Lewis & Clark College

In the 2027 U.S. News National Liberal Arts Colleges ranking, Lewis & Clark College placed 97th, drifting down from 72nd in 2020. Gaining admission has become relatively straightforward as the college accepts most who apply. In 2025, the overall acceptance rate was 78.5%, which was higher than 76% of peer schools in a comparison group of similarly ranked private liberal arts colleges. However, the college experiences significant difficulty converting admitted applicants into matriculating undergraduates. Its yield rate reached just 9.7% that same year, higher than only 3% of peer institutions. The remaining vast majority of admitted candidates opted to attend other colleges. For prospective students, these patterns suggest an accessible admissions process where receiving an acceptance letter is very achievable, but the low yield demonstrates that admitted applicants broadly decide on competing alternatives when making their final college choice.

Lewis & Clark College operates under an admission policy where test scores are not considered, meaning standardized exam results are test-blind and not used in admissions decisions even if submitted. Recent years have no published scores. Under this policy, prospective applicants must demonstrate their academic readiness through the quality of their high school transcripts, the rigor of their secondary coursework, application essays, and teacher recommendations. Even without test evaluation, a small share of applicants still submitted scores: in 2024, the proportion of students submitting SAT scores was 10%, while ACT submissions stood at 4%. With testing excluded from the evaluation process, students planning an application need to focus their efforts on coursework difficulty, consistent classroom grades across secondary school, and distinct personal statements, as these components form the core basis upon which their academic preparation is reviewed.

Undergraduate degrees at Lewis & Clark College are moderately dispersed across the liberal arts and sciences, while its most prominent national academic rankings reside at the graduate level. In 2025, the top three bachelor's majors accounted for 35.1% of bachelor's degree recipients, led by General Psychology and General Biology. The college's highest-ranked offerings are housed in its law school rather than its largest undergraduate departments: in the 2026 U.S. News graduate rankings, its Environmental Law program ranked 2nd nationwide, and Legal Writing placed 28th. Early career outcomes vary considerably by discipline; based on 2023 earnings data, Communication and Media Studies graduates reported median earnings of $47,508 one year after graduation, whereas General Biology graduates earned a median of $33,515.

Lewis & Clark College maintains a predominantly domestic student body across its undergraduate and graduate programs, with female students making up the majority of the campus community. Within the incoming undergraduate freshman class in 2025, international students numbered 37, representing 7.7% of entering freshmen. Asian students comprised another small segment of the cohort, with 20 students accounting for 4.1% of the group. White students form the clear majority across both freshman and returning undergraduate cohorts, while Hispanic and other demographic groups contribute to campus diversity in smaller proportions. In graduate divisions, international and Asian representation similarly stays at modest levels. For prospective students evaluating the campus environment, these enrollment figures point to an academic setting where international scholars and Asian students form small communities within a largely domestic, majority-female college population.

Undergraduate education at Lewis & Clark College centers almost entirely on traditional college-age students, contrasting sharply with its older graduate student body. Among the 2,194 undergraduates enrolled in 2025, students aged 20 to 21 formed the largest group at 44.8%, followed by those aged 18 to 19 at 43.2%. Conversely, the 1,332 graduate students are predominantly in their mid-twenties and older, with students aged 25 to 29 making up 34.9% of that cohort. This demographic divide creates a conventional youthful campus life for undergraduates, while graduate programs serve working-age adults.

International representation at Lewis & Clark College shows contrasting trajectories across degree divisions. Undergraduate international enrollment decreased over recent years, landing at 127 students or 5.9% of undergraduates in 2025. Despite this drop, the college's undergraduate international share remained higher than 57% of 30 peer institutions in its comparison group of similarly ranked private liberal arts colleges. In contrast, graduate international enrollment grew to 31 students. Among 2025 degree recipients, international students represented 4.5% of bachelor's graduates, 2.8% of master's graduates, and 3.1% of doctoral recipients. International master's students were most visible in Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies, Other, while large counseling programs had no international graduates.

Applicants exploring Lewis & Clark College can consider several higher education institutions in the surrounding region. Located just 2.8 kilometers away in Portland, Reed College is a private liberal arts college ranked 60th in the 2027 U.S. News rankings. Also nearby in the city is Portland State University, a public national university ranked 236th, situated 4.3 kilometers from campus. Further out in Forest Grove, Pacific University is a private national university ranked 236th, located 21.8 kilometers away. Additionally, Willamette University is a private national university ranked 208th, situated 39.7 kilometers to the south in Salem. These neighboring institutions provide families with alternative institutional sizes and academic environments within the greater metropolitan area.

Campus safety reports for Lewis & Clark College indicate that the overall frequency of reported offenses has decreased over the past decade, with institutional conduct violations making up the vast majority of all documented incidents. In 2025, the college recorded a crime rate per 1,000 students of 14.2. Disciplinary actions related to substance use represent the primary safety occurrences on campus. Over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, the college logged 372 drug disciplinary referrals and 240 alcohol disciplinary referrals. More serious offenses occurred at much lower levels across those same years, with reports documenting occasional instances of sexual harassment, stalking, and rape. For families and prospective students evaluating campus life, these figures suggest that safety concerns primarily involve student behavioral infractions regarding alcohol and drugs rather than violent criminal activity on campus grounds.