What is the difference between liberal arts and fine arts

Liberal arts majors often know how to connect with others and can excel at adding the "human touch" to whichever field they enter.

You can look forward to entering a number of careers in business, government, education and healthcare thanks to the transferable skills a liberal arts education provides. Below are some popular majors and career paths you can consider. With a communication degree , you can learn key skills to work in industries such as journalism, public relations, advertising and more.

Coursework in public speaking and graphic design helps you come to work prepared to deliver presentations, create publications and reports, and convey messages through digital media. Learn what else you can do with a communications degree. English majors specializing in English language and literature take courses in history, social science and literary theory and are prepared for jobs as writers, historians or museum curators. With related paths such as a bachelor's in creative writing or journalism, you can focus on storytelling in nonfiction, news, fiction, screenwriting or poetry genres.

The curriculum is also designed to prepare you for jobs in public relations, film, theater and advertising, to name a few. Learn what else you can do with an English degree. Understanding the past is key to helping organizations interpret significant historical events and prepare for the future. Drawing upon your strong research and analytical skills, you may be able to work as a curator, historical interpreter or policy advisor with the help of a history degree.

Although history majors often work in politics, they are also qualified to work in other roles in business, journalism, law or education. A major in history can prepare you for law school, as well. Learn what else you can do with a history degree. The study of the human mind, a psychology degree focuses on human behavior and how to apply concepts to social and organizational issues that affect us globally.

You can look forward to pursuing roles in human resources, market research and social services. Some jobs in the field include:. Learn what else you can do with a psychology degree. Focused on social behavior and how people behave in groups, sociology coursework includes history, religion, geography and social science research, to name a few. In this field, you can gain an understand of society's historical, economic and political issues and how people can work together to solve problems.

Roles open to sociology majors include jobs in social services, criminal justice or public health. Some positions in the field include:.

Learn what else you can do with a sociology degree. Pursuing a degree in the liberal arts helps you succeed in a fast-paced world that requires individuals to develop creative solutions today to solve the complex challenges of the future. Harvard Business Review looked at three books about how the humanities prepare students.

Soft skills are essential to being a good leader, communicator and critical thinker and are often developed in general education courses. The implications of a liberal arts background extend far beyond that, though.

Foreign languages teach another way to view language itself. This translates into an employee who can move seamlessly between computers, employers and customers, better understanding each perspective, limitations and needs.

Philosophy encourages logic and inquiry, which translates into an employee who effectively assesses unexpected situations. Basic math and science are also part of the traditional arts. The problem solving, analysis and observation skills established in those subjects are essential for a lasting career when artificial intelligence AI and other new technologies are causing future changes in the workplace. Consider this — the job market changes quickly, and the most in-demand skills in the future may very well be the humanities.

Automation and AI are affecting more and more industries. But skills like critical thinking, relationship-building and storytelling resist automation and will continue to be needed in the workforce. And yet, competencies developed through foundational subjects, such as getting a liberal arts degree, matter more than ever.

Automation and AI have limits because of unanticipated nuances to a task or its human and emotional elements. AI needs capable humans to manage and pull the best from it. AI is being used to a remarkable effect in nearly every sector. A virtual claims adjuster can even minimize fraud as it handles settlement and payment following an accident.

And yet, a frightened driver calling their car insurance company from a ditch on the side of the highway wants to speak to a human.

That customer service representative must be able to listen sympathetically, gather the relevant information and clearly instruct the driver on immediate next steps. At that moment, the insurance company needs employees with problem-solving and communication skills.

But rather than replace the nurses and office administrators, this automated capability frees them to focus on what they do best — educating patients and providing unique support and communication. Pressure to compete for STEM careers continues to grow in a world increasingly supported by and reliant on technology. Liberal arts studies emphasize enduring skills in an era when technology and automation will increasingly replace workers, according to Dr.

Soft skills are still relevant in the workplace, and students who can demonstrate their creativity in areas such as writing, communication, critical thinking and collaboration, will continue to be attractive to employers.

There is a growing trend for experts in the "digital humanities," who can bring digital resources into their research, teaching and publishing to make scholarship more accessible to others, Lahti said. Although they're well-equipped for many different roles, liberal arts majors may have a less clear-cut road to the perfect job than some graduates.

Here are some suggestions for liberal arts majors entering the job market. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Interested in starting a new job or advancing in your current field? An Associate of Arts AA degree can give you the broad-based education and in-demand career skills you need to reach your goals. Learn more about earning an AA degree and what you can do with one. A communications major is a great way to prepare yourself for a career in fields ranging from media relations and journalism to marketing, corporate communications and many more.

Loretta Gray started her college career in , but finances took her away shortly after. Little did she know, her husband and SNHU were planning a special diploma delivery for her. A liberal arts degree offers foundational knowledge across many different subject areas. Liberal arts students will find themselves exposed to ideas and topics that range from art to science and math. Regional accreditation applies to the entire school, and the United States is divided into six regions, each of which are handled by a different accreditation body.

All of these are respected accrediting bodies, and courses from colleges they accredit are generally transferrable. In addition to regional accreditation, program-level accreditation is available for liberal arts colleges from the American Academy for Liberal Education AALE.

AALE seeks to ensure the quality of liberal arts education by recognizing schools and programs that meet certain standards. Two-year programs will consist of a core area of study, the fundamentals that students get in the first two years of a traditional university. Students will take the specialized, upper-division courses that prepare them for professional work in their chosen field, or for further graduate study.

