ICON+

Politics have little say when it comes to the Liberal Arts.

Still, many Singaporeans remain diplomatic. Warm hugs for getting into the ivies, thumbs up for the research institutions, and when the small, artsy colleges come into play – polite, but hardly-there nods.

And herein lies the problem: while the brand name schools (Harvard & Co) give you the prestigious degrees and make your grandparents very proud, liberal arts colleges have a more holistic approach to learning. In doing so, they provide high quality education that often exceeds the standards of other, more well known universities.

Unlike research and technical institutions, liberal arts schools prioritize general knowledge and capacity for intellectual thought. In this sense, they encourage students to pursue subjects beyond their intended courses of study.

To provide such opportunities, liberal arts colleges design specific curriculums for their students. These comprise of a variety of studies in literature, languages, philosophy, history, mathematics, and science. Along with their majors, students at liberal arts colleges are required to take classes in all of these subjects.

This dynamic approach, coupled with other occupational skills learned in the major, results in well-rounded individuals who are better adapted for today’s evolving and highly globalized society.

In other words – liberal arts colleges produce pre-law dance majors, astronomy-inclined poets; future engineers with minors in art history.

But these students are not confused or thinly spread; rather, they possess a broader world view, and multidisciplinary approaches to life. Their greater perspective gives them more opportunities, especially in their future careers.

Students with liberal arts backgrounds have more job options because they have acquired diverse skills. They also have an advantage when it comes to professional competition. For example, a student who pursues medical school as an Afro-American studies major may gain a unique edge over a typical biology student on the same path.

The United States National Survey of Student Learning confirms these ideas. Drawing from 16 institutions in 13 states, this organization conducted a five-year study on five liberal arts colleges, four selective national research universities, and seven regional colleges.  According to their results, liberal arts colleges possessed many advantages over research universities in several categories. These included: academic effort, cultural and interpersonal involvement, critical thinking, and success after college.

American author and college counselor Loren Pope further promotes liberal arts schools in his notable book, “Looking Beyond the Ivy League,” published in 2007. He writes, “Selectivity is not a measure of a good college.” He goes onto explain that research universities have overclouded reputations. In fact, many of the most successful men and women from the United States came from small liberal arts colleges like Pomona, Haverford, and Amherst.

These individuals have often attributed their success to the “ways of thinking” they developed in their respective institutions. They claim that classes in the humanities and sciences greatly contributed to their high achievements in life.

Of course, liberal arts colleges are not as large as universities, because they do not have graduate or other professional schools. This proves to be beneficial – after all, bigger is not always better.

High ranking liberal arts colleges like Williams and Swarthmore have smaller populations. As a result, they are able to allocate more of their resources and teaching material to undergraduate students. Oberlin and Harvey Mudd in fact specify on their official websites that they strongly emphasize undergraduate education.

So as you apply to the United States for further studies, keep an open mind.

Let the brand name schools sit on your list – but let the liberal arts colleges come, too.