Approximately how many liberal arts colleges are there in the US?

I'm exploring different types of colleges and am particularly interested in liberal arts colleges. Can anyone give me a rough estimate of how many there are in the US and if they're spread out evenly across the country?

While the exact number can vary depending on the criteria used to define a "liberal arts college," there are generally around 200 liberal arts colleges in the United States according to most education sector classification systems.

It's important to remember that these liberal arts colleges are not evenly distributed across the country. They tend to be more concentrated in certain regions. For instance, the Northeastern U.S. has a particularly high concentration of these schools, states like Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts hosting a significant portion. The Midwest also has a good number, with states like Ohio and Indiana being home to several well-known liberal arts colleges.

On the other hand, there tend to be fewer of these schools in the West and South. However, the ones that do exist in these regions are quite prominent, such as Claremont McKenna College in California or Davidson College in North Carolina.

So, while liberal arts colleges are scattered across the nation, you will find clusters in certain regions, primarily the Northeast and Midwest. This uneven geographic distribution might be a useful factor to consider based on where you prefer to study, be it in an urban setting, a more suburban area, or even a rural environment.