Salem, OR, 97301, United States

Located in Oregon’s state capital, Salem, Willamette University carries the distinction of being the oldest university in the Western United States. The 69-acre campus is located directly across from the Oregon State Capitol and is less than an hour from Portland. All freshmen and sophomores are required to live on campus, unless they commute 25 miles or less to campus. As juniors and seniors, students can move into private residences or one of the university's apartment complexes. Once at the college, students can participate in more than 100 clubs and organizations, including a small, but bustling, Greek life.Studying abroad is a very popular academic choice for many students at the university, and more than half of the student body studies abroad during college. Students interested in studying abroad have the luxury of choosing programs from more than 40 countries. The university also has a partnership with Tokyo International University, which allows students interested in Japanese language and culture the chance to interact with Japanese students. Willamette University's sustainability efforts have not gone unnoticed. The National Wildlife Federation has recognized the university as first in the nation among 1,050-plus schools for practicing the most sustainability activities, many of which are student-initiated efforts. Willamette is a founding member of the Northwest Conference in the NCAA Division III, and its teams are known as the Bearcats.Along with being the oldest university in the West, the Willamette University College of Law is the oldest law school in the Pacific Northwest. Not to be outdone, Willamette's Atkinson Graduate School of Management is one of only two MBA programs in the world accredited for both business administration and public administration. The school's weekly newspaper, Willamette Collegian, began publishing in 1875 and has won several distinctions from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association. Notable alumni of the university include Dale T. Mortensen, the 2010 winner of the Nobel Prize in economics, and James Albaugh, former executive vice president of The Boeing Co.