Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts

Earn your Liberal Arts Degree at SUNY Empire State College

student in discussion group

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Arts at SUNY Empire is perfect for students who are relentlessly inquisitive about the world, for students who thrive on understanding how things work, and for leaders who want to learn from the great thinkers, artists, and scientists of the past in order to create a just, inclusive, and exciting future.

The SUNY Empire Liberal Arts Program builds on a strong foundation of academic skills in areas like critical thinking, quantitative literacy, social responsibility, information literacy, and communication. Students can then work with our expert faculty mentors to build an individualized program that puts the student at the center of decisions.

The Liberal Arts Program is a flexible choice. It can be:

  • A ”completion” degree. Are you a student who has completed a significant amount of college work and wants to quickly move forward to a completed degree? SUNY Empire’s student-friendly transfer policies and expertise with evaluating prior learning make the Liberal Arts degree an attractive option for students who are returning to school after taking a break.
  • An issue-driven program. Are there issue you really care about? Do you want to know how your education can make a difference? Choose courses, residencies, and faculty closely connected to issues that you care about. Our individualized study option lets you work with a faculty member to create a course tailored specifically to your interests and goals.
  • A “Great Books” program. Do you want to understand the world around you in a deeper way? Work with your faculty mentor to identify classics in philosophy, history, cultural studies, art, literature, and politics from around the globe.

  • An employment readiness program. Are you interested in acquiring the skills employers are looking for? A solid liberal arts education at SUNY Empire provides students with the skills needed to become lifelong learners and adapt with the times or as you change careers.

    According to the Harvard Business Review:

    "Consistent with findings from six earlier surveys commissioned by AAC&U as part of its ongoing Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) initiative, employers overwhelmingly endorse broad learning and cross-cutting skills as the best preparation for long-term career success. The college learning outcomes they rate as most important are oral communication, critical thinking, ethical judgment, working effectively in teams, written communication, and the real-world application of skills and knowledge".Harvard Business Review, Sept. 2019
Student working on laptop

Admission

The admissions requirements for the B.A. in Liberal Arts will be the same as current undergraduate admissions requirements. The program will follow the college policy for granting prior learning (PLA) credits to be among the 93 maximum transferable credits.

Students pursuing a B.A. in Liberal Arts must complete specific program requirements.

Contact Us

Administrative Assistant for the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Liza Rieger
914-948-6206 ext. 3589
liza.rieger@esc.edu

Coordinator for Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Studies
Cindy Conaway, PhD
cindy.conaway@esc.edu

Prospective Students

Prospective students should contact enroll@esc.edu.