Thomas More College of Liberal Arts

Key Highlights

• Private non-profit institution with strong academic tradition
• Suburban campus with easy access to city resources
• Strong focus on undergraduate education
• Diverse academic programs across multiple disciplines

Student Life & Environment

Student life at Thomas More College unfolds within one of the smallest and most intimate campus communities in American higher education. With fewer than 100 students, everyone knows everyone, creating social dynamics quite different from larger institutions where anonymity is possible and social life fragments into separate groups. The residential experience forms an integral part of the educational program, with students living on campus in housing designed to extend intellectual community beyond the classroom. Meals are taken together in a common dining hall where conversation continues discussions begun in seminars and ranges across topics from the philosophical to the personal. The college's Catholic identity shapes campus life through daily Mass, prayer opportunities, and a liturgical calendar that marks the seasons with communal celebration. Social activities tend toward the intellectual and cultural rather than the recreational, with students organizing reading groups, musical performances, hiking excursions, and gatherings that reflect the seriousness of purpose that brings them to Thomas More. The absence of intercollegiate athletics, Greek life, and many organizations typical of larger campuses creates space for the intensive reading and reflection the curriculum demands while requiring students comfortable with quieter social settings. Strong friendships form among students who share formative intellectual experiences and live closely together through their college years. The college attracts a particular kind of student—intellectually serious, spiritually open, and seeking depth rather than breadth—and the community that forms reflects these shared characteristics.

Location & Surroundings

Merrimack, New Hampshire, provides Thomas More College with a suburban setting in southern New Hampshire that balances accessibility with the contemplative atmosphere appropriate to serious study. The campus occupies a property that includes academic buildings, residential facilities, and grounds suitable for the college's small scale and residential character. The greater Boston metropolitan area lies approximately an hour to the south, providing access to cultural institutions, libraries, bookstores, and urban amenities that supplement campus resources for students seeking occasional excursions. Manchester, New Hampshire's largest city, sits closer and offers additional services, entertainment options, and employment opportunities for students seeking part-time work. The New Hampshire setting also provides natural beauty through changing seasons, from colorful autumn foliage through snowy winters to the renewal of spring, creating rhythms that echo the liturgical calendar the college observes. Weekend hiking, skiing, and exploration of the New England landscape provide recreational outlets for students needing breaks from intensive reading and discussion. The region's rich historical heritage, including sites associated with American founding history, early colonial settlement, and the literary traditions of New England, provides context for texts studied in the curriculum. While the campus itself is small and resources modest, the location within reach of greater Boston gives students access to major research libraries, lecture series at area universities, and cultural events that enrich their education. Transportation to urban areas requires planning as public transit is limited.

Costs & Career Outcomes

Thomas More College of Liberal Arts operates as a tuition-dependent institution without the large endowments that subsidize education at wealthier colleges, making the published price a significant consideration for most families. Tuition, room, board, and fees together require substantial investment, though the college provides financial aid to help bridge gaps between family resources and comprehensive costs. The financial aid office works with each family to construct packages combining institutional grants, federal aid, state aid where applicable, and work opportunities that make attendance feasible for qualified students regardless of background. The Rome semester, a distinctive element of the Thomas More experience, involves additional costs that the college helps families plan for and support. Living expenses remain modest given the small-town setting and the intellectual rather than consumer orientation of campus culture. Career outcomes for Thomas More graduates reflect the distinctive preparation they receive, which emphasizes intellectual formation over vocational training. Alumni pursue graduate study in philosophy, theology, literature, and other fields at rates substantially higher than national averages, with the rigorous reading and writing skills developed at Thomas More proving excellent preparation for advanced academic work. Graduates also enter professions including education, journalism, law, ministry, and nonprofit leadership where the broad learning and ethical formation of liberal arts education prove valuable. The college's small alumni network nonetheless provides connections and mentorship for graduates navigating career decisions. The education received at Thomas More prepares graduates for lives of meaning and reflection regardless of specific professional path.

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