What Are Disadvantages of a Liberal Arts Education?

By Staff Writer | Last Updated August 4, 2015

The disadvantages of a liberal arts education include lack of preparation for employment. The lack of focus on the development of technical skills and real-world experience means that liberal arts students may still need to learn basic job skills outside of their curricula to be marketable and employable.

Liberal arts programs provide students with a broad and general education that covers different areas of thought, including math fundamentals, history, social science, life sciences, humanities and fine arts. However, these programs often do not provide a significant depth of experience and study in any one area. Because of this, there may not be the opportunity to learn and develop any particular technical skills to a proficient level. Liberal arts graduates then find themselves without the entry-level skills required for professional jobs.

Students that do choose to pursue a liberal arts education may benefit from completing a certificate, minor or second major in a technical education area. These students may also consider an academic plan that includes a significant amount of work in internship positions. The goal of these experiences is to counter the disadvantages of the general education and benefit from the marketability of a formal education in a skills-based area.