Best Countries to Study Humanities & Liberal Arts Abroad
The countries with the deepest options for studying humanities and liberal arts abroad are United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands — scored by BrightKey on the strength of each country's universities across six dimensions. But "most options" is not the same as "best fit for you": cost, visa, and outcomes matter just as much (see the honest note below).
English, history, philosophy, languages, classics, and liberal arts programs — for international students who want depth, writing chops, and the kind of analytical training that travels across careers.
Leading universities: Johns Hopkins University, University of Chicago, Yale University
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in United States →
Leading universities: University of Oxford, University of Edinburgh, Durham University
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in United Kingdom →
Leading universities: University of Amsterdam, Leiden University, Utrecht University
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in Netherlands →
Leading universities: Waseda University, International Christian University, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University
Leading universities: Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Heidelberg University, Humboldt University of Berlin
Leading universities: Nanjing University, Beijing Normal University, Fudan University
Leading universities: Korea University, Seoul National University, Yonsei University
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in South Korea →
Leading universities: University of Bologna, University of Padua, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Leading universities: University of Copenhagen, Technical University of Denmark, Aarhus University
Leading universities: University of Victoria, Queen's University, Western University
Leading universities: Australian National University, Monash University, Macquarie University
Leading universities: NYU Abu Dhabi, Aalto University
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in Europe (Other) →
Leading universities: Trinity College Dublin, University of Galway
Leading universities: Universitat de Barcelona, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Leading universities: Universidade de São Paulo, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais
Leading universities: Sorbonne University, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
Leading universities: University of Zurich
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in Switzerland →
Leading universities: The American University in Cairo, Cairo University
Leading universities: KU Leuven
Leading universities: University of Helsinki
Leading universities: National Taiwan University
Leading universities: Uppsala University
Leading universities: University of Vienna
Leading universities: University of Oslo
Leading universities: Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México
Leading universities: Charles University
Leading universities: University of Warsaw
Leading universities: Koç University
Leading universities: Universidad de Chile
Leading universities: Universidad Nacional de Colombia
Leading universities: Lahore University of Management Sciences
Leading universities: Eötvös Loránd University
Leading universities: Chulalongkorn University
Leading universities: Universiti Malaya
Leading universities: Universitas Indonesia
Leading universities: Vietnam National University
Leading universities: University of the Philippines Diliman
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in Philippines →
Leading universities: University of the Witwatersrand
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in South Africa →
Leading universities: University of Ibadan
Leading universities: University of Dhaka
Universities for humanities and liberal arts in Bangladesh →
Leading universities: Mohammed V University
Leading universities: Makerere University
How we ranked these
Each country is scored on the depth of its universities offering humanities and liberal arts programs, rated across BrightKey's six dimensions (network strength, curriculum relevance, employability, teaching quality, institutional health, student experience; S=3, A=2, B=1). A higher score means the country offers more strong institutions for this field — not a single famous school.
An honest note
This list measures how many strong universities a country offers for humanities and liberal arts — which naturally favours countries with larger datasets (like the US). The "best" country for YOU also depends on cost, visa, language, and graduate outcomes — a country with fewer universities but lower fees and a friendlier post-study visa may be the better fit. Treat this as a starting point for exploration, not the final answer.
Reviewed by Priscilla Han. Editorial standards.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best country to study humanities and liberal arts abroad?
By depth of strong universities, United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands lead. But the "best" country depends on your budget, visa, and goals — see the honest note above.
How is this ranking calculated?
Each country is scored on the depth of its universities offering humanities and liberal arts programs, rated across BrightKey's six dimensions (network strength, curriculum relevance, employability, teaching quality, institutional health, student experience; S=3, A=2, B=1). A higher score means the country offers more strong institutions for this field — not a single famous school.
Related answers
Related terms
This ranking is BrightKey's independent assessment using verifiable public data only. BrightKey takes no payment from schools or universities. Our method →