St. Olaf College

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Hallmarks and Quirks

Things I'm Good At:

Singing. And I'm not talking about belting out Beyoncé songs in the shower. You can catch my choir at the PBS Christmas concert. Want more music for your ears? Garrison Keillor and his show, A Prairie Home Companion, like to visit me now and then. They sing with my choir and enlist some help from my totally impressive orchestra.
Travel. I take education so seriously that I send most of my students away from campus to broaden their horizons by learning in a foreign country.
Sending grads to, er, grad school. I may be small, but I'm one of the top-ranked schools in this department.

My Top 5 Must-Haves:

Warm clothes. I'm talking parkas, scarves, mittens, a ski mask or two, and the thickest sweater your grandma can knit.
A passport. How else are you going to join the teems of students who go abroad?
If not a passion for, then at least patience with, all things Norwegian. I was founded by Norwegian immigrants after all, and I'm proud of my heritage.
Your whole self. As we like to say around here, "life is more than a livelihood" (source).
The voice of an angel. Okay, this isn't exactly required, but if you like to sing, my choir is top of the line. And if you don't like to sing, bring your listening ears.

Why You Might Have Heard of Me:

I share my hometown with Rose of Golden Girls fame.
My choir rings in Christmas with an epic PBS special, and my choir and orchestra have been featured on A Prairie Home Companion.
The one and only Jay Gatsby spent a little quality time with me back when he was still known as James Gatz.

On a regular Saturday night, you can find me...

My dorms are so nice that there's no shame in staying in on a weekend. Let's just say that with my fireplaces and table tennis, Hogwarts has nothing on me.

If I do go out, though, you might catch me at the Lion's Pause, playing pool or eating pizza (or trying to do both at the same time). When my friends with cars are down to make the trip, I sometimes venture into the Twin Cities or St. Paul for a night on the town.

And of course, chances are good I might just be in Zimbabwe. Or Russia. Or Costa Rica. After all, going abroad is kind of my thing.

Favorite Hangouts:

Dorms. Why freeze my butt off when I could just hang by the fire and play table tennis with my friends?
The Lion's Pause. Student-run, this campus hangout knows what's up. Plus, they make killer milkshakes. Mmm...
The Twin Cities aren't too far away to explore, and neither is St. Paul. Sometimes I just toss a coin and see where it takes me.
Some super cool international hangout spot. After all, it can't be all work and no play when I'm abroad, right?

Quirks:

I'm on a 4-1-4 system, which means my students take four months of classes during the first semester, then participate in one intensive class of their choosing in January before finishing the remaining four months of the school year. Consider this your chance to dive headfirst into something you're super interested in.
Jay Gatsby deemed me briefly worthy of his attention before moving on up in the world.
Malt-O-Meal, now known as MOM brands, has a factory in town. You don't have to eat their products, but you do have to smell them.

Famous Alumni:

Jay Gatsby
Anton Armstrong (a.k.a. the dude who conducts my amazing choir)
Al Qui, former governor of the great state of Minnesota