Frequently Asked Questions

Thoreau College is a microcollege running semester and summer programs for college-aged young adults. While living in households with other students and fellows, Thoreau students participate in a full-time expanded liberal arts curriculum where they read and discuss great books and texts of history, philosophy, religion, agriculture, and ecology, while also taking several arts and crafts workshops, managing gardens and caring for farm animals, sharing meals, camping, exploring the natural world, and more. Thoreau students also receive one-on-one and small group support from their peers and our dedicated faculty.

Thoreau College takes its inspiration from a variety of sources, including but not limited to Waldorf education and the work of Rudolf Steiner, Henry David Thoreau and American Transcendentalism, Deep Springs College and its founder L.L. Nunn, and the Scandinavian folk high school movement started by N.F.S. Grundtvig. Thoreau also takes notes from other experiments in higher education, past and present, including Black Mountain College and American Folk Schools such as Highlander and John C. Campbell.

Student cohorts for our semester and summer programs range from 5 to 15 students. Typically, 3-5 Fellows also participate in our yearlong internship program. Students and Fellows live together in one of several residential households of 4-6 people each, in ordinary single-family homes with furnished kitchens, gardens, and chicken coops, all within easy walking distance of each other, public businesses and facilities, and our main educational spaces. In most cases, student housing does not have staff members in residence, so this is an opportunity for independent living similar to a housing co-op, with support from Thoreau College staff. Housing is included as part of the financial pledge made after a student is admitted.

Students, fellows, and staff have weekday lunches together while programs are in session in our main educational facility, a converted historic church building known as Arkadia (formerly, the Commons).  Students are responsible for planning and preparing other meals individually or with each other in their furnished residential houses.  Some ingredients are provided out of our own farm and gardens or by other community partners, but students are responsible for purchasing any other ingredients they might need.  Typically students should budget about $300 for food, outside of their tuition pledge.

Yes. Students can receive 15 college credits per semester program, and 4 credits for completing our summer program.  These are Environmental Humanities credits issued by Prescott College and can be applied as transfer credits towards a bachelor’s degree at another college.

Yes. Thoreau offers credits through Prescott College, a 4-year liberal arts institution in Arizona, and they can be applied as transfer credits towards a bachelor’s degree at another college.  Ultimately, though, acceptance of transfer credits always depends on the receiving institution, so students should check with their home college or university to ensure that credits will be accepted.

Yes. Financial accessibility is a core value of Thoreau College and we are proud to be able to commit to meeting 100% of demonstrated financial need for all admitted students. Once the admissions process is complete, each student participates in a financial pledge conversation with a staff member to set an individualized financial pledge and payment plan that will enable the student to attend. And yes, this could mean a pledge of $0 if this is the student’s actual financial need. Finances should not be a barrier to transformative education for students who hear the call.

The price to run the Thoreau College Semester Program is about $15,000 per student, including housing, lunches, supplies, and college credits. The 6-week summer field school program costs about $3,500 per student to run. We are grateful to all students, families, and organizations who are able to contribute the full amount – this allows us to make this education available to all!

Thoreau students and fellows have gone on to study at Oberlin College, Harvard Divinity School, University of Edinburgh, Deep Springs College, University of Southern California, Colorado College, Outer Coast, University of Wisconsin, and more. Many alumni have become teachers, from Denver Public Schools to private institutions such as University Lake School in Hartland, Wisconsin. Others have become entrepreneurs or gone straight into other professions, from greenhouse ownership and management, to theater, music, visual arts, herbal medicine, carpentry, farming or hobby farming, and more.