Liberal arts colleges are small colleges, most with fewer than 3,000 students, that focus on teaching undergraduates across the arts and sciences. Classes are usually small, professors do the teaching, and most students live on campus. These 20 range from about 1,300 students at Reed to about 3,400 at Spelman, and every one of them is test-optional or doesn't use test scores at all.
20 liberal arts colleges at a glance
| College | State | Undergrads | Acceptance rate | Tuition & fees | SAT/ACT for 2026–27 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amherst College | MA | 1,911 | 9.0% | $70,480 | Optional |
| Barnard College | NY | 3,264 | 8.8% | $69,888 | Optional |
| Bates College | ME | 1,760 | 13.3% | $66,590 | Optional |
| Bowdoin College | ME | 1,873 | 7.1% | $67,832 | Optional |
| Colorado College | CO | 2,014 | 18.5% | $70,734 | Optional |
| Davidson College | NC | 1,867 | 13.4% | $64,410 | Optional |
| Grinnell College | IA | 1,729 | 14.5% | $68,106 | Optional |
| Hamilton College | NY | 2,030 | 13.6% | $68,960 | Optional |
| Macalester College | MN | 2,131 | 28.5% | $68,104 | Optional |
| Middlebury College | VT | 2,738 | 10.8% | $67,600 | Optional |
| Oberlin College | OH | 2,887 | 34.2% | $67,366 | Optional |
| Pomona College | CA | 1,666 | 7.1% | $65,420 | Optional |
| Reed College | OR | 1,320 | 24.6% | $69,350 | Not used |
| Smith College | MA | 2,544 | 21.0% | $65,178 | Optional |
| Spelman College | GA | 3,414 | 24.9% | $31,556 | Optional |
| Swarthmore College | PA | 1,613 | 7.5% | $65,494 | Optional |
| Vassar College | NY | 2,444 | 18.6% | $71,030 | Optional |
| Wellesley College | MA | 2,300 | 14.1% | $67,176 | Optional |
| Wesleyan University | CT | 3,067 | 16.5% | $70,342 | Optional |
| Williams College | MA | 2,076 | 8.2% | $68,560 | Optional |
Sources: IPEDS (undergraduate enrollment; admissions for the fall 2024 entering class); College Scorecard (published tuition and fees before aid, about 2023–24); each college's admissions website (test policy). You may pay less if receiving grants or scholarships; most of these colleges meet full demonstrated need.
Groups you'll hear about
- NESCAC. The New England Small College Athletic Conference has 11 members. Seven are here: Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Hamilton, Middlebury, Wesleyan and Williams. The others are Colby, Connecticut College, Trinity and Tufts.
- The Seven Sisters. Historically women's colleges in the Northeast. Four are here: Barnard, Smith and Wellesley, which are still women's colleges, and Vassar, which has been coeducational since 1969. The others are Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke and Radcliffe, which merged into Harvard.
- Women's colleges. Barnard, Smith, Spelman and Wellesley. Spelman is also a historically Black college.
- Consortia. Several of these colleges share classes with neighbors: Pomona with the Claremont Colleges, Amherst and Smith through the Five College Consortium, Swarthmore with Bryn Mawr and Haverford, Barnard with Columbia, and Spelman through the Atlanta University Center.
Four ways these colleges differ
1. How much structure you want
Amherst, Grinnell, Hamilton, Smith, Vassar and Wesleyan have open curricula, with few or no distribution requirements, so you choose most of your courses. Colorado College runs on the Block Plan, one class at a time for three and a half weeks. Reed asks every student to take Humanities 110 and write a senior thesis.
2. Setting
Some are in small towns or the countryside: Middlebury, Williams, Bowdoin, Grinnell, Hamilton and Oberlin. Others are in or near cities: Barnard in Manhattan, Spelman in Atlanta, Macalester in Saint Paul, Reed in Portland, and Swarthmore and Wellesley a train ride from Philadelphia and Boston.
3. How hard they are to get into
For fall 2024, acceptance rates ran from 7.1% at Bowdoin and Pomona to 34.2% at Oberlin. Rates can differ by application round, so treat them as a starting point, not a prediction.
4. Cost
Most published tuition and fees run from about $64,000 to $71,000 a year before aid, while Spelman College lists $31,556. Most of these colleges meet full demonstrated need, and several, like Bowdoin, Davidson, Grinnell, Pomona and Wesleyan, leave loans out of their aid. What a family actually pays can be far lower than the published price.
Is a liberal arts college right for you?
Ask yourself:
- Do I want to know my professors well and talk in small classes?
- Would I rather explore widely before choosing a major?
- Do I want a small campus, and would I miss the energy of a big one?
Lens helps you figure out which kinds of colleges fit you, using seven research-backed assessments, before you build your list. Start with Lens →
FAQ
What is a liberal arts college? A small college focused on undergraduate teaching across the arts, humanities, social sciences and sciences. Read more →
What are the NESCAC schools? Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Connecticut College, Hamilton, Middlebury, Trinity, Tufts, Wesleyan and Williams.
What are the Seven Sisters colleges? Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Vassar and Wellesley. Radcliffe merged into Harvard, and Vassar is now coeducational.
Which liberal arts colleges are women's colleges? In this group, Barnard, Smith, Spelman and Wellesley.
Are liberal arts colleges test-optional? All 20 here are test-optional for students applying in 2026–27, except Reed, which has said it doesn't use SAT or ACT scores.
College pages in this group
- Amherst College
- Barnard College
- Bates College
- Bowdoin College
- Colorado College
- Davidson College
- Grinnell College
- Hamilton College
- Macalester College
- Middlebury College
- Oberlin College
- Pomona College
- Reed College
- Smith College
- Spelman College
- Swarthmore College
- Vassar College
- Wellesley College
- Wesleyan University
- Williams College