在美国的高等教育中，高等学校分两种：综合大学(University)及文理学院(Liberal Arts college)。不同于中国的文理学院的二本院校的概念，在大部分美国人心目中，文理学院往往代表着经典、小规模、高质量的本科教育。两种学校对于教育和科研的侧重点不同，但同样吸引着有着不同追求的来自世界各地的最优秀的学生。
不过，如果你不幸踏入了一家像甜石南学院这样的小型私立文理学院(纯女校)，那你这个夏季就要和她说永别了，因为她这学年过完就关门!
可能有些同学对甜石南学院不是很了解，现附上这所学院的简介：
同样处于困境的不止甜石南，还有很多小型的私立文理学院正在苦苦挣扎。正如美国教育年鉴一篇报告所说的，十年经济衰退要结束了，这些小型学院却发现自己日子比十年前更难过了。
"Small liberal-arts colleges arguably face the hardest financial and enrollment challenges in higher education. While the Great Recession may be over, such colleges find themselves operating in a tougher marketplace than that of 10 years ago."
甜石南学院的关门在他们的校友圈中和当地引起了轩然大波，校友一方面呼吁大家捐款挽救这所小学院(700个学生)，一方面找律师给学校管理层发律师函，威胁要把他们告上法庭。
当然，不止这些小学校如此，还有大学校也面临同样的困局。比如，耶什华大学(Yeshiva University)，也因为财务困境宣布把他们的女校和男校两个学院的教员做了一些合并，以便节约支出。虽然这个学校的基金也上了十亿美元量级了，但是，不幸的是他们2013-2014财年基金市值锐减了7.6%，从11亿8300多万美元减到了10亿9000多万美元。差不过缩水了1个亿。
那么，在这些10亿美元俱乐部里面，文理学院屈指可数。我们可以看一下美国最富有的十大文理学院（2015年数据）：
| 排名 | 学校名称 | 基金（单位：1000美元） |
| 37 | Williams College | 2,253,330 |
| 38 | Amherst College | 2,149,203 |
| 41 | Pomona College | 2,101,461 |
| 47 | Swarthmore College | 1,876,669 |
| 48 | Grinnell College | 1,829,521 |
| 50 | Wellesley College | 1,807,948 |
| 52 | Smith College | 1,755,755 |
| 74 | Bowdoin College | 1,216,030 |
| 83 | Berea College | 1,137,222 |
| 86 | Middlebury College | 1,081,894 |
| 排名 | 学校名称 | 学校英文名 | 学费 | 学生人数 | 录取率 | 新生保持率 | 六年毕业率 |
| 1 | 威廉姆斯学院 | Williams College | $48,310 | 2,131 | 17.5% | 97% | 95% |
| 2 | 阿默斯特学院 | Amherst College | $48,526 | 1,785 | 14.3% | 98% | 96% |
| 3 | 斯沃斯莫尔学院 | Swarthmore College | $46,060 | 1,534 | 14.3% | 96% | 93% |
| 4 | 维斯理学院 | Wellesley College | $45,078 | 2,474 | 29.1% | 96% | 91% |
| 5 | 鲍登学院 | Bowdoin College | $46,808 | 1,795 | 15.0% | 96% | 93% |
| 5 | 波莫纳学院 | Pomona College | $45,832 | 1,612 | 13.9% | 98% | 96% |
| 7 | 明德学院 | Middlebury College | $46,044 | 2,495 | 17.5% | 96% | 94% |
| 8 | 卡尔顿学院 | Carleton College | $47,736 | 2,045 | 21.0% | 97% | 92% |
| 8 | 克莱蒙特·麦肯纳学院 | Claremont McKenna College | $47,395 | 1,328 | 11.7% | 96% | 93% |
| 8 | 哈弗福德学院 | Haverford College | $47,214 | 1,187 | 23.5% | 97% | 93% |
| 11 | 戴维森学院 | Davidson College | $45,377 | 1,788 | 25.6% | 96% | 92% |
| 11 | 瓦萨尔学院 | Vassar College | $49,570 | 2,477 | 24.1% | 96% | 94% |
| 13 | 美国海军学院 | United States Naval Academy | $0 | 4,526 | 7.4% | 97% | 88% |
