I get this question all the time:  What exactly is a liberal arts college anyway and how does that kind of education differ from any other?  Well, this week, we have a terrific response and great insight to the benefits of a liberal arts education right here.

Jeff Rickey, VP and Dean of Admissions at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York, offers an insider’s look at the kind of education you can expect at a liberal arts college. Jeff was also Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid at Earlham College in Indiana and George Fox University in Oregon.  He is active in many national organizations for college admissions and a huge advocate for students.  Thanks, Jeff!

I wouldn’t work anywhere except at a liberal arts college!  And the reasons I have served those colleges are many of the same reasons students should consider them.

Your opportunities will be much broader than you think! Because you don’t have to be the expert or specialize in one activity, your actual experiences and activities will be broader than you first imagined.  You might end up playing in a gamelan ensemble, joining in a cricket match, representing the new country of South Sudan at a Model United Nations conference, or participating in a writers’ workshop with a Pulitzer prize winner.

You will get to know more people, and more who are very different from you! Because the number of students will be smaller, likely fewer than 3,000 instead of 10,000 or more, you will get to know more.  It is likely you will see some of the same students throughout the day as you see them in class, in the dining hall, in the wellness center, the library, and in your residence hall.  You will get to know more students who are different from you, because at a small college it is more difficult to confine your socializing, living, and learning to others of your own race, class, religion, and interests.

You will learn to write, read, and think critically and be able to exercise those skills! At a liberal arts college you will have greater opportunities to write, discuss your reading, and critically think and express your ideas.  Why?  Because classes have fewer students in them, making it possible for your professor to read the writing she or he assigns you and providing you more opportunities to share your thoughts, ideas, and experiences.

You will be connected through common experiences, rather than through a common name.  Graduates of large universities often find themselves connected solely through the name of the university.  They rarely have shared common experiences, or even had the same professors.  When graduates of liberal arts colleges meet they immediately connect by comparing their common experience at their school and can converse for hours about faculty they had in common.

Consider the features and benefits of a liberal arts college.  It is a complete education!

If you have questions, let us know at askjohnaboutcollege@gmail.com.  Thanks again, Jeff!