Am I a right fit for Claremont Mckenna?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Claremont McKenna College
1

I am currently a senior in high school and I am considering whether or not I should apply to Claremont Mckenna regular decision. I have always planned to apply to both Pomona and CMC, but after learning more about CMC, I am beginning to have doubts as to whether the school is a right fit for me. Could anybody who has knowledge of the school tell me whether I am a right fit?

Just some quick background on me: I am planning to become an English major but am ultimately undecided. I definitely want to try economics in college, and may double major in English and economics if I end up liking the subject. I’m drawn to CMC because of its strong economics department, but I’m worried the campus culture is not right for me. My main extracurriculars are journalism and visual art and I consider myself a very creative person. I’m not athletic/interested in sports at all and I’m not really into partying.

Schools that I consider a fit for me would be Brown and Barnard because they are small to medium size, have a rigorous liberal arts curriculum, and are located in or near a major city (I don’t want to be in a rural/isolated location). They also have a student body that is liberal/open-minded and people there are hardworking, driven, curious, and love to learn. They also both have a creative campus culture (Brown has RISD, Barnard is located in NYC), are not focused on athletics, and have minimal to no Greek life. I am also definitely applying to Pomona for many of the above reasons.

I’m worried I will dislike CMC because it’s focused on government/economics and my two favorite subjects in school are currently English and visual art (although I’m not planning to major in art). There is a big partying/drinking culture (I’m assuming what CMC students do on weekends is very different from Barnard/Brown students) and a focus on athletics (I’m not an athlete, I don’t really care about sports). There is also definitely a lack of arts/creative campus culture (visual art is one of my main passions).

Is the arts virtually nonexistent at CMC? It’s one of the only schools I’ve looked at that don’t have a tab on their website about the visual or performing arts and that in itself seems like a major warning sign to me… So, should I still apply to CMC or is it not the right school for me?

2

I went to Pomona. Honestly, while CMC is a really fantastic school (especially for the right person), it doesn’t sound like a good fit for you. The things you mentioned aren’t as dominating as one might guess, and there are plenty of people there who are similar to you, but drinking/partying/economics do constitute a big part of the life at the college. You would have to take your art courses at Pomona and Scripps, which is more tedious than it sounds (most visual art spaces grant students special swiping access- you’d have to go through some offices to be cleared for it). Given that there are plenty of colleges similar to Brown/Barnard/Pomona as well- Vassar, Wesleyan, Swarthmore, Pitzer, Scripps, Hampshire- why not check one of those out instead?

3

Claremont-McKenna has an interesting history. It was founded in 1946 as an all-male college with a rather explicit mission to duplicate the atmosphere of the best known New England men’s colleges of the day. Thirty years later, it joined the move to coeducation that swept its brother institutions back east, but, like them, it still retains some of the aspects of a men’s college, including thin offerings in the arts and an emphasis on churning out financiers.

4

I actually think CMC would be fine for you, although I may be biased.

I’m a freshman at CMC, so much what I will say here is based on what I’ve heard from my peers and upperclassmen.

We have an awesome literature department here, that really is overlooked because of the Econ/Gov departments and focus. If you find it unsatisfactory, you could do an off-campus major at Pomona. I have a friend who majors in Literature, and he loves it.

Yes, there is a party culture, but there is also a solid group of students who don’t party and/or only drink a little with friends. I know these people first-hand, and you should be find even if you hate partying/being around partiers. One thing though: you may occasionally walk into areas that smell like Amsterdam.

Yes, there is lack of an arts culture. As @nostalgicwisdom said, you could take arts classes elsewhere, and it can be a hassle. However, I know of a freshman who is trying to double major in art at Scripps, and I have heard of a graduated CMCer who successfully double majored in art and economics. Clubs across other campuses, especially 5C clubs, are generally welcome, so art clubs are an option.

There are orchestras that branch across campuses, but are not hosted at CMC. A healthy amount of CMC musicians play in the orchestra. I made sure to email the music professor in charge of the orchestra long before I applied, but I did not end up joining the orchestra.

Sure, you don’t fit the CMC stereotype. Based on what you have posted, I think there are better schools than CMC that fit you out there. I wanted to address your concerns in case you had other reasons for liking CMC. If a strong econ department is all you see at CMC, then there are other colleges that could probably better suit you.

Good luck.

5

As a Pomona student who spends a decent amount of time at CMC, I’ll second @nostalgicwisdom’s thoughts.

You might find it interesting to read through this article (https://web.archive.org/web/20150906102318/http://www.claremontportside.com/letter-to-the-editor-the-great-lie-of-claremont-mckenna-college) which talks about CMC’s attitude towards the arts rather harshly. Things have changed a bit since it was written—CMC now has a public art initiative (https://www.cmc.edu/public-art)—but my impression of it is that it hasn’t done much to change the overall culture there.

6

Pomona sounds more fitting to you than CMC for exactly the same reasons you mentioned. CMC is very much focused on pragmatic subject such as Econ, Govt, etc. Both are great schools but totally different educational orientation. Of course you can take art classes in one of the 5C schools where appropriate but there is a clear gap between what you want to pursue at college and what they offer at CMC as a base-camp school. Think about Vassar, Haverford and Wesleyan, too. They seem to fit your goal very well. All the best!