2023 Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools
Finding the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate School for You
In 2020-2021, 556,813 degrees and certificates were awarded to liberal arts general studies students, making the major the most popular in the country.
There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 184 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best undergraduate certificate programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools in the United States
Check out the liberal arts undergraduate certificate programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 25 Top Schools for an Award Taking 1 to 4 Years in Liberal Arts General Studies
Our 2023 rankings named Northwestern University the best school in the United States for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Drexel University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools list. Drexel is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Vincennes University is a great place for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. Vincennes University is a fairly large public school located in the remote town of Vincennes.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at Vincennes University accumulate an average of around $17,426 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $105.
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Out of the 184 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, College of Western Idaho landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the rural area of Nampa, CWI is a public school with a large student population.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts majors at CWI take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $13,002.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Los Angeles Valley College is a great place for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. LAVC is a large public school located in the large city of Valley Glen.
On average, liberal arts graduates from LAVC take out $11,749 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.
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Metropolitan Community College - Kansas City came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the city of Kansas City, MCC is a public college with a fairly large student population.
On average, liberal arts graduates from MCC take out $12,382 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.
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College of Southern Maryland came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools ranking. CSM is a medium-sized public school located in the rural area of La Plata.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts majors at CSM take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $13,797.
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Cuesta College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. Cuesta College is a moderately-sized public school located in the small suburb of San Luis Obispo.
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Northern Virginia Community College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public school with a fairly large student population.
On average, liberal arts graduates from Northern Virginia Community College take out $11,909 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.
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With a ranking of #10, Owens Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. Owens State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Perrysburg.
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East Los Angeles College landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. East Los Angeles College is a very large public school located in the suburb of Monterey Park.
Liberal Arts majors at East Los Angeles College take out an average of $8,840 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.
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Utah Valley University landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. UVU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Orem.
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Ivy Tech Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts general studies students to get a undergraduate certificate. It came in at #13 on the list. Located in the city of Indianapolis, Ivy Tech Community College is a public school with a very large student population.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at Ivy Tech Community College accumulate an average of around $13,100 in student debt.
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Salt Lake Community College landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. Salt Lake Community College is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Salt Lake City.
Liberal Arts majors at Salt Lake Community College take out an average of $10,599 in student loans while working on their Undergraduate Certificate.
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Los Angeles Harbor College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts general studies students to get a undergraduate certificate. It came in at #15 on the list. LAHC is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Wilmington.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at LAHC accumulate an average of around $11,310 in student debt.
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Dakota College at Bottineau ranked #16 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the remote area of Bottineau, MSU-Bottineau is a public college with a small student population.
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Los Angeles City College ranked #17 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the city of Los Angeles, Los Angeles City College is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts majors at Los Angeles City College take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $12,202.
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With a ranking of #18, Regis University did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. Regis U is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Denver.
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Merced College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for liberal arts general studies students to get a undergraduate certificate. It came in at #19 on the list. Merced Community College District is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Merced.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at Merced Community College District accumulate an average of around $10,074 in student debt.
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McHenry County College landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. MCC is a moderately-sized public school located in the rural area of Crystal Lake.
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Chaffey College landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. Chaffey College is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Rancho Cucamonga.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at Chaffey College accumulate an average of around $9,073 in student debt.
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Santa Ana College ranked #22 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools list. Located in the large city of Santa Ana, SAC is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts majors at SAC take out while working on their Undergraduate Certificate is $10,545.
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William Rainey Harper College came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Palatine, Harper College is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Germanna Community College landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best undergraduate certificate liberal arts general studies programs. Located in the rural area of Locust Grove, Germanna Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
While working on their Undergraduate Certificate, liberal arts majors at Germanna Community College accumulate an average of around $11,912 in student debt.
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With a ranking of #25, Grayson College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts general studies students working on their undergraduate certificate. Grayson College is a small public school located in the rural area of Denison.
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Additional Noteworthy Schools
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 28 | Los Angeles Mission College | Sylmar, CA |
| 29 | Black Hawk College | Moline, IL |
| 30 | Central Arizona College | Coolidge, AZ |
| 31 | Elgin Community College | Elgin, IL |
| 32 | San Jose City College | San Jose, CA |
| 33 | Evergreen Valley College | San Jose, CA |
| 34 | NorthWest Arkansas Community College | Bentonville, AR |
| 35 | Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas | De Queen, AR |
| 36 | Yavapai College | Prescott, AZ |
Liberal Arts General Studies by Region
View the Best Liberal Arts General Studies Undergraduate Certificate Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Liberal Arts General Studies Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Liberal Arts
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
More about our data sources and methodologies.