Focus, and infinite choices. You can go as in-depth as you want on a topic or follow a theme across as many disciplines as you choose. This may seem like a paradox. But put into action at Principia College, the opportunity to make choices and focus on each one in turn is just one way Principia students are trained in critical thinking. It’s all part of a strong liberal arts education.

Sure, you attend lots and lots of classes at Principia, and you learn lots and lots of things. But the learning doesn’t have to stop at the end of class. It doesn’t stop with homework either. Pair up a major in global perspectives major with an Asian studies minor. Combine a language with your economics major. It’s been done, and it’s been worth it.

And here are a few out-of-class explorations made by some Principians:

  • A political science professor and sophomore political science and economics major headed to Nicaragua and Panama to present their original papers at two conferences on Latin American issues.
  • A senior was one of six American students awarded an astronomy research assistantship at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) in Chile. CTIO is the U.S. national center for astronomy in the Southern Hemisphere.
  • Another senior traveled to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point for a conference on national security.
  • A junior pianist was one of seven national finalists in the Music Teachers National Association Young Artists competition.

Some surprising people come to campus — actor Val Kilmer, President Jimmy Carter, presidential hopeful Barack Obama, environmental activist Erin Brockovich, historian David McCullough, and poet Maya Angelou have all visited campus to share their perspectives on their careers and the world as part of Principia’s speakers’ series.

Speaking of the world, it’s easy to stay connected (without even going anywhere) with an increasing number of Wi-Fi hotspots on campus and a free subscription for you to The Christian Science Monitor.

After four years of having the world brought to campus, Principia alumni go places.

Recent graduates have earned doctoral degrees from Yale, Duke, and UC Berkeley; master’s degrees from Stanford, Harvard, and Monterey Institute of International Studies; MBAs from Thunderbird, Babson, Rice; law degrees from Georgetown, Stanford, SMU. Principia alumni have also graduated from or served as faculty at Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Art Center College of Design, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Monterey Institute of International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Northwestern University, Juilliard, and more. They’ve been associated with such education-related institutions as the Challenger Center for Space Science Education, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caribbean Marine Research Center, International Institute for Global Peace, Supreme Court Law Library, the National Geographic Society, and the list goes on. Where do you picture yourself?

You might not think MIT’s website would have anything to say about Principia College, but in summer 2006 it said this: “Principia College may be a small liberal arts college, but they are heavyweights in the solar vehicle world.” Three Principia students and three recent grads were among those invited to MIT’s Vehicle Design Summit, where they spent nine weeks in MIT’s Aero/Astro Hangar discussing, designing, and then actually building alternative energy vehicles.

One Principia student, who turned out to be an expert on building suspensions and other mechanical features among the 50 participants from 18 countries, pointed out that the summit “helped get Principia on the map more than our solar car team alone does. Principia is building its name as an institution of strong thinkers.”

These thinkers have grown stronger with each new challenge to race their car on a different continent. The solar car team — comprised of physics and math majors as well as English and philosophy majors and more — has raced or been showcased in special rallies in Greece, China, Taiwan, Australia, and the U.S. and Canada.

After finishing first with Ra IV at the 2001 Formula Sun Grand Prix in Michigan, the team gained national news coverage from both CNN and the National Geographic Channel. They continued to exceed expectations by finishing seventh of 35 teams in that year’s American Solar Challenge race from Chicago to Claremont, California, winning the Sportsmanship Award and finishing ahead of MIT and Stanford, to name a couple.

The team raced Principia’s fifth-generation RaV across 1,800 miles of Australia from Darwin to Adelaide during a 10-week Principia Abroad and placed sixth in the 2003 World Solar Challenge.

Most recently, RaVI not only raced to seventh place in the 2005 North American Solar Challenge, but in fall 2006 it traveled to Taiwan to compete in the World Solar Rally with teams from Iran, Germany, Japan, and only one other American team, the University of Minnesota.