Auburn University College of Liberal Arts

What Auburn University College of Liberal Arts does

Auburn University College of Liberal Arts (CLA) is one of Auburn University's largest academic colleges, operating from a single campus in Auburn, Alabama (321 Tichenor Hall) and offering more than 70 undergraduate and graduate academic programs across departments including History, Political Science, Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, Communication and Journalism, World Languages, Music, Art, English, and Psychology. The college enrolls students across undergraduate, master's, and doctoral levels, maintaining a 10:1 student-to-faculty ratio, and awards approximately $1.5 million in scholarships annually. Beyond degree programs, CLA operates clinical and community service units including the AU Speech and Hearing Clinic, the Doctor of Audiology program, the Bright Ideas TBI Camp (in partnership with Alabama Head Injury Foundation, Alabama State University, and Tuskegee University), and the Rural Health Fellows program delivering free hearing screenings at Chambers County Community Health & Wellness Center.

The college's business model reflects a public university structure: revenue is generated through tuition and fees, state appropriations via Auburn University, donor-funded scholarships (e.g., Robert J. 'Jeff' Jakeman Fund for Excellence for Public History), and clinical service fees. Go-to-market is sales-led recruitment: prospective students are reached through recruitment teams, campus visits, virtual tours, a digital viewbook, college fairs, and events like 'Kick Six with Dean Hicks' tailgates. Marketing channels include the cla.auburn.edu website, the weekly 'Panorama' newsletter, social media, earned media/news articles, and alumni engagement through an Alumni Advisory Board and Young Alumni Council. International reach is delivered via CLA Abroad study abroad partnerships in Vienna, Liberia, Ireland, and Scotland.

Strategic positioning emphasizes small-class liberal arts education with professional pathways to law (notable alumni include U.S. Supreme Court clerks), journalism, healthcare (audiology, speech-language pathology), government, and academia. The college maintains leadership under Dean Jason Hicks (appointed July 2022) and operates within Auburn University's state-institutional governance; there is no independent ownership, no venture capital involvement, and no commercial revenue mechanics. Distributed across more than a dozen cross-institutional partnerships and a global study abroad portfolio, CLA functions as a non-profit educational unit within a public state university system.

Name

Auburn University College of Liberal Arts

Legal name

College of Liberal Arts at Auburn University

Website

https://cla.auburn.edu

Company type

Public

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Auburn University College of Liberal Arts is one of Auburn University's largest colleges, offering 70+ undergraduate and graduate academic programs across humanities, social sciences, communication, and clinical health sciences to a diverse student body in Auburn, Alabama, with international study abroad and community outreach extensions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

General Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAH), Selective/Highly Selective Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAJ)

Keywords

• Liberal arts education
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate academic programs
• Speech and hearing sciences
• Study abroad programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Auburn, AL

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Fees: Revenue from undergraduate and graduate tuition and associated fees for academic programs.
2. Scholarships Funded: $1.5 million in scholarships awarded annually to students.
3. Grants and Donations: Financial support from donors and grant funding, such as the Robert J. 'Jeff' Jakeman Fund for Excellence for Public History.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Auburn University College of Liberal Arts delivers undergraduate and graduate education across 70+ academic programs spanning the humanities, social sciences, communication, and performing arts. It supplements classroom instruction with clinical services (AU Speech and Hearing Clinic), community programs (Rural Health Fellows, Bright Ideas TBI Camp), and study abroad experiences. The college awards $1.5 million in scholarships annually and serves individual students rather than business customers.

