Oberlin Stories Project
We have collected hundreds of personal narratives from students, alumni, faculty, and staff that explain the merits and strengths of Oberlin through the eyes of those who have experienced it firsthand.
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![Women in colorful skirts dance in the quad.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/rose_wesche_12.jpg?itok=CYthzri0)
On living in a program house
“I can’t wait to return to Asia House in the fall. I believe that program houses offer a concentrated version of Oberlin-- fellowship, community, and learning all packed together into single...
Rose Wesche ’12
![Group of students, several holding signs that say Vote 2010](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/lyz_glickman_13.jpg?itok=vUxL9iwE)
On OC Dems
“it is a collaborative organization that seeks to educate students and community members and promote political action, no matter which side of the aisle a person happens to fall in.”
Lyz Glickman ’13
![Three people, one wearing a lab coat](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/hidong_kim_87.jpg?itok=sbpaCljh)
On being a life-long learner
“The same crackling energy I felt at Oberlin when immersing myself in new learning I now feel in medical school... Once again, the academic rigor I acquired at Oberlin lights my path.”
Hidong Kim ’87
![A group of friends on a warm spring day](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/hillary_swiss_11.jpg?itok=F3Pt_Tx4)
On her 4-6 a.m. show on WOBC, the student-run college radio station
“Walking to and from Wilder in the middle of the night was extremely surreal, and I remember vividly how excited I was to share music with whoever was awake during my “rite-of-passage” first-year...
Hillary Swiss ’11
![Ben on stage wearing a cape](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/ben_ferber_11.jpg?itok=oSp7wgiI)
On there being too much to do at Oberlin
“I always thought I was good at time management, but handling five classes, three plays, two student organizations, an RA job, a radio show, and a social life as an Oberlin sophomore is a little like...
Ben Ferber ’11
![Sarah with a group working in tall grass.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/sarah_willette_16.jpg?itok=N5Vmz-_Q)
On an eye-opening class
“I’ve found during my time at Oberlin that, when faced with the crossroads between easy ignorance and more strenuously acquired knowledge, most Obies choose the hard but ultimately more rewarding...
Sarah Willette ’16
![Megan and a friend.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/megan_macdonald_13.jpg?itok=2P0XCA1u)
On spending a winter term in France
“There was certainly a lot I didn’t know when I got off that plane in the Paris airport. If my time in France taught me anything, though, it’s that there’s a certain beauty in not knowing.”
Megan MacDonald ’13
![Jeffrey and Prof. Colton pose together with warm smiles](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/jeffrey_hill_09.jpg?itok=tUHlLnmt)
On his voice teacher, Kendra Colton ’83
“She taught with a firm, guided, and encouraging hand, but always listened openly to my thoughts and ideas. She allowed me to find my own voice instead of telling me what I should be.”
Jeffrey Hill ’09
![A house by the sea at dusk](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/celina_siegel_18.jpg?itok=9QzcUjjZ)
On living in tiny communities
“They are exhausting and overwhelming and stressful in a way that only intense familiarity can be. They are also wonderfully intimate and deeply comforting and rewarding.”
Celina Siegel ’18
![Steven Roth](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/steven_roth_77.jpg?itok=QKDwBJ4E)
On Oberlin students singing Sondheim songs... for Sondheim
“The students sang some of the more difficult songs in the Sondheim canon and nailed each one - fully knowing that he was backstage listening to them.”
Steven Roth ’77
![Nandita adjusts sound levels on the mixing board.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/nandita_krishna_16.jpg?itok=QvoFiAR7)
On college and community radio
“While my interest in WOBC started with a desire to pore through the seemingly endless music library, it ultimately made possible the most significant part of my Oberlin experience so far: meeting...
Nandita Krishna ’16
![Two scuba divers underwater, bubbles rising from their masks](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/joshua_levy_94.jpg?itok=RoXuyqT1)
On his January spent underwater
“Thanks to the Winter Term opportunity at Oberlin ... I’ve had the opportunity to see a manta ray in Hawaii, turtles in St. John, garden eels in Saba, docile sting rays in Cayman, and the most...
Joshua Levy ’94