Carleton College Top Questions

My classmates (Carls) comes from different places and lifestyles but we intertwine together because of our differences, similarities, interest in learning, humor and integrity to do well.

Carls are overall open-minded, accepting, and curious about people of different backgrounds, including race, gender, orientation, etc. There are groups on campus focused on bringing up religious, racial, etc issues. Most students are pretty casual in class, a lot of jeans, some sweat pants, some skirts, a couple dresses. People wear what they're comfortable in. I've literally rolled out of bed and into my 8:30 class without a second look because it's more important to get to class on time than be late and cute. Everyone interacts, especially in class. If there were four tables in the dining hall, one would be a class group carrying on a discussion they started in class, one would be a group of friends and ra's from a floor, one would be a group (either a sports team, cast, or other club) and one would be a random mix of friends and friends of friends. Most of Carleton students are left leaning politically Students come from all over the country and from all different socio-economic backgrounds. When people talk about how much they'll make one day, it's usually theater/art kids who are joking about being starving artists.

Carls are overall open-minded, accepting, and curious about people of different backgrounds, including race, gender, orientation, etc. There are groups on campus focused on bringing up religious, racial, etc issues. Most students are pretty casual in class, a lot of jeans, some sweat pants, some skirts, a couple dresses. People wear what they're comfortable in. I've literally rolled out of bed and into my 8:30 class without a second look because it's more important to get to class on time than be late and cute. Everyone interacts, especially in class. If there were four tables in the dining hall, one would be a class group carrying on a discussion they started in class, one would be a group of friends and ra's from a floor, one would be a group (either a sports team, cast, or other club) and one would be a random mix of friends and friends of friends. Most of Carleton students are left leaning politically Students come from all over the country and from all different socio-economic backgrounds. When people talk about how much they'll make one day, it's usually theater/art kids who are joking about being starving artists.

Carls are overall open-minded, accepting, and curious about people of different backgrounds, including race, gender, orientation, etc. There are groups on campus focused on bringing up religious, racial, etc issues. Most students are pretty casual in class, a lot of jeans, some sweat pants, some skirts, a couple dresses. People wear what they're comfortable in. I've literally rolled out of bed and into my 8:30 class without a second look because it's more important to get to class on time than be late and cute. Everyone interacts, especially in class. If there were four tables in the dining hall, one would be a class group carrying on a discussion they started in class, one would be a group of friends and ra's from a floor, one would be a group (either a sports team, cast, or other club) and one would be a random mix of friends and friends of friends. Most of Carleton students are left leaning politically Students come from all over the country and from all different socio-economic backgrounds. When people talk about how much they'll make one day, it's usually theater/art kids who are joking about being starving artists.

My classmate are some of the brightest people I have ever met, but they are neither condescending or competitive; on the contrary, they want to study together so that we all get the most out of our Carleton experience, not just academically, but socially as well.

My classmates are a diverse array of competent, intelligent, and caring individuals who are committed to making an impact on the world around them while consistently engaging in a life of the mind.

Carleton has the diversity level of most small liberal arts colleges (mostly white and economically well-off) but most groups are represented at least in some capacity. There are even some Republicans, but the campus in general is very liberal. Of course, the campus is not completely free of racism, homophobia, etc. but it is an accepting environment and students are fairly conscientious. There is definitely social diversity on campus and a range of personal styles, though most Carleton students were not the "popular" kids in high school. As a group, Carleton students are intelligent and studious, but they don't take themselves too seriously. In addition to their studies, they are dedicated to having a good time. On the weekends you'll find most students enjoying themselves and taking a well-earned break from the stress of the week. A great example of this is the night before finals every term. First there is the Late-Night Breakfast, where students are treated to a breakfast around 10pm, served by Carleton staff and administrators. Then there is the Primal Scream, where all the students scream at the same time to release their stress about finals. Finally, students gather in the library with their mp3 players, laptops, and headphones for the Silent Dance Party, where everyone puts on the same playlist at the same time and rocks out--silently. It's all a great way to release stress and have a little fun before one of the most stressful points of the term.

