Is a research university right for me?–

Research universities are colleges and universities whose faculty are active in research and publishing. Research universities offer a wide array of doctoral programs, especially in the sciences. They tend to be big, with tens of thousands of students. Do you prefer a larger university setting, such as largest public university in your state? Research universities are typically big, offering degrees in many different disciplines. Is a big high-powered research environment the thing for you? If not, you should think about a liberal arts college. In deciding on an undergraduate institution, ask yourself what sort of environment will best help you to be happy and excel. Consider whether you are self motivated enough to be a face in the crowd for some classes and largely unknown on campus at a large university. Of course you can find clubs and friends at a large university, but often liberal arts colleges have a more personal quality to them. If you want the community feel, a research university may not fit you well. Are you interested in STEM fields? Research universities have that name for a reason – real research is happening there. This can create an exciting atmosphere for students interested in STEM. Attending a research university can give you a better chance of getting into better programs for graduate degrees, although a lot of that depends on your performance.

Is an online college right for me?–

Online colleges are typically the same colleges and universities you could attend in-person, but for certain degree programs the college or unviersity has made the degree programs available to be completed online. For over 5 million students, online degree programs allow students to earn their degrees in the most flexible format available. Online degrees are as respected as the on-campus degrees you could earn from the same schools. There’s usually no distinction between the two degrees, and your degree and transcript will not say that the degree was earned online. Online degree programs are offered by a vast majority of colleges and universities, and the number of offering continues to grow. Whether you are searching for an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate, there’s a good chance you can earn your degree online from a respectable online college. Are you a self-driven student? Perhaps the hardest aspect of obtaining an online degree is whether you will be disciplined enough to manage your time and course demands. Many online students report that online college made them more disciplined in all areas of their lives, but the flexible, self-paced learning that makes online colleges attractive can often be the same qualities that make it difficult. If you tend to be a procrastinator, you need to be honest with yourself. You can change your habits and propensities, or you can throw money down the drain. Do you need the flexibility of an online degree program? Most online students study online because of time demands of balancing work and life, or because the online college affords them the chance to attend a better school without moving. If you are serious about earning your degree for career advancement, online colleges make it possible. The most flexible options among online degrees are those that are asynchronous, meaning you don’t have scheduled times to meet with your class online. However, many students seek synchronous online degree programs so that they have some structure – set meeting times, scheduled exams, etc. The good news is that attending an online college doesn’t mean you will miss out on getting to know your professors and classmates. In fact, many online students who have experienced both online and on-campus courses report having easier access to their professors. Since most communication with your professor is expected to be in text – via email or your class learning management system – it makes asking your questions easier. The same students also report that they got to better know the thoughts of their classmates. While in-person course conversations can be dominated by a few extroverts, online courses that require online discussions make it so that you see all of your classmates’ thoughts and questions. If you’re interested in an online bachelor’s degree, check out what the best online colleges offer, or search our online degrees for the exact program that interests you. In either case, you will find well respected colleges and universities that offer online degrees.

Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland 2025

Q: Is a liberal arts college right for me?–

Often referred to as “teaching colleges” liberal arts colleges put a premium on undergraduate studies and offers a broad range of subjects for students to study. A college of liberal arts typically provides smaller class sizes, more direct engagement with professors, and, most importantly, the opportunity to sample a wide range of subject areas on the way to a bachelor’s degree. Do you want your professors to know you? Liberal arts colleges strive to cultivate campus cultures that encourage tight bonds between professors and students. Professors at these schools will typically conduct original research. Yet the best of these schools offer their faculty reduced teaching loads so that they can both be productive researchers and still have plenty of time for students (both in and outside the classroom). Do you want to feel like you know everybody? One of the most enticing features of a liberal arts college is that in very little time, you can feel like you know who’s who, which can create strong friendships and make walks across campus more fun. While your sports teams may never be on ESPN, it’s more likely that you’ll know the athletes as your peers. Beyond student and faculty relationships, it’s not unusual for the school president and other administrators to learn who you are. When faced with problems with your student account or the need to switch classes, this can be comforting during a stressful moment.

Badge for BEST IN MARYLAND LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES

By Dr. James Barham
Reviewed By Chloe Dembski

Updated: Nov 25, 2024

Liberal arts colleges are a great option for students seeking a well-rounded education in an intimate campus setting. The best liberal arts colleges in Maryland offer a diverse selection of degree programs with opportunities for a highly individualized educational experience.

Key Takeaways

The colleges in our ranking offer access to cultural, professional, and internship opportunities in nearby cities like Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, while maintaining the intimate campus environment typical of liberal arts institutions.
The best liberal arts colleges in Maryland often emphasize social responsibility, with programs and initiatives designed to foster leadership, community involvement, and advocacy for equity and inclusion.
Many of the top institutions leverage Maryland’s diverse natural landscapes, incorporating sustainability practices and offering programs focused on environmental science, ecology, and conservation.

