Liberal Arts and Sciences

830 schools compared · Average earnings $27,616/yr

What Liberal Arts and Sciences Graduates Do

Your studies in humanities and sciences can lead to a career shaping minds in higher education. As a community college instructor, your days are focused on the classroom. You’ll craft engaging lectures, lead discussions on foundational texts, and spend afternoons in office hours, helping students one-on-one with their essays and research projects. At a four-year university, your role often expands to include original research, meaning you might spend your mornings teaching a seminar and your afternoons in the library archives, contributing new knowledge to your field by writing articles and books.

Most careers begin with part-time or adjunct teaching positions as you build credentials. With an advanced degree and experience, you can progress to a full-time professorship, which brings greater job security and a significant salary increase. Senior faculty can become department chairs or renowned specialists, commanding the highest earnings. The dynamic discussions and personal mentorship you provide in a classroom simply can't be replicated by software. This is a path for turning a passion for ideas into a stable, hands-on profession with steady demand.

Schools Offering
830
Avg Grad Earnings
$27,616/yr
Avg TradeSchoolOutlook Score
39/100
AI-Proof Rating
AI-Proof
84% of tasks AI-shielded

Best Schools for Liberal Arts and Sciences

Top 20 of 830 schools ranked by TradeSchoolOutlook Score. Click any row for full earnings projections and AI-proof analysis.

# School Score EarningsEarn ROI
1 Henry Ford College
Dearborn, MI
69
69–69
$51,663/yr 143.7x
2 Purdue University-Main Campus
West Lafayette, IN
68
69–68
$79,921/yr 79.0x
3 Mesa Community College
Mesa, AZ
65
65–65
$46,084/yr 104.2x
4 Santiago Canyon College
Orange, CA
64
64–64
$37,149/yr 197.2x
5 Los Medanos College
Pittsburg, CA
63
62–63
$35,283/yr 192.5x
6 Austin Community College District
Austin, TX
62
59–62
$38,436/yr 112.5x
7 Diablo Valley College
Pleasant Hill, CA
62
62–61
$35,813/yr 135.5x
8 East Los Angeles College
Monterey Park, CA
62
62–62
$33,628/yr 411.5x
9 San Diego Mesa College
San Diego, CA
62
62–62
$33,015/yr 444.0x
10 San Diego City College
San Diego, CA
62
62–62
$32,438/yr 342.9x
11 Columbia Southern University
Orange Beach, AL
61
61–61
$55,667/yr 56.0x
12 San Joaquin Delta College
Stockton, CA
61
60–61
$32,492/yr 174.3x
13 Luna Community College
Las Vegas, NM
61
61–61
$32,091/yr 266.0x
14 San Diego Miramar College
San Diego, CA
61
61–61
$31,804/yr 450.0x
15 Santiago Canyon College
Orange, CA
61
60–61
$31,050/yr 393.0x
16 Baltimore City Community College
Baltimore, MD
60
59–60
$41,120/yr 78.7x
17 Randolph Community College
Asheboro, NC
60
61–60
$40,145/yr 86.0x
18 Central Texas College
Killeen, TX
60
58–60
$39,731/yr 82.5x
19 Los Angeles Southwest College
Los Angeles, CA
60
60–60
$32,770/yr 154.4x
20 City Colleges of Chicago-Malcolm X College
Chicago, IL
59
60–58
$36,908/yr 83.3x

Highest Earning Liberal Arts and Sciences Programs

Schools where Liberal Arts and Sciences graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.

Best ROI for Liberal Arts and Sciences

Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Liberal Arts and Sciences.

School ROI Multiple Earnings Score
San Diego Miramar College 450.0x $31,804/yr 61
San Diego Mesa College 444.0x $33,015/yr 62
College of the Canyons 420.2x $28,886/yr 59
East Los Angeles College 411.5x $33,628/yr 62
Santiago Canyon College 393.0x $31,050/yr 61
Modesto Junior College 385.8x $25,984/yr 57
Santa Ana College 378.7x $27,782/yr 58
Shasta College 361.0x $20,031/yr 53
San Diego City College 342.9x $32,438/yr 62
Cabrillo College 333.5x $27,154/yr 58

Related Majors

Explore similar fields of study.

Considering a 4-Year Degree?

Compare the trade route with a bachelor's degree. See how Liberal Arts and Sciences degree programs stack up on earnings, AI disruption risk, and ROI.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the typical salary after a Liberal Arts and Sciences program?
Across 830 schools, Liberal Arts and Sciences graduates earn an average of $27,616 per year in their first year after completing the program. Earnings range from $6,992 to $79,921 depending on the school.
How safe is Liberal Arts and Sciences from automation and AI?
Liberal Arts and Sciences is rated "AI-Proof" for AI resilience — 84% of job tasks involve hands-on work shielded from AI automation. That means the vast majority of career tasks in this field rely on skills AI cannot replicate.
What's the top-ranked school for Liberal Arts and Sciences?
Based on the TradeSchoolOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), Henry Ford College ranks #1 for Liberal Arts and Sciences with a score of 69/100 and graduate earnings of $51,663/yr.
Is Liberal Arts and Sciences worth it?
Typical graduates earn 56.3 times what they paid in tuition within a decade. This is a strong return on investment. Look at per-school ROI in the table above — averages can mask significant variation.
Data from College Scorecard, Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024–2034, DOL RAPIDS, and AI resilience research. Methodology & sources →