<p>Anyone else in the midst of their application? I went to the college for an overnight a few weeks ago and fell in love. I love everything about it and am finding it hard to apply to other schools...but I am worried about financial aid. I guess if it's meant to happen then it will :-)</p>
<p>My daughter visited last weekend and loved it and is in the process of applying. I have read for some time about St. Olaf and how much money they give or don't give. I guess all we can do is apply and wait and see.</p>
<p>flutie, what are some things that you like about it? can you give some pros and cons?</p>
<p>joecollegedad - There are a lot of great things about the school. It has an amazing music department and you don't have to be a music major to get involved. 1/3 of the student body participates in one of the ensembles, but only 1/3 of them are music majors. </p>
<p>The school was founded by Norwegian immigrants and has maintained strong Norwegian connections. My family is Norwegian so this is a huge plus for me. Norwegian royalty visit the college regularly. The college has a small but strong Norwegian department and an honors house. </p>
<p>St. Olaf College is a college of the church. They are connected with the Lutheran church, but are fairly liberal. Daily chapel is offered, and though I'm Presbyterian, I felt very much at home when I went. </p>
<p>The college also had a great spirit. Whenever anyone found out I was a prospective student (they called me a prospey), they would talk to me about how great the school was. Everyone was friendly and seemed to love the College. The feeling I got from walking around campus was better than the feelings I've gotten from any other college (...I've visited 8). </p>
<p>In terms of cons, some of the science classes are larger than I'd like. St. Olaf has general education requirements that include math, science, religion, and history classes, so everyone must take certain subject. I was looking forward to not taking a science class in college, but I think it will be good for me to try to conquer a college science course. </p>
<p>Also, for some people, the Minnesota weather could be a con. I'm from upstate New York and have lived in Utah, so I'm pretty excited about the winters there, but I have heard that they are pretty severe. </p>
<p>Hope this helps, St. Olaf is an amazing school and I really hope I end up there! Good luck with your search!</p>
<p>I'm applying. and I miss the bitter winters lol (I used to live in Canada).
so geographically, st.olaf appeals to me, as well as its music department. :)</p>
<p>My son is visiting in January for a possible application in the fall of 2008. He is interested in the math department, which we hear is excellent. any info on that? how hard is it to get into this place??</p>
<p>I submitted my EA app last Wednesday. I really liked St. Olaf when I visited during MPCW last summer. The size seems perfect, as does the distance from home, the chemistry and music departments are both very good, and I just had a really good feeling when I stepped on campus, which by the way is just about the nicest campus I have been on, and I've visited quite a few in the midwest. Since that visit St. Olaf has been my first choice and I don't expect that to change.</p>
<p>Complications, I don't have much to say about the math department as I am more interested in chemistry, but St. Olaf is rated very well for graduates earning PhD's in mathematics. As far as getting into St. Olaf, their acceptance rate was 65% last year but I am pretty sure that is falling as St. Olaf gains more recognition. The middle 50% for ACT's is 25-30 so I would guess that if your son is in the upper range of that he should have a very good chance. Hope this helped.</p>
<p>--Erik</p>
<p>Is anyone sending in an application for music admissions/scholarship?</p>
<p>I was thinking about applying for a music scholarship, but I haven't had the time to put together an audition tape so I think I'm going to let that go.</p>
<p>my daughter is applying for music with a cd audition</p>
<p>my s just applied early action. It will be a long wait until Feb! Have not visited, but will if he is accepted...it is one of his first choices.</p>
<p>I failed to mention that my d applied ea which was due by Dec 1. She is now putting together her music application/audition stuff that is due by Dec 15. That included taking the online skills test already.</p>
<p>I finished my CD and am still working on my resume and recommendations. It is so hard to be patient...:-)</p>
<p>For those that applied EA, does anyone else have items still listed as missing? Basically everything is missing from my son's file, but should be there by now.</p>
<p>I still have both recommendation letters missing. The letters were mailed by last Thursday as far as I know, so I would think they would be there soon.</p>
<p>All of my school papers are marked as missing but they were sent weeks before Thanksgiving. My mom called my admissions counselor and he said not to worry, they sometimes get backed up and don't enter everything in the computer right away.</p>
<p>music scholarship questions</p>
<p>what are the acceptable formats the music sample needs to be in ? cd, dvd, vhs tape? does it have to be professionally recorded (someone mentioned that they thought it needed to be recorded by a pro; if so, where and how the heck does one do this?)</p>
<p>how many music scholarships do they dole out and how much is each?</p>
<p>Violinists (non music majors who successfully recvd the scholarships): can you give some sample pieces that you played ? you can pm if you want.</p>
<p>call the admissions office is something is missing online...I did that and they were very helpful.</p>
<p>joecollegedad:</p>
<p>You need to submit a non-edited CD for instrument recordings and either a CD, DVD, or VHS recording for vocal recordings. </p>
<p>The CD doesn't have to be recorded professionally, but the College says, "The quality of the recording is often a factor in selection of finalists.
