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Dickinson's Distinctions

The distinctive elements of a Dickinson education—a campuswide global awareness; commitment to sustainability; emphasis on hands-on, experiential learning; and providing a useful, 21st-century skill set that goes beyond graduation—are features that make the college unique.

Dickinsonian Achievements

Dickinson students have been awarded the following major fellowships and awards:

  • Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship
  • Barry S. Goldwater Scholarship
  • Beinecke Scholarship Program for Graduate Study in the Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
  • Carnegie Junior Fellowship/James C. Gaither Junior Fellowship
  • Critical Language Scholarship (U.S. Department of State, Educational & Cultural Affairs)
  • EPA-GRO Greater Research Opportunities Undergraduate Program
  • Fulbright U.S. Student Program
  • German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Study Scholarship
  • Humanity in Action (HIA) Fellowship
  • John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship
  • Katherine Wasserman Davis Projects for Peace Fellowship
  • Marshall (George C.) Scholarship
  • Morris K. Udall Fellowship
  • National Institutes of Health Fellowships
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Ernest F. Hollings (Hollings) Scholarship 
  • National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Scholarship
  • National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships Program
  • Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
  • Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship and International Global Grants
  • Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowships 
  • Truman Scholarship

Leading Producer of Fulbright Awards

Dickinson is regularly named by Fulbright as a Top Producing Institution. To date, close to 160 alumni and more than 70 faculty and staff have received at least one Fulbright Award. A record 13 students earned the prestigious award during the 2018-19 academic year.

Read Stories of Dickinson's Fulbright Success 

Graduate, Law & Medical School Placement

Dickinson provides the ideal preparation for anyone considering advanced education. Recent Dickinson graduates have pursued professional and graduate study at some of the finest research universities in the world. 

  • 95% of Dickinsonians are employed, completing an internship, attending graduate school or pursuing meaningful service one year after graduation.
  • Graduate school acceptance rates are strong: 96% for law school and 92% for medical and health-related graduate school (five-year average).
  • Dickinson has a network of agreements with excellent graduate, undergraduate and professional schools, both nationally and internationally, in a range of fields.

Dickinsonians in Business

According to the most recent alumni survey, a number of Dickinson graduates are CEOs, company presidents or top-level corporate managers. Some examples include:

  • President and CEO of L.L.Bean, president and CEO of GeneOne Life Science, retired chairman and CEO of Wyeth, first editor of USA Today and chairman and CEO of Gannett Co. Inc., managing director at KPMG, CFO of Ichan Capital, VP of equity capital markets at Goldman Sachs, assistant general manager of the New York Jets, co-head of William Morris Independent and senior vice president of the motion pictures department, founding president of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.

Dickinsonians in Service

Community engagement, volunteering and engaging with the world are key components of the Dickinson experience. Our alumni use the habits of mind formed while at Dickinson to find a variety of ways to be of service.

  • 100 Dickinson grads have served in the Peace Corps since 1961.
  • Since 1991, more than 90 Dickinson alumni have gone on to participate in Teach for America.
  • On average, students, faculty and staff devoted more than 20,000 hours of community service annually to the Carlisle area and nationwide.
  • More than 70% of Dickinson students are involved in service and community engagement of some kind.
  • Dickinson has been consistently named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, with distinction.
  • According to a 2018 survey, 81% of Dickinson alumni participate in community engagement or volunteer work, and 92% of respondents said Dickinson contributed to their knowledge, skills and personal development in the area of civic engagement.

Read about our Alumni in Action.

Global Alumni Network

More than 3,000 Dickinsonians—alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the college—are involved in Alumnifire, a grassroots networking community. There, students and alumni can find career advice, set up informational interviews, network and find job shadowing and externship opportunities, among other opportunities.

Alumni Engaged With Dickinson

Examples of the variety of paths a Dickinson liberal-arts education can create are visible right here on campus. A number of faculty, administrators and trustees are Dickinson graduates, including:

  • Julie Johnson ’82 (biology), Dickinson trustee; program manager, National Science Foundation
  • Ruth Ferguson ’92 (economics), Dickinson trustee; senior vice president & chief human resources officer, Related Companies
  • Grant Braught ’97 (computer science), professor of computer science
  • Karen Faryniak ’86 (psychology), chief of staff and secretary of the college
  • Catherine McDonald Davenport '87, vice president for enrollment and dean of admissions

Alumni Testimonials

Not only do our alumni share their professional successes with us, they share their reflections on how their Dickinson education prepared, guided and influenced them. 

