The Sterling College combines experiential challenges with structured academic study and plain hard work to build responsible problem solvers who become stewards of the environment as they pursue productive lives.At 125 students, Sterling College is the smallest residential 4-year college in the United States. The curriculum combines traditional and experiential academics. 

Sterling is a year-round college, conducting three full semesters - fall, spring, and summer. Sterling students can begin in any semester, take any semester off and still maintain full time status. A lot of academics at Sterling combine theory and practice. There are traditional academics employ books and computers, writing and thinking, classrooms and labs, pop quizzes and essay questions.

Facilities on the hundred-plus acre Sterling College campus include fourteen residential, administrative, and classroom buildings, library and a woodworking shop.

Out-of-door teaching facilities include a managed woodlot, a challenge course, a climbing tower, organic gardens, and a working livestock farm. The Center for Northern Studies at Sterling College includes boreal wetland and a building containing a library, science lab, seminar rooms, offices, and central living room.A lot of what is grown and raised is consumed in the dining hall. 

Student life

At Sterling College it consists of a great variety of activities, outdoor recreation., excursions, celebrations and on-campus events. In that time when some students may curl up with a good book or participate in an impromptu jam session on a Saturday afternoon, an equal number like to stay more active - from outdoor pursuits to activism. 

Main thing in Sterling College is that individuals can feel free to be individualistic. This is not about doing “what’s in”; it’s about doing what student really want. Sterling’s social vibe tends to be open and accepting.