Carleton College Top Questions

I absolutely love Carleton. I love that every class pushes me, without being overwhelming. Professors are there to help me when I get stuck and push me when I need to be pushed. All of your classmates are there with you, working toward the same goal as you. There isn't competition, so much as cooperation. It's the right size campus: big enough to have great professors and diverse courses, but small enough that there are friendly faces all over campus. People who know about Carleton are always excited or jealous that I go there. I spend my time all over campus, but because I'm involved in theater, I do spend most of my nights in the new Weitz Center for Creativity.

Carleton is basically a bunch of offbeat, intelligent young adults stuck in a cute little college town in the middle of nowhere, Minnesota. This makes for a great college experience, if it's the type of school you're looking for. The student body is around 2,000 students, which I find to be a great size. After one trimester, I recognize most of the people I see walking around and I'm probably acquainted with between 5-10{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of them. Northfield is quite small as well, and since St. Olaf College is also there, over half of the Northfield inhabitants are college students. It may not have much of a nightlife, but you can walk just a few minutes off campus to the local coffee shop or the grocery store. This size is definitely not for everyone, especially given Carleton's location, but it does make for a cozy community feel which I love. The school ensures that there is always plenty to do on campus, so there's no need for a city anyway. In fact, there's usually too much to do, and though you might want to go to everything, you'll soon find it's impossible.

What most people reading this website should realize is that 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the people that post are whiny, pissed-off, passive-aggressive people with no friends and no motivation. Their only outlet is a website like this. Be careful what you read. Most people at Carleton are way too busy to even think about writing something for this. That said, Carleton gives you great opportunities and connections for after you graduate. The only reason I have time to write is Carleton hooked me up with a fellowship to spend a year racing my bike around the world.

Carleton is a place where anyone can find new passions as well as continue with old ones- everyone is very warm and accepting. While the winters are cold, the real worst weather is late summer when it is really muggy. Profs are very smart and accessible, and academics are definitely a challenge, but not impossible.

The best thing about Carleton is its student environment. People are friendly and easy to get along with. The one thing I would change at Carleton . . . I don't think I would change anything, it is an amazing school. Carleton, with a student body of around 2,000 students, in my opinion, is just right. However, some responses when I tell people about going to Carleton is a response of questioning where is Carleton and exactly what type of college it is. The other response is one of understanding what a great school it is. I spend most of my time on campus on the dormitory floor lounge, hanging out with friends. Carleton's administration is very accessible and easy to get along with. The biggest controversy right now is the switch that Carleton's Dining Service is making from the Sodexho service to the Bon Apetit service and the contracts. Carleton students have a lot of sway in decision making at Carleton. There is a ton of school pride at Carleton, every student (as we say it) bleeds blue and maize. The bust of Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller is a time honored tradition at Carleton, where whomever holds the bust is the "King/Queen" of Carleton and is required to make a showing of the bust at big events on campus.

Carleton is the perfect size for making friends, and much too small for promiscuous sex, if that's your thing. The best thing about Carleton is the students - their intellect, their sense of humor, and their desire for learning. The experience of Carleton that I'll always remember is a game of tug of war that took place between the two islands on campus and ended with one person in the hospital and ten with rope burn.

Carleton is a school for those looking to succeed in life and have a passion about learning. So many students are so driven about their academics. This is balanced however by the students love of having fun. There isn't another school around that mixes academics and fun together as well as Carleton does.

The best thing about Carleton is by far the students. I've already mentioned the accepting, intellectual, and silly atmosphere and I think if you're looking for that, you'll feel at home. The professors are also amazing. There are definitely a few who aren't quite as good as others, and there's always a risk with taking a class from a new prof, but on the whole they are incredible! I'm always blown away by their level of knowledge and ability to address tough issues in the texts. The best way to ensure a good class is to talk to people and find out who they like, who they don't like, and who they've had a life changing experience taking a class from! The small size of Carleton (and of Northfield) is both a good and bad part of the Carleton experience. One the on hand, you walk around and see tons of people you know, you know most of the professors in your department, you know most of the kids in your classes, and you often can get into things like theater, music, and other organizations without having to worry about people majoring in them taking all the spots (this gives you a chance to build up some skills in this stuff!). On the other hand, this small size means that Carleton (already plagued by its small town, white, Midwest, and high cost reputation) has extremely low diversity--unless you're white, you'll probably know every single person in your ethnic group by the end of the first term. Alsol, it can sometimes mean a pretty small dating pool, which gets almost miniscule if your gay or lesbian. Northfield is tiny but with some charm. It has a nice historic mainstreet and a fair amount of individuality. Many people complain that it's too small that there aren't enough places to eat, but then it's a town of 10,000, there were never going to be too many geat places to go (that being said, we have two delicious Indian places, a good sandwich shop, a few pizza joints, and a waffle house. The main bar has a good selection of beer though the prices are a little high). I didn't come to small town Minnesota from LA expecting to find cheap burritos and take out Thai on every corner, I came looking for a place where students put their energy inward to create cool events on campus during the weekends, where I'd have a patch of nature to go exporing--The Carleton arboretum is gorgeous, a wonderful place to go to take a break with a run or to have a work study job restoring native prarie! The weather is really cold. During the winter, people complain about it more than the food (which is generally pretty terrible, though we're changing our dining service so we'll see . . .) Winter is frigid and often below zero. However, if your like me and have always wanted to live in a winter wonderland, have snowball fights, go sledding, and learn ice hockey, then it often works out nicely (except when it drops down beyond bearable in February!) We also have beautiful Falls and Springs where all the leaves change or regrow in beautiful unison.