Awesome, quirky (we love to hate that word, but it describes us), respectful, weird, focused, dedicated. caring.

My classmates are very nice who have no social skills.

Brilliant and talented, each in their own unique way

My classmates never fail to suprise me with their interests, talents, or ideas.

My classmates were tenacious, inquisitive, kind, challenging, creative, and happy.

They are academically-focused but socially awkward, while sticking to what and who they know best.

smart hard working fun and probally over stressed

Your classmates are not just classmates--they're the people you hang onto when things are getting academically tough. Classmates here often form study groups and get together outside of class to work on things, especially in math and the sciences.

Most students are friendly and eager to learn.

Quirky.

An in-your-face interview with a senior philosophy major.

A Carleton dancer, reflecting on free time.

A coy Carleton student lets her feet do the talking.

Quirky, yes, but in all the best ways- everyone has something interesting that they like to do- from knitting to cross-country to chamber music. Great people.

As an Inupiat Eskimo, my experiences at Carleton and the multiracial body have been positive. There is open dialogue between racial, religious, LGBT, socio-economic, and other groups on camps, with a broad range of students to represent each group. Because Carleton is such a hodgepodge of students, I would say that no student would feel out of place. As I stated before, many students are Carleton would be defined as a quirky lot. There are no groups that are excluded from voicing their opinion and everyone is welcome to say what they think. It truly doesn't matter where you came from, what clique you were in, how you look, etc. you are accepted at Carleton. There is a predominance of the left side of things, that doesn't mean, however, that the right and middle don't utilize their voice.

I haven't had much experience with racial, etc. groups on campus - mostly because I am a white, upper middle-class female and do not find myself drawn to them. I think generally black students feel most out of place at Carleton, or people who are on the bottom end of the socio-economic ladder. The dress code is extremely casual - I have a friend who wears nothing but sweats to class and is not out of place at all. Students tend to be fairly politically aware and are predominantly left leaning. I don't know anyone who talks about their future earnings, though jokes about never finding a job abound.

Like I said before Carleton Awkward. Everyone is a little different or unique and it makes for a wonderful environment. Everyone is accepted for who they are. I can say that sometimes there are cliques but the cliques all intermingle and get along very well.

As I said before, the biggest problem at Carleton is its lack of diversity. It's easy for minority groups to feel like small enclaves and to become invisible to the rest of the student body. There is a fair amount of self-seggregation that occurs which in many ways may be a product of students with similar interests and backgrounds gravitating towards one another. This means that not only do various ethnic groups tend to hang out with one another, but also the atheletes, the theater kids, the comedy kids, the activism kids, etc. These groups are, of course, porous and many people move between them or are connected to them without being apart of the defining characteristic. However, they do exist to a certain extent. That being said, there are also plenty of people who are united just out of general common interest, you don't need an activity to find friends. I think that, on the whole, most Carleton students are still very open and friendly, and that any separation is not out of exclusion. I'd say that most students are fairly left but not extremely so. There is a fairly strong activist community but it often feels a little insular. I think we all wish more students would get involved in issues but realize that they, like us, are very busy with school work and extracurricular activities. It can be easy to get tons of students to sign a petition but a lot harder to get them to actually show up at an event. I'd say that a large number of students come from upper-middle class families with a few from very money families as well as a large number on partial or full financial aid. Carleton is expensive, and this is represented to a certain extent in its students. However, no one really talks about how much money their parent's make, what sort of stuff they have or show off where they've traveled to. Honestly, I don't really know the range of kids on financial aid compared to those off it. Carleton is almost entirely need blind, so I'd imagine that a fair number get accepted without having the means to pay for it. I also think that many kids from the richer pivate schools on the coasts are generally attracted to the preppier East and West coast schools.

Carleton students are primarily white, although there are significant number of international and minority students. Although the administration has recently been criticized for not doing enough to reach out to minority students, I feel like Carleton's student body is very accepting.

