WHY in the world did I choose a Liberal Arts Education!?!?

A Book Review of In Defense of a Liberal [Arts] Education by Fareed Zakaria

Fareed Zakaria hosts Fareed Zakaria GPS for CNN Worldwide and is a columnist for The Washington Post, a contributing editor for The Atlantic, as well as, a bestselling author. In his book, In Defense of a Liberal [Arts] Education, Zakaria stresses the importance of a well-rounded liberal [arts] education and, in turn, argues how a liberal education is valuable/beneficial due to gaining skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication.

In Chapter 1, the author discusses his own experience of moving from the education system in India to the education system in the U.S. He expands on that by contrasting the differences between India’s dry, limited courses and skill-based approach to that of American Universities dazzling array/variety of course opportunities (taking courses even outside of students’ intended majors). This, in a sense, made me feel privileged to have the opportunity to a broad education now knowing that other countries don't have the same access that I do to a liberal education. While reading Chapter 1, I encountered a feeling of the popular quote by Jon Mitchell "Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?" Except, I now realize and am thankful to have the opportunity of the type of education that I currently do. To add, this section made me rethink/reevaluate how I should treasure the variety of courses offered (i.e creative writing, german, communication, and even aerobics!) instead of not having the opportunity to complete these at a non-liberal education institution.

Also, the author argues that our interest in receiving an education for a job was not historically the purpose of learning. In fact, he argues that a skills-based education is what makes/will make the American approach to higher education unique; and a liberal education has now become devalued because of this new way of thinking surrounding studying trades.

As a student who has known what occupation I've wanted to go into since my freshman year of high school, I've always wondered how a liberal arts education will impact my professional aspirations. So many questions had clouded my mind prior to reading Zakaria's work, including "Will a liberal education be a total waste of time?", "Will I gain more from this type of education in comparison to a trade school/larger research institute?", "Will I receive more skills to attribute to my already-found and desired profession?", "How will future grad schools/employers look at a degree from a liberal arts university?", "Will this degree be transmitted as favorable or unfavorable compared to other candidates/applicants?", and "Will a liberal education give me a competitive edge in the job market?" As someone who received their Bachelor's degree in Marketing from a Liberal Arts University and who is now pursuing an MBA, I was especially interested in gaining Zakaria's insight on how a Liberal Arts education would supplement my post-grad education and career goals.

To add, having earned a Marketing degree, I was very skeptical if this book would deliver on its promise to show me how valuable a well-rounded liberal education is, and therefore to help me understand and explain how my major in Marketing and upcoming MBA fits in with/makes sense to attend a liberal arts university.

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Thanks to my young and curious researcher's mind and with the help of high school programs (marketing and career-based interventions), I was a bit of an odd-ball in that I had found my calling orientation/passions as early as a 15-year-old freshman in high school.

You're probably wondering WHY I chose a liberal arts education if I knew what I wanted to do in my career... There were many reasons that I was attracted to a liberal education, including the options to take elective courses similar to my major (i.e. Communication, Personal Selling, Business Policy & Strategy, etc.) that may not be offered at a bigger research institute as prerequisite classes. Also, I looked forward to small class sizes as I knew it would be difficult for me to succeed in a big classroom setting and I really needed the personalized one-on-one instruction. Apart from the academic side, I had the opportunity to stand out and create the Women's Lacrosse program for my university; a big undertaking but I may not have had the chance at a larger school, and definitely would not have had it at a vocational school. This is a huge selling point on my resume ;-)

Here's a featured story on how I stood out at the Heidelberg University, School of Business, Information & Technology:

Although, I also had some personal worries when it came to attaining a liberal education, such as if I would gain any additional assets/skills directly related to my major (versus if I focused on a skill-based approach), if my "odd-ball-ness" would fit in with my university's culture, and how future grad schools and employers would perceive my liberal education background.

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As a business student, I am focused on the future ROI of my education and it's one of my biggest worries (as it basically dictates what my future will look like). When comparing Zakaria's research to outside analyses on the topic of if a well-rounded education maximizes my future profit within my professional career, I found on the Washington Post's article Liberal arts education: Waste of money or practical investment? a claim that supported/reinforced that of Zakaria. Stating that "over the course of a career, a liberal arts education is remarkably practical, providing a median return on investment 40 years after enrollment that approaches $1 million - at 10 years, the median return is $62,000." To add, "The median 40-year return of $918,000 at liberal arts colleges is more than 25 percent higher than the median for all colleges, researchers found." After reading this article, I found myself appreciating certain aspects ([as mentioned previously] of small class sizes, a broad selection of electives, and opportunities to make my resume stand out among other applicants) of a liberal education. Also, I recognized the financial payoff that this type of learning would provide me in the end. Overall, this article supports Zakaria's argument in that a liberal education prepares students for education to utilize in their respective careers, as well as, providing general education that allows a person to be flexible and utilize a plethora of knowledge within potential career positions, as told by Anthony P. Carnevale, the Director of the Education and Workforce Center at Georgetown.

