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The College of St. Scholastica

The days of just learning from textbooks and taking tests have given way to more individual and interactive methods that match the active lifestyles of today’s students.

At St. Scholastica, you’ll excel with opportunities for independent study — one-on-one with professors, participating in and leading research studies, studying abroad, as well as gaining real-world experience through internships at some of the nation’s top companies, hospitals and universities.

Programs Offered

One-On-One Attention

Faculty meeting with a student in the Cloister Walk at St. Scholastica.If you’re serious about learning and want to become a responsible member of a thriving campus community, then St. Scholastica is the college for you.

Smaller classes and attentive faculty help create an academic atmosphere in which you’ll be challenged, encouraged and inspired to do your best.

An Enriching Student Experience

St. Scholastica students walking in front of Tower Hall.From our beautiful campus in Duluth, MN, to our top-ranked academic programs, St. Scholastica offers the complete package. We are a community of learners, working together, playing together and growing together. When you become a Saint, you join something larger, something stronger. You join a community.

Take a look around. Schedule a visit. Meet your admissions counselor. Connect with other first-year students on Instagram. Learn a bit about our values and what a great value a St. Scholastica education really is. And when you’re ready, fill out an application.

We’re excited for you to join us!

Four Year Pledge to Students – Our Commitment to You

St. Scholastica pledges that new students who enter the College as first-year undergraduate students and follow these guidelines will graduate in four years.

We make this pledge because we are committed to quality education, we have confidence in our advisement program and availability of course offerings and we desire to keep the College affordable to all students.

Requirement and Exceptions

Requirements of the St. Scholastica Four Year Pledge

  • Complete an average of 16 credits counting toward graduation each semester (32 credits a year). You may use credit earned during the summer to meet the 32-credit-per-year requirement.
  • Maintain a minimum of a 2.0 cumulative grade point average and you attain the required grade in all courses in your intended major
  • Do not fail or withdraw from any course without making up the credits during this four-year period of time
  • Are formally accepted into your chosen major no later than the spring semester of your sophomore year, follow the course sequence in the advisor’s manual and maintain that major’s required academic progression and skills requirements

If you meet these requirements and still do not complete your education in four years, St. Scholastica will offer you a grant (after federal and state financial aid have been credited to you) to cover tuition costs until the degree program is completed. A student exercising the pledge must apply for financial aid as he or she enters the fifth year.

Exceptions

  • If you are formally accepted into one major and change majors during the four-year period;
  • If you elect additional majors, minors, or certificates that extend the course of study. In addition, this pledge does not apply to students in the chemistry middle/secondary education major, as the dual science and education requirements often extend the degree beyond four years;
  • If you “stop out” for a semester due to personal, financial or other reasons; you are no longer covered by the pledge.

What’s Campus Life Like?

It’s all about community. You’ll find a supportive setting and numerous opportunities to get involved. Check out some campus life videos to get a glimpse of life at St. Scholastica.

Transfer Options

The ways credits transfer to St. Scholastica are limitless. Explore options and visit with our admissions counselors — they’ll work with you to put together your personal pathway to a four-year degree.

Interested in Scholarships?

St. Scholastica awards millions of dollars in scholarships each year. Take a look at what we offer.

Student Services

You’ll be supported during your educational journey. St. Scholastica offers many services to help you succeed.

Veritas and Dignitas

In Latin, veritas means “truth.”

At St. Scholastica, Veritas is also the name of our General Education program, which has an essential role, together with the majors, in fulfilling the College’s distinctive academic mission of liberal education in the Catholic Intellectual Tradition by emphasizing the search for truth across a breadth of disciplines.

Dignitas provides the foundation for our students’ entire college experience by introducing them to the key elements unique to a St. Scholastica education. Dignitas, the Latin word for dignity, is the program’s signature element focusing on the intrinsic, absolute value of being a person.

Veritas

St. Scholastica’s General Education Program

What is a liberal education?

