Have any So. Cal residents gotten in without an interview?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Pomona College
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<p>I realized on Dec 26 that Pomona EXPECTS ALL Southern California residents to interview on-campus, and so I was too late. This doesn't completely ruin my chances does it? Has anyone got into Pomona w/out the So. Cal interview?</p>

<p>By the way, how could Pomona possibly expect that people will drive 3 hours over there and then 3 hours back in order to spend 15-30 min getting information that their website and student testimonies can provide??? With my schedule I don't have the time for that.</p>

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<p>I think they expect you to visit the campus, take a tour, etc. You’re supposed to schedule an interview when you visit. The on-campus interview is evaluative as well as informative.</p>

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<p>Even if you live 3 hours away? I love Pomona as a school but couldn’t that still be apparent even if I don’t visit? BTW is there a visting deadline? I could have my friend who goes to Pitzer give me a tour in february if it’s this important.</p>

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<p>I don’t think that there is a visiting deadline. However, if I remember correctly, the deadline for interviews was Dec. 1st for on-campus interviews.</p>

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<p>If you live 3 hours away, it might be justified for you to not visit the campus–they probably just mean all applicants living in a reasonable driving range–but they do consider interest in the school, so I hope you at least asked for mailings, emailed questions to their offices, etc. earlier. If you end up visiting, I’m not sure whether or not February would be too late to ‘count’.
I have met someone who lived in Southern California who got accepted without an interview. Unfortunately, I don’t know any of his other ‘statistics’ besides the fact that he was a URM.</p>

<p>As for the interview itself, like santeria said, it is evaluative as well as informative, and may have helped them find out more about you that wasn’t apparent on the application, as well as remember you when reading your app.
I don’t think it’s a deal-breaker, but I obviously can’t say for sure.
Good luck.</p>

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<p>Scratching my head here… you live 3 hours away and it wasn’t worth your time to drive there? On a day off? On a weekend? Drive with some friends on a Saturday and make a day of it?</p>

<p>When you visit the campus you learn a whole lot more than if you just read the website, and the idea that a visit is 15-30 minutes you can’t afford to spare…you can’t spend that time learning about the school in person, walking the campus, meeting the students, eating in the dining hall? And you’re within DRIVING distance?</p>

<p>I think if you’re within driving distance, and you expect that they’re willing to spend 15-30 minutes reading your folder (totally reasonable), it’s equally reasonable for you to visit at some point, don’t you?</p>

<p>We saved up for one college trip that required airfare, my son got to choose where, and he chose Pomona. We live on the east coast, he loved the school on paper, but we found the time to get there. It’s that important for the APPLICANT to see the school, if at all possible.</p>

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<p>You pay $65 for them to read your application. It would take 6 hours of driving, including money for gas and lunch to visit.</p>

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<p>You’re not paying them for a task, you are not employing them. You’re paying for a portion of the cost to run the admissions office so the current student aren’t subsidizing it. So if the applications swell by another 10K applications this year (remember U Chicago’s app increase last year?), then the school is not bearing that huge additional cost.</p>

<p>This goes right to the heart of demonstrated interest. $65 for gas and a day…that’s not worth digging deep and learning if the college is a good fit for you? Sounds like it’s not really important to the applicant. Sounds like the $65 for the application might be too much then as well. Of course, if there are financial issues, then that’s understood, but what we’re talking about here is someone who basically said they can’t be bothered, it’s not worth their time. If they really loved the school, it would be worth their time. Sheesh.</p>

<p>I am also surprised because around here kids literally save up babysitting money and get on the train or borrow the car and make visiting schools a priority. Plus, I worked in admissions for a similarly selective school in the east, and when I think of all the applicants who really made the extra effort and truly wanted the school for the right reasons…this cavalier attitude just doesn’t sit well with me personally. If you’re within driving distance, and you can’t bother to find the time, then … message received, loud and clear.</p>

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<p>@ilmkmom</p>

<p>You’re assuming I had a weekend off during senior year… However, I wish I would’ve known how important the interview is to Pomona so I could’ve made an appointment for winter break, even if I would have had to spend an entire day out of the few days I get to spend with my friends and family without having to worry about any responsibilities, driving…</p>

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<p>You’re paying to help run the admissions office, whose sole task (pretty much) is to read applications.</p>

<p>That said, I mostly agree with you. It just bugged me a little bit because I am in a situation where I can’t afford to visit schools. I just barely missed out on qualifying for fee waivers, so the application fees alone have left me flat broke. </p>

<p>But when it just isn’t worth their time I agree.</p>

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<p>How did they make the extra effort? Like I said above, I can’t afford to visit schools, but there are two which I really love, and I want to know how I can let them know that. If you could give me some pointers, I would really appreciate it.</p>

<p>Also, just curious, what school’s admission office did you work in?</p>

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<p>@Ilmkmom</p>

<p>Do you think that they will still count the fact that I will visit the school in february?</p>

<p>But also you basically stated that I don’t “want the school for the right reasons”, and that just makes me mad. If an admissions committee is so narrow-minded as to assume that I don’t care about the school because I didn’t visit so be it… But I quite frankly think this mentality singularly applies to you as a person.</p>

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<p>And please don’t assume anything about my family income… You obviously come from a very “pampered” community where people can make college visits a priority without having to worry about other circumstances.</p>

