Pomona vs. USC Trustee— thoughts?

zrathustra
Sun, 01 Apr 2012 23:39:45 +0000

It sounds like you already prefer Pomona. You just have to decide whether Pomona is worth that extra $48,000.

I will say that Pomona will provide you with an unprecedented life experience among some of the brightest people in the world. In terms of certain opportunities (which is a very broad term - do you mean opportunity on campus to do exciting things, opportunity for research, opportunities after graduation, etc), Pomona is unparalleled. With the most money per student of any LAC, Pomona is able to provide fantastic facilities, faculty, class size and availability, research, and other opportunities. The students are well taken care of.

I don’t know if you’d find Pomona socially stifling. Yes, it’s a small school, but your close group of friends will be about the same size anywhere. Additionally, there are plenty of opportunities to make friends at the other 4 colleges, as well as participate in inter-college sports teams and clubs.

Finally, just as anecdotal experience, my brother chose Pomona over Columbia, and my best friend is close to turning down Dartmouth for either Pomona or Harvey Mudd.

Also, though Pomona isn’t a household name across the nation, employers and grad schools know the value of a Pomona education (and in some ways, it may get you farther than USC, but it really depends).

So, you have to decide whether or not it’s worth the additional cost to you. Good luck, and I hope to see you in Claremont next fall!