A liberal arts education has been at the forefront of American education for the last several

years. In fact, American colleges have extensively emphasized the liberal arts education over more
traditional technical and professional training. This standard of education requires college students
to study a broad range of academic disciplines, ​such as literature, philosophy, history, and
mathematics. However, many scholars continue to argue that the concurrent study of different
disciplines fails to adequately prepare students for the realities they will face in the future.
Nevertheless, it is irrevocably true that the liberal arts education not only teaches students a variety
of critical thinking skills, but has the ability to supplement a student’s field of study by supplying
knowledge on a broad range of topics.

Undoubtedly, the liberal arts are essential to a quality education because they teach
students how to think critically about a broad range of topics, thus preparing them to tackle any
issue that might arise in the workplace. In today’s day and age, there are a wide variety of issues
and problems future graduates will face, both personally and professionally. And often times, a
technical education on a narrow field is simply not enough to successfully and efficiently tackle
problems. However, a liberal arts education exposes students to a great berth of topics and skills
that will allow them diligently tackle projects and business affairs, while leaving room for even
taking on matters on completely different disciplines.

Moreover, many types of professional studies are supplemented through different subject
areas. For example, business courses are enriched through the philosophical study of ethics. In fact,
many graduate schools suggest prospective students study a different field in contrast to the
program they may apply to. Some experts propose, for instance, a student who would want to go to
law school may study economics or political science rather than pre-law. Even in more rigorous
career paths like medicine, colleges beginning to suggest that pre-med students study a subject,
such as computer science, to meet the demands of an increasingly technological world. This
demonstrates that graduate schools want students to have skills necessary to succeed in a chosen
field – students who are adept in multiple disciplines, the liberal arts.

However, many academics argue that a liberal arts education actually fails to sufficiently prepare
students for the real world. They argue that studying a broad range of disciplines will not assist
anyone in being successful in their careers. Some even say that it is better to be a “master of one”
than a “jack of all trades”, as thorough expertise is needed in order to succeed in one’s career.
Despite that, a liberal arts education is statistically more convenient as the average person tends to
change career at least 5 times in their working lives. This goes on to show that interest of humans
fluctuate heavily for which the liberal education is quite fitting, allowing a potential career change
to be smoother, with the knowledge gained from different ranges of study.

In conclusion, it is evident that a liberal education is more suitable to professional studies in

allowing students to succeed after graduation. It not only introduces students to a variety of
concepts and critical thinking skills but is aligned with the fluctuability of human interests, allowing
individuals to make a career change with less risk. And although academics and scholars will
continue to argue the importance of the liberal arts versus a more traditional narrow approach to
education, one thing is for certain – the liberal arts curricula will continue to leave a big imprint on
education as a whole.