Your Degree = Career Success

Studying the liberal arts at Lewis & Clark means that your education is grounded in critical thinking, written and verbal communication skills, teamwork, and problem solving. 

You will build relationships with professors and peers, gain practical experience through internships in Portland and beyond, and create connections among ideas and across disciplines. The Career Center and the Bates Center for Entrepreneurship and Leadership will support your career success through advising, networking, resources, programming, and more.

  • Value 

    Lewis & Clark is on U.S. News & World Report’s 2023–24 “Best Value Schools” list.

  • Top 

    Lewis & Clark earned a spot on Princeton Review’s 2024 “Best Colleges” list.

  • 4-5-6 

    Lewis & Clark’s 4-5-6 Commitment can help you make the most of your future.

  • Top 100 

    Lewis & Clark is in the top 100 on U.S. News & World Report’s 2023–24 “Best National Liberal Arts Colleges” list.

  • 96% 

    Within six months of graduation, 96% of the Lewis & Clark Classes of 2018–2022 were already changing the world through employment (76%), continuing studies (19%), and service work (1%), like the Peace Corps.

Where Lewis & Clark Will Take You

Lewis & Clark gives you the essential skills you need to succeed in any career. In fact, the top five career competencies identified by the National Association of Colleges and Employers align perfectly with the core values of a liberal arts education: critical thinking/problem solving; work ethic; teamwork/collaboration; oral/written communications; and leadership.

  • The rigorous thesis process definitely prepared me for graduate school. It equipped me with important research skills and familiarized me with a certain expectation of a scholarly study, but also it helped me clarify my exact academic interest to pursue in my master’s degree.

    Minami Yamauchi BA ’22
    Sociology and Anthropology | Hispanic Studies | Tochigi, Japan
    More about Minami
  • Lewis & Clark allowed me to have a deep level of involvement in many opportunities, and I’m not sure I would have had the same access at a huge state school.

    Helen Cecile Nowatka BA ’22
    Asian Studies | Chemistry | Spartanburg, South Carolina
    More about Helen Cecile
  • The most important thing I learned at L&C is communication. Communication is the way to express myself, and to know a little more about myself. Also, it is a way to cooperate with others.

    Aijia Duanmu BA ’18
    French Studies
    More about Aijia

Alumni Success Stories

academic awards, career success, experiential learning, fulbright award, Fulbright Scholar, international education, international, outcomes, overseas and off campus, overseas

Lewis & Clark Extends Its Run as a Top Fulbright Producer

For the seventh time in 10 years, Lewis & Clark has been named one of the top producers of Fulbright Award winners in the country, according to the U.S. Department of State. With four Fulbright grants in 2023–24, Lewis & Clark is in the Top 50 baccalaureate producers of student Fulbrights in the nation.

alumni, Bates Center, career success, experiential learning, internship, outcomes, renewable energy, summer internship, sustainability summer internship, sustainability

Career Pathways: One Student. Two Alumni. One Renewable Energy Company.

Lena Essak BA ’24 spent her summer as a paid community relations intern in the Portland office of EDP Renewables. Thanks to the Bates Center Summer Sustainability Internship course, she was able to learn, grow, and gain hands-on experience while working alongside two supportive Lewis & Clark alumni.

career center, career success, career, experiential learning, outcomes

Lewis & Clark Students Visit Meta in Seattle

Two Meta employees, who are also Lewis & Clark alumni, welcomed students to Meta’s Seattle office and shared their career stories.

alumni, career success

L&C’s First Native Scholar-Artist in Residence to Focus on Shakespeare

Waylon Lenk BA ’08, a Shakespeare scholar and theatre artist, will join the college as its first Native Scholar-Artist in Residence this fall. Lenk will give a talk at New Student Orientation and direct the theatre department’s fall production of Henry IV, Part 1.

alumni, career success, international affairs, outcomes, politics

West Linn Selects Recent Alum as Youngest-Ever Mayor

In May, West Linn, Oregon, residents resoundingly chose 23-year-old Rory Bialostosky BA ’22 as the city’s youngest-ever mayor. His election as mayor follows a series of “firsts,” including a term as West Linn’s youngest city council member while he was a full-time student at Lewis & Clark.

alumni, career success, Center for Social Change and Community Involvement, outcomes, Portland, psychology

Building ‘Hygiene Hubs’ for Houseless Residents

Three recent alums have served at Hygiene4All, a Portland-based nonprofit that works to ensure those who are unsheltered have equal access to basic resources like hot showers, trash disposal, and first aid.