<p>Generally speaking, what are the things that Carleton’s social life often centered around? </p>
<p>I know that there aren’t any fraternities or sororities… Do people make friends through extracurricular activities, or do similar people naturally seek each other out, because I heard Carleton is pretty cliquey. Not those mean, exclusive, unaccepting cliques but just different groups regarding race, interests, class, etc. </p>
<p>Also, I heard the floor is a crucial part of your social life during first year… Is this true? It certainly seemed so when I went for a visit! Another thing I noticed was that, compared to other colleges, Carleton seems to put a lot more effort on those roommate surveys… lol And it offers four year housing plan, so is residential life like a very critical part of Carleton experience? </p>
<p>Could you also comment on Carleton’s dorm life in general… Are there such things as dorm stereotypes? Is there much separation among different dorms or does it not matter? Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>Is there any segregation between the athletes and non-athletes? During my visit, my host and friends complained a little about that issue. I was wondering if that is a ubiquitous sentiment at campus</p>
<p>Depends somewhat on the sport. I think the fall season sports (football, men’s and women’s soccer in particular) tend to be the most socially isolated from the rest of the student body because of arriving on campus several weeks early for training. I would bet this is more or less the situation at other Div III schools of similar academic and athletic caliber. Athletes also seem to major in econ way more often than students who aren’t on varsity or club teams. Maybe athletes are more future-oriented? I don’t know.</p>
<p>Freshman son has a freshman football player on his floor. He was living in a different dorm before all of the other freshmen arrived, then moved to his permanent dorm. My son has a baseball player as a roommate. Son played football in high school, but is not doing any sport in college. Both of these young men are friends with my son and socialize together. Will that last next year ???</p>
<p>^^My son, a sophomore, is not an athlete (except for biking, broomball and quiz bowl). He has MANY friends who are varsity athletes. It seems that at Carleton, varsity sports are just another activity, albeit time-consuming.</p>
<p>I’m currently a freshman. From what I’ve experienced, kids form tight but non-exclusive cliques at the beginning of the year with either floor mates, roommates, classmates, or teammates. Also there seems to be a divide with international students at first, because they are also on campus for orientation before other students. However, most people quickly branch out, and the cliques become networks. It really becomes a neat community before too long. In general, athletes hangout more often with other athletes, but I’m a non-athlete with many friends out for varsity sports. Athletes here definitely do not fit the stereotype. Overall, I would say you can make and maintain friendships with kids from all different types of groups and backgrounds, no matter what your interests and activities are.</p>