Liberal Arts Major: In-Depth Career Guide

A liberal arts major is the "master key" of college degrees, offering a versatile credential for a vast range of career paths. Liberal arts career paths can lead into the private sector, public jobs, or non-profit work. Popular occupations include business management, media communications, counseling, and education.

Which Types of Jobs Are Available For Liberal Arts Majors?

A liberal arts major offers key transferable skills you can put to work across the economy. Look for jobs that prize abilities like:

• Communication
• Analysis of information and ideas
• Problem solving
• Management

A liberal arts background also cultivates skills such as the ability to learn, cultural literacy and sensitivity, and leadership.

It's not hard to find a job that draws on these core abilities. A sampling of liberal arts jobs spans the world of business, government, and non-profits:

• Arts administrator
• Marketing manager
• Art director
• Advertising associate
• Social worker
• Counselor
• Nonprofit director
• Teacher

Careers in liberal arts can take you in infinite directions. The benefit of liberal arts degrees is their breadth and latitude. This freedom is also the greatest challenge of the major. It's up to you to take the initiative to define your own career destiny. Often, this translates into a more aggressive job search and self-marketing, as well as a proactive, self-directed approach to your own career development. At the outset of your career, you may need to actively pursue learning experiences through internships and applied career training programs.

Formal Training Required to Work in Liberal Arts

A liberal arts college degree sets you up with a comprehensive foundation in the field. An associate's or bachelor's degree in liberal arts generally incorporates courses in these key areas:

• Humanities: arts, English, modern language, history, philosophy
• Social Sciences: anthropology, communication, geography, political science, psychology, sociology, women's studies, economics
• Sciences: biology, geology, and physics
• Mathematics: statistics, geometry
  

Graduates trade on this comprehensive background to forge paths in many different areas of the economy and civic life. Careers in liberal arts and related field generally require a college associate's or bachelor's degree, which take two or four years to complete. College degrees in liberal arts are available online to accommodate working professionals.

The Typical Career Path of Someone Majoring in Liberal Arts

A liberal arts major's career path may not be as straightforward as, say, a technical graduate. An accounting degree, for example, leads to an accounting associate job and eventually, a CPA job. A liberal arts degree, by contrast, can lead to any number of entry-level positions throughout private industry and public administration. The typical liberal arts path involves a period of career training, either through on-the-job training or through further formal training in an applied career skill.

Resources for liberal arts majors plotting their career path include:

• Internships: Test-drive a job while still in school by pursuing a temporary internship with a company, public agency, or nonprofit.
• Vocational certificates: If you have a specific career goal in mind, build your applied skill set by taking a formal training course or certificate in the field. For example, a liberal arts major can supplement their general education with applied courses in business marketing, technical writing, information technology, etc.
• Master's or professional degree: A graduate or professional degree can provide instant focus and career advancement. Popular degrees for liberal arts graduates include the MBA for business careers; the JD for law careers; and the MEd for teaching careers.

Since liberal arts majors tend to be intellectually curious, the emphasis on career exploration and continuing education are usually welcome attributes. A liberal arts career path tends to be rich and varied, with interesting twists and turns along the way.

Job Outlook and Salary Information for Someone Who Majored in Liberal Arts

Since liberal arts majors land in so many different careers, general salary information doesn't tend to shed much light on individual experiences. Here's a snapshot of some typical career paths available to liberal arts graduates:

• Marketing managers should experience moderate growth of 12 percent from 2008 to 2018. The median annual salary stood at $110,030 in 2009. An MBA in marketing is an asset in this career path.
• High school teachers should see opportunities grow with a high rate of retirement in coming years. Demand is highest for science and mathematics teachers. The median salary was $52,200 in 2009.
• Web writers should fare well in coming years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 15 percent growth for writers between 2008 and 2018. Writers earned a median annual wage of $53,900 in 2009.

A college liberal arts major is a ticket to careers across the economy. Write your own job description with this versatile professional credential.