<p>babysitting money… wow…</p>

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<p>My daughter applied to a rolling admissions school that really wants people to visit, especially for homeschoolers (which she is). But the school is a few states away, and I really do not want to fly her around to check on schools before she gets accepted. Local schools fine, but not schools far away. She wrote on her application that her parents told her they would only take her to see the school after she was accepted. She was accepted :slight_smile: Try that, but do mention it. Tell them how difficult it would be to come up, but that you have researched the school (and maybe gone to one of their presentations, when they were in your area?) and that you hope to visit soon.</p>

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<p>OK, a few points in no particular order:</p>

<p>re: overachiever, I live in a pampered area…not so much. And as far as the comment on “babysitting money…wow”…yes, babysitting money. is that outside the norm where you live (just curious?). PT job money. People do it. My child actually pays all their school fees on their own with money earned from a PT job. people underestimate how important a PT job can be, and how much it can say about an applicant. And if you have too many activities for a 4-6 hour week job/babysitting, then maybe you’ve overloaded on activities? hit the point of diminishing return on activities? Filling out every single line of the activities section of the common app is not necessary and really, maybe not even advisable. Go deep, not broad. jobs are valuable in more ways than the pay.</p>

<p>re: another parent: seeing/travelling to one school…totally understand! essentially what our family did. he picked one, and for the others, he did everything he could to demonstrate interest. emails, online student chats held by admission office, school visits, contacted current students, showed understanding of the school beyond the website…and showed that he’d read the website and understood their expectations very, very well. you would be shocked at how the viewbook and the website don’t “feel” like the campus does in person.</p>

<p>re: manarius, i think? application fees…awful, ouch, miserable, i know. i totally agree and empathize. i can’t believe how quickly it added up. </p>

<p>re: yes, i think february CAN count IF you let them know NOW how much you are looking forward to your visit in february…write them NOW…ask for a class schedule for then…drop a note right after you visit giving your impressions and thoughts on how you’d contribute and benefit from that community.</p>

<p>re: where i work/ed…my child is applying to colleges this year (as did my daughter 2 years ago), so i am keeping that private for now. eastern school, admit rate less than 15%, that’s all i am sharing right now. if my advice is helpful please use it, but if you are wary of my advice without the school name, that’s fine, there are lots of great folks on the boards who can help.</p>

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<p>^ I appreciate your advice about my visit in february, but you need to stop making assumptions about people you don’t even know.</p>

<p>I’m DEFINITELY not a laundry-list applicant. I only have two main activities that I dedicate significant amounts of time to. I’ve held jobs before, and most of my school fees were paid off of my salaries. Beyond a certain point, a job in the food industry loses that experiencial value you were talking about and it becomes all about the money, which is kind of a waste of time for a high school student.</p>

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<p>I think the main point is being missed here. The reason this is important at all is because of yield. Pomona is a small school. If they miscalculate the yield, they may run out of space. This nearly happened to Middlebury a few years ago. This is why ED gives such a boost. It lessens the margin of error. They prefer to see you prove that you are interested so when you are accepted, there is a reasonable chance of you attending. This is not exclusive to Pomona. I think Ilmk is exaggerating. They won’t think you’re lazy, but they might accept another applicant if that applicant showed heavy interest. We don’t really know about SoCal admissions because it is extremely difficult to get in as a Cali applicant. Then again, the reason Pomona is 33% Cali is because Cali yield is high. I suggest joining the Pomona mailing list if you haven’t.</p>

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<p>OK, this last piece to ponder – and I mean this in the most helpful of ways, so please try to receive the information in the spirit in which I am offering it. And then I am done, I promise.</p>

<p>The OP is upset and said that I need to stop making assumptions.</p>

<p>Folks, that’s essentially what an admission officer does.</p>

<p>That’s what an admission officer does. They take the information that YOU HAVE GIVEN THEM and the spirit/tone in which you have given it, then they ponder it, they discuss it, and then they come to a decision/conclusion. </p>

<p>Grammar mistakes and poor spelling? Then the applicant either has sloppy attention to detail or they didn’t care to proofread (or maybe poor writing and poor spelling skills…neither of which are good things). Missed deadlines? They didn’t pay attention to posted info/deadlines, and the application has been available for months. The accidentally swapped essay ssay that winds up in College A’s admissions office that tells why the applicant would love to go to College B? Then one wonders which school they really do prefer, A or B? Even worse, what if you’re College C? There’s a completely skipped essay or short answer (yes, it happens)? Applicant comes up short on details and careful follow through.</p>

<p>So, take a look at the VERY FIRST post here, reread it, and consider the words written and the overriding tone.</p>

<p>I am comfortable standing by my first impression. Of course, around an admissions committee table there would be other folks there who might very well talk me out of that first impression, and tell me that they heard and read something different.</p>

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<p>The difference being that the OP was posting on a forum, not filling out a form that could potentially have a major impact on his life.</p>

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<p>I’m a current student at Pomona college, and i was admitted even though I didn’t interview. haha, I live about an hour away from the college…i guess i was just lucky though. I’m just trying to tell you that you still have a chance!! hooray</p>

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<p>^ thank you :)</p>

<p>What were your stats btw?</p>