The Oxy “bubble” is sandwiched between the cities of Los Angeles and Pasadena. The small size of the school makes it less of a dominant force on either town’s landscape compared to larger nearby state schools, but students report enjoying the quiet collegiate atmosphere the campus manages to maintain between these urban centers. For most day-to-day activities, students stick close to their school, but they’re happy to escape on weekends and check out the nightlife in nearby Hollywood. The unique location also gives Oxy students the advantage of LA’s resources—guest speakers, easy access to major city amenities, and a short ride to the beach—without the hassle of living downtown.

When Occidental moved to Eagle Rock in 1914, its leaders had a vision for the campus that’s still (mostly) seen on campus today. The Quad, where squirrels and students both come to enjoy a shady spot beneath old oak trees, is at the campus’ center, and on its perimeter are some of Oxy’s most central structures, including classrooms Fowler Hall and Johnson Hall, the Herrick Chapel, the Mary Norton Clapp Library, Thorne Hall (where most large school events—including commencement—are held), and the Johnson Student Center. These buildings all retain the original Oxy style, a combination of late 19th-century Beaux-Arts Parisian elegance and a breezier Mediterranean feel, with shaded open walkways and tiled roofs. Myron Hunt, who designed Pasadena’s Rose Bowl Stadium, was responsible for the Oxy architecture in the early 20th century. Eleven residential colleges and various dorms sit east of the Quad, constructed in the same style as the Quad buildings, as do a number of newer science and lab facilities. A duo of theaters—the smaller, more intimate Keck and the larger, outdoor Remsen Bird Hillside Theater (built in the style of ancient Greek amphitheaters)—are in the far northeastern corner of campus. Some newer administrative and residential buildings, notably the Arthur G. Coons Administration Building, throw the old-Oxy style out the window with a more postmodern look, all boxy glass and sharp steel angles. The far western side of campus houses Oxy’s large athletic centers, including Bell Field, Patterson Field & Bill Henry Track, and Rush Gym.

Freshmen are required to live on campus, but even after that first-year experience, a majority chooses to stay in one of Oxy’s 11 student-run, co-ed dorms for their entire college careers. The halls, though beautiful, are small, each housing no more than 155 students apiece. The halls provide space for Oxy’s numerous themed-living areas as well as place to socialize and organize off-campus trips and activities. The eleven dorms are: Bell-Young Hall Braun Hall Chilcott Hall Erdman Hall Haines Hall Newcomb Hall Norris Hall Pauley Hall Rangeview Hall Stearns Hall Stewart-Cleland Hall Wylie Hall

Oxy’s Tigers have a large presence on their small campus. 21 varsity teams enlist the skills of 25 percent of the student body. The Tigers were one of five founding schools in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and compete in Division III play. Its basketball, cross country, and football teams have enjoyed divisional success in the recent past, and two new sports for the ladies, lacrosse and golf, were added at the end of the 2008 season. Men and women’s club rugby teams regularly draw a large crowd for their competitive matches. With its diverse club and intercollegiate offerings, many students sign on with one of the sub-varsity teams. Men and women’s lacrosse, men’s volleyball, scuba, karate, crew, and men and women’s ultimate Frisbee teams participate in a variety of matches, from serious inter-school rivalries to pickup games on campus.