Olaf are more than just academic, and students are often engaged in numerous ways. As a Lutheran college, St. Olaf honors the Lutheran tradition of critical inquiry and thus classes are conducted as small, critical discussions.

Students are also engaged through experiential learning activities like internships and civic service and through unique approaches to disciplines.

Majors also allow students to dive into highly specialized classical and innovative fields of study such as:

* Africa and the Americas

* Ancient Studies

* Classics

* Medieval Studies

As a forward-thinking school, St. Olaf is also environmentally conscious and integrates this awareness into the curriculum, into service projects, into the design of the campus and even into its research.

The admissions staff at St. Olaf’s takes various aspects of each applicant’s history into account, including grade point average, rigor of courses, extracurricular activities, the quality of the admissions essay and SAT or ACT scores.

St. Olaf offers two types of financial aid. Merit-based aid includes scholarships based on academic performance while need-based aid includes grants and loans. Students who wish to be considered for need-based aid will need to fill out a FAFSA. Their income or that of their parents will determine their need.