Macalester College

Date: Oct 17 2016
Major: Biology (This Major's Salary over time)
Overall, Macalester has been an amazing experience for me, and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I'm going to break up this review into three sections: Student Life, Academics, Environment.

Student Life: Macalester has a really friendly and engaging student body, and I really feel like I fit in. I have met some of my best friends here and hope to maintain these friendships for life. Almost everyone I know is very passionate about their major and education, without there being a sense of competitiveness. My only complaint would be that there is sometimes a lack of diversity of ideas. Macalester is a very liberal college, and I can imagine that someone who is conservative might feel a little excluded. However, I have been friends and roommates with some very religious christians and Jews and I feel like religious people are respected by the student body overall.

Academics: Besides a few courses I've been required to take (French/Chemistry), I've really enjoyed the classes I've taken and found them very engaging. I'm a Biology major (interested mostly in ecology), but I've taken all sorts of classes such as Islamic Studies courses, a history on American agriculture, urban geography, etc., and have learned so much. For the most part the teachers are wonderful. My one complaint about the Bio department is that it's mostly catered to pre-med students, and that there aren't enough high level botany and ecology courses.

Environment: Most of the Macalester buildings were built in the 1960s, so don't expect too much out of the architecture. That said the campus is clean and well maintained, and after a semester feels really homey. The campus physical size is also pretty small in condensed, but that can actually be a positive, especially during Minnesota winters. Being able to walk from the underclassmen dorms to classes/library/cafeteria in 10 minutes or less is really convenient. The cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis are really nice, though they might feel a little quiet if you're from NYC/LA/Chicago. Still, living in an actual city that's not a college town is really nice, and allows you to escape the college bubble when needed.