Poll Suggests Challenges for Liberal Arts Colleges

A survey of 418 high school seniors by Art & Science Group, which advises colleges on their admissions strategies, finds liberal arts colleges may be better understood than some fear, but they aren't attractive with prospective college students. The poll found that most of the students associated liberal arts colleges with qualities the colleges themselves promote (class discussions, close faculty-student interaction, etc.). But when students were given descriptions of colleges (identical except for whether or not "liberal arts" was included in the profile), they rated hypothetical colleges using the term "liberal arts" lower than they rated those that did not.