<p>okay i know this has been asked before but i still need more info!
here's what it's really come down to for me:
i really wanna get wrapped up in my academics and close to my teachers, which i'm sure i can do at carleton (small classes, high-rated professors, LOVE the trimester system) and for some reason that's not quite the vibe i'm getting from wesleyan.
BUT
i'm gay and pakistani (muslim) and diversity and open-mindedness are extremely important. carletonians seem welcoming and open-minded, for the most part, but i dunno if that's a defning characterisitic for them. and also i'm a dam hoot, so i feel like i'd have fun anywhere, but wesleyan just seems so much more active.</p>
<p>so basically i REALLY want to think one or the other is perfect so i could just go ahead and apply ED, but i either need more convincing of wesleyan's academic coolness or of carleton's open-mindedness.
OR if you guys could think of another option that would be a nice combination of the two somehow.</p>
<p>and also i'm not sure how many awesome/cool peeps i can find at carleton. that sounds really bad but hopefully u get what i mean. like different types of ppl (not just in ethnic diversity)</p>
<p>My sense is that Carleton students are definitely open-minded about sexual orientation and gender issues. But I'm viewing it from afar, and it seems like current students would give you the best info if you can get connected (maybe through facebook or something?)
In lieu of that I'd suggest combing the websites of both schools and look at stuff for current students as well as the pages aimed at prospective. I'm sure both sites have pages set up for international students and LGBT groups. Just reading their content may give you a gut feeling about whether your comfortable with the tone and style of your affinity groups, the amount of administrative support they indicate, level of activities and/or integration on campus and in the alumni body.</p>
<p>mcawesome, I can give you a parent's perspective. I agree with bingle that Carls are open-minded; I think that's one of the student body's defining characteristics. There is a huge variety of people with varying interests there, from theatre types to science geeks to popped-collar aficionados, and they're all accepted at Carleton. </p>
<p>Search this forum (or just browse it) and you will find numerous posts on this subject. </p>
<p>I would also advise you to follow your gut--after looking at everything rationally, then figure out what your gut's telling you.</p>