Doing College the Liberal Arts Way:
A Response to, ‘What do you do with a B.A. in history?’ Liberal Education is an approach to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change. Ken Saxon, a graduate student from Princeton, presents his ideas about students taking this approach to college in his writing titled, “What do you do with a B.A. in history?” It discusses how students with knowledge of the wider world are more prepared for life after college. A liberal education helps students develop intellectual and practical skills that they can use in any job field they may enter into after college. I agree with Saxon completely that students should take the liberal arts approach towards their …show more content…
As Saxon mentioned in his writing, employers are looking for candidates for employment that have: initiative, leadership skills, work ethic, communication skills, emotional intelligence, and interpersonal skills (Ramage, 2016, p. 437). In order to get these well rounded qualities, we must try new things. These new experiences will bring out qualities in ourselves that we didn’t know existed. A public speaking class may help develop communication skills or a legal class may help you develop a better sence of ethics. The Association of American Colleges and Universities believes that, “a liberal education is a practical education because it develops just those capacities needed by every thinking adult: analytical skills, effective communication, practical intelligence, ethical judgment, and social responsibility” (Greater Expectations, 2002). These are sustainable skills that can be taken to any future career. The most important thing for a student to figure out as a young adult is a sense of self, an identity. For many people, college is what helps them find their personal identity. How can we expect to find the right lifelong career if we cannot answer some even more import questions about ourselves first? Saxon addresses four import questions we should seek the answers to while in college in order to find our …show more content…
These are the things we should be thinking about and basing our decisions off of. A liberal arts approach to college is going to give us the tools we need to gain marketable skills, find our identity, and develop a better understanding of what we like and dislike. The real world is always changing and a well-rounded, liberal arts education is the only thing that will prepare us for that. A liberal education will help students develop intellectual and practical skills that they can use in any job field. Saxon is right, students should take the liberal arts approach towards their college
A Response to, ‘What do you do with a B.A. in history?’ Liberal Education is an approach to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change. Ken Saxon, a graduate student from Princeton, presents his ideas about students taking this approach to college in his writing titled, “What do you do with a B.A. in history?” It discusses how students with knowledge of the wider world are more prepared for life after college. A liberal education helps students develop intellectual and practical skills that they can use in any job field they may enter into after college. I agree with Saxon completely that students should take the liberal arts approach towards their …show more content…
As Saxon mentioned in his writing, employers are looking for candidates for employment that have: initiative, leadership skills, work ethic, communication skills, emotional intelligence, and interpersonal skills (Ramage, 2016, p. 437). In order to get these well rounded qualities, we must try new things. These new experiences will bring out qualities in ourselves that we didn’t know existed. A public speaking class may help develop communication skills or a legal class may help you develop a better sence of ethics. The Association of American Colleges and Universities believes that, “a liberal education is a practical education because it develops just those capacities needed by every thinking adult: analytical skills, effective communication, practical intelligence, ethical judgment, and social responsibility” (Greater Expectations, 2002). These are sustainable skills that can be taken to any future career. The most important thing for a student to figure out as a young adult is a sense of self, an identity. For many people, college is what helps them find their personal identity. How can we expect to find the right lifelong career if we cannot answer some even more import questions about ourselves first? Saxon addresses four import questions we should seek the answers to while in college in order to find our …show more content…
These are the things we should be thinking about and basing our decisions off of. A liberal arts approach to college is going to give us the tools we need to gain marketable skills, find our identity, and develop a better understanding of what we like and dislike. The real world is always changing and a well-rounded, liberal arts education is the only thing that will prepare us for that. A liberal education will help students develop intellectual and practical skills that they can use in any job field. Saxon is right, students should take the liberal arts approach towards their college