Driving Academic Excellence

Bates offers a liberal arts education rooted in our distinctive history and mission and centered on rigorous intellectual engagement. We define this engagement in the context of deep and sustained interactions among students, faculty, and community.

We also actively engage the forces — intellectual trends, demographic changes, and technology — that are transforming higher education and the world into which our students graduate.

We make a virtue of our small scale, creating a diverse and motivated community of teachers and learners who embrace innovative and evidence-based approaches to education. Learning from and working with an extraordinary faculty of teacher-scholars, Bates students graduate with a breadth of knowledge, the capacity to think critically and communicate effectively, and a commitment to leading lives of meaning and social contribution.