Lens covers 164 liberal arts colleges, 37 public and 127 private. They range from Allen University (576 undergraduates) to Brigham Young University–Idaho (44,397). Acceptance rates run from 3% to 98%, and 98 of the 164 admit at least half of applicants.
Liberal arts colleges are small colleges focused on undergraduate teaching across the arts and sciences, as classified by Carnegie.
Open these 164 colleges in the College Filter → Narrow them by cost at your rate, majors, size and more.
The 164 liberal arts colleges
Listed A to Z. Lens never ranks colleges.
| College | Location | Undergraduates | Acceptance rate | Tuition & fees (before aid) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama State University | Montgomery, Alabama | 3,477 | 98% | $11,248 in-state · $19,576 out-of-state |
| Albion College | Albion, Michigan | 1,300 | 81% | $56,950 |
| Albright College | Reading, Pennsylvania | 1,217 | 76% | $29,082 |
| Alcorn State University | Alcorn State, Mississippi | 2,363 | 45% | $8,785 |
| Allegheny College | Meadville, Pennsylvania | 1,156 | 55% | $56,550 |
| Allen University | Columbia, South Carolina | 576 | 73% | $14,304 |
| Alma College | Alma, Michigan | 1,148 | 57% | $49,552 |
| Amherst College | Amherst, Massachusetts | 1,911 | 9% | $70,480 |
| Augustana College | Rock Island, Illinois | 2,490 | 63% | $51,598 |
| Austin College | Sherman, Texas | 1,165 | 48% | $48,680 |
| Bard College | Annandale-On-Hudson, New York | 2,414 | 52% | $66,436 |
| Barnard College | New York, New York | 3,264 | 9% | $69,888 |
| Bates College | Lewiston, Maine | 1,760 | 13% | $66,590 |
| Beloit College | Beloit, Wisconsin | 926 | 63% | $60,886 |
| Berea College | Berea, Kentucky | 1,513 | 19% | $51,658 |
| Berry College | Mount Berry, Georgia | 2,245 | 64% | $41,686 |
| Bethune-Cookman University | Daytona Beach, Florida | 2,732 | 88% | $14,794 |
| Bowdoin College | Brunswick, Maine | 1,873 | 7% | $67,832 |
| Bridgewater College | Bridgewater, Virginia | 1,400 | 92% | $16,090 |
| Brigham Young University–Idaho | Rexburg, Idaho | 44,397 | 96% | $4,800 |
| Bryn Mawr College | Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania | 1,359 | 29% | $65,920 |
| Bucknell University | Lewisburg, Pennsylvania | 3,876 | 29% | $67,812 |
| CUNY Medgar Evers College | Brooklyn, New York | 3,233 | 86% | $7,352 in-state · $15,302 out-of-state |
| California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt | Arcata, California | 5,612 | 98% | $8,250 in-state · $20,850 out-of-state |
| California State University, Channel Islands | Camarillo, California | 5,013 | 95% | $7,159 in-state · $19,759 out-of-state |
| Calvin University | Grand Rapids, Michigan | 3,193 | 71% | $39,350 |
| Carleton College | Northfield, Minnesota | 2,086 | 20% | $68,892 |
| Centre College | Danville, Kentucky | 1,400 | 54% | $52,820 |
| Christopher Newport University | Newport News, Virginia | 4,365 | 86% | $16,828 in-state · $31,178 out-of-state |
| Claflin University | Orangeburg, South Carolina | 1,706 | 65% | $18,282 |
| Claremont McKenna College | Claremont, California | 1,388 | 10% | $67,980 |
| Coe College | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | 1,164 | 64% | $54,666 |
| Colby College | Waterville, Maine | 2,407 | 7% | $69,600 |
| Colgate University | Hamilton, New York | 3,180 | 14% | $70,306 |
| College of the Holy Cross | Worcester, Massachusetts | 3,106 | 18% | $64,500 |
| Colorado College | Colorado Springs, Colorado | 2,014 | 18% | $70,734 |
| Concordia College at Moorhead | Moorhead, Minnesota | 1,829 | 63% | $31,170 |
| Connecticut College | New London, Connecticut | 1,937 | 37% | $67,242 |
| Davidson College | Davidson, North Carolina | 1,867 | 13% | $64,410 |
| DePauw University | Greencastle, Indiana | 1,905 | 57% | $59,070 |
| Denison University | Granville, Ohio | 2,380 | 17% | $67,000 |
