Can Study of the Liberal Arts Prepare Both Effective Leaders and Productive Citizens?

Abstract

Advocates for the centrality of the liberal arts in the undergraduate curriculum frequently argue that the liberal arts ought to be studied because these fields prepare “leaders” more effectively than the study of professional or technical fields. Frequently, these claims focus on the breadth and perspective that the fields of the liberal arts are said to provide, on the skills of written expression and critical reasoning that they hone, and on the capacities that they engender, especially those that are transferable to other settings and uses. Ample evidence indeed shows that the study of the liberal arts can fulfill these purposes.