Los Angeles, CA, 90041, United States

The Occidental campus is located in the suburban neighborhood of Eagle Rock, 8 miles from downtown Los Angeles. Downtown LA is brimming with opportunities for college students: internships, dining, nightlife and more. Freshmen must live on campus, and they are allowed to have cars. That’s a good thing, because the campus is within an hour's drive of big-time attractions like Venice Beach, Disneyland and Sunset Strip in Hollywood. Parking on campus is free with a permit, and about two-thirds of students bring cars. Students can choose from more than 100 clubs and organizations to get involved in on campus. Occidental has a handful of social sororities and fraternities, a gender neutral organization and a multicultural sorority. Even more students compete on the school’s sports teams, the orange and black Tigers, which are members of the NCAA Division III Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Occidental students can also take classes at CalTech and Art Center College of Design, and can earn joint degrees at CalTech, Columbia University and the University of Southern California's Keck Graduate Institute.This liberal arts college is notable for its diverse undergraduate student body; about 50% of students are Caucasian, about 15% are Asian and another 15% are Hispanic, and about 5% are Black. Women make up more than half of the student population. Occidental’s picturesque campus has been featured in many motion pictures, including "Clueless," "Orange County," "Jurassic Park III" and "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock." Notable alumni of the small school include Marsha Evans, former president and CEO of the American Red Cross; Andrea Elliott, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for the New York Times; and Robert Richter, a documentary producer whose work has been featured on major stations like PBS and the Discovery Channel. Former President Barack Obama attended Occidental for two years before transferring to Columbia University.