Lewis & Clark College

Date: Jul 29 2004
Major: Language - French/Spanish/etc. (This Major's Salary over time)
My time at LC definitely could be considered some of the best years of my life. Friends that I made there years ago remain close friends. I chose LC over other schools, because there were so many international students and people from different places in the student body. The main reason I chose LC was because of their international programs. Up to 60% of students go abroad, and this is one of the major perks of LC. For high-school students thinking about going here, this is one of the strengths of going to LC. They have some very innovative programs, and via the study abroad programs I took part in, I made close friends with students from other schools as well. If you don't study abroad or learn a foreign language at LC, you are truly missing out on one of the biggest benefits of going to this school, in my opinion. The classes were small, and the professors definitely have an idea of who you are. I felt that the faculty was very approachable. My only regret about LC is that I wish I would have been more appreciative and driven while I was at LC. You can get away with academic work that is not of the highest quality, but I would say about a third of the students are serious enough to go on to really good careers or to graduate school, because they really cared about their education. The campus is beautiful, and on-campus living the first two years is really fun, with enough student activities to keep you busy. On the weekends, friends and I would take the bus into downtown Portland and go see great live music or go clubbing. The student body, at the time I attended, and I doubt it's changed much, is full of characters. I would not say LCers are as bizarre or academic as the students at Reed across the river, but there are still a lot of strong personalities, whether introverted or extroverted. Some students, especially those unaccustomed to rainy NW weather and gray skies (like the many Californians who go here), can find Portland a little depressing, and as underclassmen, it is a bit of a challenge to get off campus and out into Portland, but well worth the effort. Parties are sort of spontaneous and intermittent. Some people are really into the outdoors, and so social activities can revolve around the more granola, but it's all fun! As an upperclassman, social scenes become thinner, and people hang out with their closest friends more than in huge, wild parties (This is what we do when we're abroad!). I loved my time at LC. I would do it over again if I could.