University of Oregon

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Majors: Environmental Studies & Political Science double major
Minor: Spanish
Student Self Identifies as: Caucasian Bisexual Female

Summary

I do Students For Choice, Net Impact, which is for sustainable businesses, and I’ve done the Climate Justice League but I’m not super involved anymore. I’m also in the Clark Honors College.

Background

Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

High School Experience: Public high school in Katy, TX with a graduating class of about 800 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Majors: Environmental Studies & Political Science double major
Minor: Spanish

Extracurricular Activities: I do Students For Choice, Net Impact, which is for sustainable businesses, and I’ve done the Climate Justice League but I’m not super involved anymore. I’m also in the Clark Honors College.
Have any of your extracurricular activities had a particularly big impact on your experience?
I think it’s a good way for me to connect with new people, but it’s also a way to spend time with friends I already have in a different setting.

Academic Experience

Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
I got a lot of AP credits in high school so I take a lot of higher-level classes. I don’t take a lot of tests, I write a lot of papers and there’s a lot of reading for both majors.
Is there anything you feel either of your majors’ department does especially well or poorly?
I really love the Environmental Studies program. They send out weekly emails letting us know what’s going on in the department, and everyone I’ve spoken to is super helpful and nice.
How has being part of the Honors College impacted your experience academically and socially?
It’s been one of my favorite parts of attending Oregon. I take one honors class a term and they’re smaller classes with about 20 people. The way it works is you do honors college classes instead of your general education requirements, which is nice. The classes I take are mostly way different than my major so I can get exposed to different topics. Some of my friends are in the Honors College and some aren’t. I know a lot of people aren’t a fan of the Honors College, especially if they’re taking more intense majors because there are a lot of requirements and it’s also an extra cost.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I’d say it’s more collaborative. I don’t ever feel like it’s competitive or cutthroat. In a lot of my bigger classes, it feels like every man is for themselves and there is less collaboration, but in my smaller classes, there’s a lot of talking and collaboration. It’s been a good experience so far.
How do you like having large lecture hall classes?
It’s not my favorite, but it’s nice having a variety of class types. I think I’d be overwhelmed if all my classes were small. With a huge lecture, if you’re not feeling class that day, it’s not a big deal if you don’t go. I like the variety, but I prefer smaller classes.
Do you feel that people are open to multiple schools of thought in the classroom?
I’d say no. It’s a very liberal school, and, in my experience, there are certain expectations for the beliefs you have. It hasn’t been a problem for me, but I’ve definitely seen people get shot down a little bit—even by professors – for not holding the same thoughts as the rest of the class. [See The Daily Emerald article, “UO ranked worst school in country for viewpoint diversity: report.”]
How accessible are your professors?
I’d say very accessible. I’ve never had trouble getting in contact with them and they clearly list their office hours. The bigger classes have a TA, so I’ll usually go to them first if I have a question.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I chose my major because I took AP environmental science in high school and that really sparked my interest. I’ve always been interested in the outdoors and tuff, and I also would like to go to law school after college, so Environmental Science and Political Science are majors that lead to that but isn’t just law.

Reasons to Attend

1) The people are super nice and accepting. In general, there’s a space for everyone.
2) There’s a great variety of topics to study, especially within the liberal arts. It’s not just one department, you can focus on what you want to be studying.
3) It’s a beautiful place.
4) There’s a strong school spirit with sports. Even if you’re not super into it, a football game is a strong experience that people from all sorts of groups and identities participate in.

Reasons Not to Attend

1) If you’re not super liberal I’d imagine it would be hard to go here. It seems like an assumption that you’re liberal, it’s not really questioned. [See The Daily Emerald article, “UO ranked worst school in country for viewpoint diversity: report.”]
2) If you don’t like the rain. [There are about 140 rainy days in Portland, Oregon a year.]
3) I brought my car but I never use it. If you like driving, it’s not super car friendly.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Global Scholars Hall with two roommates
Sophomore: Sonja Apartments with three roommates
How was transitioning from your hometown in Texas to Eugene, OR in terms of location?
I had been looking forward to leaving Katy for a while, so I didn’t have a problem. I grew up in Beaverton, Oregon which is west of Portland, so I was a little familiar with the area. I had family in Portland so I wasn’t completely on my own which was nice to have during the transition. I never had any difficulties transitioning.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I feel safe on campus, but I know there have been instances of violence. I’m aware of it, but I walk home alone at night all the time and it’s never been a problem.

Social Opportunities

What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
It depends on the weekend, but there are house concerts and house parties. The fraternities usually have a party every weekend on Friday or Saturday, and there are also community events. I’ve been to an orchestra concert and stuff like that. There is always stuff going on.
What nights of the week do you regularly do things?
A lot of people go out on Thursdays. I don’t like to do that because I have class the next day. I’ll usually go out on Fridays and then on Saturdays I’ll have a fun night with friends at home. It also gets really cold in the winter, so I go out less then.
What is the impact of Greek life on nightlife?
I do go to fraternity parties every now and then. It’s usually the backup plan. But, especially for freshmen and sophomores, it’s a big part of nightlife because we can’t go to the bars.
How has identifying as LGBT influenced your nightlife experience?
I wouldn’t say it has influenced my experience at all.
How happy are you with the weekend options? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I think I’m happy with it. There are usually one or two things to choose from. There’s definitely not a weird culture of it being bad if you don’t go out. I have a lot of friends that don’t like to party or go out and there’s no pressure around that.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
I knew people from when I lived in Beaverton before. I connected back with them when I got here, and that friend group grew and I met mutual friends through them.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Oregon?
There’s a great variety. I have a friend that does completely different things for fun than I do. I’d say Greek life plays a pretty big part of the social scene. I’m not in a sorority, but for my friends who are, that’s what they center their social life around. I don’t necessarily feel excluded, but I know my guy friends who aren’t in fraternities do feel excluded by Greek life because if you’re a guy you can’t go to the parties without being in the fraternity. [About 19% of students are involved in Greek life.]
To what extent do you think people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
It’s a very White school, which I think affects the social scene. I wouldn’t say different races mix all that much in the social scene. When I go out, it’s predominantly White people. Sexual orientation doesn’t have much of an effect, I’d say that mixes pretty broadly. A lot of my friends are in the LGBT community and we all do the same stuff as everyone else. In that respect, it’s pretty open-minded. [The undergraduate population is 6% Black, 14% Asian, 15% Hispanic, and 3% Native American.]
How do you like the size of Oregon in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How was transitioning to a school with [about 19,000] students?
I like being at a bigger school, especially because I am in the Honors College so I can take smaller courses and have that smaller community. I like being on a bigger campus because there are more opportunities and a greater variety of people to talk to.
How would you describe the LGBTQ community on campus?
I wouldn’t say I’m super involved in it, but I know there’s a pretty strong community. There are lots of different clubs and organizations, especially when I was a freshman there was a lot of things LGBT people could get involved in especially when it comes to housing.

Careers

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, accommodating was the office to your needs?
It’s been helpful. I’m on scholarship for tuition, but I do take on loans for my housing and they’ve been easy to work with. They may not be super fast, but the people are great.