The Association of American Colleges & Universities defines liberal education as an “approach to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change. It provides students with broad knowledge of the wider world (e.g. science, culture, and society) as well as in-depth study in a specific area of interest.”

In all Veritas courses students engage in the Personal and Social Responsibility values that inform a St. Scholastica education:

  • Intercultural knowledge and competence
  • Ethical reasoning and action
  • Civic knowledge and engagement

These skills are essential in preparing students for a life of career wellness and meaningful work.

The Value of Veritas

We could tell you all about how 80 percent of employers think every student should acquire broad knowledge in the liberal arts, why a liberal arts education is the best job preparation or how a liberal arts degree has become tech’s hottest ticket.

But don’t just take our word for it. Take a look at what students say about their liberal education experience at St. Scholastica.

“[Through a liberal education,] I learned more about myself and what values I want to take with me throughout my life. I became more confident in identifying who I was, what I valued, and where I wanted to go in life during the years I was at CSS. It’s a great place to find yourself.”

— Jenna Dobosenski, ’14, Psychology and Organizational Behavior

“I think the most important thing that CSS has taught me wasn’t necessarily equations or grammar, but rather how to build meaningful relationships, develop a strong work ethic, and balance school, work, activities, and my personal life.”

— Tannyr Heyl, ’15, Management and Public Relations

In fact, this liberal arts background also helped Kendra Souther, ’13, get the prestigious National Science Foundation Fellowship as she pursues her PhD in chemistry.

Dignitas

Dignitas provides the foundation for our students’ entire college experience by introducing them to the key elements unique to a St. Scholastica education. Dignitas, the Latin word for dignity, is the program’s signature element focusing on the intrinsic, absolute value of being a person.

In Dignitas, we are guided by important questions that shape our learning, our actions, and our purpose as members of the CSS community. These questions support the Dignitas learning outcomes, providing structure and coherence to each course. In Dignitas, we ask questions and seek answers in preparation for “responsible living and meaningful work.”

Who are we as a college community? Who am I? Who am I in community with my neighbors (locally, nationally, globally)?

Key elements of the St. Scholastica mission and values are integrated directly into the Dignitas curriculum:

Dignity

Human dignity is the idea that every person is an end-in-itself who ought never to be treated merely as a means. It is the foundational moral principle–the criterion by which we evaluate all other moral claims. Human dignity is about honoring and respecting each other as persons created in the image and likeness of God.

Diversity

The College of St. Scholastica is a Catholic Benedictine community that welcomes people from all cultures and faith traditions. CSS prepares students to live and work in a diverse and expanding world.
In Dignitas, we provide our students with a context for thinking about diversity and with a framework for understanding how our individual identities impact relationships.

Benedictine Tradition and Values

At CSS, we are standing on the shoulders of giants and we have the unique privilege of upholding the Benedictine tradition. To be Benedictine means actively and intentionally living out our values on a daily basis.

Catholic Intellectual Tradition

The Catholic Intellectual Tradition affirms the value of rational inquiry and the human search for truth and meaning. In the Catholic Intellectual Tradition, faith and reason complement each other in a never-ending quest for wisdom. The Catholic Intellectual Tradition (CIT) represents a disciplined exploration into the human condition in light of divine revelation as received by the Catholic faith community. Throughout its extensive history, the CIT has conducted this exploration in a variety of ways, utilizing the totality of human faculties and experience. As a result, the CIT has taken as many forms as there are ways of exploration, including not only formal expressions, as found in academic disciplines and artistic achievements, but also informal, as in folk beliefs and social movements. Dignitas Labs, therefore, offer students, faculty and staff alike the rare privilege of exploring the rich diversity of the CIT.

Catholic Social Teaching

Catholic Social Teaching challenges our community to live in justice and peace. Catholic Social Teaching examines the radical idea that God calls us to live simply, sustainably, and in solidarity with ALL people-especially the poor.