Table of Contents

10 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland in 2025

United States Naval Academy
Goucher College
Loyola University Maryland
+1
Washington College
–1
University of Baltimore
+2
Bowie State University
St. Mary's College of Maryland
+9
McDaniel College
–3
Mount St. Mary's University
+8
Salisbury University

2025 Ranking Update

Our Influence Ranking Engine™ leverages machine learning to track the real-world influence of colleges and universities over time. Below you’ll see which schools gained or lost ground for the 2025 school year.

In 2025, the top ten schools in our ranking of the best liberal arts colleges in Maryland saw a considerable amount of movement. St. Mary’s College of Maryland gained the most ranking positions as the college is making significant enhancements to improve campus facilities and infrastructure. Key projects include the renovation of Montgomery Hall, which houses the art, performing arts, and English departments, with plans to modernize the building to better meet academic needs.

Additionally, the Campus Infrastructure Improvements Program has made substantial progress, completing HVAC upgrades, sidewalk and road repairs, and roof replacements, with more projects slated for completion by the end of 2024. The college is also advancing Phase 2 of the Maryland Route 5 Safety and Traffic Calming Project, which includes constructing a pedestrian and bicycle trail with a boardwalk across Fishers Creek to enhance safety and environmental sustainability.

A liberal arts college is a school that puts a premium on undergraduate studies and offers a broad range of subjects for students to study. A college of liberal arts typically provides smaller class sizes, more direct engagement with professors, and, most importantly, the opportunity to sample a wide range of subject areas on the way to a bachelor’s degree. We’ve identified 18 liberal arts colleges in Maryland. To be ranked among the best liberal arts colleges in Maryland, schools must fully accredited institutions.

Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland

Build your own college rankings

Maryland’s Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Your Area of Interest

Frequently Asked Questions About Research Universities, Liberal Arts Colleges, Online Colleges

In pursuing a bachelor’s degree, you will need to choose between three kinds of schools: research universities, liberal arts colleges, and online colleges.

Research universities are colleges and universities whose faculty are active in research and publishing. Research universities offer a wide array of doctoral programs, especially in the sciences. They tend to be big, with tens of thousands of students.

Do you prefer a larger university setting, such as largest public university in your state? Research universities are typically big, offering degrees in many different disciplines.

Is a big high-powered research environment the thing for you? If not, you should think about a liberal arts college. In deciding on an undergraduate institution, ask yourself what sort of environment will best help you to be happy and excel.

Consider whether you are self motivated enough to be a face in the crowd for some classes and largely unknown on campus at a large university. Of course you can find clubs and friends at a large university, but often liberal arts colleges have a more personal quality to them. If you want the community feel, a research university may not fit you well.
Are you interested in STEM fields? Research universities have that name for a reason – real research is happening there. This can create an exciting atmosphere for students interested in STEM. Attending a research university can give you a better chance of getting into better programs for graduate degrees, although a lot of that depends on your performance.

Learn more about research universities by reading about the best research universities in the US.

Often referred to as “teaching colleges” liberal arts colleges put a premium on undergraduate studies and offers a broad range of subjects for students to study. A college of liberal arts typically provides smaller class sizes, more direct engagement with professors, and, most importantly, the opportunity to sample a wide range of subject areas on the way to a bachelor’s degree.

Do you want your professors to know you? Liberal arts colleges strive to cultivate campus cultures that encourage tight bonds between professors and students.

Professors at these schools will typically conduct original research. Yet the best of these schools offer their faculty reduced teaching loads so that they can both be productive researchers and still have plenty of time for students (both in and outside the classroom).

Do you want to feel like you know everybody? One of the most enticing features of a liberal arts college is that in very little time, you can feel like you know who’s who, which can create strong friendships and make walks across campus more fun. While your sports teams may never be on ESPN, it’s more likely that you’ll know the athletes as your peers.

Beyond student and faculty relationships, it’s not unusual for the school president and other administrators to learn who you are. When faced with problems with your student account or the need to switch classes, this can be comforting during a stressful moment.

Learn more about liberal arts colleges by reading about the best liberal arts colleges in the US.

Online colleges are typically the same colleges and universities you could attend in-person, but for certain degree programs the college or unviersity has made the degree programs available to be completed online. For over 5 million students, online degree programs allow students to earn their degrees in the most flexible format available.

Online degrees are as respected as the on-campus degrees you could earn from the same schools. There’s usually no distinction between the two degrees, and your degree and transcript will not say that the degree was earned online.

