<p>Hello everyone!
I'm a current CMC freshman majoring in Government and Economics. I'm involved in Model UN, Mock Trial, and Debate. I'm happy to answer any questions anyone might have about the application process or about CMC in general, so feel free to ask away!</p>
<p>What is your favorite thing about CMC?</p>
<p>CMC:</p>
<p>I have been considering Claremont Mckenna as an option for my son, but the biggest negative, in his eyes, is that no one has ever heard of it. The same with Pomona College. My son would likely major in government as well.</p>
<p>Any comments that might alleviate his concern?</p>
<p>This is a tough question, but I guess my favorite thing is the feeling of “closeness.” By that I mean a feeling of community/friendliness, and it’s on two levels.
Socially, it’s a close-knit environment by virtue of its size, and I love being able to see people I know on the way to class/events/dining halls. CMC makes a great effort to ensure that you get to make strong bonds with other CMCers, and it’s epitomized in the Wilderness Orientation Adventure, which is a pre-orientation event that lets you meet and spend time with 20 other incoming freshmen on a “wilderness adventure.” Furthermore, because I know the majority of the Class of 2015 - as well as the sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are also very excited to meet new people - there’s always a feeling of friendship regardless of what’s going on. In other words, I never feel alone; and I like that!
Academically, there’s a close relationship between the students and professors. The professors make an effort to get to know all the students, which makes learning (for me) far more effective and fun. It’s very easy to meet with professors outside of class as well, and I meet with my profs just to talk about random stuff fairly often.
This is probably my favorite thing about CMC, but it’s by NO MEANS the ONLY thing I like about CMC!</p>
<p>For those interested, but thinking, “no one’s heard of it!”</p>
<p>This was actually one of my biggest worries about coming to CMC as well, so I’ll make an effort to dispel this qualm.
First, the people who do not know about CMC are not the most important people in terms of helping you to achieve a future. By that I mean, the people who need to know about CMC (employers, grad schools, etc.) know that it’s a great school, which is why it’s received a high ranking from sites such as Forbes.
[America’s</a> Best Colleges - Forbes.com](<a href=“Forbes List Directory”>Forbes List Directory)
[America’s</a> Best Colleges List - Forbes](<a href=“http://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/list/]America’s”>Forbes America’s Top Colleges List 2022)
So if anyone asks, “Oh, what’s CMC,” you can say “It’s an amazing college!”
Second, it’s actually fairly silly when you think about it (at least when I thought about it). This is the equivalent of saying “everyone has heard of McDonald’s, so clearly any restaurant I’ve never heard of is worse than McDonald’s.” This may seem appealing superficially, but not once you really think about it.
Third, our program for Government is fantastic, and it’s one of the reasons I chose CMC. The professors are not only widely recognized (they are constantly on the radio, television, and asked to give talks at places like D.C. and Seattle), they are fully committed to actually teaching. While other schools may have great political scientists, they may often be more focused on teaching grad students or conducting research; this isn’t true at CMC. Because it’s solely an undergraduate institution, students don’t have to compete for attention with grad students; professors choose to come here because they love to teach and not just because they only want to focus on research. This means that students have a far better relationship with the faculty (which is good for letters of recommendation, research assistant positions, and learning in general) and also tend to be more passionate in their major.
Fourth, and this is probably the best argument for me; who cares if some people haven’t heard of it? It’s about what YOU want, and after a lot of reflection I realized that I wanted a place that would make 4 years of education enjoyable and useful, and CMC satisfied that desire.
I would suggest visiting Claremont, because students tend to figure out if it matches their interest after a day of being among CMCers.
Hope this helps! And remember, hidden gems tend to be pretty cool.</p>
<p>Hey I am currently a ED 1 applicant to Claremont. I really liked the vibe I got from the school especially the location being from New York. In college I really was looking foward to participating in greek life not only because I would be a legacy in my family for this certain frat, but also because I feel that it is a great experience to have in college. I am aware that CMC does not have greek life, but just out of curiousity have there recently been any efforts to start up frats or sororities, and do you believe that if I do end up going to CMC there would be an opportunity to start up a frat? Thanks.</p>
<p>Hello! I’m currently applying for EDII and am wondering if you could tell me whether or not you think I can get in. If you can, I’ll PM you my stats. Thanks!</p>
<p>At this past Visit Weekend the Dean of Admissions said proudly, onstage in a panel presentation in front of a couple hundred parents, that there is no Greek Life at CMC or at any of the Claremont Colleges. For many this is yet another plus. I doubt that there would be an opportunity to start a fraternity. Better to look at schools with established ones if that is a factor for you.</p>
<p>What MUNs does CMC go to?</p>
<p>^Great question re: MUN. I’m interested too.</p>
<p>Be not afraid! Not having frats does NOT detract from the “college experience” here. CMC can be described as basically being one big fraternity - everyone is close, and there’s a very strong bond between all the students. ASCMC (The Associated Students of Claremont McKenna) goes to great lengths to ensure that we have a pantheon of fun-filled events and parties (to such an extent that we were rated happiest college in America in 2010). So in a way, our social lives mirror those of the Greek system; but the difference is that there are no “exclusive” groups, and everyone is always welcome to all events and parties on campus. In terms of attempts at starting a house, I don’t know of any but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. However (like one of the users has already said), one thing that CMC really appreciates is the fact that we do not have exclusive social groups on campus. I personally view this as a positive.</p>
<p>This year our schedule is:
1st semester - UC Santa Barbara, University of Pennsylvania
2nd semester - UC Berkeley, UCLA, and World MUN in Vancouver.</p>
<p>how cool/great/amazing is debate club at CMC? Please specify as much as you like :D</p>
<p>Are there any international student participating in debate club?</p>
<p>The Debate Union is awesome!! It’s a very good, active program that encompasses all 5 Claremont Colleges, and the format we use is British Parliamentary (no prior experience is needed). Some of our team went to Cambridge a couple weeks ago, Vermont before that, Yale as well, and now I’m in Canada for a tournament this weekend at the University of Alberta. There are plenty of International students that participate, and one of our debaters at this tournament is actually from Geneva.</p>
<p>The coach is very accommodating, and is willing to go to great lengths to ensure that your debate schedule coordinates well with your academic schedule.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind me asking, what did your application look like?</p>
<p>as far as grades, test scores, EC’s, and awards and honors</p>
<p>Are there multiple debate teams? Or is there a select team of some sort?</p>
<p>Does the school cover the cost of airline travel/hotel for out-of-state debates or Model United Nations? Or is these expenses that students must pay for on their own?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>More on Debate:
The Claremont Colleges Debate Union can itself be considered a team, but within that we have many teams of two - for example, my partner and I constitute a team, and so does every other partnership. There is no “select team,” you can participate as long as you’re interested!</p>
<p>The school covers the costs for debates, mock trial, and MUN (with the exception of a delegate fee for MUN that’s very modest). You will not have to pay for hotels, airlines, etc. So you can focus on more important things, like having fun and winning!</p>
<p>Wow CMC pays for so much stuff! That is pretty amazing</p>
<p>hi ! im a freshman in community college and i want to transfer to cmc so bad i fell in love with their campus and the people. i was wondering how you application looked or the things you did like extarcurrculars and classes. it will help me alot thanks !</p>