Admissions

Admission to Carleton is based on several considerations. Of importance are superior academic achievement, as demonstrated in the applicant’s school record and other supporting academic materials; a depth of personal qualities and interests; participation in extracurricular activities; and potential for development as a student and a graduate of the College. The Admissions Committee weighs all factors to ensure that those students offered admission are not only adequately prepared for the academic work, but also will beneﬁt from their total experience at Carleton and add signiﬁcantly to the College through their individual talents, personal qualities, and perspectives.

Carleton strives to enroll a diverse student body in the fullest sense: varied racial, gender, ethnic, socio-economic, religious, cultural and political backgrounds, as well as geographic origins of its students. The College believes such diversity promotes spirited classroom discussion, provides an opening to a variety of viewpoints and life experiences, helps prepare students for a diverse and more inclusive workplace, and develops interpersonal skills for a pluralistic world.

There is no composite Carleton student. They possess a variety of qualities not measurable in grades: warmth, openness, a sense of humor, an active interest in service and broader community involvement, initiative, resourcefulness, motivation and courage. Although many applicants numerically rank among the very best of their high school cohorts, many attractive candidates do not. A signiﬁcant number come from secondary schools where such numbers are not made available on transcripts, or emerge from contexts where such restrictive quantitative measures do not adequately assess the characteristics and drive which are so important to student success in Carleton’s residential liberal arts environment.

Application for Admission: Students interested in applying for admission should visit Carleton’s Admissions website. Each applicant is responsible for providing the admissions oﬃce with all items requested.

Early Decision: Those who decide that Carleton is their ﬁrst choice college are encouraged to apply under the Early Decision program. Early Decision is a commitment to attend if accepted. Students may submit applications to other colleges or universities, but not under another early decision plan. Those accepted will be expected to withdraw all other applications. Early Decision candidates are reviewed at two different times of the year, but whenever the student applies the criteria for selection are identical. Students electing the Early Decision option should submit all necessary materials by one of the following dates:

November 15. Applicants will receive decisions by December 15, and admitted candidates will have until January 15 to submit their enrollment deposit.

January 15. Applicants will receive decisions by February 15, and admitted candidates will have until March 1 to submit their enrollment deposit.

Regular Decision: Application deadline is January 15. Applicants on Regular Decision will receive notiﬁcation from the College by April 1 of the senior year. Those offered admission will have until May 1 to conﬁrm their enrollment.

Application Schedule for Fall Term Admission

	All Application Materials Must Be submitted by:	Complete Testing by:	File CSS Financial Aid Profile Application by:	Notification of Admissions Decisions On or Before:	Applicant’s Reply Date
Fall Early Decision	Nov. 15	Nov. 15	Nov. 15	Dec. 15	Jan. 15
Winter Early Decision	Jan. 15	Dec. 31	Jan. 15	Feb. 15	March 1
Regular Decision	Jan. 15*	Feb. 1	Jan. 15	April 1	May 1
Transfer	March 31*	Feb. 28	March 31	May 15	June 1

* Applications may be submitted after this date, but priority will be given to those applying on or before the deadline. Initial enrollment deposits are returned to students upon graduation from the College (minus expenses), and are otherwise nonrefundable.

Late Applicants: Students who submit applications after January 15 each year must recognize they are applying on a space-if-available basis. In some years, the College is able to offer admission to late applicants; in other years, the ﬁrst-year student class may be ﬁlled and students to whom we would like to offer admission must be placed on a waiting list to see if vacancies occur in late spring or early summer.

Early Admission: Each year, a number of students apply for admission following the junior year of high school. Some may be graduating early, others may be willing to forego the senior year to begin college early. The College will consider such applications with the following understanding: Successful Early Admission candidates almost always display a high degree of social and emotional maturity, present unusually strong academic credentials and have exhausted their secondary school curricular possibilities.

Deferred Admission: Deferred admission is not for an alternative college academic experience. If a deferred student chooses to study elsewhere, credit will not be transferred to Carleton. Deferred students who take post-secondary courses elsewhere cannot do so on a full-time basis or as a degree-seeking student without violating the terms of their deferral. Candidates who wish to defer college for a year (a gap year) following completion of secondary school may apply for undergraduate admission during their senior year. The request for a gap year is submitted after an offer of admission has been accepted, and should be accompanied by a statement describing the candidate’s reasons for desiring a gap year, plans for the interim year and perceived beneﬁts of the delay. Such requests should be made by May 1.

