Imagine being stuck in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. You're with a group of cold, hungry, dehydrated survivors and you need more supplies to survive another night. However, the streets are crawling with the undead, buildings have fallen into disrepair, and the economy has entered recession. It will be very difficult to find and recover survival equipment at the home base. In situations like this, critical thinking and problem solving are crucial skills, because you need to be able to problem solve and make the best and safest decisions to support you and your group. Such skills can be acquired efficiently when educated in a liberal arts context. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Therefore, a liberal arts education can be helpful, especially in an apocalyptic phenomenon. While the opposing side argues that a liberal arts education is a waste of time, evidence shows that it brings holistic benefits to all students and society because it provides individuals with creative, writing, reading, and problem-solving skills. which will guarantee growth and completeness. , financial stability and a successful future. Liberal arts are defined as education that provides growth in general knowledge and intellectual ability. It offers a wide range of education programs for students and enables people to acquire skills to be prepared for the future, such as critical thinking, problem solving, reading, writing and listening effectively. However, a liberal arts education can be very helpful, some would like to think otherwise. The opposing side might argue that the liberal arts don't actually guarantee a job for those who have attended four years of college. The economy is more focused on STEM-based education, and as stated in Cohen's (2016) article, STEM disciplines are seen as “job-friendly” and “important” (p. 1). As cited in Cohen's (2016) article, Governor Matt Bevin stated that there will simply "be more incentives for electrical engineers than for French literature majors" (p. 1). Our economy has no use for liberal arts majors, for example. While this may be true, it is only true to a certain extent. A liberal education prepares individuals to become more well-rounded and to become leaders who make a difference in the world. While the liberal arts have some downsides, the benefits outweigh them all. For starters, when you have a liberal education, you can adapt better when placed in different or difficult situations due to skills such as critical thinking, creative problem solving, technology, and communication skills. When it comes to an economic crisis, people with technical skills are more likely to have difficulty adapting because they only have certain skills in which they can express themselves in their field. This is not to say that they do not have other skills learned outside of school, such as fixing a bicycle, dealing with plumbing, etc. However, it will be more beneficial if one were to possess soft skills during a course. crisis because it will be more useful when dealing with difficult situations. For example, skills like critical thinking and problem solving are more convenient during a zombie apocalypse because you often face situations where those skills come into play. Humphreys and Carnevale (2016) noted that Norm Augustine, former president and CEO of the Association of Colleges andof American Universities (AACU), said he believed that if there was a ready supply of workers with skills that can be obtained through a liberal arts education, the American economy would be able to recover from the Great Recession. Individuals who possess these skills can band together and minimize the world's problems. Additionally, as the world constantly advances, technical skills can quickly become obsolete knowledge. A particular skill in which one excels may not be useful in the future when changes occur in the workplace, such as being placed in another group. So, the question is not whether a person has the right skills needed for the job, but rather how well he or she can adapt to that situation and learn new skills from it. This demonstrates that a liberal arts education can be beneficial to students and our society. Additionally, when students participate in a liberal arts education, they can explore their passions to their fullest potential. Some people come to college already having a major that they want to pursue. Then they discover new fields such as criminology, anthropology, archaeology, sociology, etc. and they fall in love with it. Those people had a broad vision beforehand, but when they were exposed to a variety of fields, they discovered new things that they were passionate about pursuing. The liberal arts offer a wide range of educational paths for students to find and explore what they want to do in the future. Attending a non-liberal arts school, where students are more focused on their majors, is more likely to miss an opportunity. In other words, they will be trapped in a bubble where all that matters is their intentions, and nothing more. They may miss out on the opportunities that the liberal arts have to offer. Additionally, after graduating from high school and moving on to college, some students still haven't decided what major they want to attend. Then, when they move through the liberal arts, they will be exposed to different courses that explore the variety of topics they can experience. Similarly, Fareed, in an interview conducted by Shapiro (2015), described how he took a course on modern American cinema primarily because he wanted to take an “easy” course since that semester was loaded with other courses. What he didn't know was that it would leave a lasting and powerful impression on him. “I had never taken that stuff seriously and had never committed to it,” Fareed said. “It taught me something about America… Who would have thought it would be an interesting course?” (Shapiro, 2016, p. 1). Fareed also said that the liberal arts “allow people to range widely, to read widely, to explore their passions. Let one interest lead to another, and so on. " He believes that it is incredibly important to have the ability to feed your curiosity and indulge it. (Shapiro, 2016, p. 3). Fareed's experience shows that when you are exposed to a wide variety of courses, you can find a meaning. It can turn into an interest and passion that could grow and satisfy. Through the liberal arts, one can benefit from being exposed to different courses that might just spark a new passion. Critics might argue that in the real world, many students have bills to pay such as education costs and loans, and they tend to gravitate towards jobs that can help pay them off. The question is: are they confident enough to pursue things they are passionate about even when the pay is low? who want to start their career?