| 14 | 华盛顿与李大学 | Washington and Lee University | $45,617 | 2,277 | 18.4% | 95% | 90% |
| 15 | 科尔比学院 | Colby College | $47,350 | 1,820 | 26.0% | 94% | 93% |
| 15 | 汉密尔顿学院 | Hamilton College | $47,820 | 1,926 | 27.2% | 95% | 93% |
| 15 | 哈维姆德学院 | Harvey Mudd College | $48,594 | 807 | 19.1% | 98% | 91% |
| 15 | 卫斯理大学 | Wesleyan University | $47,972 | 3,205 | 20.4% | 96% | 92% |
| 19 | 贝茨学院 | Bates College | $45,650 | 1,791 | 24.2% | 93% | 93% |
| 19 | 格林内尔学院 | Grinnell College | $45,620 | 1,721 | 35.1% | 94% | 86% |
| 19 | 史密斯学院 | Smith College | $44,724 | 3,033 | 43.1% | 93% | 86% |
| 22 | 科尔盖特大学 | Colgate University | $48,175 | 2,900 | 26.7% | 94% | 91% |
| 23 | 欧柏林学院 | Oberlin College | $48,682 | 2,911 | 30.4% | 93% | 88% |
| 24 | 玛卡莱斯特学院 | Macalester College | $47,195 | 2,039 | 34.2% | 95% | 87% |
| 24 | 斯克利普斯学院 | Scripps College | $47,378 | 1,009 | 35.7% | 93% | 84% |
| 24 | 西点军校 | United States Military Academy | $0 | 4,591 | 9.0% | 95% | 84% |
| 27 | 布林莫尔学院 | Bryn Mawr College | $45,540 | 1,738 | 39.9% | 91% | 84% |
| 27 | 科罗拉多学院 | Colorado College | $46,410 | 2,060 | 22.3% | 96% | 87% |
| 27 | 美空军学院 | United States Air Force Academy | $0 | 3,993 | 15.4% | 90% | 85% |
| 30 | 凯尼恩学院 | Kenyon College | $47,330 | 1,705 | 38.4% | 94% | 89% |
| 30 | 里士满大学 | University of Richmond | $46,680 | 3,531 | 31.2% | 94% | 85% |
| 32 | 巴纳德学院 | Barnard College | $46,040 | 2,489 | 20.5% | 96% | 90% |
| 32 | 巴克内尔大学 | Bucknell University | $48,498 | 3,608 | 29.5% | 94% | 91% |
| 34 | 圣十字学院 | College of the Holy Cross | $45,692 | 2,912 | 33.0% | 95% | 91% |
| 35 | 拉斐特学院 | Lafayette College | $45,635 | 2,486 | 34.1% | 94% | 88% |
| 35 | 匹泽尔学院 | Pitzer College | $46,992 | 1,081 | 14.5% | 92% | 82% |
| 37 | 狄金森学院 | Dickinson College | $47,692 | 2,494 | 44.5% | 90% | 85% |
| 37 | 富兰克林与马歇尔学院 | Franklin and Marshall College | $48,514 | 2,297 | 36.2% | 93% | 87% |
| 37 | 斯基德莫尔学院 | Skidmore College | $47,314 | 2,702 | 35.1% | 94% | 86% |
| 37 | 惠特曼学院 | Whitman College | $44,800 | 1,541 | 57.0% | 94% | 88% |
| 41 | 曼荷莲女子学院 | Mount Holyoke College | $42,656 | 2,251 | 46.8% | 91% | 82% |
| 41 | 美国创价大学 | Soka University of America | $30,214 | 412 | 43.4% | 96% | 84% |
| 41 | 联合学院 | Union College | $48,384 | 2,246 | 37.3% | 93% | 88% |
| 44 | 西方学院 | Occidental College | $47,522 | 2,128 | 42.4% | 93% | 88% |
