Summer at Carleton

While you’re on campus, you’ll also have access to a multitude of facilities at Carleton:

• Fitness center
  • Tennis, basketball, racquetball, squash, and handball courts; softball, soccer, and rugby fields
• 880 acre arboretum
  • 13 miles of hiking and jogging trails
• Practice rooms
  • For piano and personal instrument use

Our Program and Community Assistants (PACAs) plan social and recreational activities for Summer Carls including dances, movies, karaoke, talent shows, game night, fun runs, pick-up games, hikes in the arboretum, and much more! Students will also enjoy field trips to local destinations.

The Summer Liberal Arts Institute (SLAI) requires full-time residence at Carleton College for the duration of the institute, and attendance of all classes while participating in the program. Participants are not allowed to enroll in additional virtual academic programs while attending SLAI. 

Participants are expected to remain on campus, with the exception of program-sponsored excursions. Participants will only be permitted to leave campus under the expressed consent of the Director of SLAI.

Prior to arrival, all students must sign waivers and agree to SLAI’s code of conduct and attendance policy.

At SLAI, Summer Carls will be housed in air-conditioned, gender-specific halls (women, men, and gender neutral options). Curfew will be enforced by live-in Program and Community Assistants and on-call professional staff. Additionally, in case of an emergency, campus security is available 24/7.

Additional residential information will be provided upon acceptance.

In the classroom

• Faculty
  • SLAI’s small class sizes mean faculty members get to work closely with each student. Visit each program page to learn about our faculty.
• Teaching Assistants
  • Carleton students who assist Summer Carls and faculty in the classroom.

Outside of the classroom

• Program and Community Assistants (PACAs)
  • Carleton students who supervise and live with Summer Carls in the residential halls. PACAs ensure the health and safety of all pre-college students while also working in the SLAI office and implementing programming.
• SLAI Staff
  • Our year-round professional staff. There is always a professional staff member on-call, 24/7, during the pre-college programs in addition to Carleton’s campus security staff.

In addition to the Summer Liberal Arts Institute office, students may interact with the following offices before or during their time on campus.

Recreation at Carleton (Rec Center)

The Rec Center is a place students can find recreation, leisure, and fitness opportunities to maintain good health during our program. Additionally, student can expect to attend all-program, and evening activites in and around the Rec Center.

The mission of Campus Recreation at Carleton College is to provide recreation, fitness, special events, and wellness opportunities for students, faculty, and staff. We strive to enhance healthy liefsyltes and well-being on the Carleton campus ina safe and welcoming envrionment.

Rec Center website

Office of International Student Life

ISL is the hub of support for international students at Carleton, here to help students navigate the logistics of living and studying in the US.

ISL helps our office process I-20 requests for international student visas to ensure our students are able to enjoy time on Carleton’s campus while receiving academic credit. For more information about support for SLAI’s international students, visit our International Student Information page.

Accessibility Resources

Carleton’s Accessibility Resources office helps us provide any personal accommodations to our students including health, allergies, and learning needs.

We work at increasing the capacity of Carleton to eliminate physical, programmatic, policy, informational and attitudinal barriers. We promote barrier-free environments that facilitate equal opportunities for people with disabilities and assist Carleton in meeting its obligations under federal and state statutes.

Accessibility Resources Website

Students/families are responsible for their own transportation to and from Carleton.  Those who travel by air should plan to use the Minneapolis/St Paul (MSP) International Airport. Carleton is located in Northfield, Minnesota, approximately 45 minutes south of the airport. Our office provides a shuttle to and from the airport, included in the program cost. If you opt not to take the shuttle (arriving by car, taxi, or other form of transportation), you will see signs as you approach Carleton’s campus directing you to the check-in location. Additional transportation details will accompany acceptance materials.

A note for family flying in with a student: availability of ride share services is unpredictable in Rice County, so you may be unable to request a ride back up to the airport from Northfield and will need to plan accordingly. View all shuttle options.

SLAI Airport Shuttle Information:

Arrival: As students arrive, we provide shuttles from the Minneapolis – St. Paul International Airport. Our staff meets students at baggage claim, and then escorts them to the shuttle, which takes them directly to campus for check-in.

Departure: If students have reserved a place on the shuttle to the airport, they will meet our staff and shuttle after their program closing events and be dropped off at the MSP terminal from which their flight is departing.

Family are welcome to visit their students during our summer programs. However, due to their busy schedules and our aim to cultivate a true college experience, we ask that you confine your visits to the following days and times:

• Sundays Noon–3:30pm

Students will check in and out with their PACA so that our staff is aware that a student is off campus with family. We ask that family stay in Northfield to spend time with their student.

Admissions Interviews

After attending SLAI, participants will be eligible to schedule interviews with Admissions Fellow. It’s a great opportunity for you to show interest for Carleton and gain interview practice for your future college search!

Campus Tours

Students may take an Admissions tour of campus during the program. Families have the opportunity to explore campus if they are bringing their student to campus.

During the program, students will have ample time to further explore areas of campus that may interest them, such as the Arb, Rec Center, study spaces, music rooms, and more!

Want to learn even more about Carleton? Visit the Admissions website.

We take the health and safety of our students very seriously. Because Carleton’s Student Health and Counseling office (SHAC) is closed during the summer, PACAs and professional staff members accompany students to local clinics for appointments arranged in consultation with family.

Northfield has a clinic, urgent care, and emergency room in the event a student must seek care off campus.

Students can consult their PACA to arrange transportation to and from religious facilities in Northfield if they would like to attend services or events while attending our programs. Carleton’s chapel is also open to students during the day and is equipped with a newly renovated Muslim Prayer Room.