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Best Liberal Arts Schools Near Gadsden, AL (2026)
Updated September 6, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Gadsden, Alabama has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs, with tuition ranging from $4,272 to $10,189 per year for indexed programs. Gadsden has a population of about 33,086. In Alabama, the top-earning liberal arts-related role is Management Analyst at a median $108,040 annually (BLS, May 2025).
Closest Liberal Arts Schools to Gadsden
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer liberal arts programs near Gadsden, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Gadsden city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
Average net price (lower is better) 20%
Retention rate 15%
Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Gadsden.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Source:Accreditor: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Alabama schools on the Alabama liberal arts page.
Liberal Arts Wages Near Gadsden
Gadsden is part of the Gadsden, AL metro area (BLS area code 23460). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Alabama statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Public Relations Specialist
$61,710
AL statewide
$72,007
Management Analyst
$108,040
AL statewide
$126,068
Technical Writer
$85,840
AL statewide
$100,163
News Analyst, Reporter, or Journalist
$43,440
AL statewide
$50,688
Editor
$63,330
AL statewide
$73,897
Training and Development Specialist
$47,640
Gadsden, AL
$55,589
Human Resources Specialist
$55,720
Gadsden, AL
$65,018
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Gadsden at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
85.7 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Gadsden-Area Cities With Liberal Arts Programs
How many accredited liberal arts schools are near Gadsden, AL?
Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs near Gadsden. The closest is Gadsden State Community College in Gadsden, AL (1.7 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Talladega College (40.1 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying liberal arts roles near Gadsden?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying liberal arts-related roles near Gadsden are: Management Analyst ($108,040), Technical Writer ($85,840), Editor ($63,330). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Alabama statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Albertville instead of Gadsden?
Albertville, AL is 20.8 miles from Gadsden and has its own set of local liberal arts programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 6, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
