<p>I'm going to major in biology (interested in molecular/cellular biology) and then go to graduate school. Pomona and Haverford are quite different, but I like both. Which one will give the better chance to get in good PhD program? I am from Northwest. I see pluses in attending college on either coast. I have impression that biology program in Haverford is stronger, but science majors seem to have very heavy workload: not much time for fun activities.</p>
<p>I'll appreciate any comments.</p>
<p>Well, at Pomona you have Harvey Mudd as a resource for Biology majors, and you can't get much better than that. You can take up to a third of your classes at the other 5-Cs, so classes at Harvey Mudd can easily fulfill or at least add to your major. Also, you never know if that's what you're going to end up doing. I would just pick the school you like better, both are good choices, but you should not pick based on which one has a better department in something specific. For all you know, you'll graduate with a History degree! Anyway, I'm going to Pomona, and I also got into Haverford - so I may be a bit biased... Good luck choosing.</p>
<p>The molecular biology program at Pomona is very strong and includes some of the best science professors at the college. The biology and chemistry facilities are top-notch and both departments have a ridiculous amount of money to fund research for students, so those opportunities are plentiful. Pomona mobio majors don't have any problem getting into good PhD programs - some of the mobio majors in the senior class will be heading to Yale, Berkeley, Washington, and UCSF (I also know of a neuro major going to to Stanford for mobio as well).</p>
<p>I don't know that much about (molecular/cellular) biology at Haverford, so I'm a bit biased, but I noticed that another thread mentioned how large their introductory science classes are. At Pomona, biology and physics introductory classes are capped at 30 students, and the intro chemistry courses have fluxuated in size while I've been here (but recently they have been getting smaller, usually between 20-50 students, occasionally above that). All the larger classes are split into lab sections of about 20-25 students as well (run by Professors, not TAs). You can also check out more information on the actual class sizes at the Pomona admissions website.</p>
<p>Also, I feel like Pomona has a better reputation than Haverford in the Northwest, so if you'd like to eventually go back there for graduate school, Pomona may be the better choice.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot!</p>
<p>I received my BS in Biology from Haverford in May 2010 and the program was excellent. You can take classes at Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Swarthmore and UPenn so limited class opportunities was not an issue. At Haverford, an undergraduate thesis is required so all the Biology majors completed a year of independent research. A few of my friends did research in UPenn laboratories and a couple of students studied E.coli pathogenesis in Nigeria for the summer with a Biology professor. As for me, I studied under the President of Haverford who has a Stem Cell Biology lab on campus. </p>
<p>So I guess I’m biased too, haha.</p>
<p>Haverford has a first rate biology program, and is a wonderful school. Definitely a bit on the small side, but the Bryn Mawr collaboration enhances the “extended” student body and course offerings.</p>
<p>This thread is from 2007!</p>