An Investment for Life
Through a liberal arts education, you're encouraged and challenged to grapple with the great questions, enduring issues, and current challenges that confront society.
You’ll learn to read critically and analyze data, to write crisply and speak persuasively—all in preparation for becoming the professional, community, and Church leaders our world needs.
With the freedom to study what you love and explore new topics—through interdisciplinary coursework, cultural immersion, and independent research—you will broaden your view of the world, find a greater sense of purpose, and develop a skillset that will help you flourish no matter where your path leads.
“The investment you make in college is not just for the four years of college or for that first job after college. It’s for a lifetime.”
—Sarah A. Mustillo
I.A. O'Shaughnessy Dean of the College of Arts and Letters
Learn More
What can you study in the College of Arts & Letters?
Notre Dame alumni on the value of studying the liberal arts
Seniors reflect on why an A&L education matters
Why Study the Liberal Arts?
Carlos Lozada ’93
Associate editor and nonfiction book critic, The Washington Post; Pulitzer Prize winner
“The liberal arts education at Notre Dame really helped me to learn how to think, how to marshal my arguments, how to learn from people around me.”
Carlos Lozada ’93
Associate editor and nonfiction book critic, The Washington Post; Pulitzer Prize winner
“The liberal arts education at Notre Dame really helped me to learn how to think, how to marshal my arguments, how to learn from people around me.”
Carrie Sweeney '03
Industry lead for retail, Pinterest
Spending those four precious years on campus doing something that you can’t do any other time — shaping your worldview, your ethos by engaging with great texts — that’s just irreplaceable. You can go learn about balance sheets afterward, whether that’s on the job or by getting an MBA. But there’s never going to be a time in life when you can really grapple with foundational ideas as effectively as you can while you’re at Notre Dame.
Arienne Thompson ’04
Former Today Show contributor and public relations executive; adjunct faculty member, Georgetown University
“For these four years, your job is to be curious and to dabble in this and that — maybe you’ll discover that you love Japanese or Arabic or art history. This is the time to branch out and to be whoever you want to be. Let your interests guide you and find something you love.”
Dr. Nick Schneeman ’80
CEO and medical director, Genevive LLC
“Everything I’ve done in my vocation has been built on the pillars of my Notre Dame education. It’s a remarkable community and dualistic message. That broad-based liberal arts foundation was a huge advantage. It has let me see medicine and health systems in a way that my colleagues didn’t.”
Madeline Boyer ’09
Senior associate, KPMG
“Having a liberal arts education has really set me apart in my field — I have that different perspective. Because I took liberal arts courses, I think differently. I ask different types of questions, and I challenge us to question assumptions because I have that much broader experience.”
Andrew Hilger ’91
President, Allegis Group
“As we move into an age where more and more of the computational and rote tasks are done by machines, the world needs liberal arts. Competencies that are uniquely human — empathy, persuasion, creativity, ethical judgment — will be at a premium, and they are nurtured through an Arts and Letters education.”
Study Everything
Sam Cannova ’21
Program of Liberal Studies major
My training in Arts and Letters has empowered me to discern the right questions to ask and enabled me to figure out how to go about answering them. Focusing on drafting the right questions and pursuing those with independent and critical thought has taught me lifelong skills that will extend far beyond my time at Notre Dame.”
MacKenzie Isaac ’20
Sociology and Latino studies major; AmeriCorps, Indianapolis
Amidst all of the numbers, all the formulas and equations, the College of Arts and Letters is always there to remind you that there is a narrative behind each and every one of those, and that narrative is somehow intertwined with yours.”
Colin Rahill ’19
English and philosophy major; master’s student, Cambridge University
Arts and Letters fills a person up with the greatest ideas that have ever been written down on paper or preached by many of the smartest people to ever live. And they're ideas that everyone should hear.”
Do Anything
Joseph Weiler ’19
Business analyst, McKinsey & Co.
My liberal arts education has been a very holistic experience for me. I've not only been exposed to a wide range of fields, but I’ve also been able to integrate them.”
Jean Llenos ’19
M.D. student, University of Toledo
In any profession, you're going to need to learn how to critically read, critically think, and communicate your ideas. It's being able to not just see things for what they are, but being able to extrapolate to what they can be, being able to communicate that effectively and defend it. What's going to set me apart is my ability to think on my feet, my ability to critically analyze situations and come up with creative solutions.”
Morgan Peck ’20
Legal rights educator, Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest
At the end of the day, learning about matters that are not only academic but ultimately social is what makes me excited to be learning. I could have tried to do that through electives but going through the specific programs of study has drastically helped empower me to study what I want to study. I don’t think that would be possible outside of what Arts and Letters offers.”