St. John's in the News
Graduates find value in a liberal arts education
Alumni of many of the nation’s finest liberal arts colleges, including St. John’s College, value their liberal arts education – both professionally and personally – a recent survey shows. The Annapolis Group, which represents 130 private liberal-arts colleges, released the findings of a national survey of college graduates.
Listen to WNPR’s “Where We Live: A Liberal Arts Education.” Christopher Nelson, president of St. John’s College, Annapolis, introduced by Philip Glotzbach, president of Skidmore College and chairman of the Annapolis Group, talks with other leaders in higher education about the enduring value of a liberal arts education.
According to the survey, alumni of Annapolis Group colleges reported the highest level of satisfaction with their undergraduate experience, as compared with graduates of other private colleges and graduates of top-ranked public universities.
Alumni of liberal arts colleges, such as St. John’s College, reported on various measures – from the quality of the learning experience to the nature of their engagement with faculty and peers, from the impact on intellectual and personal development to the value to their careers.
St. John’s graduates are prepared for a wide range of careers, and through the college’s distinctive liberal arts curriculum and small, discussion-based classes they refine their ability to think, write, and speak across all disciplines.
Among the study’s career-related findings:
- Seventy-six percent of liberal arts college graduates rated their college experience highly for preparing them for their first job, compared to 66 percent who attended public flagship universities;
- Eighty-nine percent of liberal arts college graduates reported finding a mentor while in college, compared to 66 percent for public flagship universities;
- Sixty percent of liberal arts college graduates said they felt “better prepared” for life after college than students who attended other colleges, compared to 34 percent who attended public flagship universities.
- Liberal arts college graduates are more likely to graduate in four years or fewer, giving them a head start on their careers.
Read Inside Higher Education and the Chronicle of Higher Education coverage on this survey and St. John's College Annapolis President Christopher Nelson's guest blog post on College, Inc. "In Defense of a Liberal Education."