<p>Hi, I'm asking people who attend Pomona or who are in the application process for Pomona. I've visited the school, and I love it a lot! It's my first choice and I would really love to go there, but my college counselor isn't being too enthusiastic. I get A's and B's, have danced for about 13 years, and have done a little community service, with plans to do more. I don't know about SAT, but I think I'm going to get decent scores. </p>
<p>How good were your credentials in order to get accepted?
Thanks!</p>
<p>Check out this thread because it should give you a good idea of where you stand. I’d say it’s pretty dang competitive, only admitting about 14% of applicants. Your “As” and “Bs” might be worrisome since “Bs” can put you low in GPA or Rank, although a B may be extremely good in your school.</p>
<p>Pomona is very difficult to get into for primarily one reason: it is virtually the only LAC in California with a top national reputation, and therefore everyone who wants to attend a LAC in California wants to go there (you can quibble, but CMC and Reed are not truly peers with Pomona, and Harvey Mudd is specialized). On the east coast there are at least a half dozen top tier LAC’s, and they compete more re. cross-admits (Swarthmore, Williams, Amherst, Middlebury, etc.). If you want a peerless LAC education, you should definitely expand your horizons and look at the east coast as well (although individually, each of these other LACs are also extremely competitive, with 13-17% admit rates and top notch applicants).</p>
<p>It’s pretty hard. Your GPA may be fine if your school is particularly challenging or if you’ve loaded yourself with the most challenging schedule possible. However, if you’ve just sort of coasted through high school, that’s a different story. That said, don’t let anyone discourage you from applying. My advice would be to methodically work on improving your grades, and to study for the SAT instead of taking it cold. Otherwise, continue dancing and doing what you love! Good luck.</p>
<p>" and therefore everyone who wants to attend a LAC in California wants to go there "</p>
<p>Which scientific study did you rely upon to arrive at this conclusion? I live in California, and even here where Pomona is more well-known, this is totally untrue. It is statements like this that make me want to delete CC from my bookmarks.</p>
<p>In case you didn’t know, Reed is not in Ca.</p>
<p>“it is virtually the only LAC in California with a top national reputation, and therefore everyone who wants to attend a LAC in California wants to go there.”</p>
<p>I think i agree with this statement primarily because most people like California and because it’s the most nationally recognized LAC on the West Coast. People who want to go to a selective school on the west coast don’t have a lot of choices to be honest. Stanford, UC Berkeley, USC, and Pomona are probably what most people cross-apply to in Cali.</p>
<p>Your GPA doesn’t matter very much. Worry about your class rank and your strength of schedule. Pomona is primarily looking to see that you challenged yourself academically and did well based on your high school’s rigor. But yes, Pomona is as difficult to get into as any other school in the country.</p>
<p>To poster # 8: I am not sure where to begin. First, Pomona is not nationally recognized and where I live in California is not anymore well-known than the other Claremont schools. Second, the other schools you lump it with are not liberal arts schools, and, unlike Pomona, do have national reputations. Does that make them better than Pomona: of course not. Finally, there are plenty of very qualified kids who would chose to go to one of the other Claremont schools or a number of the other liberal arts schools in Ca, because the school is a better fit for them. I don’t know why so many people who visit CC have to pump up their egos comparing the prestige of their school with others. Can it be because of low self-esteem?</p>
<p>^Because CMC is often placed as a specialized economics and politics school. I agree that Dad2 is mostly misinformed. CMC equals Pomona as a top LAC with an outstanding student body.</p>
<p>Although CMC is a top-tier LAC, Pomona is the only top-tier LAC with the “East Coast” style, if that makes sense. I could never envision myself as a CMC student. Dad2’s point does hold true for CMC, as well, as many people who apply to Pomona also apply to CMC and vice-versa (why both schools are 2/3 most selective LACs). I guess a better statement would be that the Claremont Colleges hold a monopoly on West Coast students who prefer an LAC, and Pomona is usually recognized as the most prestigious of the group.</p>
<p>Santeria, you are one of the few posters in this forum who does not engage in the “my-school-is-better-than-your-school” game. I enjoy reading your posts.</p>
<p>I noticed that Poster #8 is a sophomore in high school. I hope he doesn’t get too fixated with this “prestige” thing, because if he is rejected by these schools, he is going to feel like a worthless idiot. I have seen to many kids on CC who are devastated when they are inevitably rejected from these schools.</p>
<p>PrinceMuzic #3, You definitely just boosted my confidence a little bit.</p>
<p>Santeria #12, You articulated my thoughts perfectly.</p>
