Why Carleton?

Hello!

I’m so excited that I have reached the halfway point of the term. I can’t wait to go to the Mall of America during the midterm break on Monday, October 18th. On the other hand, hope y’all are doing well. Big shout-out to all of the prospective applicants: you got this! In my previous post about my college application journey, I did not explicitly mention why I applied to Carleton College. So let’s jump right in.

The Community

Initially, I applied to a top research university but never got in. Looking back, I would not have loved the community if I had been accepted to the university. While huge research institutions are not bad, I feel like I would have gotten lost in the crowd and never actually made my voice heard, especially in a class with many people.

Alternatively, Carleton is more of a community–you immediately get that feeling when you come to visit. Everyone wants to help, from your profs to dining hall workers, Northfield folks, upperclassmen, advisers, resident assistants, etc.

The Professors

If you are considering applying to Carleton College, you might have already heard that Carleton profs are the best. First of all, my English prof, Pierre Hecker, is one of the funniest and most charismatic people I have met here. There is never a time I don’t laugh during his class.

The number one priority for professors at Carleton is their students. When it comes to caring for a student, Carleton profs take it to another level. First and foremost, they are your friends. For example, I met with my English prof two weeks ago and talked about how my other courses and volleyball practice are going.

Professors love interacting with students because they are genuinely interested in getting to know them better. This helps them to better plan their course to meet every student’s needs. On the surface level, this is basically why Carleton has the best undergraduate education.

Research

Interested in faculty-led or independent research? Carleton is the place for that. It might be a small liberal arts college, but a lot of research goes on here. This is one of the major reasons why I chose Carleton.

As someone interested in Computer Science, I looked into research opportunities in the department and found out about the work that Prof. Amy Czismar Dalal is doing in human-computer interaction. It fascinated me and sparked my interest to do research at some point during my four years at Carleton.

The most interesting fact I discovered about the research here is that profs design their projects to meet the needs of Carleton students. In short, students are the ones who get to assist profs with their research. Whether you want to contribute to a professor’s research project or carry out your own, you still get all of the necessary guidance and supervision from them.

Winter Recreation

As someone who has never experienced snow before, I was so excited to know that it snows in Minnesota. I’m interested in participating in a lot of winter recreational activities, especially ice skating, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and sliding down Bell Field.

Choosing a college was quite difficult for me, in part because I never actually figured out what I really wanted in a school. Eventually, knowing what I wanted made things a lot easier for me during the application process.

It’s exactly a month before the Early Decision deadline. There is still time to get to know Carleton. (Pro tip: This is the best tool for you to write–or edit–a good essay that will reflect Carleton College’s values.) Good luck!