University Communications

UCLA Students learn life lessons in the real world while studying for a quarter in Washington, D.C.

"All I did for the first few days was talk politics and things - we had these late-night conversations about religion, finance, physics, and politics. Interacting with other students was an important part of the education I got here." Matthew Lunder '02 Political Science

"At Amnesty International, they really encouraged us to learn more than to work. They were like: Your position is to learn something. Do that before you do what ever thing is assigned to you." Marissa Guerrero '03 Political Science

"It's just a really inspiring place. You see people on the street and know that everyone's out there to make a change and save the world. It's somewhere that's very different from L.A., even New York, I think. It's just a really encouraging place to be." Heidi Hyun '02 History

"For the first time, I have really been able to establish a relationship with my professor, and I feel that he cares about what we do." Melody Ehsani '02 Philosophy

"A lot of science students think that to become a doctor, they need to focus on the science and that's it. But there's a lot of politics in medicine. You also have to know the policies behind the science and what is involved in getting certain pieces of health legislation passed." Jeffrey Ghassemi '03 Political Science

By Marina Dundjerski '94
Photography by Claudio Vazq

FOR some students, September 11 changed everything. Others refused to let it.

Thirty Bruin undergrads had spent weeks just waiting for the moment they would fly to the nation's capital. Each had been chosen — through a highly selective screening process — to fill one of the coveted spots in UCLA's Quarter in Washington Program.

Then terror struck.

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