Abstract
This article examines the declining number of students majoring in liberal arts disciplines during the late twentieth century and situates the issue within long term demographic and economic trends. It explains how the contraction of the traditional college age population, combined with rising student preference for vocational programs, has placed pressure on departments dependent on Bachelor of Arts enrollments. The discussion notes that liberal arts fields face intensified competition from expanding professional and technical programs and that these patterns are reinforced by public concerns about employability. The article further identifies obstacles specific to theatre, such as limited exposure in secondary schools, widespread reliance on untrained teachers, and institutional attitudes that treat theatre as peripheral to the academic mission. It argues that attracting appropriate majors requires balancing ethical advising with proactive communication of the intellectual and humanistic value of theatre study. The essay concludes that unless these values are consistently articulated to new generations of students and to the broader public, liberal arts programs risk continued decline despite projected demographic recovery in the early twenty first century.
Recommended Citation
Hill, Philip G.
(1985)
"Attracting Liberal Arts Majors in the Eighties and Nineties,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 52, Article 25.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol52/iss1/25
