2023 Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools
Finding the Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities School for You
With 556,813 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, liberal arts / sciences and humanities is the #3 most popular major in the United States.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. This report analyzed 1,148 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Schools in the United States
Check out the liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 25 Top Schools in Liberal Arts & Humanities
Our 2023 rankings named American Public University System the best school in the United States for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the fringe town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at American Military University accumulate an average of around $5,688 in student debt.
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Out of the 1,148 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Massachusetts Institute of Technology landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, MIT is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from MIT take out $12,000 in student loans while working on their degree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $663, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Excelsior College. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools list. Excelsior College is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Albany.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Excelsior College carry an average student debtload of $10,134.
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Out of the 1,148 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Northwestern University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Evanston.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Northwestern carry an average student debtload of $17,905.
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The excellent programs at Bentley University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best liberal arts / sciences and humanities schools in the United States. Bentley is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Waltham.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Bentley carry an average student debtload of $26,000.
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North Carolina State University landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. NC State is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Raleigh.
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at NC State take out an average of $26,750 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Columbia Southern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #7 on the list. Located in the town of Orange Beach, Columbia Southern University is a private for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Columbia Southern University accumulate an average of around $15,714 in student debt.
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Brandman University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #8 on the list. Brandman is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Irvine.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Brandman carry an average student debtload of $21,000.
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With a ranking of #9, National University did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the city of La Jolla, National University is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at National University accumulate an average of around $19,094 in student debt.
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University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee Flex landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. UWM Flexible Option is a fairly small public school located in the city of Milwaukee.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at UWM Flexible Option take out is $11,000.
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Georgetown University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Georgetown take out $23,250 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #12, Northwest Iowa Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the rural area of Sheldon, Northwest Iowa Community College is a public school with a small student population.
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at Northwest Iowa Community College take out an average of $11,204 in student loans while working on their egree.
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With a ranking of #13, The University of Texas at Austin did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. UT Austin is a very large public school located in the city of Austin.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at UT Austin accumulate an average of around $21,375 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $377.
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Columbia College came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools ranking. Columbia College Missouri is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Columbia.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Columbia College Missouri accumulate an average of around $23,451 in student debt.
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Anoka-Ramsey Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Coon Rapids, Anoka-Ramsey Community College-Coon Rapids Campus is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
The average amount in student loans that liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Anoka-Ramsey Community College-Coon Rapids Campus take out is $13,000.
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University of Maryland Global Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #16 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Adelphi, UMGC is a public college with a fairly large student population.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from UMGC carry an average student debtload of $15,681.
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With a ranking of #17, Mountwest Community and Technical College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Huntington, MCTC is a public school with a small student population.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at MCTC accumulate an average of around $13,329 in student debt.
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University of Notre Dame ranked #18 on this year’s Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools list. Notre Dame is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Notre Dame.
On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Notre Dame take out $22,824 in student loans while working on their degree.
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With a ranking of #19, Johns Hopkins University did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
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St Cloud Technical and Community College landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best liberal arts / sciences and humanities programs. St Cloud Technical and Community College is a small public school located in the small city of Saint Cloud.
On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from St Cloud Technical and Community College take out $14,250 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Drexel University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #21 on the list. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, Drexel is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Drexel carry an average student debtload of $29,666.
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With a ranking of #22, University of Missouri - Columbia did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Mizzou is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Columbia.
While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Mizzou accumulate an average of around $23,750 in student debt. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $278.
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Northland Community and Technical College came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools ranking. Northland Community and Technical College is a small public school located in the town of Thief River Falls.
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities majors at Northland Community and Technical College take out an average of $13,200 in student loans while working on their egree.
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With a ranking of #24, Johnson County Community College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Located in the city of Overland Park, JCCC is a public college with a large student population.
After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from JCCC carry an average student debtload of $10,000.
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With a ranking of #25, Central Texas College did quite well on this year’s best schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. Central Texas College is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized suburb of Killeen.
On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Central Texas College take out $7,126 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Additional Award Winners
This section shows the rest of the schools awarded a Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 1148 different United States liberal arts / sciences and humanities schools we analyzed.
Honorable Mentions
Here are some additional great schools for Liberal Arts & Humanities students that almost earned our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools award.
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities by Region
View the Best Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 / Sciences & Humanities Rankings
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Related Rankings by Major
Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Majors to Study
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Liberal Arts General Studies | 556,813 |
Most Popular Related Majors
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Visual & Performing Arts | 149,215 |
| English Language & Literature | 54,635 |
| Foreign Languages & Linguistics | 33,333 |
| Theology & Religious Vocations | 27,459 |
| Philosophy & Religious Studies | 19,993 |
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).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to Jacques Sablet (Switzerland, Morges, 1749-1803).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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