There are many reasons students go on to graduate study: to earn a higher salary and status in their careers; to become experts in a more specialized, competitive field; or to prepare to teach at a secondary or college level. Students at the graduate level are expected to be more self-motivated, driven, and committed than in undergraduate, because graduate study is usually much more demanding and challenging.

The traditional name can be confusing, as it is applied across disciplines, not just for the philosophy major. It is the most specialized and most challenging liberal arts degree, and can take anywhere from 3 to 7 years of post-undergraduate work to complete.

In addition to regular liberal arts majors, where the major is actually called liberal arts, there are other degrees that are typically considered to be liberal arts majors. For example, psychology is a liberal art. If a student wants to become a psychologist, doctoral-level education is required.

So what determines whether a degree is a liberal arts degree? By definition, it is a multidisciplinary degree program that focuses more on the development of the student than on preparation for a job or career. Consider the liberal arts degrees on this list: American studies, classics, history, humanities, sociology, English literature, philosophy, social science, religious studies, and art history. None of these teach hard job skills. Instead, they teach students how to think and communicate more clearly.

Top 50 Best Value Undergraduate Schools. Top 50 Best Value Graduate Schools. Kiplinger recently published a report on the best and worst liberal arts majors for your career.

They evaluated several liberal arts degrees based on salary and the expected job growth outlook. The worst are foreign languages, linguistics, religious studies, and art history. Most students opt for a doctoral degree in a specific liberal art rather than getting a liberal arts PhD degree. The PhD is best suited for students who are sure they want to teach as college professors.

However, these students should consider having a backup plan. These are good choices for liberal arts graduates. Are you trying to choose between a liberal arts degree and a business degree?

Why not get both? There are several ways students can prepare for a business career while studying liberal arts. One option to choose a BA in business administration over a BS. The BA degree typically includes more humanities and other courses that are considered part of a liberal arts curriculum.

Another option is to choose a liberal arts college. Liberal arts schools usually offer a more holistic approach to traditionally scientific or career-oriented degrees. Combining a liberal arts education with business offers the best of both worlds. The student learns important human skills such as critical thinking and collaboration, but also gains the practical skills needed to succeed in the business world.

Online programs are a good choice for adult students with busy lives. The flexibility of an online liberal arts program enables students to fit their classes around their work schedules and other commitments. In some cases, online students may be required to attend certain sessions, such as orientation, in person. However, most schools do not require this.

The main difference between an online and a residential degree program is fairly obvious: human contact. As little as five years ago, most experts would have advised against getting a liberal arts or humanities degree online, because communication and relationship-building are often key components of a liberal arts education. As a rule of thumb, core courses and upper-division undergraduate courses may be preferable on-campus, since they are foundational and undergraduate students are still getting their sea legs, so to speak.

Undergraduate students may need the guidance and group motivation they get from residential programs. Most students feel more comfortable taking graduate courses online, since they already have the basics down and usually have more maturity and motivation than undergraduates. A residential graduate program does still have one advantage over online, however; networking is much more effective in person, and networking can be instrumental to finding employment after graduation.

Top 50 Best Value Online Schools. This is how colleges will determine your need, and how the federal government will determine how much grant and loan money you may be entitled to. Federal grants such as the Pell Grant offer students education funding with no strings attached; these are usually need-based.

Many undergraduate students choose to participate in the Federal Work Study program , which grants students money for tuition in exchange for part-time work in the college or university.

While they are not free money, they are usually manageable jobs that do not interfere with schoolwork. Most students end up taking out a student loan.

There are generally two types of loans: federal loans, and private loans. Federal loans tend to be low-interest, may be subsidized, and usually have more flexible payback options than private loans; private loans are administrated through private banks, usually have higher interest rates, and can be tougher to pay back. Working professionals who want to increase their credentials with a higher degree should look into tuition reimbursement. There are literally thousands of them being offered by schools, private companies, organizations, rotary clubs, and churches.

They are a gift, meaning they are free. Be sure to look into our Top 50 College Scholarships. These are the best of the best, check deadlines and apply early. Because the liberal arts emphasize transferable, generalist skills, career paths for liberal arts graduates are varied. Many graduates of general liberal arts undergraduate programs move on to graduate school in a more specific field of study such as Law or Business.

Others take an entrepreneurial route, using their knowledge to start their own business or service. Graduates in humanities fields such as English, history, and philosophy most often find themselves going into education, usually via graduate school.

Students who are attracted to the liberal arts are often the kind of people who like to chart their own course, and the liberal arts gives them the freedom to take that course in a lot of different directions. According to Forbes, graduates with liberal arts majors have plenty of job options. The publisher used a special search tool to scour job postings for liberal arts degree jobs, and the results it found were surprising. The top liberal arts and humanities jobs Forbes found in their study included positions such as business development manager, client service specialist, intelligence analyst, and project manager.

The most common liberal arts degree jobs are jobs that involve writing or politics. Many liberal arts graduates go on to become writers, editors, publicists, lobbyists, and politicians.

Some of the best jobs for liberal arts majors are positions such as city planner, grant writer, and anchorperson, all of which require excellent communication skills. A liberal arts degree can be a jumping-off point for entry into dozens of different career options. Liberal arts can even be useful in math and science jobs.