To support Washington Post's claim of a positive investment/ROI from a liberal education when seeking a job, Zakaria's research shows that (on page 43) that "74% of employers saying that a good liberal education is the best preparation for entering the global economy and the wage gap between engineers and other professionals narrowing over time."

Although, Zakaria's main argument within In Defense of a Liberal Education (in Chapter 3: Learning to Think), is that liberal education is designed to create better-writing and, in turn, better thinking-students. I learned in this section that maybe what's not as noticeable as the perceived value by students and employers is the writing skills acquired from this learning style of education. On page 35, Zakaria writes “But for me, the central virtue of a liberal education is that it teaches you how to write, and writing makes you think. Whatever you do in life, the ability to write clearly, cleanly, and reasonably quickly will prove to be an invaluable skill.” To add, writing is actually a very difficult skill to acquire and is NOT taught as closely at research institutes/vocational schools as it is at liberal institutions. Take my word for it, Creative Writing and College Writing was pretty much mandatory in my Bachelor's program. The author also notes that beyond teaching students to write, a liberal education also teaches students to speak and how to learn. And these skills (of writing, speaking, and learning) are what the author argues is necessary skills for any job. To add, students are able to learn these skills through the study of any subject, even including Geography.

An interesting takeaway from Chapter 3 (page 43) is that a study found that "students from liberal arts colleges are more likely than their peers at other institutions of higher education to obtain doctorates in sciences, presumably because they possess an acute curiosity and sense of academic adventure. As I noted, a liberal education might encourage student interest in scientific subjects for their inherent intellectual value, rather than their value in the marketplace.” This literally encompasses me and my plan of action. I came into university with the intention of entering the job market immediately and finding an awesome career! However, recently I've decided to pursue a PhD in Marketing first, instead. Maybe I wouldn't have chosen this post-grad route if I'd attended a trade school/bigger research institute? That's definitely fate in effect.

In Zakaria's book, I also found a connection with my attraction to liberal arts through the options of taking electives similar to my desired occupation, and this synced up with his research. In Chapter 4: The Natural Aristocracy, he points out that Thomas Jefferson was one of the earliest proponents of electives. On page 55, he mentions “Franklin and Jefferson shared the view that education was a way to ensure that the new republic would be a place of merit, where birth, bloodlines, and hereditary privilege would not count for much. Franklin was a self-made man, and throughout his life, he extolled the virtues of those who had risen through hard work, talent, and skill.” Perhaps, we are all versions of Franklins and Jeffersons and just require a liberal arts education to bring out our best-selves/virtues. That leads me to the question on the opposite side of the spectrum; does a larger research institute/vocational school actually limits our ability to learn? And, in turn, does it impact how we could truly succeed in the professional areas that we are meant for; a serendipitous take on what our professional lives can and should entail.

This leads me to my last point of observation of Zakaria's perspective where he states on page 82 (in Chapter 6: In Defense of Today’s Youth): “Because of the times we live in, all of us, young and old, do not spend enough time and effort thinking about the meaning of life. We do not look inside of ourselves enough to understand our strengths and weaknesses, and we do not look around enough—at the world, in history—to ask the deepest and broadest questions. The solution surely is that, even now, we could all use a little bit more of a liberal education.” What I got out of this is that liberal arts education gives us the ability to think about the meaning of our own lives through (for example) creating personal poems within Creative Writing, testing our internal motivations of fitness within Aerobics, and strategizing decisions (through a Policy & Strategy class) to create our most optimal personal-selves and career choices within our professional lives through such courses. Maybe we wouldn't have gotten this level of analysis through a trade school - just maybe.

So, does a liberal education dictate whether we become a better human being? That's for you to consider after thinking over mine and Zakaria's points of view. I, for one, may not see the financial effect of liberal education right now, but certainly, now I understand other intrinsic rewards that come from a liberal arts education.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to others (like me) who are wondering WHY they picked to attend a liberal arts school. To reiterate, I was honestly really skeptical if this book would explain if a well-rounded liberal education was truly valuable and it provided many reasons (such as financial returns, soft skills taught, and opportunities that may not be attainable from other types of academic institutions) for why a liberal education is most optimal.

I'm not going to lie to you guys, prior to reading this book I had a negative mentality surrounding receiving a liberal arts education and I found it useless. However, now, after reading Zakaria's publication, I was able to more clearly evaluate the education and intrinsic skills that I've received. Also, the supporting financial return analysis doesn't sound half bad to me; a $1 million ROI within 40 years?! I'm in!!!

I would rate this book a 9/10 because it provided me with answers to why I chose my school, what I'll get in return, and helped me appreciate what I currently have/have gotten from this experience.