I Made It!! Early Decision Acceptance To Pomona Thread

<p>I'M A SAGEHEN!! I am so insanely happy. I got my early decision letter in the mail today (two days earlier than expected)... so I'd love to meet any fellow sagehens class of 2012. WOOHOO!!</p>

<p>Congrats! I am so jealous of you. :) That's awesome!</p>

<p>May I ask where you are from?</p>

<p>I said no CC until the 15th, but I'll make this post an exception. xD</p>

<p>^ Ditto! I'm so happy for you!!!!</p>

<p>Just out of curiosity, can any of the people who got in post their stats please? I'm interested in knowing what kinds of students Pomona accepts, and how much emphasis it places on SAT scores/ECs, etc.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>Congratulations KellMill! You certainly deserve this and will no doubt make an incredible addition to the Pomona student body.</p>

<p>Congrats!!!!!!!
Now You Can Relax!</p>

<p>congrats!!!</p>

<p>r u from the west coast? i wonder when we east coasters will find out :)</p>

<p>Our son received a big, white, priority mail envelope today. We are extremely happy for him! We live in the Midwest and it was mailed on 12-12.</p>

<p>aw no mail :( i hope that's not a bad sign</p>

<p>congrats pianomom!</p>

<p>We live in Maryland and my daughter received acceptance letter today dated 12/12. She too is insanely happy and we are so proud of her!</p>

<p>Congratulations to your daughter srsrmom! </p>

<p>Continued good wishes for those who have not heard yet.</p>

<p>Congratulations to all the new Sagehens!</p>

<p>have any east coasters gotten their letters yet?</p>

<p>My son is applying RD, and it would be great to hear from any of you what you think tipped the scales in your (or your child's) favor. Congrats to all of you on having your future set at a wonderful school!</p>

<p>i agree.
i did ED 2, and i'm curious to know what people's apps were like!!!</p>

<p>rainmama and lupe, I am not sure there is a secret to success. We read many of the Pomona posts from the last couple years and our overriding impression was that Pomona is much more holistic than the other top LAC's. We kept reading that they want to know the person, not just the stats. We believed this and figured son should give it a shot if it felt like a great fit.
After visiting, he knew it was the right place, and I believe he was able to express why he felt this way. I also think a great deal of luck was involved. </p>

<p>I wish all of the students here good luck and success with their applications.</p>

<p>My daughter will be there next fall too. :)</p>

<p>Congratulations to all who got in. It seems like a really special place.</p>

<p>I'll try to give some of my stats to satisfy curiosity, although I absolutely agree that Pomona is primarily concerned with who the student is overall and if they're a fit.</p>

<p>White female from Los Angeles area
GPA:3.97/4.57
SAT: 2260 M:770 CR:750 CW:740
SAT II: US History:780 Lit:790
My school doesn't rank, but I would imagine that I'm pretty near the top. There are about 650 in my graduating class.</p>

<p>Brief ECs and Awards and Community Service and Whatnot:
National Council of the Teachers of English Achievement Award in Writing
National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist
Comedy Sportz Improviser (competitive improv team)
Director of High School Art Exhibit and artwork featured in exhibit
Best Buddies Peer Buddy (working one on one with intellectually disabled students)
Food Bank Volunteer
Alzheimer's Treatment Center Volunteer
Latin Club Activities Officer and Historian
Many CJCL Awards for Latin-related competitions, etc.
CSF, NHS, and other smaller stuff like High Honor Roll at high school, etc. etc.</p>

<p>Also some significant extra circumstances (my father has Parkinson's and I spend a lot of time helping him with his illness, things he can no longer do, etc.)</p>

<p>I'm really passionate about writing, and I my think essays were pretty solid. I also had an interview which went well, as far as I could tell. </p>

<p>Man, it feels so good to write about this stuff without being petrified that everyone else comes across as smarter, better, more desirable for Pomona, etc. etc.</p>

<p>I wish all of you guys good luck and I really look forward to meeting all my fellow class of 2012 Sagehens! Woohoo!</p>

<p>Rainmama – I think Pianomom put it really well - there doesn't seem to be any single winning formula or clear thing that will give you an edge. My daughter just got in ED. Here's what I think I learned over the process. Most of it is really obvious:</p>

<p>Like all top LA colleges, they want to see:
• That you have taken the most challenging academic program offered at your school and consistently performed well.
• Have top scores (meaning with SATs, closer to 770 than 710)
• That you have a genuine enthusiasm for learning for learning's sake.</p>

<p>After that I think there are only two things that can really move things in your favor:
•one is to have done your homework and show that you really understand Pomona as distinct from other institutions
• and two is to present a coherent story about yourself. This part is a little controversial, but it's the advice that consultants seem to give. Most of the students that apply have the basic credentials. You need to present a picture that adds up to a coherent impression of you as a human being. That means the quantity of ECs is less important than using them to tell a story of who you really are. And the story shouldn't be false. The colleges are much better than we want to believe at seeing through the smokescreen and seeing a kid for who he really is. </p>

<p>Good luck. It's an insanely competitive process. It has really gotten out of control.</p>

<p>KellMill, your stats are so strong.. no wonder you got in!</p>

<p>This is so stressful! I have been waiting for the mail for days (I've heard so many different dates of when they apparently sent the letters), and I feel like if I don't get it soon then that means that I got rejected or deferred. :( Stupid mail! I have an important swim meet tomorrow that I have to concentrate on, and I'm sitting here worried about acceptance letters!</p>

<p>I guess I am crossing my fingers for a deferral, then...it'll give me a chance to add on to the application and perhaps take a closer look at the other schools I got accepted to. </p>

<p>On the bright side, I just recieved an acceptance letter to a school I applied Early Action to, so all hope has not been lost! :)</p>