<p>Hey all! So April 1st has come and gone, and I'm currently deciding between Pomona and Swarthmore. </p>
<p>In terms of location, consortium, weather, and traditions, Pomona is winning, and it's looking like I'm going to go there next year. (I'm visiting both colleges in a couple weeks before I commit, though!) The campuses are tied as far as I'm concerned; they're both gorgeous. However, the one aspect that Swat seems to be leading in is academics. </p>
<p>I've read that Swat is arguably the best undergrad education one can get, used to be ranked above Harvard, focuses on the intellectual experience, provides really difficult classes to broaden your mind, &etc, &etc. What about Pomona? I'm sure one can get a great education -- and isn't it ranked #1 right now in the Princeton Review right now for Best Classroom Experience, or something? -- at Pomona but does anyone have any lovely speeches to give me? Are classes difficult, or are they less difficult but just as engaging and really cause you to learn? (This is what I'm looking for in college -- learning, a fabulous education.) Do people really have discussions about academics (related or unrelated to classes) outside of the classroom? Are the students curious? I hope I'm not implying that I think any of the previous isn't true about Pomona; I really love the school. I just need a little reassurance.</p>
<p>Other than general education, however, I'm a little worried about my major, linguistics. Swarthmore has a fantastic department, as far as I've heard, and they even have a lab specifically for endangered languages (alksjd;flksdf brb dying forever). In all my looking up of schools that are good in this major, Swat always comes up. I've heard Pomona has a good department, but isn't it combined with cognitive science? This is probably a long shot, but are there any ling majors out there? I just want to know if there's a lot of opportunity for research, if the major has enough students to provide good discussion, and if there's a wide variety of classes to take.</p>
<p>I really, really want to go to Pomona; I just need a little final convincing. Please help me go to the state of beautiful warm weather without looking back! :)</p>