The question of the economic value of the liberal arts and sciences has long captivated the public imagination and vexed stakeholders across the higher education landscape. Proponents argue that exposure to a liberal education prepares students to think critically, communicate effectively, and adapt flexibly to the changing demands of the labor market. Critics argue that without the technical or “hard” skills sought in our increasingly technology-driven economy, students will not succeed in the job market and earn high wages.

Now, with support from the Mellon Foundation and an American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Fellowship for Research on the Liberal Arts funded by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations (AVDF), Ithaka S+R is launching a new research project to understand the relationship between students’ exposure to a liberal education and their subsequent economic returns. This project builds on prior Ithaka S+R research (here and here), which measured the value of a liberal education at the institution level.

What are the details of this new research project?

The Ithaka S+R team will use student-level data from the College and Beyond II (CBII) database—the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research’s (ICPSR) longitudinal database of student records—which captures educational experiences and outcomes for more than 1.3 million students from across 19 institutions and seven university systems. We will apply to the data a framework that Ithaka S+R developed in prior research to reflect the degree to which individual students experienced a liberal education.

The team will then analyze the relationship between students’ degree of exposure (based on estimates from the framework) and their academic and labor market outcomes, including employment status and earnings. In addition to publishing a report of findings, Ithaka S+R will disseminate lessons learned to key audiences and stakeholders through various channels.

Public and financial pressure is mounting on colleges and universities to demonstrate the return on investment of their degrees. And with families and students turning increasingly to post-graduation outcomes to make decisions on what schools to attend, and policymakers and higher education leaders using that data to vet curricular and budget decisions, it is imperative that we have the most comprehensive and accurate information to inform these conversations and decisions.

If you’re interested in learning more, please reach out to Liz Pisacreta (Elizabeth.Pisacreta@ithaka.org) and Daniel Rossman (Daniel.Rossman@ithaka.org).