Liberal Arts & Humanities

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

What Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 & Humanities

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 & Humanities Programs

Schools where Liberal Arts & Humanities graduates earn the most in their first year after graduation.

Best ROI for Liberal Arts & Humanities

Schools with the highest earnings-to-tuition ratio for Liberal Arts & Humanities.

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 & Humanities degree programs stack up on earnings, AI disruption risk, and ROI.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the typical salary after a Liberal Arts & Humanities program?
Across 830 schools, Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 & Humanities from automation and AI?
Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 & Humanities?
Based on the TradeSchoolOutlook Score (combining earnings, AI resilience, job market size, and ROI), Henry Ford College ranks #1 for Liberal Arts & Humanities with a score of 69/100 and graduate earnings of $51,663/yr.
Is Liberal Arts & Humanities 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 →