Ask questions about Grinnell here!

kalons · November 2018

hi there! with discover grinnell coming up very, very soon (this sunday!), i figured it would be cool if i started a little “ask a current student” thread for parents (or students) who can’t come.

in the same spirit, any current grinnell college student who uses this website may chime in with any of their own explanations/experiences.

i’ll try to answer and alleviate any question(s)/concern(s) you all have to the best of my ability.

MODERATOR'S NOTE: Anyone is free to ask or answer questions in this thread.

crknwk2000 · November 2018

Hi! Thank you so much : ) Do you live near-ish to Grinnell? We live in California with no direct flights to Des Moines or Iowa City. If you do have to fly to get to Grinnell how has it been getting back to campus after Thanksgiving or the Winter Break with snow, etc? This is a total nervous nellie mom here, but having my kid fly in inclement weather (2 different flights) and then drive an hour to get to campus gives me a little pause. We just don't have any real experience HAVING to get somewhere in snow/ice, so I just want to know if it feels scary ever. I know I sound paranoid, but California weather really spoils us.
Besides that, my kid LOVES Grinnell. She's visited twice and is high up on her list. Are you a student athlete by any chance? If you are, how has that been for you?

Oh, and 3 more questions:
What year are you and what is your major?
Where were you strongly considering besides Grinnell?

Thanks so much!

kalons · November 2018

@crknwk2000 hi there! my apologies for not getting back sooner. i'm a first-year hoping to major in psychology w/ a double concentration in linguistics and neruoscience (all while doing the pre-med track). it's funny you mention snow, because we're supposed to get our first snow tonight! i'm from tennessee, so i'm about a twelve-hour drive and a 4 1/2 hour flight from the school (also having to take two flights).

the only experience i've had with inclement weather thus far is when i visited for an admitted students weekend this past april and it poured snow. i didn't have to drive myself because the school offers shuttles for those who need them.

it's typically uncommon for many to go home over thanksgiving since break is only four days long (i'd say close to 3/4 of the student body chooses to stay from what i've been told), but i do know those who live closer (i.e. those who are from iowa and chicago) do make trips home. fall break is typically when looots of kids go home besides international students, those who don't have the means to make it home, and athletes whose sports are in season.

i'm not a student-athlete yet, but i do plan on doing track and field during the spring semester. many, many of my friends are student-athletes ranging from swimming to football. the workload here is fairly heavy (it's almost become a meme to be honest), so if your kid wants to do a sport, i highly suggest s/he be able to manage her/his time very well. sports take up a lot of time + classes take up even more time + work can take up time as well. add all three of those in with other extracurriculars, and you have a busy, busy schedule. all of that being said, it's completely and totally manageable. if it wasn't, 1/3 of the student body wouldn't be an athlete.

i applied early decision, but had i not gotten into grinnell, some of the schools i was very, very strongly considering/hoping to be accepted to were macalester, wesleyan, vassar (i almost chose ED2 for vassar over grinnell but ended up not applying at all... go figure), connecticut college, and hamilton (i also think i didn't end up applying to hamilton as well because i was so burned out, but i did heavily consider it during my process of applying).

all in all, i don't think i could see myself anywhere else. my friends and i consistently make the point that the people who end up here genuinely are supposed to be here, so when/if your kid gets that "feeling" about grinnell that s/he can't explain that makes her/him love it so much (a feeling i got that made me fall in love with grinnell), i say go for it.

crknwk2000 · November 2018

Thanks @kalons! It sounds like you are really enjoying Grinnell : )
I really can't wait to see where my daughter ends up. Right now I see the whole process as exciting. I hope that continues when acceptances come out. Continue to have a great year!!

crknwk2000 · November 2018

Hi @kalons thinking of you since this is probably the first really big snow storm for you since you've been at Grinnell.If you went home for Thanksgiving I hope you made it back without too much impact from the storm. Did you go home for this holiday? Do most people? Defnitey let us know how this first big major snow storm feels there. I was looking at the blizzard/cancelled flight news thinking that this could be something that really affects us next year if our D18 ends up at Grinnell ; )

kalons · December 2018

@crknwk2000 hello there! my apologies for the late, late reply. college keeps me busy! it's funny you mention the snow storm because grinnell got absolutely nothing. not even flurries. nothing. i was so disappointed, but less so when i saw how difficult it was for some students to get back to campus. getting back here was frustrating especially for those who live in the path the snow storm took (i.e. nebraska, kansas, the chicago area, etc.). grinnell typically never cancels classes but instead relies on professors to cancel their own sessions (which is exactly what my gwss teacher did... god bless him).

i didn't go home (plane tickets home are just too darn expensive, and thanksgiving break was only from thursday until sunday, so it wasn't worth it for me), and neither did most of my friends since we all live relatively far away (i'm from tennessee, some of my friends are from new york, washington, california, utah, etc.). plenty of people were here for thanksgiving break (many, many more than fall break). we had a wonderful thanksgiving feast in the d-hall, and we also had a thanksgiving feast at hotel grinnell in town (which was completely free of charge).

let me know if you have any more questions!

