Carleton College Top Questions

Curvy. Not as interesting as it used to be. Doesn't necessarily reflect Carleton values. Not as diverse as it could be. Too many Minnesotans.

I like the student body. Everybody's pretty fun and open to trying new things.

Misshapen.

I love Carleton students. People tend to be interesting, intelligent, funny, passionate and balanced.

Less diverse than we like to think we are. We imagine ourselves as this global environment, but we're not. We've selected specific students for specific reasons, and we'd like to pretend there's more difference on campus than there is. People are more alike than they think.

It's like high school but everyone is a little smarter. People are jerks and idiots and sluts. Shit happens then people talk about it.

Everyone for the most part is really nice. One time a a fight broke out and it was so out of the ordinary for Carleton that people got a little spooked. Stuff like that happens all the time at bigger state schools. Most of the student body generally gets a long and there is not much exclusivity.

The student body is mostly liberal, white and middle to middle/upper class. There is diversity and minority, LGBT, international and other groups on campus have a strong presence. I can imagine that politically conservative and religious people might feel out of place here. Students are very laid back and there are few social barriers between grades. Dining halls and dorms are non-divided by class. Students are from all over the country and world and this is why much diversity is evident.

This is always a hot topic. Overall, I would say Carleton is a pretty open community, but I do know people who feel differently.

Students are very aware of global, political, economic, environmental, racial, religious, all other issues. Most are involved in several groups serving these areas. The general student attire is jeans or sweatpants. T-shirt or sweatshirt is common. No real division of student types in dining halls, except for the International Students, who tend to sit together but they are not exclusive. Others are welcome to join them if they so desire.

Carleton is open to anybody, really and truly. The racial diversity here could be improved, but I don't think anybody on campus feels out of place. I think Carleton has very good socioeconomic diversity. Almost everyone I know has a campus job as part of their financial aid package. Most kids dress pretty casually around campus. Kids are for the most part very politically aware. Most people here lean to the left, but there are some conservatives on campus.

It is interesting because I feel that the same systems of high school are still present in college. For example if you go to the cafeteria you can notice the small groups of people that are formed. Having said that, Carleton is not a diverse school. I think it should be though.

Here is a TRUE story that in my opinion perfectly illustrate the character of the Carleton student body: So once I was at a barbeque, and we were talking about weird words, and someone brings up defenestration, which means the act of throwing something out of a window. I thought this word was awesome, and quickly committed it to memory. A couple of days later I was in the lounge on my floor, when I remembered my new favorite word! I excitedly shared with my floormates: "Hey! Did you guys know there's a word that means to throw something out of a window??!". Almost in unison everyone around me said "yeah, i know, it's defenestration". These are the kind of people that go to Carleton.

While Carleton tries to be diverse, it seems predominately white. There are some international students, but they tend to stick together. Most of the kids are really, really friendly and open. However there are certainly defined circles of friends, and the social scene can feel a bit high-school sometimes. There are a lot of interesting people, with different kinds of personalities, different family backgrounds, and different experiences. For the most part, the students are politically and socially aware.

Oh this is a hard question for me. I don't like to judge people and so I have very little opinions about the student body as a whole. I mean, we're all people and we're all different and so every statement is going to have an exception. For example, we're not all jocks, but there are some of those. And not all jocks are "jocks", as the stereotype goes. But not all of us are interested in learning and not all of us passionately discuss politics. In fact, I hate politics, which is a weird opinion to have at Carleton. Each of us is different, but I guess that's what Carleton students are supposed to be.

Mostly pretty cool. People who don't treat others well stand out. Its a small school and people know each other, but sometimes its possible to get away if you need to.

Carleton is a fairly casual place. Pajama pants, sweatpants, jeans, shorts, skirts...in or out of class, you see all kinds of attire. And some students throw off their clothes altogether and streak school events. Some very odd people attend Carleton, but everyone finds a niche. There is a lot of political activism, mostly on the left, but there are also those who don't care all that much about politics.

Student body is diverse, but students mainly hang out with students of their own race.

Carleton is very appreciative of diversity, be it gender, race, sexual orientation, religious, political, socio-economic, or other. I don't think anyone would feel out of place here, unless you don't enjoy learning and challenging yourself.

Student body is totally accepting of race, gender, whatever. Kids are usually in comfy clothes, especially in classes and during the winter. People are not preppy. Some interaction among different students, but not a ton. Lots of midwest students, but from everywhere. Kids are typically pretty wealthy but there are exceptions. Pretty politically active and very democratic. No one talks about money or grades.