| Dickinson College | Carlisle, Pennsylvania | 2,273 | 42% | $65,650 |
| Dillard University | New Orleans, Louisiana | 1,063 | 42% | $23,918 |
| Eastern Connecticut State University | Willimantic, Connecticut | 3,418 | 83% | $13,928 in-state · $17,428 out-of-state |
| Eckerd College | Saint Petersburg, Florida | 1,888 | 76% | $51,884 |
| Edward Waters University | Jacksonville, Florida | 1,087 | 85% | $16,366 |
| Elizabethtown College | Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania | 1,868 | 78% | $37,950 |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Prescott | Prescott, Arizona | 3,218 | 77% | $44,149 |
| Emmanuel College | Boston, Massachusetts | 1,854 | 76% | $48,550 |
| Fisk University | Nashville, Tennessee | 1,035 | 37% | $25,858 |
| Florida Southern College | Lakeland, Florida | 2,656 | 64% | $44,040 |
| Fort Lewis College | Durango, Colorado | 3,079 | 77% | $9,958 in-state · $21,526 out-of-state |
| Fort Valley State University | Fort Valley, Georgia | 2,684 | 66% | $5,526 in-state · $16,932 out-of-state |
| Franklin and Marshall College | Lancaster, Pennsylvania | 1,799 | 28% | $70,794 |
| Furman University | Greenville, South Carolina | 2,379 | 43% | $59,770 |
| Georgia Gwinnett College | Lawrenceville, Georgia | 11,344 | 96% | $4,532 in-state · $13,844 out-of-state |
| Gettysburg College | Gettysburg, Pennsylvania | 2,099 | 39% | $66,640 |
| Grambling State University | Grambling, Louisiana | 4,164 | 45% | $7,683 in-state · $16,706 out-of-state |
| Grinnell College | Grinnell, Iowa | 1,729 | 15% | $68,106 |
| Guilford College | Greensboro, North Carolina | 1,001 | 80% | $41,362 |
| Gustavus Adolphus College | Saint Peter, Minnesota | 1,878 | 61% | $56,076 |
| Hamilton College | Clinton, New York | 2,030 | 14% | $68,960 |
| Hampden-Sydney College | Hampden-Sydney, Virginia | 946 | 41% | $54,550 |
| Hartwick College | Oneonta, New York | 1,087 | 70% | $54,962 |
| Haverford College | Haverford, Pennsylvania | 1,430 | 12% | $70,688 |
| Hendrix College | Conway, Arkansas | 1,100 | 56% | $38,200 |
| Hillsdale College | Hillsdale, Michigan | 1,573 | 21% | $33,189 |
| Hobart William Smith Colleges | Geneva, New York | 1,786 | 64% | $65,117 |
| Hope College | Holland, Michigan | 3,288 | 79% | $41,970 |
| Huston-Tillotson University | Austin, Texas | 1,005 | 39% | $26,709 |
| Illinois College | Jacksonville, Illinois | 930 | 78% | $38,676 |
| Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington, Illinois | 1,582 | 39% | $57,704 |
| Johnson C Smith University | Charlotte, North Carolina | 1,244 | 45% | $21,300 |
| Kalamazoo College | Kalamazoo, Michigan | 1,149 | 75% | $61,050 |
| Kenyon College | Gambier, Ohio | 1,732 | 31% | $71,520 |
| Knox College | Galesburg, Illinois | 1,127 | 71% | $57,903 |
| Lafayette College | Easton, Pennsylvania | 2,757 | 31% | $65,398 |
| Lake Forest College | Lake Forest, Illinois | 1,813 | 57% | $56,402 |
| Lawrence University | Appleton, Wisconsin | 1,396 | 64% | $56,982 |
| Livingstone College | Salisbury, North Carolina | 924 | 59% | $18,296 |
| Macalester College | Saint Paul, Minnesota | 2,131 | 29% | $68,104 |
| Marymount Manhattan College | New York, New York | 1,577 | 83% | $41,870 |
| Maryville College | Maryville, Tennessee | 1,005 | 61% | $39,284 |
| McNeese State University | Lake Charles, Louisiana | 5,005 | 78% | $8,489 in-state · $9,989 out-of-state |
| Middlebury College | Middlebury, Vermont | 2,738 | 11% | $67,600 |
| Minerva University | San Francisco, California | 637 | 3% | $23,630 |
| Morehouse College | Atlanta, Georgia | 2,844 | 44% | $32,893 |
| Mount Holyoke College | South Hadley, Massachusetts | 2,169 | 36% | $67,018 |
| Muhlenberg College | Allentown, Pennsylvania | 1,727 | 72% | $62,805 |
| Norfolk State University | Norfolk, Virginia | 5,392 | 88% | $10,180 in-state · $21,682 out-of-state |