Hilary Smith ’06, art & art history, recruiting and admissions officer for Christie’s Education
“While I am working in a field directly related to my major, I think the overall liberal-arts education I received was the most valuable thing I took away from Dickinson. My art history courses were undoubtedly important, and I reference them often, but the variety in curriculum taught me how to write, sharpened my critical thinking skills, and gave me an appreciation for transferrable skills and thinking outside the box.”

Scott Hackett-Dalgliesh ’07, law & policy, head men’s lacrosse coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
“Dickinson’s liberal-arts approach, more than anything, gave me a foundation to engage in critical thinking—to analyze complex and multifaceted situations, to view problems with a solution-based lens and to account for the context of a situation within a global context.”

Soo Min Kim ’18, international business & management, Miss Korea 2018
“Dickinson’s liberal-arts education has shaped me into the person I am today, a global citizen. This skill set served me well when I was competing for the Miss Korea 2018 title. The process of becoming Miss Korea required a deep personal commitment. Each competition included intense personal interviews and presentations, and the liberal-arts education I received at Dickinson served me exceedingly well on the personal interviews.”

Chris Reber ’80, Latin, president of Hudson County Community College
“My Latin major and history minor, in combination, provided for me a foundation and context for reflecting upon and understanding the world and our society. Through rigorous reading, writing and discussions with phenomenal Dickinson faculty, staff, students and others during my undergraduate college experience, I learned how to think critically, solve problems and strive to understand and work effectively with others.”

Eric Johns ’09, biology, acute rehabilitation physical therapist for Penn Institute for Rehabilitation Medicine
“I have always been a person with varied interests, both personal and professional. In my career as a physical therapist, I dabble in research, teaching and a variety of clinical populations and care settings. Dickinson prepared me to boldly explore different opportunities, knowing that I have the underlying tools to adapt and succeed.”

Flosha “Flow” Tejada, ’11, American studies, director of college completion at Uncommon Collegiate Charter HS
"The liberal arts have served me in many ways throughout my life and career. Learning to use information from all areas of study and apply it in creative ways to practical life experience has often given me a leg up as a professional, artist, educator and citizen of the world."

Rob Webb ’05 , physics, teacher at Pequea Valley High School
“The liberal-arts approach, to me, means mastering your domain while also allowing yourself to be influenced and inspired by the world around you to give you a broader context for the usefulness of your domain. By learning my physics curriculum through a lens of sustainability and public service, I was able to tailor my lessons to include more relevant questions such as, “How realistic is it to find another planet to live on?,” “Why should we fund NASA?” and “How can we use physics principles to continue living on planet Earth?” to give the students a more global perspective.”

Katherine Heacock ’13, archaeology, front line service advisor at Walt Disney World
“Dickinson was really my first introduction to a diverse group of people from all over the country and the world. While at Dickinson, I had many of the ideas and beliefs with which I'd been raised challenged, and I grew as a person. My growth at Dickinson helped me to approach those differences with acceptance and appreciation and helped me to embrace the diversity of the Walt Disney Company, as I had to learn to embrace the diversity of Dickinson.”

Justin Gold ’00, environmental studies, CEO of Justin's Nut Butter
"Dickinson provided the tools I needed to clearly research, evaluate and form my own thoughts on almost any topic. With the confidence on how to use libraries, professors and mentors for guidance, I was able to start my own business with limited knowledge about my industry and still excel."

Brian Sylvester ’05 (English), teacher at the Landmark School
"At Dickinson, I was exposed to many different subjects, ideas, and perspectives, and this is has given me a very broad knowledge base. I also learned how to write thoughtfully and read analytically and help others learn to do the same. Today, I need to work with so many different people, each with a different perspective and feelings. I learned how to listen to and accept the opinions of others so I could work in a group at Dickinson."

Norah Turnham ’05 (theatre arts), general manager for Small Pond Entertainment
"The liberal arts have served me in many ways throughout my life and career. Learning to use information from all areas of study and apply it in creative ways to practical life experience has often given me a leg up as a professional, artist, educator and citizen of the world."

Lisa Hsu Treat ’00 (French and physics) research assistant at Brigham and Women's Hospital
"Small classes and personalized attention from my professors had a huge impact on my subsequent education and career. Because my professors knew me on a personal level, my letters of recommendation were one of the strongest components of my graduate application to the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, where I completed my Ph.D. in medical engineering and medical physics."

Additional Resources

Dig in to additional data from the last several years on the college's institutional effectiveness site. Also, our Alumni in Action includes a variety of profiles and testimonials that illustrate the value of a Dickinson education.