More of the Portland metro area’s top “Academic Achievers” will flock to the UO than to any other university in the world come fall.
Portland-area high schools suggested more than 500 students for inclusion on The Oregonian’s elite list of top scholars. The students’ GPA average is 4.05 and they have many options for university study.
Fifty-eight of these top achievers chose to study at the UO, placing the university at the top of the destination list for the first time in several years. Of the 2013 destinations, the list includes:
- 58 University of Oregon
- 53 Oregon State University
- 25 University of Washington
- 17 Brigham Young University
- 14 Portland State University
- 12 University of Portland
- 12 Stanford University
- 7 George Fox University
- 6 Yale University
- 5 University of Southern California
- 2 Harvard University
- 3 Reed College
- 1 U.S. Air Force Academy
For example, Centennial High School’s Sandra Dorning plans to attend the UO Clark Honors College and major in marine biology. At Centennial, she was the National Honor Society president, a four-year varsity swimmer and a member of the school's choir.
Dorning said her most significant moment in high school occurred during her advanced biology class, when she realized that “becoming a research biologist was truly something that I wanted to do with my life.”
A long-time pianist, she hopes to minor in music.
Roger Thompson, vice president for Enrollment Management, said he is “really pleased” that the UO owns the top spot.
“We finished a distant second the last two years, so the victory this year is even more rewarding,” he said.
In 2012 and 2011, Oregon State University was the top destination for Portland’s best scholars.
Thompson credited the redesign of the UO’s financial aid system, including the addition of the Summit and Apex scholarships and changes in the delivery of the PathwayOregon program, for the recruiting accomplishment.
- by UO Office of Strategic Communications