Make sure the recording is such that your performance can be clearly evaluated. It is in the student’s best interest to present his or her instrument or voice as naturally as possible."</p>
<p>To make a professional recording you could try talking to local music teachers or colleges to see who has equipment. </p>
<p>The CHRISTIANSEN SCHOLARSHIPS are worth $8000/yr.
The CASSLER SCHOLARSHIPS are worth $4000/yr. </p>
<p>Last year, 600 hundred people applied for the scholarships, and 45 of each scholarships were awarded. </p>
<p>For Violin the requirements are:
VIOLIN, VIOLA, CELLO
B.A. MUSIC MAJOR
Two compositions in contrasting styles, approx. 10 min. total. Repertoire should include a movement from a standard concerto.
B.M. PERFORMANCE MAJOR
The first or third movement from a standard concerto
Two contrasting movements of unaccompanied Bach</p>
<p>I applied early action! I'm anxious for february...although statistically I ought to be a shoo-in. I visited TWICE and it was AMAZING. I actually went there the first time on a whim. We travelled to Minnesota to visit Carleton and Macalester...hated them! There was a really depressing atmosphere at Carleton and it just seemed very anti-social. Macalester attracted some weird kids and neither of them seemed to fit very well. So, since we were in the area, my mom and I stopped by St. Olaf. It was LOVE!!! </p>
<ol>
<li><p>The campus food is FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!! Many many options (and I'm vegetarian). It's freshly cooked, and just overall wonderful.</p></li>
<li><p>The cafeteria is so polite. My school is a madhouse at lunchtime... and it was refreshing to walk into St. Olaf where "please" "excuse me" and "thank you" were the most often heard phrases to the lunch staff.</p></li>
<li><p>The kids were really really nice to me. I spent an overnight there a few weeks ago and I couldn't have wished for a better host. After 1 day there I felt as though I had several great friends and even met some cute guys. There was no partying that night (monday), but I wouldn't expect there to be because it's a dry campus. </p></li>
<li><p>They welcome strangers. When I was trying to make my way to class the next day, I paused in the hallway, confused where to turn, and two girls came up, really excited to see a prospie, and escorted me to class. Once there, the professor engaged me in conversation and the students were cognisant of me the whole time. I loved being embraced, rather than ignored in the classroom.</p></li>
<li><p>The winters might be a dealbreaker for me, I haven't decided yet. They're FREEZING. When I was there the temps were 40 F and the students thought it was warm. The campus is nice and compact for the neccessities, but with open land...so accomodating for all weather.</p></li>
<li><p>I think I'd sign up for the American Conversation program. I went to a Great Con class, and while I loved it, we studied much of it in my Senior Seminar class. The conversation programs are really conducive towards discussion and intense learning.</p></li>
<li><p>The campus is gorgeous! Really pretty architecture that shines in both the dead of winter and blossoming spring.</p></li>
<li><p>It's a dry campus. If you can't stand that, DON'T GO THERE. That's not to say that you can't get to the occasional beer, but the party scenes do not center around that. I can't stand the reviews where people complain about the lack of alcohol. duh.</p></li>
</ol>