Liberal Arts and Sciences

What it’s about:

The liberal arts and sciences major provides you with a well-rounded education in the sciences, humanities, mathematics, and languages. You gain the ability to reason critically, communicate effectively; and understand relationships across broad fields of knowledge. This generalist background prepares you for a wide range of endeavours rather than for a specific career.

What the study of this major is like:

If you enjoy learning and want to spend your college years exploring new idea rather than preparing for a specific career, you might consider majoring in liberal arts. The liberal arts program is typically offered only as an undergraduate major. Most liberal arts courses include a great deal of reading, writing, and discussion, and classes tend to be small.

As a liberal arts major, you will be required to study a wide range of subjects, some of which may be new to you or may be in areas in which you have not excelled in the past. Even though you might prefer studying literature, you will have to take classes in history and mathematics. Science lovers will have to take classes in poetry and music.

Most liberal arts programs have a required “core” – meaning you must take at least an introductory course in each of certain designated areas (although you usually have a choice of courses in each area). The areas include the fine arts (such as art history, music, drama); social sciences (economics, sociology, history); natural sciences (chemistry, biology); mathematics; humanities (literature, philosophy); and a foreign language. Some programs also require a semester of study abroad, or some other cross-cultural experience.

In addition to a core of required courses, you will likely be offered a wide range of electives from a wide range of subjects. You might find this freedom to choose very liberating; or you might find it confusing or intimidating. In either case, you would be wise to ask your academic adviser for help in designing a course of study that is relevant to your talents and interests.

Because the liberal arts program includes basic college subjects, you will meet students from many disciplines and be exposed to the perspectives of many academic areas. For the liberal arts major, college is an opportunity to discover and refine goals rather than to work single-mindedly on a predetermined regimen. This major allows you to be flexible with your schedule and to follow specific interests over several semesters in various related courses. Although your reading and writing assignments tend to be heavy, the variety of the subject matter keeps your work fresh and interesting. You will have opportunities to see connections between different subjects and to broaden and deepen your leading.

As a survey of college subjects, the major tends not to vary much, in emphases, requirements, and philosophies, from one college to another. The similarity will come in handy if you should want to transfer to another institution. At the two-year or community college level, students intending to continue on to a four-year college usually prefer this major. Generally, most of your liberal arts credits will be accepted at other colleges, and you will be well prepared for upper-level courses.

Career options and trends:

Teacher*; lawyer*; doctor; journalist*; filmmaker.

Career paths for liberal arts and science majors are wide open: they include journalism, teaching, business and industry, sales, social work, government, film, entrepreneurship-almost any area of human endeavour. The major is also an excellent foundation for an advanced or professional degree leading to careers in law, medicine, engineering, or teaching.

For liberal arts majors, the job outlook is positive, even in difficult times. Because the curriculum is flexible in terms of career preparation, graduates can take advantage of openings in the job market (including jobs that don’t even exist yet) that may be closed to others who are less broadly prepared.

Source: CollegeBoard 2012 Book of Majors