| 45 | 巴德学院 | Bard College | $48,240 | 2,278 | 37.6% | 88% | 74% |
| 45 | 中央学院 | Centre College | $37,100 | 1,381 | 68.6% | 91% | 82% |
| 45 | 康涅狄格学院 | Connecticut College | $47,740 | 1,922 | 36.7% | 90% | 84% |
| 45 | 塞沃尼南方大学 | Sewanee | $37,100 | 1,701 | 60.3% | 88% | 78% |
| 45 | 三一学院 | Trinity College | $49,056 | 2,422 | 31.8% | 91% | 86% |
| 50 | 葛底斯堡学院 | Gettysburg College | $47,480 | 2,533 | 41.6% | 90% | 84% |
| 51 | 丹尼森大学 | Denison University | $45,670 | 2,274 | 46.0% | 90% | 81% |
| 51 | 德堡大学 | DePauw University | $42,746 | 2,304 | 61.2% | 91% | 79% |
| 51 | 傅尔曼大学 | Furman University | $44,668 | 2,953 | 64.1% | 89% | 84% |
| 54 | 罗德学院 | Rhodes College | $41,572 | 2,040 | 57.6% | 91% | 79% |
| 54 | 圣奥拉夫学院 | St. Olaf College | $41,700 | 3,125 | 59.1% | 94% | 87% |
| 56 | 新墨西哥圣约翰学院 | St. John's College | $47,826 | 493 | 87.1% | 86% | 65% |
| 56 | 圣劳伦斯大学 | St. Lawrence University | $47,696 | 2,506 | 46.4% | 91% | 80% |
| 56 | 伊利诺伊惠顿学院 | Wheaton College(IL) | $31,900 | 2,993 | 70.3% | 95% | 87% |
| 59 | 劳伦斯大学 | Lawrence University | $42,657 | 1,555 | 72.7% | 89% | 82% |
| 59 | 莎拉劳伦斯学院 | Sarah Lawrence College | $50,780 | 1,782 | 77.1% | 87% | 69% |
| 61 | 伯洛伊特学院 | Beloit College | $42,500 | 1,306 | 67.7% | 89% | 78% |
| 61 | 霍巴特威廉史密斯学院 | Hobart and William Smith Colleges | $47,908 | 2,372 | 50.0% | 88% | 79% |
| 61 | 瓦伯西学院 | Wabash College | $37,750 | 902 | 69.6% | 86% | 69% |
| 64 | 古斯塔夫阿道夫学院 | Gustavus Adolphus College | $40,020 | 2,455 | 63.2% | 92% | 82% |
| 64 | 卡拉马祖学院 | Kalamazoo College | $41,061 | 1,458 | 66.9% | 92% | 77% |
| 64 | 穆伦堡学院 | Muhlenberg College | $44,145 | 2,448 | 46.2% | 92% | 86% |
| 64 | 弗吉尼亚军事学院 | Virginia Military Institute | $37,574 | 1,675 | 47.8% | 84% | 76% |
| 64 | 维拉姆特大学 | Willamette University | $44,076 | 3,024 | 57.8% | 88% | 78% |
| 69 | 伯里亚学院 | Berea College | $870 | 1,623 | 34.0% | 80% | 62% |
| 69 | 伍斯特学院 | College of Wooster | $43,350 | 2,116 | 56.3% | 89% | 75% |
| 69 | 希尔斯代尔学院 | Hillsdale College | $23,616 | 1,511 | 49.5% | 97% | 81% |
| 69 | 马萨诸塞惠顿学院 | Wheaton College(MA) | $46,423 | 1,656 | 73.9% | 86% | 76% |
| 73 | 阿格尼斯斯科特学院 | Agnes Scott College | $35,982 | 915 | 66.9% | 82% | 72% |
| 73 | 阿勒姆学院 | Earlham College | $42,870 | 1,164 | 63.7% | 85% | 71% |
