<p>There’s nothing bad you can say about either place academically. Obviously, if CMC is the main cross-admit to Wesleyan, you’re not necessarily interested in math or natural science or film studies or music or about three-quarters of the departments that make Wesleyan ring. You’re interested in the social sciences. Either place will get you into a good law school; either place will get you into grad school. So, let’s call it a draw.</p>
<p>The real difference between CMC and Wesleyan is scale and breadth. Wesleyan is a stand-alone, full-service LAC comparable to Pomona. Claremont-McKenna is about a third Wesleyan’s size both in terms of students and physical plant. “But, why should that matter, with the presence of the other Consortium members on hand, wouldn’t I have the same resources as a university twice Wesleyan’s size?”, you might ask. </p>
<p>Well, in theory that might be true. There are about 6,000 students occupying the same square mile system of inter-locking campuses in Claremont if you include the Graduate Center. That’s great if you are looking for a campus with that sort of footprint. The problem is that not all the Claremont colleges are created equally and that reality tends to fuel a great deal of enmity between Pomona and CMC, their two strongest members. Pomona students are rarely allowed to take courses at the other campuses and CMC students and alumni have virtually set themselves up as Pomona’s biggest rival. Consequently, it never seems enough that it’s nearly as good as Pomona, it is nearly always trying to prove that is better, at least in the somewhat ambiguous category of “leadership building”. You see it everywhere, from the CMC website to the Pomona CC forum. </p>
<p>Someone once said, that academic arguments are so vociferous because the stakes are so low and that is my only real caveat about choosing CMC: be prepared for a lifetime of academic ***** envy.</p>