Liberal Arts At The Brink

the long version

Liberal arts colleges represent a tiny portion of the higher education market -- no more than 2 percent of enrollees. Yet they produce a stunningly large percentage of Americaʹs leaders in virtually every field of endeavor. The educational experience they offer -- small classes led by professors devoted to teaching and mentoring, in a community dedicated to learning -- has been a uniquely American higher education ideal. Liberal Arts at the Brink is a wake-up call for everyone who values liberal arts education. A former college president trained in law and economics, Ferrall shows how a spiraling demand for career-related education has pressured liberal arts colleges to become vocational, distorting their mission and core values. The relentless competition among them to attract the "best" students has driven down tuition revenues while driving up operating expenses to levels the colleges cannot cover. The weakest are being forced to sell out to vocational for-profit universities or close their doors. The handful of wealthy elite colleges risk becoming mere dispensers of employment and professional school credentials. The rest face the prospect of moving away from liberal arts and toward vocational education in order to survive. -- Publisher description.