<p>I noticed the thread about Pomona College, so I thought I'd make a similar one concerning Claremont McKenna College. I am very interested in CMC. It seems like the perfect school for me. I like the school's focus on social sciences, the consortium, and the social environment. However, my mom is wary of CMC because she "has never heard of it." Can you please share any opinions you have, positive or negative, about CMC to help me convince her that it is, in fact, a great school? Thanks.</p>
<p>We visited the Claremont Colleges and my Daughter loved it. As a Mom that would be sending her daughter half way across the country, I loved Claremont Consortium. It was very impressive and I loved that it was a group of students that primarily lived on campus.</p>
<p>If I remember correctly, McKenna is looking for students that have great leadership in addition to top notch grades & top test scores. If you are are strong candidate, do lots of research to see if it is an affordable option for your family.</p>
<p>During my sophomore year at Pomona College, CMC went coed. Pomona women were invited to live in the new CMC women’s dorm, to help them fill out the class. One of my best friends went to live up there, and she loved it to much she never moved back to Pomona. She liked the pre-professional quality of the classes. (she is now a bank president) The campus is kind of plain looking, but the students and professors are top notch. As for name recognition, Pomona doesn’t get much of that either.</p>
<p>
There are several hundred (or more) four year colleges in the country. Most people have never heard of most of them. What matters is that the school can teach what you want to learn and help you achieve your professional and personal goals. For quantifiable data, what matters is graduation rate, job placement rate, grad school placement rate, etc. See if she will be happier when you research those for CMC and show her the results.</p>
<p>Also, the schools that people <em>have</em> heard of are usually known because of their sports teams or because they’re the most famous schools in the country. Sports teams aren’t necessary to your career plans, and while the most famous schools can help open doors for you, their fame means that you’re competing with way too many people and getting IN is quite difficult for everyone.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>If you’re looking to go into the social sciences, the folks you’ll be applying to for internships and jobs will have heard of CMC. That should not be a concern.</p>
<p>The reason I was turned off from CMC is because its atmosphere was off-putting to me. Not only did my tourguides place a lot of emphasis on the fact that there are maids who clean students’ rooms, but they talked about the cleaning staff with such elitist condescension. For God’s sake, Maria is a person, not your bloody Mexican accessory.</p>
<p>one/two/three tour guides is/are representative of the whole school?!</p>
<p>IBfootballer, while there is no reason to doubt the veracity of your account, that kind of experience is completely out of character for the relations between students and the cleaning crew, and for all other people working on campus. </p>
<p>The biggest issue is that students are perennial slobs and the work of the cleaning crews is not always easy.</p>
<p>Fwiw, take a look at a recent exchange between students and Juanita. </p>
<p>[Juanita</a> Cleaning Services | Facebook](<a href=“http://en-gb.facebook.com/pages/Juanita-Cleaning-Services/160454560681466#!/pages/Juanita-Cleaning-Services/160454560681466?sk=wall&filter=2]Juanita”>http://en-gb.facebook.com/pages/Juanita-Cleaning-Services/160454560681466#!/pages/Juanita-Cleaning-Services/160454560681466?sk=wall&filter=2)</p>
<p>I’m sure that students don’t mean to act condescendingly towards the cleaning staff, and I’m sure that they believe they are acting respectfully and kindly. But the way that these folks talked about the cleaning folks just came off as so…blech. Just condescending and elitist. </p>
<p>Again, that was just my impression, and a lot of folks with my tour group likely did not react that way. But for me, it was emblematic of a campus atmosphere that exuded privilege. It was something of a je ne sais quoi (sorry, my French is terrible), but I don’t think my speculation was wrong, and I found the atmospheres of other colleges much more appealing.</p>
<p>As many posters have noted, few people outside the higher education community know about LACs, except perhaps in the Northeast where there are a large variety and long history of selective LACs. So for the average person, it is not surprising not to have heard of CMC.</p>
<p>When S2 was looking at colleges we visited CMC, Pomona and Harvey Mudd (he’s a Math/Science guy). Had lunch with a friend of a friend who was a professor at CMC. One thing that came through was that CMC is very much true to its mission, which in part “is to educate its students for thoughtful and productive lives and responsible leadership in business, government, and the professions.” So there are a lot of students who are aiming at business school, law school, government service (e.g. foreign service). Very few who would even give a thought to going on for a PhD. This is characteristic of the student body. If it’s a good match for your student’s interests, I imagine that CMC would be a great fit and a wonderful undergraduate experience.</p>
<p>Where do students matriculate to business schools from CMC? on average?</p>
<p>Any school that still has maid service of some kind rocks.</p>
<p>How big is the school? Equal men and women in numbers? Is it safe?</p>
