Founded in 1866, Carleton College. is a Private college. Located in Minnesota, which is a city setting in Minnesota, the campus itself is Town. The campus is home to 2,105 full time undergraduate students, and 0 full time graduate students.
The Carleton College Academic calendar runs on a Trimester basis. In the school year the student to faculty ratio was 9:1. There are 239 full time instructional teachers. Degrees awarded at Carleton College include: Bachelor's Degree, Masters Degree, Post-master's certificate, Doctor's degree.
Quick Facts
Acceptance Rate
22%
Application Deadline
15-Nov
Application Fee
0
SAT Range
1320-1540
ACT Range
30-33
Admissions at are considered Most Selective, with ,20% of all applicants being admitted.
In the school year, of the students who applied to the school, only 9 of those who were admitted eventually ended up enrolling.
100% of incoming freshmen are in the top half of their high school class. 98% were in the top quarter, and 80% were in the top tenth. You can apply online.
STUDENT LIFE Reviews
We asked, and students answered these important questions about student life at Carleton College.
1%
“We”re apathetic”
14%
“We know about current events and vote”
61%
“We participate and encourage others to get involved”
23%
“There”s nothing we won”t protest”
0%
“We save it for the classroom”
7%
“Sometimes, but not often”
46%
“There”s usually intelligent conversation to be found”
47%
“All the time, including weekends”
0%
“I”m always terrified”
1%
“I only go out in groups”
15%
“I usually let someone know where I”m going”
84%
“I feel extremely safe”
17%
“We don”t play sports”
0%
“We play recreationally”
79%
“We bought the gear”
3%
“We live for the big game”
0%
“It”s not really our thing”
10%
“Occasinally we gallery crawl”
72%
“There are a variety of opportunities”
18%
“We”re a very artistic group”
0%
“Haven”t met them”
1%
“Available in class”
33%
“They keep regular office hours”
66%
“They”re always available”
99%
“No greek life, but other groups to join”
1%
“There is some involvement, but not a lot”
0%
“Plenty of people join a sorority or fraternity”
0%
“It”s everything. If you”re not greek, you”re a geek”
0%
“We”re not into drinking at all”
6%
“Maybe a little, but it”s not a big thing”
69%
“We only party on weekends”
25%
“There”s some drinking happening every night”
6%
“Never, we”re here to learn”
57%
“There might be people who do”
35%
“People are known to partake on weekends”
2%
“There”s a huge drug scene”
1%
“We”re apathetic”
14%
“We know about current events and vote”
61%
“We participate and encourage others to get involved”
23%
“There”s nothing we won”t protest”
0%
“We save it for the classroom”
7%
“Sometimes, but not often”
46%
“There”s usually intelligent conversation to be found”
47%
“All the time, including weekends”
0%
“I”m always terrified”
1%
“I only go out in groups”
15%
“I usually let someone know where I”m going”
84%
“I feel extremely safe”
17%
“We don”t play sports”
0%
“We play recreationally”
79%
“We bought the gear”
3%
“We live for the big game”
0%
“It”s not really our thing”
10%
“Occasinally we gallery crawl”
72%
“There are a variety of opportunities”
18%
“We”re a very artistic group”
0%
“Haven”t met them”
1%
“Available in class”
33%
“They keep regular office hours”
66%
“They”re always available”
99%
“No greek life, but other groups to join”
1%
“There is some involvement, but not a lot”
0%
“Plenty of people join a sorority or fraternity”
0%
“It”s everything. If you”re not greek, you”re a geek”
44 Students rated on-campus housing 4 stars. 25 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate off-campus housing?
29 Students rated off-campus housing 3.4 stars. 0 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate campus food?
44 Students rated campus food 3.1 stars. 7 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate campus facilities?
44 Students rated campus facilities 4.4 stars. 52 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate class size?
44 Students rated class size 4.6 stars. 66 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate school activities?
44 Students rated school activities 4.3 stars. 45 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate local services?
44 Students rated local services 4 stars. 34 % gave the school a 5.0.
How would you rate academics?
44 Students rated academics 4.4 stars. 61 % gave the school a 5.0.
Carleton College REVIEWS
What's your overall opinion of Carleton College?
9 Students rated Carleton College
grace
1) Little to know college life…nothing interesting to do in Northfield, MN. Kids usually play board games or get high while listening to 70s alt rock. Sproncert is lame and features indie artists no one has ever heard of. I guess if you’re interested in attending the annual annual student-led drag show in Sayles, good luck finding entertainment. The drag show has more audience members than the football games do.
2) Terrible alumni network and career office. This is a PhD factory, and not a good place to land jobs and network. Carleton’s ranking went from #6 to #9 because the starting salary of grads from here is significantly lower than its competitors. You earn 0 high quality work skills here.
3) Little to no mental health support. There’s an Instagram story that went viral cuz a depressed student was asked to leave the school rather than get help because the school budget couldn’t afford it. And yet you pay far more to go here than you would a top state school.