| Oberlin College | Oberlin, Ohio | 2,887 | 34% | $67,366 |
| Occidental College | Los Angeles, California | 1,877 | 44% | $66,274 |
| Ohio Wesleyan University | Delaware, Ohio | 1,516 | 56% | $53,888 |
| Pacific Lutheran University | Tacoma, Washington | 2,401 | 78% | $52,254 |
| Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Erie-Behrend College | Erie, Pennsylvania | 3,240 | 97% | $15,972 in-state · $26,958 out-of-state |
| Pennsylvania State University–Penn State Abington | Abington, Pennsylvania | 2,877 | 97% | $15,268 in-state · $25,664 out-of-state |
| Pitzer College | Claremont, California | 1,227 | 25% | $65,192 |
| Pomona College | Claremont, California | 1,666 | 7% | $65,420 |
| Randolph-Macon College | Ashland, Virginia | 1,639 | 87% | $49,466 |
| Reed College | Portland, Oregon | 1,320 | 25% | $69,350 |
| Rhodes College | Memphis, Tennessee | 1,836 | 50% | $57,110 |
| Roanoke College | Salem, Virginia | 1,767 | 83% | $38,068 |
| SUNY College at Geneseo | Geneseo, New York | 3,869 | 66% | $8,999 in-state · $19,569 out-of-state |
| SUNY College at Potsdam | Potsdam, New York | 1,823 | 78% | $8,768 in-state · $18,678 out-of-state |
| SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | Syracuse, New York | 1,839 | 63% | $9,303 in-state · $22,263 out-of-state |
| SUNY Old Westbury | Old Westbury, New York | 4,162 | 84% | $8,422 in-state · $18,842 out-of-state |
| SUNY at Purchase College | Purchase, New York | 3,197 | 74% | $8,953 in-state · $19,203 out-of-state |
| Saint Anselm College | Manchester, New Hampshire | 2,087 | 78% | $48,920 |
| Saint Norbert College | De Pere, Wisconsin | 1,662 | 86% | $45,580 |
| Sarah Lawrence College | Bronxville, New York | 1,530 | 62% | $66,862 |
| Scripps College | Claremont, California | 1,113 | 38% | $65,950 |
| Shaw University | Raleigh, North Carolina | 875 | 80% | $17,538 |
| Siena College | Loudonville, New York | 3,409 | 69% | $46,580 |
| Skidmore College | Saratoga Springs, New York | 2,694 | 21% | $67,290 |
| Smith College | Northampton, Massachusetts | 2,544 | 21% | $65,178 |
| South Carolina State University | Orangeburg, South Carolina | 2,934 | 83% | $11,060 in-state · $21,750 out-of-state |
| Southwestern University | Georgetown, Texas | 1,440 | 43% | $53,813 |
| Spelman College | Atlanta, Georgia | 3,414 | 25% | $31,556 |
| St Lawrence University | Canton, New York | 1,918 | 54% | $65,900 |
| St Olaf College | Northfield, Minnesota | 3,093 | 48% | $59,760 |
| St. Mary's College of Maryland | St. Mary's City, Maryland | 1,603 | 69% | $15,298 in-state · $31,374 out-of-state |
| Stonehill College | Easton, Massachusetts | 2,528 | 66% | $57,490 |
| Susquehanna University | Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania | 2,163 | 81% | $59,850 |
| Swarthmore College | Swarthmore, Pennsylvania | 1,613 | 7% | $65,494 |
| Talladega College | Talladega, Alabama | 701 | 85% | $15,650 |
| Texas A&M University–San Antonio | San Antonio, Texas | 6,599 | 93% | $9,654 in-state · $23,255 out-of-state |
| Texas A&M University–Texarkana | Texarkana, Texas | 1,982 | 64% | $8,349 in-state · $45,080 out-of-state |
| The College of Idaho | Caldwell, Idaho | 1,041 | 49% | $37,845 |
| The College of Wooster | Wooster, Ohio | 1,730 | 60% | $61,640 |
| The University of the South | Sewanee, Tennessee | 1,607 | 57% | $56,120 |
| Trine University | Angola, Indiana | 2,324 | 85% | $36,560 |
| Trinity College | Hartford, Connecticut | 2,146 | 29% | $70,770 |
| Trinity University | San Antonio, Texas | 2,505 | 26% | $53,676 |
| Union College | Schenectady, New York | 2,046 | 44% | $69,039 |
| United States Air Force Academy | USAF Academy, Colorado | 4,114 | 14% | – |
| United States Military Academy | West Point, New York | 4,408 | 12% | – |
| United States Naval Academy | Annapolis, Maryland | 4,474 | 9% | – |