Transfer Students: Carleton accepts a number of transfer students for each fall term. Students wishing to apply for the fall term should submit applications prior to March 31 and will be notiﬁed of the Admissions Committee’s decision before May 15. To qualify for the Carleton degree, students must spend at least two years in residence including the senior year.

Requirements for Admission: The strongest candidates for admission to Carleton have taken four years of English, three or more years of mathematics, two or more years of science and three or more years of social science. At a minimum, applicants should have three or more years of English (with a stress on writing), at least two years of algebra and a year of geometry, two years of social science and one year of a laboratory science. Most Carleton students go well beyond this minimum, and the admissions Committee is usually attracted to candidates who take advantage of the opportunity to do honors, advanced placement work, international baccalaureate work, or other equally rigorous coursework. Normally, students will be expected to take two or more years of a foreign or classical language unless it is not offered in the school. The greater the number of courses in the subjects listed above, the more the applicant’s qualiﬁcations for admission are strengthened. An applicant of unusual ability and interest whose secondary school program does not include all of these courses may be granted admission on the basis of his or her school record, the scores on standardized tests, and the recommendations of school oﬃcials.

Carleton recognizes achievement in the arts and encourages students to submit an art portfolio of their work with their application. Once a student has applied to Carleton, they will receive a link and password to their own application status page. They can submit
supplementary material on their application status page at go.Carleton.edu/appstatus.

By mid-August, enrolling students must provide a ﬁnal high school transcript, or its equivalent, showing successful completion of their secondary course work. Additionally, students must have maintained an academic and personal record consistent with the records on which their admission to Carleton was granted.

High School Diploma/GED Validation Policy

In the event Carleton College has reason to believe a high school diploma is not valid or was not obtained from an entity providing secondary school education, the Admissions Office will conduct additional research to determine if the diploma is valid. Additional research may be performed when:

No apparent state legal authority for high school or G.E.D.
Limited curriculum/instructors
High school diploma given for a fee within a short period of time
High school diploma date/place not consistent
High school diplomas/transcripts/GED’s that were issued by a school that bears a non-traditional name that does not end in “high school”, such as “academy”, or “center”
High school diplomas/transcripts/GED’s that were purchased and/or completed online
High school diplomas/GED’s that have names and/or dates that have been written on the diploma, and those where “white out” type corrections have been made

Should any of the above exist, the Admissions Office will conduct additional research to include:

Checking the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) website for information relative to the validity of the school, and if the school in fact provides secondary school education. If the Admissions Office is unable to obtain the required information, they will contact the state the school is located in an attempt to obtain the appropriate documentation.
Determining if the school has previously been identified as a high school diploma mill, via internet research and existing lists the school maintains.
Determining if the diploma or transcript was purchased online with little work expected by the student, or if it was earned via brick and mortar traditional high school.

Ultimately, if Carleton College is not reasonably certain a high school diploma or G.E.D. is valid, (insert outcomes/denials). Carleton’s decision relative to the validity of a particular high school diploma or G.E.D. is final, and not subject to appeal.

Admissions Testing: Carleton has adopted a test-optional policy through 2023, in the belief that Admissions Committee can and does make sound judgments about candidates’ academic abilities and ability to succeed at Carleton without such data points. Candidates for admission who wish to share their test scores may do so, and they will be taken into account. However, it is not an application requirement.

Students whose ﬁrst or native language is not English should submit oﬃcial scores from either the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), IELTS (International English Language Testing System), or DET (DuoLingo English Test).

Interviews and Visits: When possible, each applicant may have a personal interview with a member of the admissions oﬃce staff, an alumni admissions representative or a designated representative of the College. Information on campus visit hours and options is detailed at our website go.carleton.edu/visit. From June through August, the oﬃce is closed on Saturdays. The admissions oﬃce is located in Scoville Hall, 100 South College Street (GPS address: 105 College Street North, Northﬁeld, MN).

Rooms: In the summer, all new students are assigned rooms which will be held until the ﬁrst day of registration. The College reserves the right to change students’ room assignments whenever such changes are deemed advisable and to use student rooms for its own purpose during vacation periods.

Financial Assistance: Carleton’s ﬁnancial aid policy is based on the premise that the family has the primary responsibility for meeting the expenses associated with attending the College, to the extent they are able. Families applying for ﬁnancial aid will undergo a “need analysis” to determine their ability to contribute. The difference between the cost of attendance, as set by the College, and a family’s expected contribution equals the demonstrated ﬁnancial need, which Carleton will endeavor to meet through grants, loans and work-study.