<p>I saw a thread started earlier today by Thunderstruck2 in the Parents Forum. I too have a student at St. Olaf. She is a junior. It is difficult to describe exactly the feeling on campus other than that it is generally anti-student. I had to laugh at the booting comment. My daughter who has a friend who stayed on campus over Thanksgiving weekend. Almost no one was there. She parked her car near her dorm. The parking lot was otherwise empty. The car was booted. Typical St. Olaf. When she complained, her parking privileges were revoked altogether. It is definitely true that the dorms are old and tired, and that there is a lavish new Administration Building. This pretty much sums up the attitude of the school toward its students. The attitude affects things large and small. Another funny rule at the school is the no skating on the outdoor rink rule. Minnesota calls itself "The State of Hockey." St. Olaf has an outdoor ice rink. Skating is not allowed on the ice rink. I'm not kidding. St. Olaf has many great professors and the students on the whole are smart and motivated, but the campus has a negative vibe. I was on campus for the Christmas Festival this year. The event was great. Obtaining tickets was bureaucratic (typical Olaf), and our tickets were issued incorrectly (typical Olaf). Of course the school representatives blamed us even though everyone else in our section had the same problem. While at the school I took my daughter and 9 other girls out for dinner. The conversation was all about how badly the students want out of the school. All but one of the students said that they would never give a dime to St. Olaf nor allow any of their children to attend the school. One of those who feels this way is a double legacy. This pretty much sums up the attitude most students have about the school.</p>
<p>Also, to Thunderstruck2. Don't feel bad about the negative responses you got. The fact that they came so quickly and from posters with as many as 17,000 prior posts means that they came from posters paid by St. Olaf to monitor forums like this. I expect the same response. It is a common tactic in on-line content management.</p>
<p>I am a current student at St. Olaf college. 7 of my 10 pod mates say they would not donate a single penny to this school after they graduate. I have had many great professors, but this school has shifted from a student oriented place to one that favors faculty. The school has alienated 70% of my pod and a lot of my friends. Something needs to change drastically at this school. Do not apply here! It is not worth your time and money.</p>
<p>Wow. Sorry to hear that. I know that she’s still a first year student, so she may yet learn to see things your way, but, so far at least, my daughter’s experience has been quite different. She has been extremely happy with every aspect of her Saint Olaf experience. She has had good interactions with her profs, finds them to be responsive, etc. She’s made good friends with others on her floor who, like her, seem to be enjoying it all. Again, I know they will learn to see things differently the longer they are there, but, as they say, your milage may vary.</p>
<p>Oh, one more thing, I’m just a kids dad. No one’s paying me to monitor or post here. I found these forums helpful last year as my daughter was wading through the college search process and am just trying to pay back a bit based on what she has experienced.</p>
<p>I’m sort of wondering if the same poster is creating new accounts and slamming Olaf out here today… I have no connection to Olaf except that I live near it. If you are wondering why posters might spot this and post even if they don’t have a kid there, it is because a lot of us watch the “recent posts” link and click on what interests us. I do not think ANYONE is paid out here except the college reps who are clearly labeled in their user names as such. Pretty cynical that you would think so – I have never heard that accusation on CC before.</p>
<p>Regarding St. Olaf, our kid’s high schools is sort of a feeder school. I would say about 5% of grads (of a pretty small class) go there each year, so I know several kids in both my kid’s grades who have gone (one out of college a year now, one a college freshman, so those would be the ages). I have never heard a complaint from kids or parents about the stuff you and the other poster are complaining about. I have my own view of it – I think the location and long winter invites heavy partying, and know that several of my kids friends have become very regular drinkers after attending (and they didn’t in high school). It certainly isn’t the only school like that, of course! But generally the education seems solid, the students I know are all happy there (some REALLY happy, others lower case happy but still good with it :)), and their parents are not whining about the administration.</p>
<p>And… I expect the rink is used regularly for broomball – it isn’t that it ISN’T used, but possibly the school doesn’t want the liability of pickup hockey that goes with allowing anyone to skate.</p>
<p>We also used to go to campus every year until last year for an academic high school competition. The science building is very, very nice. And they sure wouldn’t be the LAC with the worst dorms ever (have you ever been in the Reed dorms??? shudder…).</p>
<p>The campus is very nice. That really has nothing to do with the attitude of the administration toward the students. Your comment about the school not wanting the liability of broomball to some degree proves my point. That is the mentality of St. Olaf. Be scared. Be legalistic. Be inhumane. Carleton has ice rinks. Carleton permits skating. That is where St. Olaf students go to skate. As with many of St. Olaf’s bizarre rules, it makes no sense. I find it interesting that a person who doesn’t have a child who has attended the school feels comfortable characterizing the comment of someone who has paid $150,000 or so to St. Olaf a whiner. The education is generally solid. As I said in the original post, there are some great professors at St. Olaf. But if you have the choice of spending $200,000 at St. Olaf or $200,000 at a school that respects and cares about its students, choose the latter. There are much better choices for the money. As to college kids drinking to excess, that happens everywhere, probably less at St. Olaf than the average school. The school’s rules have little to do with this other than probably providing a safety risk by causing students to go off campus to drink.</p>
