liberal arts

Liberal arts education (from Latin liberalis 'free' and ars 'art or principled practice') is a traditional academic course in Western higher education, which traditionally covers the natural sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. Liberal arts takes the term art in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. Liberal arts education can refer to studies in a liberal arts degree course or to a university education more generally. Such a course of study contrasts with those that are principally vocational, professional, or technical, as well as religiously based courses. The term liberal arts for an educational curriculum dates back to classical antiquity in the West, but has changed in meaning considerably, mostly expanding it. The seven subjects in the ancient and medieval meaning came to be divided into the trivium of rhetoric, grammar, and logic, and the quadrivium of astronomy, arithmetic, geometry, and music. However, there are hundreds of modern disciplines of study that now support modern professions and are traditionally recognised as liberal arts throughout academia. Some of the most popular liberal arts disciplines include: Anthropology, English, Literature, Fine arts, Foreign languages, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Music, Journalism, Economics, Law, Communications, Architecture, Creative arts, Art, and History, and the Formal and Natural Sciences. Degrees in Liberal studies are often confused with those in a liberal arts discipline. Liberal studies refers to degrees with a broad curriculum, across multiple liberal arts disciplines and/or sciences and technologies. Apart from the sciences, enrollment in liberal arts degree programs has been declining in the 2010s and 2020s in the United States, in part due to a perception of worse job prospects. As of 2023, liberal arts degrees holders in the United States had a median wage of US$60,000, as opposed to $70,000 for all degree holders. As a result, liberal arts colleges and schools are popularly rebranding themselves as more vague and encompassing areas of study, such as arts and social sciences, arts and sciences and humanities.