Whitman College – Walla Walla, WA

The best description of a good fit Whitman student came from Director of Admission, Adam Miller. He said a Whitman student mirrors Pomona in academics and Pitzer College in activism, so a Whitman student is an “idealistic activist.” Whitman students think it is “cool to be smart” and they are more collaborative than competitive. Every freshman reads the same set of books for their common core courses much like a Great Books School, and a senior Capstone synthesizes the differences well. The sciences, especially Molecular Biology and Biosciences, are extremely strong here but, on balance, the Theatre and Music programs are also highly regarded. Biology, Psychology and Sociology have the largest current enrollments. Spokane is 3 hours away so students stay close to Walla, Walla,”the sweet onion capital of Washington State.” There are quaint eateries in town with art galleries and outdoor music. The majority of students hail from in-state, Oregon, Utah and California. The Whitman College Outdoor Program is highly developed. Over 180 incoming freshmen do the “Scrambles” orientation trip and other offerings include white water kayaking, rock climbing, canoeing, backpacking, and telemark skiing. There is an intense rock climbing wall and some programs are even offered for credit. Tamarack House is the outdoor adventure themed living house on campus. Walla Walla is a town so nice they named it twice, and is recognized as one of the “top 100 small town arts communities” in America.

Reed College – Portland, OR

Steve Jobs began at Reed but never graduated. The Reed student truly is “that kind of student” – one who is a playful intellectual, geeky, and is truly coming to school not for the grade but for the experience of learning…that is a “Reedie,” as they are lovingly called.

Reed’s campus is also beautiful, set in lush Portland with the Crystal Springs Farm, the Rhododendron Farm and a water source that goes all the way to the Pacific Ocean with their own salmon ladder. They have the only nuclear research reactor in the U.S. on an undergraduate campus and they certify 40 students per year to learn how to use it. At the same time, they have their own alpacas. Over 95% of their classes are conference-style, and writing is extremely important. Students earn grades but are never given them unless they are needed for a very good reason, like applying to grad school which they are quite successful at doing. Reed doesn’t recruit for anything except academics. Every major has a very serious thesis. There is a huge celebration when the thesis is completed with rose petals shot out of cannons, and students wearing laurels on their heads and dancing on the quad. These theses are stored in a “tower” in the top of the library. The “Thesis Tower” stores hundreds of thousands of them and graduates of Reed return and proudly find their thesis stored in the tower. The liberal arts as a tradition is timeless for Reed students and this will never change. The student who belongs at Reed is a very specific one, and if you don’t know who you are, you probably don’t belong at Reed!

Lewis & Clark College – Portland, OR
Lewis and Clark is a very unusual small liberal arts school with less than 10% of their students coming from the state of Oregon, so they can claim that their average student travels more than 500 miles to attend the school. They are risk takers whose motto is “Think Globally, Act Locally,” – they are sustainable, green, quirky, and also act in a very collaborative nature with their fellow students. Students come from 60 foreign nations imparting a heavy international feeling and everyone needs to study a second language. The location gives students access to deserts, rivers, mountains and beaches – everything that you could ever want. Lewis and Clark went test-optional in 1991. It offers the “Portfolio Path for Admission” as an alternative to standardized testing that includes two teacher recs, one writing sample and one math or science sample. So all learning styles are accepted. The campus is incredibly beautiful, being set on the old Frank estate of the Meier and Frank department stores in Portland. The main Frank house is the site of Admissions and the formal gardens are still there with Mt. Hood in the background on a clear day. At one point as you traverse the campus, you are crossing a bridge through a heavily wooded area and you almost feel as if you are in a rain forest and the seclusion is overwhelming. It is hard to believe you are in the middle of a city of 603,000 people!

University of Portland – Portland, OR
The University of Portland is not ashamed to say that it is “Oregon’s Catholic University” and this is integral to its identity. UP offers a “value centered educational experience” based on three themes: academic focus, residential community and commitment to service where 80% of the student body is involved in volunteer activities. These cores are at the heart of students who fit best at the University of Portland. They are strong students with an average GPA of 3.64, SAT Math and CR scores of 1190 and a median ACT of 26. UP’s curriculum offers concentrations in Nursing, Education, Business and Engineering with lots of internships close by in the Portland area. The campus consists of 75 beautiful acres on the Willamette River overlooking the port of Portland where many years ago, Lewis and Clark pioneered the Oregon Trail. The giant sequoias that grace the campus lend a serene beauty to the surroundings that cannot be matched.