When most people think of the phrase "diamond in the rough," they think about the scene in Alladin where there is a diamond in the sand. Change that sand to snow and you have an apt picture of Carleton. Despite being an excellent small liberal arts college, few people have heard of it, and the college reflects that. Carleton is simultaneously laid back when it can be and intense where it needs to be.

Recently the term 'quirky' has come up again and again in propaganda materials describing Carleton. We [myself and many Carleton students] don't like this. I'll admit, our hate of the term mostly stems from an obnoxious DVDfest video, but our general strangeness is not a selling commodity.

I LOVE carleton. everything about it is pretty wonderful. great size, great, active community, great town, Rob Oden rocks, great atmosphere. biggest recent controversy on campus: carleton is currently in the process of changing food providers, and students and staff are worried that employees of the new company won't get the same benefits as they did with the old company. there have been several petitions, meetings, and various other activity. great inside jokes, like Schiller, the albino squirrel, and lots of streaking.

Carleton's student body is quite small, which is great. The profs always know who you are, even in "big" lecture classes, and encourage students to come to office hours. One of my profs helped me get an internship this summer, something I was not expecting to happen out of my freshman year. It's easy to meet great people, but I suppose it might be a problem if you were trying to avoid someone. Luckily the students are all intelligent, friendly, and welcoming. Northfield a few good restaurants very close to campus, which is especially important during winter term. I personally like Sweet Lou's Waffle Bar, which is owned by one of the profs and stays open until 2am on weekends. If you're looking for city life, Northfield is not for you, but if you want to be able to eat out a few times a term and buy a few groceries, then the town is fine. The biggest recent controversy was over the new dining workers' contract. We're switching to a new food services company next year, and the dining workers were worried about losing their accumulated benefits. Some students protested outside the temporary office of the new company and posted signs around campus about it. The new company had a meeting to explain their plans so I think it all got worked out.

It is a small school where you feel like you've seen everybody in the school at times, but the campus does have a large feel in a sense, depending on where you came from. Much time on campus is spent in one's dorm, the library to study, or the student center. Northfield, Minnesota does not feel so much as a college town even though it contains St. Olaf as well. Carleton is kind of a town in itself with various student performance groups putting on shows every week. Also, many people at Carleton enjoy playing frisbee. CUT (Carleton's Ultimate Team) is the most successful sports team in the school.

When I tell people I go to Carleton they either haven't heard of it or they are very impressed and tell me I need to change the world once I'm successful. Its definately located in a college town, when you drive into Northfield the sign reads, "Cows, Colleges and Contentment." I think that says it all. The most frequent complaints I think have to do with diversity but the thing about it is that Carleton is always looking for solutions and they listen to student complaints if they are brought through the proper forums.

Great school in the middle of nowhere.

Carleton is full of extremely intelligent students who aren't afraid to have fun. One thing I'd change, though, is the level of diversity. I feel like our school is very homogeneous, and I wish there were more students from different backgrounds, ethnicities, religions, etc. I spend most of my time in the library when I'm not at the rec center, in the arb, or at the outdoor track.

The best thing about Carleton is that everyone (students, faculty, staff, and administrators) is really friendly. I have had no trouble socializing with near strangers, since we all seem to have some intrinsic bonds by being Carls. The schools size is about right. It's not so small that there is a shortage of things to do, but it's small enough that it's not impersonal. Food at Carleton is a big issue. We have a new dining contractor and many people suspect that the contractor is going to try to bust the union. I also think that some of the non-academic offices (i.e. the Wellness Center and the Career Center) have something to be desired.

You can be yourself at Carleton. There is little pressure to conform to any particular image. The faculty here are kind and accessible and will do almost anything to help you learn. Students take learning seriously, both in the classroom and outside of the classroom. People here are smart and utilize their passions and talents to render the campus a vibrant and fascinating place to study for four years.

carleton is so amazing, its not stuffy or preppy at all like most of the high ranked private schools in the nation. there is very little sports interest, here, though.

The best thing about Carleton is the friends that I have gained. They are smart, loyal, and the most considerate people I have ever met. As for Northfield, I know that quite a few Carls think it is too small, but, coming from a small town, I think Northfield is a fine town that offers quite a few "collegie" places to hangout: coffee shops and waffle bars. School Pride: There is a lot pride in our academics, not very much in our athletics.