4) Diversity? There is none. Just look at the Dean’s List recipients (top 10% of class, GPA~3.9) and you’ll get a sense of what kind of school this is. Aggregating students of all grade levels who got this honor, here are the estimated ethnic group percentages:
- Likely White: 63.5%
- Likely East Asian: 14.2%
- Likely South Asian: 4.7%
-Likely Hispanic/Latinx: 2.0%
As you can see, little to no BIPOC people are inducted, especially black students (0%). For a school that claims to be supportive of diversity, the numbers show that a majority of the students who thrive here are white. This is because of an implicitly academic system at this small midwestern college. Don’t be fooled by their claims of diversity and inclusion. When the curtains fall and you only consider grades and academic support, it is clear where the real bias is. Not a great place for fostering academic and intellectual growth in ALL.
5) Overemphasis on CS. I stg every other student here is a CS major. Guess what? Now they’re stressed cuz their entry level jobs are being replaced by AI.
6) I was sexually assaulted here and the support I got was terrible. The victim is basically told to suck it up and all the perpetrator gets is a slap on the wrist. The school has been sued before about mishandling sexual assault cases. 7) Overall, this school is also wildly expensive despite having limited resources, whether socially or academically, and far less recognition compared to a big university. This school left me traumatized and I regret going here.
(Also Minnesota winters are brutal and make many people depressed, the campus is downwind of a turkey farm and a malt-o-meal factory so you smell poop and crops all the time, and the dining hall serves the same dry grilled chicken every week.)
Carleton College is a fantastic institution. The campus is beautiful in every season, with nature walks just a few yards from the main campus. Carleton is located in the small town of Northfield, which creates a safe and tight-knit community on campus. Carleton has engaging classes and talented professors. Overall, it is a wonderful place to seek a higher education.
Larry
I love Carleton. Its small size creates a cozy environment for students to be able to feel at home and get to know more of the peers in their graduating class. This also allows class sizes to be smaller, creating a more intimate learning environment.
The biggest draw of Carleton is its trimester schedule, which allows students to be able to take more courses within a year than they would at other liberal arts colleges. Due to this, students typically take three courses a trimester which allows them to be more focused in their studies. Carleton offers a large variety of classes in a number of subjects, so students will always have interesting options to take alongside classes within their major.
Marie
Carleton College is a fantastic place to learn academically and grow as a person. There are endless unique opportunities offered free of charge to all students. The campus is extremely safe and is backed by a gorgeous arboretum.
Mona
It's a great school, but not perfect. Especially as a person of color on campus, it can be pretty difficult to cope sometimes. However, the academics are very rigorous and challenging which I like. There is also a good pre-med program, but the only problem is the pre-med association is not that active.
Kellen
Carleton College is a very rigorous and academically tough institution. It is also a very supportive environment and the staff makes an effort to understand one's situation. #Carls help Carls. It is not hard to find a place socially on campus, the community is small. Overall I think I made the best choice for me.
Alejandra
Carleton is a great college. The other students are friendly to everyone and care for each other. The academics are great too. They are rigorous but interesting. Northfield is a town that likes its students. There are things that Carleton lacks like renowned sports or the quality of the food, but it is still a great college.
Chris
I loved my time at Carleton College. I was able to take a bunch of classes before deciding on a major (yeah for liberal arts). Once in my major I was still able to take classes outside of it.
If you want to learn more, there is an app called CollegeMatch.io in iTunes that you can use to chat directly with current students at Carleton, super helpful for getting real answers from people who actually got in and go there.
Good Luck
The fall 2020 acceptance rate for Carleton College is 22%. That means, out of _____ applications received in 2020, _____ students were offered admission.
What kind of person should not attend this school?
Someone who needs a clear path, who sees college as a road to the next step, rather than a journey that will lead them wherever they are meant to end up. Also people who are not fun--Carleton has no place for negative Nancys! Northfield is not a happening place, so we rely on our brains and our creativity to make fun for ourselves. People who cannot appreciate that, who need constant prepared stimulus from an outside provider, will feel cooped up.
What's the one thing you wish someone had told you about freshman year?
nothing. life is best learned as it's lived.
i wish i'd known (in hindsight) that i would want a higher gpa than i pulled off. i feel stupid about that, but it's a personal problem. i wish the advising was better but i think i was unusually unlucky, given my friends' experiences.
What's the most frustrating thing about your school?
The most frustrating thing about my school is that students constantly discuss of change but do not put their words to action. Furthermore, despite the students intelligence they can be very ignorant culturally.
What is the stereotype of students at your school? Is this stereotype accurate?
Carleton is usually thought of as a really nerdy school with "quirky" students. It's accurate if you think that means Carls enjoy learning and are interested in diverse subject matters.
All students must apply yearly for financial aid. This process starts with the FAFSA.
Though financial aid deadlines vary by school, it is a good idea to apply as soon as possible. For the upcoming school year, you can apply as early as October 1 for the FAFSA. Additional school aid will be dependent on the FAFSA results.
78% of students attending Carleton College receive some sort of financial aid.
16% were awarded federal grants.43%received federal loans. Many students do also need to apply for additional private student loans.
