environmental ethics alike, you will uncover unexpected passions. Through late night dorm debates over politics, philosophy and the meaning of life, your perspectives expand. Failures in interpreting literature teach perseverance. Feedback from admired professors builds confidence speaking truth. Over four years, discovering your talents by testing theories and reflecting on experiences prepares you to continually reinvent ambitions.
That personal development mindset is the liberal arts true lasting impact. Yes, some peers may enter lucrative fields sooner from pre-professional degrees. But after riding early waves of success, how many wind up stuck on career tracks aligned more with parent pressures than internal values? Alternatively, how many meanderings trying on ill-fitting roles over decades could be shortened by college exploring integrated interests woven to life calling?
Liberal arts graduates‘ agility to pivot between opportunities pays dividends over time. So rather than fixating on imagined ideals about dream jobs before having lived much life at all, use the undergraduate adventure to uncover what energizes you intellectually and socially. Follow that purpose and the career manifestations will unfold.