<p>These new posters have zero credibility and the posts should be removed as they obviously are joining just to promote their agenda and ■■■■■. They are not here to contribute to college discussion. The complaints by the OP are more vague and ridiculous stuff. I expect anyone seriously unhappy would transfer.</p>
<p>The responses from the serial posters are amusing. I have been a member since 2006. I have one child who has graduated. He loved his college. My second child is at St. Olaf. Transfer is being considered. If you have children who went to college, you know that transferring has its own complications. My motivations are simple. I want any prospective student considering St. Olaf to understand that the campus is beautiful, many professors are dedicated, but there are very few upper classmen who have warm feelings for the school. Sometimes negative experiences are cumulative. From what I can tell, by the time many students have been there 2 or 3 years, the negative attitude of the school toward students and the bureaucracy wears on them. St. Olaf is good at marketing. Many of their claims are embellished at best. High school students considering St. Olaf should be aware of the school’s culture. Their parents should help them. I wish I had done a better job. That is why I am posting.</p>
<p>This thread is interesting. It should be taken with a grain of salt but even if 5out of the 10 pod mates are unhappy, that’s substantial. The booting examples do seem extreme. My university never boots, just hands out parking violations and you need them paid by semester end if you want grades posted. You can go and explain circumstances too, for instance with recent large snowfall there was less parking. They waived fees.</p>
<p>I’m very amused by the conspiracy theory that St. Olaf’s has a posse of paid people looking to counter anti St. Olaf’s posts. I invited you to check prior posts and see how many of those questioning the OP’s motives have EVER posted ANYTHING about St. Olaf’s, negative or not. Laughable.</p>
<p>I’m considering St Olaf as well as a number of other schools. I have a hard time believing these opinions are shared by as many students as suggested or there would be more posts. It sounds like one or two students that are struggling and should find a new home.</p>
<p>Take time to visit campus and talk to upperclassmen. Ask questions about the attitude of the school’s administration toward students. Note the omnipresence of campus security and ask students how they are treated by public safety. Ask students if they have a sense that the school has significant money problems. Ask yourself what it says about a school where the administration is housed in a lavish new building and the newest dorm is 30 years old. If you decide to attend despite what you hear, good luck.</p>
<p>Because I live near St. Olaf, I also know a lot of grads. They all seem pretty proud of their school and happy. You have a lot of sour grapes… your kid (ahem… or you, as I suspect this is NOT a parent posting) should transfer. TigerCC, I don’t even think you are seeing 1 or 2 students. I think you are seeing one disgruntled student creating multiple accounts and complaining.</p>
<p>Visit the school. Ask the questions. Don’t just believe the marketing propaganda on the website. Also, ask yourself what kind of person intparent is who comments on a school he did not attend, did not have a child attend, and had time to make over 5,000 posts on College Confidential.</p>
<p>Funny I actually asked some students about campus security and the response was a few bad students love to complain about breaking rules everyone else follows. I asked about the administration and not one bad word. So one bitter student or parent that had an inflated sense of their kids importance wont change my opinion. Pay the ticket and follow the rules.</p>
<p>gdad, I am a “she”. And I am someone who has put two kids (5 years apart) through the college admissions process, which is one reason I have a lot of posts. I know a LOT about colleges and admission. And I have spent time on the campus at academic competitions, know a lot of young students who went there, and have lived and worked in the city where St. Olaf graduates are most likely to be employed after graduation for about 30 years.</p>
<p>Certainly at any college it is a good idea to visit, talk to people, and look beyond the marketing materials. One method I recommend is to try to get copies of the campus paper, you can really see the school’s dirty laundry that way. But listening to one poster with sour grapes (who probably had their car booted for parking it illegally) isn’t a very good way to understand a school. And OP – a life lesson for you is that signs about parking apply ALL THE TIME unless they specifically state that they don’t. In the city you might have been towed, so it could be worse.</p>
<p>I emailed a few students and they said exactly that…the rules for parking always apply always. The OP had one bad experience they caused and are not use to be told NO.</p>
<p>I would much rather hear from someone with 5000+ posts and many years of experience in the college admissions and evaluation and financial aid process who explains herself and is always happy to give good advice to those looking for it here than from someone with 5 posts who signed up to complain, in his daughter’s 3rd year at a college.</p>