<p>I might apply to Cal Poly Pomona because I hear they have a solid mechE program, but I’ve heard various opinions about their campus. I’m not necessarily sure if I’ll have the time to visit any time soon but it would be great to hear your opinions so I know whether or not I should add it to the list of colleges I will apply to. So couple questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>How’s the campus? Is it appealing? I heard it was in the middle of nowhere and the location isn’t all that great + very hot summers.</p></li>
<li><p>How are the people? I’m more of a calm and collected person. </p></li>
<li><p>What is your opinion of the school in general and how would it compare to SDSU or SJSU for mechanical / electrical engineering?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Alumni from CPP (many moons ago) and live within 15 min driving distance. First of all, CPP is not in the middle of nowhere. CPP is in the middle of Southern California suburbia. 20 min to Disneyland and 35-45 min to Southern California beaches. If you want city life, Los Angeles is a 30-40 min drive away. The campus is very green and hilly. It is a commuter campus (as is most Cal states) but has a large expansive feel due to the Arabian horse stables and agricultural fields surrounding the campus. Regarding weather, it is typical SoCal weather in the summer and since it is inland it can get hot. My older son is a current student at UC Davis and he feels the weather is pretty much the same as back home (here).
I cannot say much about the current student body, but it can be very diverse. Engineering/Sciences and Architecture are the most prestigious and competitive majors at CPP. There will always be a “party” group on any campus, but if it is not your thing, it should be no problem.
My husband works for a heavy civil engineering firm that actively recruits CPP engineers and feels that they have skills to be put to work immediately in the field.</p>
<p>I cannot speak for SJSU, although I have visited the campus. I liked the campus, but I felt the immediate area surrounding the campus a bit unsavory. I think it is a good school but completely different than CPP.</p>
<p>My younger son is a current Freshman at SDSU as a CS major. The campus is very urban but very beautiful with the Spanish Mission architecture. Although SDSU is considered a “party” school, their have tried very hard to dispel that reputation in the last 10 years. If you look at the party school listings, SDSU has not been in the top 30 for a while. My son so far has been really happy with SDSU, in terms of academics (only been 3 weeks), the friendliness of the students and the many activities they offer. The Aztec parents association sponsors many weekend activities on campus which allows the students some clean and save fun… My son’s roommate happens be an ME major and picked SDSU over a couple of UC’s.</p>
<p>The best thing you can do is check the engineering cirriculum for each school and try and visit to get the best perspective. </p>
<p>CPP has an amazing campus and its extremely large. Pomona itself is not a great city to live in, but the school is not in the heart of Pomona. The school is absolutely NOT in the middle of nowhere, but it is southern california. </p>
<p>The student body is extremely diverse. If you’re looking for parties, you can find some. If you want to chill and relax, you can do that too. The library is fairly new and is a great place to study. They are supposed to be opening up the brand new recreation center (BRIC) this fall, I believe. </p>
<p>I’ve never been to the other schools, but I did just graduate from CPP in June. I loved my time there and would do it again in a heartbeat. </p>
@slofan and CrazyForCollege: number one reason was too close too home. We live 10 min away so he felt CPP was more an extension of HS. He did like the program but he felt SDSU had a comparable program, more social campus and more CS opportunities in the area. It really came down to fit. His roommate is an ME major and finding the SDSU program extremely challenging and happy with his choice also.
@Gumbymom, your reply was very helpful. I was wondering how good the SDSU MechEng program was. My DS was accepted for their Honors program and we’ll be going to the open house next week to check it out.
@slofan: If possible, try to contact the Engineering department to see if you can tour the Engineering faciliities during open house. I do not remember if they offer tours during the open house unless you specifically make a request.
@slofan I have to say, I called earlier in the week asking the same question about touring Engineering. I got the run around, transferred 3 times - noone had any idea. Very underwhelmed thus far. Can’t help but think if everything there is the same way. They dont even have an admitted students day from what I was told. Yet another disappointment. I guess I thought they would want to sell their school like all the other colleges, but apparently its not a high priority as noone could give me the information.
@Gumbymom, thank you for the suggestion. I will call them next week.
@CrazyForCollege, that’s not very promising. I will let you know if I can get any information out of them.
Open house is next week so I’m hoping they can still schedule an Engineering tour for us.
