Dickinson College

DICKINSON COLLEGE, FOUNDED IN 1783, IS A HIGHLY SELECTIVE, PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL LIBERAL (CONTINUED) ARTS COLLEGE KNOWN FOR ITS INNOVATIVE CURRICULUM. FOR MORE THAN TWO CENTURIES, DICKINSON HAS EMBRACED THE VISION OF AN EVER-EVOLVING EDUCATION, AN EDUCATION THAT PREPARES RISING GENERATIONS FOR SUCCESSFUL, ACTIVE, INFORMED LIVES AS GLOBAL LEADERS.DICKINSON CONTINUES TO SEEK NEW WAYS TO STRENGTHEN THE INDIVIDUALIZED, INTERDISCIPLINARY EDUCATION IT PROVIDES WHILE CONTINUING TO PREPARE SCHOLARS WITH INTELLECTUAL AGILITY, ETHICAL GROUNDING, NTERCULTURAL UNDERSTANDING AND THE SKILLS TO WORK TOWARD A JUST AND SUSTAINABLE WORLD. PLEASE REFER TO PART III, LINE 4 FOR A DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLEGE'S PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

EDUCATING STUDENTS - DICKINSON COLLEGE IS COMMITTED TO MAKING A TOP-TIER EDUCATION IN THE LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES ACCESSIBLE REGARDLESS OF FAMILIES' ECONOMIC MEANS. ALL ADMITTED STUDENTS FROM THE MOST RECENT ENTERING CLASS, WHO DEMONSTRATED FINANCIAL NEED AND WHO MET APPLICATION DEADLINES, WERE OFFERED AID. IN 2020-21, DICKINSON STUDENTS RECEIVED AN ESTIMATED $68,411,111 IN FINANCIAL AID, OF WHICH $57,535,345 WAS PROVIDED FROM THE COLLEGE'S FUNDS. STATE AND FEDERAL AID PROGRAMS, PARENT LOANS AND OTHER OUTSIDE SOURCES PROVIDED THE REMAINING FUNDS. CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE OIN FALL 2020, THE COLLEGE EMPLOYED 220 FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT FACULTY. 91% OF FULL-TIME FACULTY MEMBERS HOLD A DOCTORATE OR OTHER TERMINAL DEGREE. OF THIS GROUP, FULL PROFESSORS COMPRISED 26%, ASSOCIATE PROFESSORS 40%, ASSISTANT PROFESSORS 21%, AND INSTRUCTORS 4%. THE STUDENT-TO-FACULTY RATIO FOR FALL 2020 WAS 9:1. TO SUPPORT ITS ACADEMIC, STUDENT LIFE AND AUXILIARY PROGRAMS, THE COLLEGE ALSO EMPLOYS 282 PROFESSIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF PERSONNEL (ALL FT) AND 313 SUPPORT STAFF PERSONNEL (269 FT; 44 PT).DICKINSON CONTINUES TO RECEIVE FAVORABLE AND FREQUENT MEDIA ATTENTION AND ATTRACT GREATER LEVELS OF STUDENT INTEREST EACH YEAR. AS THE NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS AND THE QUALITY AND DIVERSITY OF RECENT ENTERING CLASSES DEMONSTRATE, DICKINSON HAS A SECURE NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL REPUTATION AS A TOP QUALITY LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE. THE INCREASED LEVEL OF INTEREST THE COLLEGE HAS SEEN IN RECENT YEARS PUTS THE COLLEGE IN A GOOD POSITION TO CONTINUE TO ANALYZE AND BETTER UNDERSTAND THE PROFILE OF STUDENTS WHO ENROLL AND REMAIN AT DICKINSON IN ORDER TO IMPROVE SELECTIVITY, YIELD AND RETENTION.1,932 STUDENTS WERE ENROLLED FOR FALL 2020, INCLUDING 51 STUDENTS STUDYING OFF-CAMPUS AT THE COLLEGE'S CENTERS IN THE U.S. AND ABROAD. FOR FALL 2020, STUDENTS CAME FROM 42 U.S. STATES AND TERRITORIES AND 40 FOREIGN COUNTRIES. THE OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS ADMITTED 2,776 FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS REFLECTING AN ACCEPTANCE RATE OF 52%. FIRST-YEAR ENROLLMENT FIGURES REFLECT THE COLLEGE'S ONGOING COMMITMENT TO ACADEMIC QUALITY (52% RANKED TOP 10% OF CLASS) AND DIVERSITY (32% STUDENTS OF COLOR AND INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS). THE 1-YEAR RETENTION RATE WAS 92%, AND APPROXIMATELY 72% OF ENTERING FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS GRADUATE WITHIN FOUR YEARS. DICKINSON STUDENTS MAY SELECT EITHER OF TWO BROAD DEGREE ORIENTATIONS WITHIN THE CURRICULUM: THE BACHELOR OF ARTS OR THE BACHELOR OF SCIENCE DEGREE. GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS ARE THE SAME IN EITHER CASE; ONLY STUDENTS WITH THE CONCENTRATION IN ONE OF THE NATURAL OR MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES MAY BE CANDIDATES FOR THE BACHELOR OF SCIENCE DEGREE.COURSES ARE OFFERED IN TWO SEMESTERS, EACH COMPRISING 14 WEEKS OF CLASSES FOLLOWED BY FINAL EXAMINATIONS. THE FALL SEMESTER BEGINS IN LATE AUGUST AND CONCLUDES IN DECEMBER. STUDENTS HAVE A READING PERIOD OF A FEW DAYS AT THE END OF CLASSES IN WHICH TO PREPARE FOR THE FINAL EXAMINATIONS AND PAPERS WHICH ARE SCHEDULED DURING THE SUBSEQUENT WEEK. SPRING SEMESTER BEGINS NEAR THE END OF JANUARY AND RUNS THROUGH MID-MAY, FOLLOWING THE SAME PATTERN OF CLASSES AND EXAMINATIONS AS THE FALL SEMESTER. SEEKING A BALANCE BETWEEN THE FULL BREADTH OF LIBERAL LEARNING AND DEPTH REPRESENTED BY ONE DISCIPLINED APPROACH TO KNOWLEDGE, EACH DICKINSON STUDENT IS REQUIRED TO TAKE A MINIMUM OF 32 COURSES, COMPLETE A SERIES OF ALL-COLLEGE REQUIREMENTS, AND SELECT A MAJOR CONCENTRATION. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE INCLUDE A FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR, ONE "WRITING IN THE DISCIPLINE" COURSE AND ONE "QUANTITATIVE REASONING" COURSE. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATION INCLUDE DISTRIBUTION COURSES (AT LEAST ONE COURSE IN THE ARTS, HUMANITIES, SOCIAL SCIENCES AND LABORATORY SCIENCE), CROSS-CULTURAL STUDIES (COURSES IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES, U.S. DIVERSITY AND GLOBAL DIVERSITY), AND ONE COURSE IN SUSTAINABILITY.DICKINSON OFFERS A RICH CURRICULUM, INCLUDING THE EXPLORATION OF NEW FIELDS OF STUDY (RECENT INTRODUCTION OF A MAJOR IN DATA ANALYTICS AND A MINOR IN ETHICS ARE EXAMPLES).IN ADDITION TO CONTINUED LEADERSHIP IN SUSTAINABILITY AND GLOBAL ENDEAVORS, DICKINSON HAS ESTABLISHED AN EMERGING POSITION OF LEADERSHIP IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT. DICKINSON WAS THE FIRST LIBERAL-ARTS COLLEGE TO JOIN THE ENGAGEMENT SCHOLARSHIP CONSORTIUM, AN INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION ADVANCING THE ROLE OF COMMUNITY-ENGAGED SCHOLARSHIP IN HIGHER EDUCATION. DICKINSON IS ALSO A LONG-TIME MEMBER OF CAMPUS COMPACT, A GROUP OF LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES INVOLVED IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT. IN 2020, DICKINSON WAS AWARDED ITS FIRST EVER CARNEGIE ENGAGEMENT CLASSIFICATION, JOINING 358 OTHER INSTITUTIONS HOLDING THIS ELECTIVE CLASSIFICATION. DICKINSON'S HOUSE DIVIDED PROJECT, WHICH FOCUSES ON CIVIL WAR ERA HISTORY, HAS HAD SEVERAL RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS INCLUDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A DICKINSON & SLAVERY WALKING TOUR; A SUMMER PROGRAM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION MADE POSSIBLE BY A KNOWLEDGE FOR FREEDOM GRANT FROM THE TEAGLE FOUNDATION; AND LEADING AN INITIATIVE TO RENAME LOCATIONS ON CAMPUS TO HONOR AFRICAN AMERICANS WHO PLAYED A ROLE IN THE COLLEGE'S HISTORY.DESPITE THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, DICKINSON'S INTERNSHIP NOTATION PROGRAM SAW STEADY GROWTH AND INCREASES IN EVERY GOAL AREA OF THE PROGRAM (SELF-ASSESSMENT, SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING, VALUES INTEGRATION, CAREER EXPLORATION, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT) DURING THE 2020-21 ACADEMIC YEAR.

AUXILIARY SERVICES - AUXILIARY SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE COLLEGE INCLUDE HOUSING AND DINING SERVICES, CAMPUS STORES, AND OTHER SERVICES PROVIDED TO SUPPORT STUDENTS AND EMPLOYEES.DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, THE CAMPUS REMAINED CLOSED DURING THE FALL 2020 SEMESTER. ESSENTIAL SERVICES, INCLUDING HOUSING AND DINING SERVICES, WERE PROVIDED TO A SMALL NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO WERE UNABLE TO RETURN HOME. HOUSING AND DINING SERVICES WERE OFFERED IN A REDUCED CAPACITY DURING THE SPRING 2021 SEMESTER.