| 73 | 伊利诺伊卫斯理大学 | Illinois Wesleyan University | $40,844 | 2,009 | 58.4% | 90% | 78% |
| 73 | 圣约翰大学 | St. John's University | $38,704 | 1,978 | 75.2% | 90% | 79% |
| 77 | 刘易斯克拉克学院 | Lewis & Clark College | $43,382 | 3,518 | 62.9% | 86% | 74% |
| 77 | 里德学院 | Reed College | $46,010 | N/A | 48.5% | 92% | 78% |
| 77 | 托马斯阿奎那学院 | Thomas Aquinas College | $24,500 | 366 | 81.5% | 87% | 80% |
| 77 | 沃福德学院 | Wofford College | $37,120 | 1,584 | 68.8% | 89% | 82% |
| 81 | 阿勒格尼学院 | Allegheny College | $40,660 | 2,161 | 64.9% | 87% | 79% |
| 81 | 亨德里克斯学院 | Hendrix College | $39,290 | 1,432 | 80.4% | 85% | 68% |
| 81 | 诺克斯学院 | Knox College | $40,497 | 1,424 | 75.0% | 88% | 79% |
| 81 | 斯贝尔曼学院 | Spelman College | $25,496 | 2,129 | 40.8% | 89% | 68% |
| 81 | 特兰西瓦尼亚大学 | Transylvania University | $33,360 | 1,081 | 82.9% | 87% | 72% |
| 81 | 普吉特湾大学 | University of Puget Sound | $43,428 | 2,814 | 85.2% | 87% | 78% |
| 87 | 新佛罗里达学院 | New College of Florida | $29,900 | 793 | 69.2% | 83% | 66% |
| 87 | 西南大学 | Southwestern University | $36,120 | 1,535 | 52.2% | 86% | 70% |
| 89 | 奥斯汀学院 | Austin College | $34,840 | 1,224 | 58.6% | 82% | 72% |
| 89 | 本宁顿学院 | Bennington College | $46,658 | 738 | 64.9% | 85% | 67% |
| 89 | 圣本笃学院 | College of St. Benedict | $39,402 | 2,051 | 75.5% | 89% | 82% |
| 89 | 路德学院 | Luther College | $38,370 | 2,466 | 72.1% | 87% | 76% |
| 89 | 密尔赛普斯学院 | Millsaps College | $33,982 | 804 | 47.5% | 80% | 64% |
| 89 | 新墨西哥圣约翰学院 | St. John's College | $47,626 | 424 | 93.4% | 74% | 57% |
| 89 | 马里兰圣玛丽学院 | St. Mary's College of Maryland | $28,674 | 1,858 | 73.4% | 88% | 79% |
| 96 | 印第安纳圣玛丽学院 | St. Mary's College | $35,970 | 1,479 | 85.7% | 87% | 71% |
| 96 | 华盛顿与杰斐逊学院 | Washington and Jefferson College | $41,282 | 1,328 | 39.7% | 83% | 77% |
| 96 | 韦斯特蒙特学院 | Westmont College | $39,990 | 1,318 | 70.2% | 87% | 76% |
| 99 | 阿尔比恩学院 | Albion College | $37,300 | 1,307 | 56.4% | 79% | 74% |
| 99 | 大西洋学院 | College of the Atlantic | $40,491 | 370 | 73.2% | 85% | 69% |
| 99 | 德鲁大学 | Drew University | $45,214 | 2,291 | 77.4% | 79% | 69% |
| 99 | 霍普学院 | Hope College | $29,560 | 3,388 | 70.5% | 89% | 78% |
| 99 | 俄亥俄卫斯理大学 | Ohio Wesleyan University | $41,920 | 1,830 | 75.3% | 83% | 69% |
| 99 | 圣迈克学院 | St. Michael's College | $39,375 | 2,378 | 75.1% | 89% | 75% |
以上就是小站君对美国文理学院的现状分析，了解文理学院的特色和优势，这对于同学们申请美国留学是很有帮助的。