The student body is active in political and social issues, but often naive. The chief demographic is white and politically correct. African American students tend to stick together, as do some people in the LGBT community. The LGBT community on campus is strong and healthy. Not only is it inwardly supportive, but it is supported and protected by both the students and administration. The only downside seems to be the tiny size of the dating pool, which leads to some inbreeding. The 'chapel' holds services for essentially all the major religions, often at the same time, and while Christianity is no doubt the most widespread belief system, it doesn't dominate the larger tradition of atheism or personal spirituality (look druids up on Wikipedia). To answer the prompt, some students do talk about how much they'll earn one day, but they aren't a very big demographic (#cough# econ majors).

very accepting atmosphere. very nurturing and accepting of differences, with lots of student interaction and dialogue. clothing worn to class has a big range, from high heels and dresses to birkenstocks and sweats. generally politically aware, very leftist.

I'll admit it, we are not the beautiful people. But in a way, Carleton takes pride in its less than perfectly made-up students. Plus when the windchill is down to -40(Celsius or Fahrenheit, it's the same on both scales, which any student here would know), there are more important things than looking pretty, such as not getting frostbite on the way to the dining hall. Even if we don't spend hours on our appearances or maybe because of it (and thus concentrate on more important aspects), Carleton students seem to be attracted to each other. There's a rumor the 60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of Carls marry other Carls, and I doubt that it's too far from the truth. Students are generally very left wing. There is a general push towards making the campus more environmentally friendly, and students are closely involved. If there were more conservatives around to spark debate, students would probably be more politically active than they are. As it is now, there aren't very many people who need convincing.

Carleton for the most part has an extremely friendly student body. It is very liberal, not very religious although there are a fair amount of religious students, and very open to LGBT. It is not very diverse. 80{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body is white. Different types of students do interact and there definitely is not any prevailing problem between different types of students. There are students from all different types of financial backgrounds. In terms of origin of students in the United States, many of them seem to be from the midwest, many in the twin cities and around Chicago, the East Coast, especially around Boston and New York, and the Bay Area in California.

See sterotypes validity section.

There is a big gap between international, black, hispanic, and white students. As much as they might tout diversity, Carleton is a predominantly white school and cultural groups are relatively exclusive.

Once again, I wish that Carleton were more racially, ethnically, and religiously diverse. I think that most of the students are from wealthy white families, although of course, there are some who are not. Carleton is extremely accepting of all sexualities, and it has a great GSA program in which many students of all sexualities are involved. In terms of political affiliations, students are almost all extremely liberal, although not all that politically active.

Ideas and people of all sorts are accepted at Carleton. The openness to new ideas, the culture of respect and learning through differences fosters a vibrant and welcoming community. Generally, people are laid back in dress here and you'll see everything from garden clothes to nice slacks and a dress shirt; but jeans a T-shirt style of dress is the norm. People here are predominantly concerned with learning inside and outside of the classroom and this paradigm largely removes socioeconomic and racial barriers that may exist elsewhere.

Generally, I think the student body is filled with smart, funny, and accepting people. My only compliant is that they can be a little to liberal. Any conservative prospective students need to know that Carleton students are about 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Democrats.

The Carleton student body is divided into nerds and smart, but generally normal, people. Yet, what is great about Carleton College is that these two groups of people seem to live harmoniously with each other. I once saw a football All-American have a seemingly enjoyable conservation with a complete physics nerd, and I was probably the only person that found it a little weird. Moreover, I never heard of a Carleton bully.

Not as good looking as a student body you'd find in an urban area, not to say there aren't any good looking bodies.

I think that most of the student body comes from a rather wealthy background, but some of my friends come from more modest means and they love it here. So, I don't think one's financial background is a huge determiner of one's attitude towards Carleton. One that most students have in common is that they are extremely political (they vote and support the Democratic Party in large numbers).

friendly, creative, engaged, oriented towards social justice, not as diverse as they could be.

Perhaps a little too predisposed, and not as open-minded as we think. There's lots of engagement: people tend to be really busy, not always busy in the right way but still busy. As far as diversity goes, I'd say it's evident but people still talk about it frequently. It's a huge issue for us, and we bitch a lot about it.

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.