Online degree programs are offered by a vast majority of colleges and universities, and the number of offering continues to grow. Whether you are searching for an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate, there’s a good chance you can earn your degree online from a respectable online college.

Are you a self-driven student? Perhaps the hardest aspect of obtaining an online degree is whether you will be disciplined enough to manage your time and course demands.

Many online students report that online college made them more disciplined in all areas of their lives, but the flexible, self-paced learning that makes online colleges attractive can often be the same qualities that make it difficult. If you tend to be a procrastinator, you need to be honest with yourself. You can change your habits and propensities, or you can throw money down the drain.

Do you need the flexibility of an online degree program? Most online students study online because of time demands of balancing work and life, or because the online college affords them the chance to attend a better school without moving.

If you are serious about earning your degree for career advancement, online colleges make it possible. The most flexible options among online degrees are those that are asynchronous, meaning you don’t have scheduled times to meet with your class online. However, many students seek synchronous online degree programs so that they have some structure – set meeting times, scheduled exams, etc.

The good news is that attending an online college doesn’t mean you will miss out on getting to know your professors and classmates. In fact, many online students who have experienced both online and on-campus courses report having easier access to their professors.

Since most communication with your professor is expected to be in text – via email or your class learning management system – it makes asking your questions easier. The same students also report that they got to better know the thoughts of their classmates. While in-person course conversations can be dominated by a few extroverts, online courses that require online discussions make it so that you see all of your classmates’ thoughts and questions.

If you’re interested in an online bachelor’s degree, check out what the best online colleges offer, or search our online degrees for the exact program that interests you. In either case, you will find well respected colleges and universities that offer online degrees.

2021 Ranking Archive

Many of our 2024 undergraduate focused rankings look considerably different than 2023. That’s because we took a fundamentally different approach. For 2024 we utilized our Concentrated Influence algorithm, designed to take away the size advantage larger schools have when we rank their faculty and alumni’s academic influence. Concentrated influence highlights smaller schools that are proportionally as successful as larger universities at cultivating influential alumni and faculty.

Check out our directory of liberal arts colleges throughout the U.S. for a look at the top liberal arts schools in every state.

Do you have a question about this topic? Ask it here

Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland 2025

Key Takeaways

10 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland in 2025

2025 Ranking Update

Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Maryland

Last Year’s Ranking:

What We Love About the United States Naval Academy

United States Naval Academy is ideal for students who:

United States Naval Academy might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Goucher College

What We Love About Goucher College

Goucher College is ideal for students who:

Goucher College might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Loyola University Maryland

What We Love About Loyola University Maryland

Loyola University Maryland is ideal for students who:

Loyola University Maryland might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Washington College

What We Love About Washington College

Washington College is ideal for students who:

Washington College might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at University of Baltimore

What We Love About the University of Baltimore

The University of Baltimore is ideal for students who:

The University of Baltimore might not be a good fit for students who:

University of Baltimore’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations

Career Outlook for degree at Bowie State University

What We Love About Bowie State University

Bowie State University is ideal for students who:

Bowie State University might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at St. Mary's College of Maryland

What We Love About St. Mary’s College of Maryland

St. Mary’s College of Maryland is ideal for students who:

St. Mary’s College of Maryland might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at McDaniel College

What We Love About McDaniel College

McDaniel College is ideal for students who:

McDaniel College might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Mount St. Mary's University

What We Love About Mount St. Mary’s University

Mount St. Mary’s University is ideal for students who:

Mount St. Mary’s University might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Salisbury University

What We Love About Salisbury University

Salisbury University is ideal for students who:

Salisbury University might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Hood College

What We Love About Hood College

Hood College is ideal for students who:

Hood College might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Coppin State University

What We Love About Coppin State University

Coppin State University is ideal for students who:

Coppin State University might not be a good fit for students who:

Coppin State University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Frostburg State University

What We Love About Frostburg State University

Frostburg State University is ideal for students who:

Frostburg State University might not be a good fit for students who:

Frostburg State University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at University of Maryland Global Campus

What We Love About UMGC:

UMGC is ideal for students who:

UMGC might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Stevenson University

What We Love About Stevenson University

Stevenson University is ideal for students who:

Stevenson University might not be a good fit for students who:

Stevenson University’s Online Degrees

Career Outlook for degree at Washington Adventist University

What We Love About Washington Adventist University

Washington Adventist University is ideal for students who:

Washington Adventist University might not be a good fit for students who:

Career Outlook for degree at Notre Dame of Maryland University

What We Love About Notre Dame of Maryland University

Notre Dame of Maryland University is ideal for students who:

Notre Dame of Maryland University might not be good for students who:

Notre Dame of Maryland University’s Online Degrees

Degree Concentrations