The Lewis & Clark curriculum is planned on a model in which students normally take four 4-credit courses each semester. The academic year consists of two 15-week semesters.* The standard course at the College of Arts and Sciences is assigned 4 credits, and meets in class for three or more hours each week. Students should expect to spend an average of three hours outside of class preparing for each hour in class. The average student course load is 16 credits per semester.

The well-educated student knows how to write and speak clearly and effectively. Lewis & Clark’s entire faculty shares the responsibility for instruction in these skills. Students therefore encounter significant writing requirements in a range of courses across the entire curriculum and, where appropriate, are encouraged to present their ideas orally in the classroom and other public forums (such as senior thesis presentations to faculty and students).

*Also offered are two optional six-week summer sessions in which full semester courses are provided in an intensive format. Students may earn up to 9 credits per session.