IzzysMom · December 2018

Ditto for our first-year DD, home for week of Fall Break and stayed for T'gving. Fall break is perfectly placed mid-semester week just after most Midterms. Also, fall athletic season mostly wrapped before that, so DD had a week without practice/games to study for mid-terms. Thanksgiving break leads into the last 3 weeks of classes, so said it was a good time to rest and catchup before final push. There were opportunities for 4 Thanksgiving meals, so DD got her turkey fix! Flights from NC also take 2 legs (altho airport 2 hrs away has direct flight to Cedar Rapids but not much cheaper plus Grinnell airport shuttles only go to Des Moines airport and a couple stops around Chicago.) Just never know about weather and travel (we have family in Detroit and Chicago which seem to be the common transfer hubs for us, so good to have contingency plans in place!) DD enjoying Grinnell, says she feels at home and wanted/loved there (so that was our GO to write next semester's check!)

crknwk2000 · December 2018

Thanks for the Thanksgiving info, @IzzysMom and @kalons I love hearing that not being home for Thanksgiving is just fine and there is plenty to do so you don't feel like you're missing out on family time. It's probably going to be harder for ME not having her home if she goes far away ; )

tangoman64 · December 2018

@IzzysMom Good to hear that your DD is feeling the love at Grinnell. Our DD applied ED1 and is waiting anxiously to see if she gets into Grinnell so hoping to find out today. If she gets in our DDs may be teammates. My wife and I were able to watch your DD's team compete in Madison - so impressed with your DD's final match against Lake Forest to take the singles title! Our DD was playing her final high school match when your DD's team arrived so they watched her final set. We stayed the rest of the weekend to watch your DD's team play. So nice to see how well they support each other!

IzzysMom · December 2018

ha, @tangoman64 small world! Yes, the team has amazing (nice AND highly intelligent) girls with wonderful esprit de corps (and you just never know about team/coach dynamics ... DD has been largely lucky with that through her tennis journey.) We were concerned about her continuing athletics, as its a tough/concentrated first 8 weeks for a first-year (as @kalons mentioned takes up most all freetime so must be disciplined to crack a book anytime/anywhere and have good time mgt skills.) But, DD wanted to keep playing and have that team experience so badly. And, aside from scrambling at times, it seems like she navigated through Fall season with aplomb (well, haven't exactly seen grades yet but verbal reports have been good!)

IzzysMom · December 2018

Good luck to all the ED'ers (DD applied RD so this feels much more climactic!) And, thanks @kalons for the thread. You have very insightful feedback on G and always enjoy your posts. Just realized you welcomed all G STUDENTS to chime in... so, I'll shut up now!

tangoman64 · December 2018

@IzzysMom Our DD got in! Hope to meet you at one of their matches!

IzzysMom · December 2018

Congrats to your DD @tangoman64. Know its a big relief! You being in WI will be lucky as there are lots of matchs scheduled there. I found a cheap fare on Frontier to Minnesota for an ITA tourney, so that will be an annual trip. Think Dad will do a home match (2 schools in one weekend) in April as he hasn't seen the team play yet. During recruiting, we were told that video streaming would be available once finish court renovation completed (but, haven't seen that materialize yet!)

tangoman64 · December 2018

Thanks @IzzysMom - definitely a big relief for all of us! Yes - we are fortunate that we'll be able to get to most of the team's matches. The site of the ITA in Minnesota was actually our DD's second choice - it is a great tennis facility. Not sure at which stage the live steaming is at - know the funds are there - perhaps it's an issue with just picking the equipment. We did catch the team in action at the National Campus in Florida. Any chance you may head down next spring break?

Sushi1207 · March 22

Hi! I just got accepted to Grinnell(RD). My mums not too keen to send me ..

i really need help to convince her. She believes that careers are made in big cities and is very keen on sending me to ohio state uni. (im an international student ) (shes still keen to learn more about grinnell though like before we make the final decision)

But i really want to go to a liberal arts college and explore and live within a small community. I come from a really big city (lol i never step out.. just to school and home) and i really want to live in a small town like grinnell.

could you please tell me about the post graduate and career opportunities after graduating and internship opportunities while studying. Im really looking to learn more and explore myself and grinnells vibe really calls out to me .

porcupine98 · April 2

@Sushi1207 Are you still deciding? Look at Grinnell’s Center for Careers, Life and Service. I think they do a good job, but it’s all ultimately about what YOU do. Go where you’ll thrive, whether that’s small town or big city.

Ask questions about Grinnell here!

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