<p>School Location Enrollment
Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME 1,666
Williams College Williamstown, MA 2,094
Colgate University Hamilton, NY 2,779
Davidson College Davidson, NC 1,683
Pomona College Claremont, CA 1,533
Trinity College Hartford, CT 2,470
Carleton College Northfield, MN 1,936
Wesleyan University Middletown, CT 3,205
Haverford College Haverford, PA 1,168
Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA 1,479 </p>
<p>You're probably right about Pepperdine being conservative, but being a religiously based school, I think it is a different kind of conservative than CMC, which has the reputation of being, or at least having a fair share of politically conservative profs and students. And Oxy has got to be one of the most left leaning LACs in the country.</p>
<p>Last summer, Pepperdine didn't strike me as politically conservative at all -- great big Obama poster outside the bookstore, tour guide very big on "social justice" issues (typically a liberal buzzword) and downplaying the school's religious roots with embarrassment. Pepperdine seems more of a "Christian in name only" school -- open to all comers, to the point of dilution. That could be very attractive to some, but the political scene (and the intellectual atmosphere) is probably not what the OP's kid would hope for.</p>
<p>And I agree with okgal that Oxy seems pretty far out on the left. Only in LA would Oxy be considered "conservative-leaning."</p>
<p>I'm the editor of the Claremont Independent and the founder of the Claremontconservative.com, which is a conservative/libertarian blog that covers campus news. While it may be true that CMC has drifted from its right leaning roots, its best departments -- government and economics -- still have some of the best professors in the country. </p>
<p>As a libertarian myself and a government and economics major, I must say that Claremont McKenna is one of the best places for those of us who seek a rigorous education. But beware! There are many majors at Claremont McKenna that are effectively useless. These include: the IR major, psychology, etc. </p>
<p>If anyone would like to contact me or speak to me about how conservatives are treated on campus, I would be happy to take your emails -- <a href="mailto:CJohnson11@cmc.edu">CJohnson11@cmc.edu</a>. I'd also be more than willing to take any around on a "conservative/libertarian" tour. </p>
<p>--Charles C. Johnson
Editor of the Claremont Independent</p>
<p>Claremont fan: are you a student?
BTW, calling other majors "effectively useless" is a great example of why so many find conservatives obnoxious; how about some mutual respect?</p>
<p>Psychology is the third-most representated major at Claremont McKenna and one of the school's strongest programs. And it's widely recognized around the colleges that IR at Pomona and CMC are equitable. Dismissing the departments isn't dismissing the caliber of their faculties at CMC, but a disregard of the fields as legitimate studies in academia.</p>
<p>The admissions office, which tracks the political leanings of each incoming class, has indeed seen the student body trend more and more liberal ever since 2003. Most in the administration attribute it to the deterioration of the conservative movement and the policies it has adopted since invading Iraq. CMC kids are smart - and they follow smart policies.</p>
<p>If what you're looking for is a respect for different views, and a place where one doesn't have to be a "closet" conservative, then CMC is definitely the place. People are knowledgeable enough to know the best arguments on each side.</p>
<p>CMC isn't a "unique -- just like everyone else place." Pomona is only as unique as Williams is, as Amherst is, and so on. There truly isn't a place remarkably similar to CMC. If one had to name some schools, however, you could say Georgetown and possibly Dartmouth.</p>
<p>you guys seem kinda dim witted. as a college student at tufts university, i must ask you all to grow up. If your son is a conservative, he should dying to go bleeding heart liberal schools, that usually host some of the best academics. Obviously Tufts is a better school than CMC, despite the high liberal population. Besides if your son is a staunch conservative, then constantly having to evaluate his policy decisions will be very training for him.</p>
<p>Also, don't send him to a conservative school like Hillsdale. Yes, they may offer a more traditional college atmosphere with knitting clubs and less political correctness, but you lose a lot in academics. I could also never get over the sound of a southern accent so even smart schools in the South seem out of the question.</p>
<p>You're saying that Tufts is a better school than CMC?</p>
<p>Who are you kidding? Many of my friends chose CMC over Tufts because it's not as strong academically and doesn't have the resources that CMC has. Get over yourself...</p>
<p>(This is coming from a very liberal student, if you care)</p>
<p>bananaphone, your comments amuse me, not for the reasons you or CMC fans might think. They amuse me because</p>
<p>(1) our college counselor told us that my son would never get into Tufts if he told the Admissions Committee that he is a conservative and wishes to write for the conservative publication, a key goal of his college experience. Our counselor is one of the best in the business with three decades of experience.</p>
<p>(2) I contacted the Tufts admissions staff person for our region and posed the question directly. Would Tufts have any interest in a conservative student who wishes to write for the conservative publication, and wishes to make it a better publication without the problems that caused the campus uproar two years ago? The Tufts rep didn't have the courtesy to send back a reply.</p>
<p>My son would love to attend a school that is primarily liberal, a school where his views would be tested. Evidently Tufts won't give him that chance.</p>
<p>My son was very interested in CMC. After looking around quite a bit, he decided to apply ED to William & Mary. The schools are somewhat similar: good political science departments, high admission standards and friendly students. I have heard that William & Mary is politically split so a conservative would be comfortable there. William & Mary has more tradition; CMC more drinking. However, CMC's proximity to other schools and L.A. makes its geographical situation more appealing. Perhaps your son would like William & Mary.</p>
<p>CMC is like 25% movement conservative, 40% rockefeller republican (who may vote democratic or republican these days), 10% actually liberal, and 25% apathetic. The polling numbers make things look pretty evenly split - but it's not. Everyone is essentially capitalist and mainstream in their political beliefs - I could see people getting into impassioned debate about whether the top icnome tax bracket should be between 30 and 40%. That's why the school is excellent at pragmatic analysis and teaching, but also why schools who have more intensely ideological student bodies might look askance at CMC. It also makes the student body look differently depending on what question you ask.</p>
<p>Questions about foreign policy or taxation are goign to elicit very different answers than ones about drinking or abortion (everyone but the movement conservatives are going to love drinking and be generally pro-choice, but the campus is going to look very conservative on some policy dimensions to someone who sleeps with chomsky under their pillow).</p>
<p>As for the liberal students who seem laid back. Well, people from California tend to be laid back in general; that's beyond their political beliefs.</p>
<p>The Claremont Colleges have brought plenty of big movers and shakers in the political world to speak and talk to students. These include Clinton, L. Paul Bremer, Eric Shinseki, Donald Rumsfeld and Karl Rove. The Athenaeum provides great access to politics lecturers too.</p>
<p>And to Charles Johnson, you do realize you're saying that big time majors at CMC are not legit fields of inquiry, right? Last I checked IR was a pretty significant discipline and psychology delves into leadership and motivation, all central to CMC's founding mission.</p>