The Big Picture

Why come to Occidental when you have hundreds of choices? We are a very special place—a small, highly selective residential liberal arts college with a beautiful park-like campus in one of the most vibrant and diverse cities in the world. Not many nationally ranked liberal arts colleges can make this claim. The learning opportunities available to the Occidental student in a city like Los Angeles are endless. Internships, community service, cultural events and a host of other enriching opportunities make an Occidental education distinctive and exceptional.

We believe in the transformative power of the liberal arts educational experience. We expect you to be changed by your four years at Occidental. Our curriculum will let you explore disciplines that you might not have known existed, deepen your understanding of a particular field, or discover the ways in which seemingly disparate disciplines enhance each other. Within this flexible framework, we will help you find your own personal strength—and provide you with the resources necessary to support your intellectual goals.

We also believe in the importance of independent thought. We will encourage you to be your own thinker—to take initiative in independent research settings, explore foreign study opportunities, engage co-curricular experiences on campus, or simply (but importantly) be active in daily classroom discussion. Joining classroom-directed learning with independent thought and the writing and critical analysis skills that are the foundation of our curriculum will enable you to be successful in whatever career you might choose. In short, we expect you to take ownership of your education-- this, we think, is the power of an Occidental education.

Eric Frank
Dean of the College