Application and Selection
The Great Conversation is a team taught, interdisciplinary program introducing students to the liberal arts, to which all accepted students may apply. The program consists of a sequence of five courses, spread over the first two years, providing an integrated means to satisfy several of the general education requirements of the College. Taught primarily through discussion of great works, the Great Conversation provides a broad foundation both for a St. Olaf education and for a life of engaged citizenship.
On March 21 all applicants to St. Olaf will be sent a brochure and application for the Great Conversation. The application is also available on the accepted students’ website. If study in the Great Conversation appeals to you, carefully write the required short essay in response to one of two assigned questions. The essay, the primary means by which students are selected, will be evaluated by three professors who teach in the program.
The admissions procedure for the Great Conversation gives you the option of two due dates: April 10 and May 8. Students who submit their application essay by April 10 receive notification of acceptance, denial, or placement on the waitlist by April 20. Those who submit their application essay by May 8 receive notification of by May 20. Although the program reserves positions for the May applicants, it is in your interest to apply earlier rather than later. Those who are waitlisted in April are reconsidered with the May applicants.
All students selected to participate in the program live together in either Ellingson or Kildahl Residence Halls. This shared living arrangement not only allows great conversations to continue outside the classroom but also helps create friendships based on shared experiences.
