<p>It looks like my D's decision is going to come down to Columbia vs. Pomona. She really doesn't know what she wants to major in and therefore I think she needs some good advising to steer her in the right direction and open up possiblities that she is probably not aware of right now. We have heard that the advising at Columbia leaves a lot to be desired and that a student must aggressively pursue their path on their own. I have read that the opposite is the case at Pomona. Can anyone give us their thoughts?</p>
<p>Also, when she just visited this past weekend she felt that the school was very heavily skewed toward math and science majors. She will definitely be a humanities major - will she be in the minority or a disadvantage? </p>
<p>Any and all comments would be appreciated. Feel free to PM me as well. She will be making the final decision in the next day or two, but I think it will be Pomona!</p>
<p>D graduated in Latin American Studies last spring and didn’t have any problem with the advising. All freshmen are assigned an advisor - selected by the Dean’s Office and the Dean of Admissions - based on each student’s interests. When a student declares a major, s/he then is advised by a faculty member in that department. D’s advisor was the head of the Latin American Studies program.</p>
<p>I never got the impression that Pomona was heavily skewed toward math/science majors. Majors ranged from the traditional to the exotic, i.e., interdepartmental majors. Your D will not be in the minority or at a disadvantage.</p>
<p>Good luck with the decision!</p>
<p>My experience is that advising here is pretty good. Incoming freshmen are required to write a letter to their future advisor, and the letters are used to pair you up. You’ll also get an advisor when you declare you major, and a senior thesis advisor when the time comes, if I’m not mistaken.</p>
<p>I am not under the impression that most people here are math and science majors. If anything, majoring in a smaller humanities department as opposed to a large one such as chemistry means you’ll get more personal attention, so I don’t think there is any disadvantage to being a humanities major.</p>
<p>I think your daughter is making an excellent choice if she chooses Pomona. I faced the same decision last year and have zero regrets.</p>