<p>I know that Pomona has many amazing qualities, but could any current students give me a sense for the weaknesses they see in the academic or social atmosphere, or really any faults in general about Pomona?</p>
<p>Although I really love Pomona it is far from perfect…at least for me. Large parties (Harwood Halloween, Eutrash, Smiley 80’s) for instance, often get shut down early. In addition, all the dining halls, except Frary, close at 7 PM, with Frary closing at 8PM at the latest. However, there is always the coop store and fountain, as well as the other colleges’ cafes etc… Also, although I might get crap for this, if your a guy, you might be very dissatisfied with the selection of attractive women on campus (subjective I know)… The general opinion of the Male student population is that the sex scene is very lackluster, however, it might be comparable to other small top lac’s…
Academically, although many of my classes have been great, the lack of course selection is sometimes frustrating, meaning that you may have to take a class with a horrible professor. Thankfully, even if you have a bad registering time, you can still get into classes by being proactive and emailing the professor/ sitting in on the class.</p>
<p>Lack of course selection is much less of a problem at Pomona than at other top LAC’s because of the consortium. A lot of Pomona students don’t take advantage of this, though. Same thing for social/sex scene. At some CMC parties, Pomona students (and not students from the other colleges) get carded though. If you want a wild social life, Pomona isn’t a great fit.</p>
<p>My main issue with Pomona is that it can just be TOO politically correct at times… it gets a little exhausting after a while. My second main issue would be that the queer community at Pomona is incredibly tiny (I can elaborate on either point if anyone wants)</p>
<p>I’ll definitely third the opinions that Pomona does not having a raging social life, too. I’ve increasingly started to go into West Hollywood or LA to go to clubs that won’t be shut down by 11 or 12. RA’s have also been told to be more strict on drinking, etc this year, which (in my opinion) has put even more of a damper on Pomona’s (drinking) social life. However, I guess we can’t complain too much since all of our campus parties are free and provide us with free alcohol.</p>
<p>^^^how are you defining PC?</p>
<p>Interesting thread, especially as my daughter’s only complaint is that several people in her sponsor group are drunk nearly every night. Academically, she does not feel that anything is lacking and has found courses to be very challenging.</p>
<p>GG123, if you haven’t done so already, the best way to get a feel for Pomona is an overnight visit.</p>
<p>Finally: a thread that doesn’t depict Pomona as Shangri-La! As with all schools, big and small, nowhere is perfect, and certainly not perfect for everybody. In broad terms, selective LAC’s (SWAP, etc.) offer the best possible undergraduate educations in terms of faculty dedication to teaching and intensity, and SLAC graduates are among those most sought by leading graduate schools. However, social options will generally be somewhat more limited than on large university campuses, and fewer course offerings will inevitably lead to some scheduling conflicts and difficulty enrolling in certain classes. You should definitely visit to get some first-hand exposure.</p>
<p>ditto on some of the comments above, as per what i get from my D. Very politically correct. Lots and lots of sensitivity training about gay rights, minority rights, women’s rights, etc. I’m not saying it’s bad or that she says it’s bad-- there are aspects of it my D likes very much, and I wouldn’t say she’s left of center. For one thing, she says the boys at Pomona are more respectful than elsewhere-- and no, I’m not going to start a war and say what i mean by ‘elsewhere’. But, as I’ve noted on another thread, for instance, she says every official Pomona party is preceded by indoctrination on the dangers of drinking, drug use, respecting the opposite or same gender (depending on your orientation). if it was me, and it’s not, but if it was me, at school, i would chafe at what i would see as mild brainwashing and nannyism. But it’s not me at school, it’s her, and she’s very happy there, and as a parent i like some of what i’m hearing from her on this. but that’s something that may bother you as a student, or not.</p>
<p>^^however, it doesn’t sound like an appraisal of the general level of activism on campus, which I understood to be fairly low-level.</p>
<p>Yes, the first week of Freshman year Pomona RA’s and the deans will indoctrinate you about safe sex, drinking, etc, however, after the initial punishment of sitting through those speeches there are no more mandatory meetings about such issues. As students grow more comfortable with one another throughout their freshman year the PC level of your hall should decline (hopefully).
Also, I personally work with some of the deans and other faculty and everyone is down to earth and acknowledges that students party and do not necessarily do the most rational things all the time.</p>
<p>I don’t mean to offend anyone but Anonymous91, you can’t find ANY girls that you find attractive? As shallow as it may sound, that would be kind of a turn off to the school’s social life…</p>
<p>I never said that, what I said many guys were “very dissatisfied with the selection of attractive women on campus,” and quite frankly, it is a major turn off for the school’s social life. There are attractive females on campus, but many either a) go to a different Claremont College, b) already have a boyfriend, c) do not go to parties, or are not looking for a guy. Thats not to say thats impossible to find an attractive girl who is not in the categories aforementioned, but its just not that easy compared to other schools.</p>
<p>I’m sure it’s not a significantly different situation from any other top LAC. At Amherst, there are two all-girl schools, so there’s a better ratio for guys. I’ve also heard that those girls are more into the Amherst guys while Scripps girls aren’t exactly jumping on Pomona guys. Well, some of them are. I think like half of the Scripps girls are completely willing to hook up while the other half are feminist/all-men-are-evil types. If you’re into really artsy girls, a school like Wesleyan is probably better. But in terms of physical attractiveness, smart girls generally aren’t as interested in what they look like, so it’s not likely that you’re going to find models at top schools. </p>
<p>But honestly, there are like 4,000 girls on campus. I know students at Harvey Mudd who are huge nerds who have girlfriends. Pomona isn’t a state school. They won’t jump in your bed. But the girls are smart, which is attractive in itself in my opinion. Pitzer recently had a survey and apparently about 75% of the freshman student body is sexually active (an HM student told me that, though- possibly false).</p>
<p>^ That rumour about Pitzer is probably true. Also, idk what I was saying earlier, because I just remembered my friend whose currently attending Pitzer, told me that the girls are great at the 5C’s.</p>
<p>Sounds like you guys ought to be considering Arizona State…</p>
<p>I’ll think about it…</p>
<p>For goodness sakes, guys. Men have been whining about this sort of thing since time began. You rarely hear women complaining that all the guys are unattractive dweebs.</p>
<p>Between the consortium, women outnumber men by a significant number. Only HMC has more men than women and that is not my much.</p>
<p>When women cannot find a date, she thinks it is her fault. When men cannot find someone to date they think it is the women’s fault - that somehow the available women are not worthy. </p>
<p>I doubt there is a shortage of acceptable women, but maybe they are choosing other guys, because they look upon you the same way you are looking upon the available women.</p>
<p>I went to HM and I do not understand how some of you could not find a lot of attractive women at Pomona… your standards must be absurd. Regardless, you can always go hang out at Pitzer or Scripps if you want the balance tipped heavily in your favor.</p>
<p>Anotherparent, I have no comment on this subject other than to correct you: CMC has more men than women.</p>
<p>@parent57 - you may be right, but I was assuming since the current freshman are 53% female, that it held for the entire school. [Freshman</a> Class Profile, Claremont McKenna College](<a href=“http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/admission/fr-class-profile.php]Freshman”>http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/admission/fr-class-profile.php)</p>