Alexa Hanson

What made you want to come to Lewis & Clark?

My requirements when choosing an undergraduate program were academic rigor, ideal location, and a feeling of being at home on campus (and specifically within the soccer team). I found all of those things and more at L&C!

What have you been doing since graduation?

After graduation, I took a much-needed gap year. During this time, I worked as a physical therapy aide, took a few additional prerequisite courses online, and applied for graduate school. In spring of 2021, I was accepted into my top choice school, Pacific University’s Occupational Therapy program, and started attending classes full-time again in the fall of that same year. It is a three-year program, so I have just completed the first two years and will soon be moving on to the clinical portion of my education. This will involve fieldwork rotations with practicing occupational therapists and a culminating doctoral capstone project.

How did Lewis & Clark prepare you for graduate school?

The brilliant and supportive professors at L&C prepared me for the rigor of graduate school. The heavy workload is still tough to balance, but I’m confident that my academic experiences at L&C prepared me to not only manage it, but excel academically as well. L&C professors design their courses with the intention of creating high-level critical thinkers and time managers. They also teach invaluable skills such as professional and academic writing, research methodology, research appraisal, etc.

What would you say is the most important thing you learned at Lewis & Clark?

Although I learned so much crucial knowledge from L&C academics, I think the most important thing I learned at L&C was how to be a leader and manage conflict within a team through collegiate athletics.

Why did you major in Psychology?

I majored in psychology because I fell in love with the subject in high school. I find human behavior so incredibly fascinating, and I thought for a while that I wanted to become a clinical psychologist because of my aspiration to go into a helping profession.

If applicable, why did you minor in Neuroscience?

I picked up a minor in neuroscience during my sophomore year after I learned about introductory human brain function in the early courses of the psychology track. Connecting biological and chemical occurrences within the brain to the components of human behavior that I already found so interesting felt groundbreaking and I just wanted more of it!

How do you stay connected to Lewis & Clark as an alum?

The fact that I still live in Portland has made this a lot easier for me. I play in annual alumni soccer games, I attend several soccer games in the fall, and I make an appearance at as many alumni events as I can.

How do you describe the liberal arts?

Liberal arts, to me, is an approach to education which aims to create well-rounded, balanced, and engaged students. It was a privilege to learn psychology and neuroscience alongside philosophy, language, cultural studies, performing arts, etc. I believe this exposure to a wide range of subjects has given me a much more holistic perspective of the world.

Where did you find your community on campus?

Athletics! The student-athlete community is so strong and so supportive. It was a wonderful thing to be a part of.

Psychology