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School data & stats
Outcomes
Cost
Community
Overview
Macalester College is a private liberal arts college set in a residential neighborhood of St. Paul, Minnesota, distinguished by a deeply internationalist outlook that shapes nearly everything about the place — the United Nations flag flies on campus alongside the American and Minnesota flags, and international students make up an unusually large share of the student body for a liberal arts college. The school has an urban-minded, politically engaged culture that's rare among small liberal arts colleges, closer in temperament to a small university than a rural enclave, and it wears its global orientation as a genuine institutional identity rather than a marketing line.
Academics
The college is particularly strong in international studies, political science, economics, and the sciences, and it has long punched above its weight in producing Fulbright scholars relative to its size. An open curriculum gives students real room to design their own path across departments rather than working through a heavy set of core requirements, and study abroad participation is unusually high, reinforcing the school's global orientation in the classroom as well as outside it. Small classes and close faculty relationships are the norm, consistent with its liberal arts peers, but the international framing runs through department offerings in a way that's distinctive to Macalester specifically.
Campus & student life
Being embedded in a residential Twin Cities neighborhood — Mac-Groveland — gives students a real city at hand rather than a campus bubble: restaurants and shops line Grand Avenue nearby, and Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul are a short transit ride away. Student culture leans activist and globally aware, with a strong tradition of civic engagement, public service, and campus organizing that shows up in student government and campus discourse alike. The Twin Cities' arts, nonprofit, and policy sectors give students plenty of outlets for engagement beyond the campus itself.
Getting in
Admissions is holistic and values intellectual curiosity, a global outlook, and a track record of engagement beyond the classroom over a narrow academic formula. Essays that connect genuinely to the school's international character, rather than treating it as a selling point to name-check, tend to stand out in a pool that self-selects for students already oriented outward.
After graduation
Alumni — including Kofi Annan and Walter Mondale — are known for paths into international affairs, public policy, nonprofit work, diplomacy, and government, alongside strong placement into graduate study. The school's global reputation opens doors specifically in international organizations and foreign service in a way that's less common among peer liberal arts colleges.
Worth knowing
The school's identity is unusually bound up with international affairs and civic engagement, which shapes the student body, the curriculum, and campus political culture in ways a student should weigh seriously before applying — Macalester suits students who want that orientation built into daily life, not just available as an elective interest.
Admissions
Deadlines (2026–27 cycle)
Applying (2026-27 cycle)
Apply through Common App or QuestBridge.
Early Decision I and II are binding, restrictive commitments requiring withdrawal of all other applications if admitted (assuming financial aid makes attendance feasible); Early Action and Regular Decision are both non-restrictive, letting applicants apply to other colleges.
Interviews: Interviews are optional, not required, and offered virtually by Macalester staff to domestic rising seniors and seniors through February 1 of senior year.
Supplemental essays (2)
Macalester is one of the few highly selective liberal arts colleges located in the heart of a metropolitan area. Identify one way Macalester's location in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul would enhance your academic, social, or community experience.
Four values guide Macalester's mission: academic distinction, internationalism, multiculturalism, and service to society. Guided by these values, Macalester is a learning environment that affirms different identities and experiences and prepares graduates to work toward a more just and peaceful world. In what ways do your lived experiences, perspectives, or hopes for your college education connect with Macalester's mission and community?
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