After countless visits to her grandparents’ home in Eugene growing up, northern California native Victoria Houdeshell knew she wanted to come to Oregon for college. Her campus tour and admission into the Honors College sold her on choosing Oregon State University to continue her education.
Victoria has loved math ever since she was young. That love led her to choose accounting as her major, later adding a sustainability double-degree. Even as a busy double-degree student, Victoria still spent much of her time at Oregon State outside of her studies getting involved with accounting honors society Beta Alpha Psi and with the Honors College through the Honors College Student Association (HCSA). Through HCSA, Victoria met her core group of friends, making her Honors College experience both academically fulfilling and socially meaningful. One of her favorite memories with the group was planning and executing the Honors Gala last spring.
Beyond her involvement with the Honors College community, Victoria also engaged in unique colloquia classes and a formative thesis project. Two of her favorite colloquia included From Preppers to Zombies: America’s Apocalypse Addiction with instructor Rob Drummond and Shakespeare via Ashland with instructor Eric Hill. Her thesis, mentored by professor Kara Obermire from the College of Business, focuses on media rhetoric and the sentencing of white-collar crimes.
After graduation, Victoria will be heading straight into the workforce as an Audit Associate for Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG) in Portland. As she reflects on her time in the Honors College, Victoria says that the depth of her involvement in the community diversified her experience and made it unique.
To incoming students, Victoria has one piece of simple advice: “Get as involved as possible — I had exposure to so many different majors and fields that I definitely would not have gotten to see if I wasn’t in the Honors College.”
By Cara Nixon: Student Writer, Honors College
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