Where Are the Liberal Arts?

Responses to the College Student Experiences Questionnaire at each of five types of institutions (Selective Liberal Arts, General Liberal Arts, Comprehensive Colleges and Universities, Doctoral Universities, and Research Universities) and at four time periods (1983–86, 1990–91, 1993–96, and 1997–98) show that the percent of students majoring in the basic disciplines that are the foundation fields of liberal education (sciences, humanities, and social sciences) has decreased in the Selective Liberal Arts colleges and has recently increased in the Research Universities. As the gap in the percent of basic field majors has become smaller, so correspondingly student reports of activities and progress toward liberal education outcomes at Research Universities have become more similar to students' responses at Selective Liberal Arts colleges. Two questions are raised and discussed. How do these results relate to widespread critiques of liberal arts colleges and research universities? Are the results of this study representative of an important trend, or might they be due to a limited and possibly unrepresentative sample of students and institutions?