A place unique in the world

BSC students discuss their choice in our “Why BSC?” video

Birmingham-Southern College is a four-year, private liberal arts institution founded in 1856 and affiliated with the United Methodist Church. We are the leading academic institution in Alabama and one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country.

Our mission:

Birmingham-Southern College provides a liberal arts education of distinctive quality. We teach you how to think independently, to examine the arts and sciences aesthetically and critically, and to communicate clearly. We foster the advancement of scholarship, personal and resourceful learning, and comprehensive advising.

What we believe:

Education is unique to each individual. The total experience at BSC focuses on you and your intellectual and ethical development. We offer you opportunities for spiritual and physical well being, and our academic program challenges you to understand a range of disciplines, while requiring the in-depth study of one.

What makes us different:

There is much about our college that is distinct. We have a dedicated faculty who maintain our tradition of undergraduate scholarship and research; we have an Exploration Term; we emphasize leadership studies and service-learning, cross-cultural opportunities, on- and off-campus mentor relationships; we have a tradition of success in preparing our students for jobs in their fields, and over 50% of our graduates go on to graduate school.

Our accolades:

Birmingham-Southern is one of America's best liberal arts colleges, according to such diverse and national measures as the 2011 Princeton Review (includes BSC as one of America's Best 376 Colleges) and College’s that Change Lives. BSC also is the highest ranked liberal arts college for safety preparedness by Reader’s Digest. Three of Alabama’s “Best Professors” in the past decade as determined by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation teach at BSC. And each year, Birmingham-Southern ranks No. 1 in Alabama and among the nation’s best in percentage of graduates accepted to medical, dental, and health-career programs; the college also ranks high nationally in graduates accepted to law school.

For a quick summary, visit our "Just the Facts" page.

Find out more:
Office of Admission
admission@bsc.edu
205/226-4696
800-523-5793, ext. 4696
Schedule a Campus Visit