Pomona vs. USC Trustee— thoughts?

FauxNom
Wed, 04 Apr 2012 22:51:36 +0000

What an interesting dilemma. I don’t know if I can help, but I have children at each school, so I’ll at least report in. My eldest is in film school, so for him USC was a no-brainer. He loves it. He has a great scholarship. He got a lot out of Thematic Option (though I was sorry it was such a small percentage of the overall courseload.) He has cool, interesting friends, and the sports scene/Greek scene has played almost no role in his life at USC. He is very social, however, and has had a blast exploring all the different aspects of an intensely urban environment. I’ve been less than enthused about his living situation at times - off campus living beginning in the second year is the norm, and not all off-campus housing is that great. Having a car starting sophomore year was pretty important because he had a lot of off-campus activities. He likes road trips with friends, and regularly goes to Joshua Tree, Death Valley, Vegas, the coast. All in all, he can’t imagine himself in a better situation, and he is a really smart kid with good judgment.

My D adores Pomona. When I point out how expensive it is, she claims that it’s worth every single penny. She’s happy to be close enough to LA to go visit her brother, but she’s quite happy not to be a student at USC. (But then she’s a humanities type - not a film student.) She loves the outdoor life, and her brother is envious of how easy it is for Pomona students to get out and go hiking (USC students probably go to the beach far less often than Pomona students do some sort of outdoor activity, if his experience is any guide.) The housing is amazing - no problem getting a single. Campus is safe. Food is excellent. Campus is gorgeous (as is SC, to be sure, but in a different way). She feels the 5C arrangement makes the college feel like a bigger school, but she also knew she didn’t want a schoool as big as SC. Aside from all these lifestyle issues, I do think she gets more academic stimulation than a typical USC student would. Her classes are tiny, and her professors very attentive. There’s always a tough choice among a multitude of great classes and profs. Her fellow students are so smart!! They are also plenty diverse: it’s not as if there’s an entire campus of overprivileged prep schoolers, as you might imagine when you consider Pomona’s top ranking and selectivity.

I think you’ve got a good read on the pro’s and con’s, except that I think you underestimate how easy it is for Pomona students to study abroad, and the plentiful opportunites for research and similar things.

Good luck with your decision, and congrats on having such great options!