Willamette is doing a great job welcoming the EA admitted students. Their personal notes and swag box are much appreciated by my son. Congrats to any other Willamette EA students out there!
Agreed! S21 really appreciated both of those things in his acceptance packet. Congrats to your son, @MomBakes4Boys.
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We loved the scarf!
We live in CA (Los Angeles) and my son got in with $18k/year in merit. He also got into Lewis & Clark, University of Puget Sound, Pacific, and Western Washington. Applied RD to Whitman and we also hope to visit in the spring since our spring break trip back in March was cancelled due to Covid. I’m assuming it will come down to UPS, Lewis & Clark, Willamette, and Whitman. At first we were extremely disappointed with the amount of merit he received, but with the new lowered tuition, Willamette is actually coming in cheaper than UPS, Pacific, and Lewis & Clark. My son is interested most in continuing his Japanese and studying abroad in Japan and was really drawn to the Willamette Japanese Studies program and their partnership with Tokyo International University.
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Congrats to your son! He has some great choices. My son is a Japanese Studies major at Willamette in his final semester. He was in Japan at TIU last year when COVID hit and blew up his foreign studies. Despite that interruption, he will be graduating on time this May (2021). The Japanese program is what drew him to Willamette as well and it is tight knit group there. He had Japanese students as roommates from TIU during his sophomore year, something that is definitely unique to Willamette, and whom he reconnected with in Tokyo. For a small college, the opportunities there are pretty broad. It is very much a student centered place. I know it is hard–or near impossible–to visit campuses now but going anywhere will be a leap of faith.
Coincidentally, we are/were Angelenos, as well. Stay safe.
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Thank you so much! I told my son everything you said about Willamette and the Japanese Studies program. I really hope we get a chance to visit in March/April as it’s such a big decision to make sight unseen.
It’s such a crazy time here in Los Angeles, stay safe as well! Sadly, my grandma died of Covid just 11 days ago which has been so devastating to us all.
Is there anyone else that got into Willamette that is willing to share the amount of merit aid that they received? I know they lowered their tuition by 20% for next year and have therefore reduced their merit scholarships accordingly. I’m trying to figure out what the max merit aid is in case we end up appealing. My son was awarded $19,200 a year.
My son was awarded the same amount. They said he should hear about the STEM scholarship in March.
Hi everyone. The spots for on-campus tours over Spring Break are going fast. Just a head’s up!
We are still on the fence because Willamette is one of our most expensive, even with merit aid, but my daughter, too wants to continue her Japanese study and go abroad for a year and is excited that they have Japanese students on campus. 
Hi! My daughter is also considering Willamette so she can get to know Japanese students and continue in the language. Does your son feel fluent now? I’m wondering what the student body is like on the whole…I’m getting the feeling they are either athletes or hippies-- my own daughter is more of a nerd/geek (I forget which one now) and I’m a tad worried she won’t find her brainy, board-game loving group of friends there. What did your son find?
We are headed to the Pacific Northwest on Wed and Willamette will be our first tour on Thursday. After that we’ll be headed to L&C, Pacific, UPS, and Whitman.
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Please post about your experiences, as many of us are unable to travel right now! We’re particularly interested in Willamette and Whitman. Safe travels!!
We’re visiting at the end of the month. Happy to report out on Willamette, L&C, and Univ of PS. 
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My daughter visited when her dad went out to see our eldest daughter… She found the faculty all very nice and the campus comfortable and the town okay. It all looks pretty positive. Very athletic, outdoorsy kids… She’s more artsy/nerdy but I think she would find those in comp sci clubs or such even though that’s not her major
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Took the tour this morning. The campus, in my son’s words, is “insanely beautiful.” We actually had to pause to soak it all in. The students are back on campus, but it was hard to get a sense of the vibe due to COVID restrictions. My sense as a parent is that this would be an excellent choice for someone wanting to intern in the state Capitol or to get both an undergraduate and masters degree in just four years. Oh, and there is an Amtrack station just across the street for those looking for safe travel options home when it’s snowing/icy.
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What did he decide? We just have this week. My daughter has been disappointed to not see more incoming students chatting anywhere on facebook page etc. She’s wondering if that means they aren’t as social as other campuses there the chats to area more active.
We heard a comment from an Asian American student in the Japanese program that made it sound like maybe they find like white students who participate in Japanese culture bc it appears to be appropriation. 
That makes my daughter worry that things like her chopstick connection she started in Japan and uses when she eats Japanese food, or other such things might make her viewed as inappropriate on campus if the students are really strict about whites not adopting things from the Japanese culture they like and respect. Did your son run into that at all? She has to choose a school this week…
That’s interesting. I would hope that’s not the case. My son is 1/2 white, 1/4 black, 1/4 Mexican and loves all things Japanese. He does Kendo (Japanese sword fighting) and loves listening to Japanese music, watching anime, reading Manga, and cooking Japanese food. In fact, he just spent the last month making homemade sake! He has also attended Japanese school on Saturdays with almost all Japanese students for the past 2 years. We visited Tokyo pre-covid and he can’t wait to study abroad in Japan.
After our PNW whirlwind college tour last month he has decided to commit to Whitman College. We did a Zoom with one of their Japanese professors and he’s super excited to live in their Japanese interest house, etc. I hope your daughter finds her fit. My son really like Willamette but Whitman had every single thing he was looking for so Willamette fell down the list.