Product overview

Auburn University College of Liberal Arts is one of Auburn's largest colleges offering 70+ undergraduate and graduate academic programs across departments including History, Political Science, Speech Language and Hearing Sciences, Communication and Journalism, World Languages, Music, Art, English, Psychology, and more. The college provides clinical services through the AU Speech and Hearing Clinic, community outreach via programs like the Bright Ideas TBI Camp and Rural Health Fellows Program, international education through CLA Abroad/Study Abroad, and student support services including Career Services. The college maintains partnerships with organizations including the Lee County Historical Society Museum, Alabama Head Injury Foundation, and various healthcare providers for hands-on student training.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Alumni achieve high-level positions including Supreme Court clerkships, federal appellate court clerkships, and professional careers at top firms
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Lee County Historical Society MuseumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudents from the Auburn History Club created a railroad exhibit at the museum. Financial support was provided by the Robert J. 'Jeff' Jakeman Fund for Excellence for Public History through the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts & Humanities. The partnership includes ongoing faculty and student involvement on the museum's board and at events like Syrup Sopping Day.
• Alabama Head Injury Foundation (AHIF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAHIF organizes the Bright Ideas TBI Camp at colleges and universities around Alabama. Auburn's Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences champions the foundation's mission on campus by creating a community of care for TBI survivors. Graduate students from across clinical programs partner with TBI survivors at the camp.
• Alabama State University (Prosthetics and Orthotics)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Bright Ideas TBI Camp providing prosthetics and orthotics expertise alongside Auburn's speech, language and hearing sciences, social work, nursing, kinesiology, and audiology programs.
• Tuskegee University (Occupational Therapy)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Bright Ideas TBI Camp providing occupational therapy expertise alongside multiple university programs.
• Auburn Day SchoolminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudents find positions at the school through CLA's weekly newsletter. Students work with children ranging from 12 months to five years old, developing relationships with teachers.
• EAGLES Program at AuburnminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe WINGS student organization partners with the EAGLES Program, which provides a comprehensive college experience for students with intellectual disabilities.
• Chambers County Community Health & Wellness CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRural Health Fellows conduct free hearing screenings at the center in LaFayette, Alabama each Friday. There are currently no practicing audiologists in Chambers County.
• Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (Ireland/Scotland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal Perspectives study abroad program visits autism centers and meets with therapists to learn how communication disorders are diagnosed in different healthcare systems.
• African Methodist Episcopal University (Liberia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudents from Auburn partner with Liberian students for seminars and election observation through Political Science study abroad program.
• Enterprise State Community CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsored photographer Chester Higgins' Alabama tour alongside CLA Strategic Initiatives and Programs and Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts & Humanities.
• Austo-Amerika Institut (Vienna, Austria)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman study abroad program allows students to study at the institute directly across from Vienna State Opera House. Students take language courses and culture classes taught by Auburn professors or Austrian instructors.
• The Mockingbird CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe troupe's Mockingbird Players present productions of 'To Kill A Mockingbird' at Monroe County Courthouse in Monroeville, Alabama. Auburn professors emeritus provide expertise and commentary on the productions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Penn State College of the Liberal Arts: Penn State's College of the Liberal Arts is a direct structural match — a stand-alone liberal arts college within a large public research university with a similar multi-department portfolio spanning humanities, social sciences, and professional-adjacent programs.
• University of Alabama College of Arts & Sciences: In-state peer and SEC competitor; the University of Alabama's College of Arts & Sciences is a direct comparator in scale, mission, and student-recruitment geography, competing for the same in-state applicant pool.
• University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: UF's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences combines liberal arts and sciences at a peer public research university in the Southeast, operating with comparable scope, departmental breadth, and undergraduate/graduate program mix.
• Texas A&M University College of Liberal Arts: Texas A&M's College of Liberal Arts is a near-identical structure — a large college of liberal arts within a major SEC public research university, offering a similarly broad portfolio of humanities, social sciences, and communication programs. The two are directly comparable in mission, scale, and institutional context.
• University of Georgia Franklin College of Arts & Sciences: UGA's Franklin College is the flagship liberal arts and sciences unit at a peer SEC public research university, with comparable program breadth, honors offerings, and southeastern recruiting footprint.

Regional players

• LSU College of Humanities & Social Sciences: LSU's humanities and social sciences college serves a directly comparable SEC peer role within a large public research university, with overlapping disciplines and shared regional recruiting territory across the Deep South.
• University of Tennessee College of Arts and Sciences: UT Knoxville's College of Arts and Sciences is a regional SEC peer with a similar combined liberal arts and sciences portfolio serving a comparable Southeastern applicant base.
• Clemson College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities: Clemson's College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities is a regional ACC/SEC-area peer housing humanities and arts programs within a public research university, with overlapping program mix and applicant pool.
• Mississippi State University College of Arts & Sciences: Mississippi State's College of Arts & Sciences is a regional SEC peer institution with a comparable liberal arts and sciences scope, competing for adjacent Southeastern state applicants.

Broad incumbents

• University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts: UMN's College of Liberal Arts is a large Big Ten public-university liberal arts college with comparable scope and departmental breadth, serving as a broader-incumbent structural analog outside the SEC geography.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/auburnu
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@AuburnU
• Facebookfacebook.com/auburnu
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/au-college-of-liberal-arts
• Instagraminstagram.com/auburnu

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Auburn University College of Liberal Arts