Willamette University Top Questions

Make sure that you pick a school that wants you as much as you want them. I believe that financial situations should not stop you from choosing the school that you will be the most comfortable in because in the long run, a good college experience is priceless.

choose something that feels right. the academics aren't nearly as important, as having the right fit. if a person wants to make school more difficult for themselves then it would otherwise be, they can. the academics can change to fit the needs of each student. the social atmosphere of a campus though, cannot be changed. not in any quick, dramatic kind of way. if the school you're visiting doesn't feel right, then i wouldn't go there. thats what most important, i think. there are lots of schools out there, all with different academic and social profiles. as for making the most, i'd say that its best to jump right in to college. dont' hesitate to seek out avenues of campus activism, making the most of the time you have there. i approach my time in college as being a part of a mini experiment; where i can test out different methods of organization, advertising, etc. that i can put to use later in life. i'm very active on my campus, and i couldn't be happier any other way.

Don't worry about it so much. You'll find a way to fit in wherever you end up, and you're virtually guaranteed to have fun. It's college, after all.

Based on my own experience I would advise parents and/or students to choose a school where the student feels the most comforted and assured. Money does not matter in the decision making process. If a student goes to a school where they feel as though they can not be themselves then how are they to become properly well rounded? A reassured student feels confident in personal interaction with their peers and professors, opening them up to more opportunities to ask questions and form study groups. If their social life is hurting due to discomfort in their surroundings then they are not receiving the complete education they could have had they gone to a college where they were able to be who they are inside, feeling completely comfortable with themselves and their abilities. Making the most of one?s college education includes participating in not only class lectures and clubs but finding one?s true niche in life which most often results from making mistakes and taking wrong turns. Go out and make mistakes and do things out of the comfort level! Personal experience is the best key to success in the real world today.

While I found that visiting school after school helped me learn about my different choices, it didn't give me a true idea of what would make me happy. Most of the schools I went to just gave a tour and interview on an empty campus during the summer and sent me on my way like one of thousands of other visitors each year. When I visited Willamette, the last school on my list after trips from my home in California to places as far as the Southern US, the Midwest, and the East Coast to visit schools I was pleasantly surprised. Tour guides at other schools had been well trained and friendly, but at Willamette the tour guide started right in telling us the personal details of school like the traditions and quirks that only students who have been there at least a year would usually be privy to. I learned that on birthdays, the celebrated students get tossed in the stream running through campus, and that while the fountain near the addmissions office was constructed to have huge eagles on top of it, it was called the "chicken fountain" by students for its resemblence to this other species.

willamette is an excellent place for meeting people who share a passion for art and acedemics. it is a place where anyone is welcome to share their opinions and be accepted for their thoughts and feelings