Top Liberal Arts Colleges

Liberal arts colleges allow students to develop an all round personality, thanks to their emphasis on general knowledge and a general curriculum, as compared to a college that offers education in a professional or technical field. Colleges in Europe laid the foundation for what we know as liberal arts colleges in the United States. The top colleges for liberal arts in the country impart education that makes undergraduates more aware about the various avenues available to them. Also, most liberal arts colleges provide students with more personal attention, with classes not being larger than 50 to 60 students, which is a factor that should be considered while determining how to choose a college. Despite the fact that a very small population of students graduate from liberal arts college, there is quite a percentage of representation of liberal arts college graduates in Peace Corps volunteers, Pulitzer prize winners and even US presidents. So, if you want to get into one of the top colleges for liberal arts in the country that will allow you this personalized attention and generalized education enabling you to decide better, then you need to take a look at the list given below. You may also refer to career education, if you want more information about different educational courses and colleges in various disciplines.

Top 10 Liberal Arts Colleges

Amherst College
Located in Amherst, Massachusetts, Amherst College consistently ranks amongst the top liberal arts institutes in US. Established in the year 1821, Amherst is also one of the oldest educational institutes in the world. It is one of the most selective institutions, as categorized by the Carnegie Foundation. It has a semester system and the college closes its applications in January every year. The college turned coeducation in the year 1975.

Bowdoin College
A private liberal arts college, Bowdoin college with a student capacity of almost two thousand students, is located in Brunswick, Maine. Co-educational since 1971, the college has been consistently featured in the top 10 liberal arts colleges. The college has two semesters each year and offers 33 major courses. The college also has a coastal studies center in Maine.

Carleton College
Northfield, Minnesota is home to this liberal arts college, which was founded in 1866. It is a coeducational college with more than 1800 students and almost 200 faculty members. The college is one of the few top liberal arts universities that has a trimester system. The college was founded on land donated by two local businessmen and was supported by the Minnesota Conference of Congregational Churches.

Davidson College
Situated in Davidson, North Carolina, the college and the town are both named after Brigadier General William Lee Davidson, who was a commander in the Revolutionary War. The college has been built on land that was donated by Brigadier General Davidson. As a college, it is alma mater to 23 Rhodes Scholars. The college accepts around 1600 students.

Haverford College
The oldest college in the United States, which has an affiliation with Quaker philosophy of living, Haverford college is situated in Haverford, Pennsylvania. The college became co-educational only in the year 1980. Almost all the students at the college live on campus. One of the best liberal arts colleges in the country, it is also often described as one of the toughest colleges to get admission into.

Middlebury College
Middlebury, Vermont is home to Middlebury College. It has the distinction of being the first college in the United States to award a degree to an African-American student. It is also one of the oldest colleges to have turned coeducational, accepting women students in 1883, almost hundred years before most other colleges. The enrollment for the college stands at about 2,500 students.

Pomona College
Situated on the site of a hotel, Pomona is a part of the Claremont Colleges with five undergraduate and two graduate institutes and an enrollment of 1500 students. The college is situated in Claremont in California and consistently features among the top liberal arts colleges

Swarthmore College
Located in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College is one of the top colleges for liberal arts in the country, that admits as many as 1500 students. Another Quaker philosophy influenced college, Swarthmore, along with Haverford and Bryn Mawr, is a member of a Tri-college consortium ensuring cooperation between the colleges. This enables them to share resources like their library books and allows students to register in different courses across the institutions.

Wellesley College
The only single sex college in this list, Wellesley is a liberal arts college only for women, that was founded in the year 1875. It regularly features on the lists of not only the top liberal arts institutions, but also the top colleges in the country. Located in Wellesley, Massachusetts, it accepts more than 2,300 students.

Williams College
Williams College is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The college became a coeducational college only in the 1970s. The college has three divisions, 24 departments and two Master's degree programs. With as many as 315 faculty members, the student-teacher ratio is one of the best in the country. The college admits as many as 2000 students.

Making a decision about which college to go to is extremely difficult. Getting into an Ivy league school is, of course, something to be proud of, but it is equally important to understand that you may not get the same attention and exposure at these Ivy league colleges as at one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country. The importance of college education is well-known and it is important to make an informed decision about which college to go to.
By Tulika Nair
Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/top-liberal-arts-colleges.html