Willamette is a nationally renowned private university in Salem, Oregon, across the street from the Oregon State Capitol and co-located with Tokyo International University of America. The university features an undergraduate College of Arts & Sciences and graduate programs at the College of Law, the Atkinson Graduate School of Management, and the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon.
Willamette is a nationally renowned private university in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, as the first university in the western U.S., Willamette has become a leader in civic engagement and service.
Our beautiful campus — located across the street from the Oregon State Capitol and co-located with Tokyo International University of America — features a residential undergraduate College of Arts & Sciences and graduate programs in the College of Law and the Atkinson Graduate School of Management, and the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon.
Small classes, close student-faculty relationships, a commitment to collaborative research and a variety of programs provide an environment where teaching and learning flourish.
Willamette University is a place where talented faculty members inspire students to examine issues critically, think creatively and act effectively. Through our collaborative community and Pacific Northwest connections, we challenge students to transform knowledge into action — the foundation of a successful career and a meaningful life. Willamette offers students over 40 undergraduate majors and programs as well as graduate degree programs through the College of Law, Atkinson Graduate School of Management, and the Pacific Northwest College of Art.
The popular guide Colleges That Change Lives recognizes Willamette as one of 40 schools where students experience rich intellectual and personal growth, thanks to dedicated professors and lively, diverse experiences in and out of the classroom. In a record unmatched by any other West Coast school, Willamette faculty members have been named Oregon’s Professor of the Year 11 times since 1990. The Oregon State Capitol, just across the street, is Willamette’s extended classroom. There, our students explore and implement their ideas through internships with policymakers, primary source research in the Oregon State Archives, or side‐by‐side work with the state’s top scientists and economists.
Willamette’s 305‐acre forest and outdoor laboratory at Zena offers students another unique space to perform scientific research with faculty and find inspiration for their music and art. Our campus is also co‐located with Tokyo International University of America, providing opportunities to explore international culture through social, language and living exchanges. Our physical spaces on campus are also designed for interaction. Faculty offices line our academic hearths, which are a focal point for studying, discussion and get‐togethers with professors. Willamette’s alumni include a Nobel Prize‐winning economist, corporate presidents and CEOs, top scholars, nationally recognized artists, 15 Oregon Supreme Court justices and numerous Fulbright Grant winners.
At Willamette University, talented faculty members inspire students to examine issues critically, think creatively and act effectively. Through our collaborative community and Pacific Northwest connections, we challenge students to transform knowledge into action — the foundation of a successful career and a meaningful life.
Our motto, “Not unto ourselves alone are we born,” inspires students, alumni and faculty to help each other, our communities and our world.
To prepare students to achieve such goals, Willamette offers 40 undergraduate majors and programs, as well as graduate degrees through the College of Law, Atkinson Graduate School of Management, and the Pacific Northwest College of Art.
On our beautiful and historic campus, some 1,750 students discover it’s easy to forge friendships, find mentors, have fun and make a difference. More than 100 student organizations offer diverse cocurricular activities, while students live out our commitment to civic engagement through numerous service projects.
The Colleges That Change Lives guide recognizes Willamette as one of 40 schools where students experience rich intellectual and personal growth, thanks to dedicated professors and lively, diverse experiences in and out of the classroom. In a record unmatched by any other West Coast school, Willamette faculty members have been named Oregon’s Professor of the Year 11 times since 1990.
Beyond classrooms, professors and students work together in the academic hearths, where faculty offices line the spaces designed for studying, discussion and informal get‐togethers. In addition, some 40 percent of undergraduates conduct research with faculty mentors, thanks to $13 million in grants that Willamette has secured over the past ten years to support such endeavors.
Other opportunities for learning and growth come via the Oregon State Capitol, which is located just across the street and acts as Willamette’s extended classroom. Students undertake internships with policymakers, conduct primary source research in the Oregon State Archives or work with the state’s experts.
Willamette’s 305‐acre outdoor laboratory at Zena offers students another unique space to perform scientific research with faculty and find inspiration for their music and art. And, as our campus is co‐located with Tokyo International University of America, students explore international culture and develop a global perspective.
Willamette’s location in the Pacific Northwest also shapes our community, work and ethos. Nearby forests, rivers, mountains and oceans spur our commitment to the environment, while being situated in Oregon’s capital, Salem, and only an hour from Portland, means we enjoy a relaxed, creative and civic-minded culture, as well as vibrant arts and music scenes.
For all these reasons, publications such as Fiske Guide to Colleges, U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges, the Princeton Review, Bloomberg Businessweek and National Jurist list Willamette regularly among the best universities in the country.
Our impressive students and alumni also rise to the top. During the past decade, Willamette students and young alumni have earned more than 110 of the country’s most competitive grants and fellowships. Our alumni include a Nobel Prize‐winning economist, corporate presidents and CEOs, top scholars, nationally recognized artists, 15 Oregon Supreme Court justices and numerous Fulbright Grant winners.