<p>Parent 57 #13, I think you misunderstood what i was trying to say. I am not fixated on prestige but let’s face it, most people prefer higher-ranked schools. Where i’m from, in Utah, so many seniors this year applied to Pomona for the fact that’s it’s a top ranked West Coast LAC. Both of these characteristics make it attractive to a lot of students. And when i said Nationally recognized, i realize that it is not recognized among the general public, but it is among grad schools. By the way, i’m a Junior now and Pomona is among my top choices.</p>
<p>In direct answer to the OP’s question, take a close look at the caliber of the accepted students for this year’s class posted [here](<a href=“Portal”>Error Page).</p>
<p>Not many kids with “B’s” are in this group. 25% over 780 on SAT. 25% Valedictorians. This is rarified air. Wouldn’t get your heart set on this school unless you have competitive numbers/ranking.</p>
<p>To the poster above - being from Utah might help you, but you mention that many kids from your HS applied this year. That can be a problem. GPA does matter, also. I know a kid who applied and was waitlisted a few years ago with perfect SAT scores (when math and reading were the ones that counted), 3.4 in the most rigorous schedule offered by a top prep school, music and film EC’s, plus sports and other stuff, started his own business doing web design. Another girl from his school had similar scores and about a 3.7 - didn’t get in. Probably 20 kids from their school applied; all who were admitted ended up at Ivies or Stanford, not Pomona.</p>
<p>To the OP: It’s just extremely selective, but you never know - your talent might be enough to set you apart from the crowd. I don’t know if Pomona has a dance program, but get in touch with the faculty if they offer interviews or auditions. Any little bit of leverage can help. By the way, being a girl makes your odds markedly lower than the 13% admit rate - which is the case at most selective LACs. Sorry :(</p>
<p>And Parent57, there’s no reason to prowl around the Pomona forum picking fights with anyone who acknowledges that Pomona, of all LACs in the west, is known as being quite prestigious. CMC is clearly getting more selective every year, so great. But it’s not up there with Amherst and Williams quite yet. I really don’t see what your goals are here. They are both excellent colleges that appeal to different types of students.</p>
<p>At the same time, I recommend you pump up your dancing a bit on your application. If you have any shows, awards, etc, to back you up, dancing is certainly something you can impress admissions with. You don’t need a 2300 to get into Pomona, you need to be interesting. </p>
<p>@Faux, I’m sure that anecdote is fairly common, but I’m sure students with 3.5s getting in is common, too. It’s good to be in the top 10%- if you’re in that range, you can have a 3.0 GPA. Admissions looks at your own individual accomplishments, particularly because how impressive a 4.0 GPA is varies so much in high schools.</p>
<p>And CMC is more selective than Williams, and practically as selective as Amherst. I don’t see a lot of evidence otherwise. As for prestige, certainly not, but CMC does a wonderful job with any objective comparison between top LACs. Same for Middlebury, Haverford, Wesleyan, Vassar, etc. I would agree that CMC science (Joint Science) isn’t as good, but most other departments are great.</p>
<p>FauxNom, I have been seeing your posts for sometime now, and you are one of the posters who engage in this adolescent behavior. Remember, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the great info! This makes me feel better already!
I think the the other Claremont Colleges are awesome, but their specializations aren’t what I am directly interested in.
Yeah, i’m looking at the east coast as well, which has some amazing schools, but I feel like I’m more of a west coast gal :).
It sucks that you have to take rigorous classes to be competitive- I would love to take drawing and painting, but am going to have to take physiology to show that i challenge myself.
Good luck to everyone else, and thanks again!</p>
<p>Pomona was created over one hundred years ago modeled after the east coast elite LAC colleges. It was time to create a west coast version that could compete against the east coast monopoly. I think they have succeeded quite well. This style attracts students who value this type of learning environment. CMCs style is leadership, business and politics with a conservative slant. (Not saying you have to be conservative to go there) If I remember correctly it started as a mens college with a clear purpose in mind.
All the Claremont colleges are terrific schools and each has their own style and mission statement. I imagine the schools choose students based off of this philosophy and who fits in best. Overall the consortium is part and party to the success of the Claremont colleges. This should be promoted by all as a value-add to both the Claremont recognition and to the students experience as well.
As far as I can tell the kids get along quite well, perhaps the parents should also. I imagine each of the colleges must value the united strengths this consortium offers compared to each as a standalone facility. And in the end it is the differences which make life more interesting.
Parent 57, you are the tireless crusader for CMC. Dont take someone elses opinion so personally. CMC is a great school and is recognized as such, it is a strong partner in the consortium.
I think your remark to FauxNom was a bit severe you do spend much time promoting CMC and thinking it is superior as well. Seems like everyone on CC does so…</p>