<p>@IBfootballer - I think it’s irresponsible to post in a public forum such negative superficial impressions from a campus tour about a college, any college. CMC does not ‘exude privilege.’ Are there rich kids there - most likely - are there poor kids there, yes, absolutely. CMC gives some of the most fantastic financial aid in the country, as well as having a large cohort of Posse members, none of whom could possibly be considered ‘privileged.’ They also have a large percentage (for a top LAC) of hispanic kids which would make the attitude you reference even more reprehensible than it already is.</p>
<p>Was I glad my son didn’t have to clean the toilet in his dorm? Yes. But I don’t think that’s a service limited only to CMC!</p>
<p>yeah, well, my son doesn’t have to clean his toilet this year either, but when we visited the school nobody made an issue or point out of telling us that. i can definitely see why a person would be annoyed by a tour guide making an issue out of cleaning staff. </p>
<p>“reprehensible”?? u need to chill.</p>
<p>CMC’s cleaning services do not merely include cleaning bathrooms (as is standard in most places). They actually have folks clean students’ dorm rooms. </p>
<p>I fully disclosed the basis of my impressions and did not attempt to make them sound more authoritative than they actually are. I believe my impressions are correct, but I never represented them as anything other than what they are; impressions. Thus, my posting was not irresponsible.</p>
<p>Just because my opinions are scathing does not make them inappropriate to post in a public forum; especially one in which people are trying to gain an objective picture of the nature of the school.</p>
<p>Thank you all! CMC sounds like a good fit for me. I want to major in some kind of social science then go onto Law School or the business world. Any other first-hand accounts of CMC are greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>How hard is it to get in? Do Californians get preference?</p>
<p>For data on admissions, percentage of students who receive aid, percentages of students from California, etc., you can get it from the most recent Common Data Set (and then interpret as you choose!)</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cmc.edu/ir/CDS2010_2011.pdf[/url]”>http://www.cmc.edu/ir/CDS2010_2011.pdf</a></p>
<p>Eastcoast CMC parent here, sophomore D majoring in international relations. CMC has exceeded our expectations (all dimensions), and our D ABSOLUTELY loves the place. We may have lost her to California!</p>
<p>I also recruit at the 5Cs and have hired a number from Pomona, CMC, and Harvey Mudd…so I have met many students over the last three years. My firm has loved all of our 5C hires, and from my interviewing observations, the CMC students as a whole are consistently more extroverted than just about any other undergraduate group.</p>
<p>Xiggi, in case you didn’t notice, one of the CMC students in your Facebook link is the sister of Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook.</p>
<p>I will tell you that when my S now a rising junior came home for Christmas break he was also thrilled about the cleaning service. He told me any day …(I don’t recall her name) comes to clean I come back to my room and I feel like life is good. He mentioned how awesome this woman was and also talked about how the dorm took up a collection to get he a really nice Christmas present. I heard nothing condescending in what he said. What I heard was appreciation, in things he mentioned it sounded like this woman not only cleaned but seemed to care about the students and they cared about her.</p>
<p>At this point I can’t say how the next step will be but S loves the small discussion based classes and aside from strong FA the school also allows for grants for internships that would otherwise be unpaid. This affords students opportunities that prepare them for their next step that they otherwise might not be able to afford. It is a happy campus with intelligent goal oriented students. The 5C’s essentially sharing a single campus provides for a unique experience. I know it isn’t the right school for everyone, as no school is. For those looking for what CMC offers it can be amazing.</p>
<p>As a parent of a CMC student, I can unequivocally say that this school has exceeded all our expectations. I believe CMC is unique among liberal arts schools in that it offers a first-class liberal arts education, but, unlike other colleges, it also has a pre-professional focus which prepares students for professional careers and graduate schools. Students who are interested in careers in business, finance, accounting, govt, international relations, law and psychology will be well-served at CMC. The school also sends many students to medical school and other graduate programs. </p>
<p>In addition, the school emphasizes leadership and looks for students who have exhibited these qualities in high school. As a result, CMC students typically are very social, extroverted and ambitious. Most of the investment banks, consulting firms and Fortune 500 companies recognize this and actively recruit on campus. Because of the school’s focus, the alumni are very successful and very helpful with students. It is a close knit community. So if you are a high school student and see yourself as compatible with the school’s mission and want to change the world (I borrowed this from Apple’s marketing campaign), take a look at CMC. You will not be disappointed.</p>
<p>P.S. BTW, I have never met a CMC student who didn’t love the school, and I have talked to many of them. The school is consistently listed in Princeton Review and the Daily Beast as having the happiest students in the country.</p>