| University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff | Pine Bluff, Arkansas | 1,807 | 41% | $9,412 in-state · $17,992 out-of-state |
| University of California, Merced | Merced, California | 8,372 | 91% | $15,623 in-state · $49,823 out-of-state |
| University of Mary Washington | Fredericksburg, Virginia | 3,566 | 80% | $14,640 in-state · $27,560 out-of-state |
| University of Montevallo | Montevallo, Alabama | 2,151 | 54% | $13,948 in-state · $26,968 out-of-state |
| University of North Carolina at Asheville | Asheville, North Carolina | 2,910 | 92% | $7,501 in-state · $24,849 out-of-state |
| University of Portland | Portland, Oregon | 2,957 | 89% | $58,100 |
| University of Puerto Rico–Mayaguez | Mayaguez, Puerto Rico | 9,539 | 57% | $5,274 |
| University of Puget Sound | Tacoma, Washington | 1,594 | 72% | $62,898 |
| University of Virginia's College at Wise | Wise, Virginia | 1,101 | 29% | $11,780 in-state · $28,010 out-of-state |
| University of Wisconsin–Green Bay | Green Bay, Wisconsin | 6,341 | 89% | $8,700 in-state · $17,288 out-of-state |
| Ursinus College | Collegeville, Pennsylvania | 1,491 | 92% | $61,210 |
| Vassar College | Poughkeepsie, New York | 2,444 | 19% | $71,030 |
| Virginia State University | Petersburg, Virginia | 5,074 | 89% | $10,043 in-state · $22,650 out-of-state |
| Virginia Wesleyan University | Virginia Beach, Virginia | 1,256 | 73% | $37,500 |
| Wartburg College | Waverly, Iowa | 1,452 | 76% | $26,250 |
| Washington & Jefferson College | Washington, Pennsylvania | 1,295 | 81% | $29,392 |
| Washington College | Chestertown, Maryland | 891 | 57% | $55,326 |
| Wellesley College | Wellesley, Massachusetts | 2,300 | 14% | $67,176 |
| Wesleyan University | Middletown, Connecticut | 3,067 | 16% | $70,342 |
| West Virginia State University | Institute, West Virginia | 1,321 | 96% | $9,570 in-state · $14,990 out-of-state |
| Wheaton College (Massachusetts) | Norton, Massachusetts | 1,773 | 68% | $63,960 |
| Whitman College | Walla Walla, Washington | 1,531 | 38% | $64,050 |
| Whittier College | Whittier, California | 764 | 81% | $51,350 |
| Whitworth University | Spokane, Washington | 1,858 | 90% | $52,880 |
| Williams College | Williamstown, Massachusetts | 2,076 | 8% | $68,560 |
| Wittenberg University | Springfield, Ohio | 1,215 | 72% | $45,940 |
| Wofford College | Spartanburg, South Carolina | 1,816 | 52% | $56,005 |
Sources: IPEDS (fall 2024 enrollment and admissions); College Scorecard (published tuition and fees before aid, about 2023–24). You may pay less if receiving grants or scholarships.
Related lists
- Liberal Arts Colleges in the Northeast
- Liberal Arts Colleges in the Southeast
- Liberal Arts Colleges in the Midwest
- Liberal Arts Colleges in the South and Southwest
- Liberal Arts Colleges on the West Coast
FAQ
Which liberal arts colleges admit at least half of applicants? 98 of the 164: Alabama State University, Albion College, Albright College, Allegheny College, Allen University, Alma College, Augustana College, Bard College, Beloit College, Berry College, Bethune-Cookman University, Bridgewater College and 86 more (fall 2024).
What are the largest and smallest liberal arts colleges? Brigham Young University–Idaho is the largest, with 44,397 undergraduates, and Allen University is the smallest, with 576 (fall 2024).
How many liberal arts colleges are public? 37 of the 164 are public and 127 are private.
Where these numbers come from
Lens covers the 850 four-year public and private nonprofit colleges that receive the most applications, so some smaller colleges are not listed. Enrollment, acceptance rates and degrees come from IPEDS (U.S. Department of Education, fall 2024); published prices from the College Scorecard. Each college's page lists its own sources. See the data behind Lens.