What’s the party scene like at Claremont KcKenna? Been looking for lots of information on it, but there isn’t a lot. I love an open social party scene and hoping to find that in a college. Is there a lot of parties at Claremont McKenna? Are they all dorm parties? Regarding the Claremont Colleges, are students able to party at any of the colleges? Are Pomona and Harvey open to other students coming to their parties?
I just finished my first year at Pomona and I had a fantastic time. I went out 2-3 times a week mainly to CMC parties. Because there’s no Greek life at the 5C’s, the party scene is dominated by sports teams and CMC (the unofficial frat of the 5C’s). All 5C’s have school sanctioned events and most of those events are open to everyone from the 5C’s (you just need your student ID to get in). However, some parties are for their one school only. Mudd has many of these 1C events/parties. You have to know a fellow Mudder to sign you up as an additional guest. (But don’t worry most of the big/fun Mudd parties are open to all)
Most of these school sanctioned parties have DJs, lights, food and alch for free. (Each school has an alcohol fund, so you can research that on your own time). The most reliable weekly party is CMC’s TNC (Thursday Night Club). TNC happens in various spots over the CMC campus and they are mainly outside in courtyards, their giant lawn Green Beach, or in dorm lounges. At the same time, there are many smaller CMC dorm parties, but those are private events and it’s awkward walking into those if you know no one there. Fridays are a hit or miss really. Saturdays have the biggest parties of the week and CMC frequently holds them.
After CMC, Pitzer holds the second most number of parties. These are either outside or in the sports teams suites (which get really gross and stuffy after a while). Mudd has a good number of parties, but because Mudders keep to themselves it’s hard to know when/where things are happening. I don’t frequent Scripps parties. They mainly have gay (LGBTQ+) parties which many of my friends go to and enjoy. It’s just a different social scene than the other schools. Pomona sometimes has big parties (but when they do they’re very inclusive). Many smaller Pomona parties are thrown by the sports teams and you have to know someone on the team to hear about them.
Wow thank you so much!!! I can’t even begin to tell you how helpful this was I truly appreciate this so much. This is an important factor in my decision and your response helps so much. Just wondering what do you mean by parties being dominated by sports teams at CMC? Do the sport houses host a lot of them? And are the TNC’s every single week? Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my question, it’s extremely kind of you.
Of course! I’m so glad that I’ve helped! Honestly, when I was learning about the 5C’s it was very hard to find info on social life. I meant that parties are dominated by CMC (generally) first and then sports teams. The biggest parties are all school sanctioned (aka not thrown by the teams). After those parties, the second most common ones are those thrown by the sports teams in their suites (these are a lot smaller). It’s not just the CMS teams but also the Pomona Pitzer teams. House parties are super rare.
Also, TNC’s are held every Thursday, but there are a few times when they’re just not worth going to.
I’ve been super happy with my college experience and the social life/party culture here has contributed to so many amazing memories. I genuinely look forward to the weekends every week. If you have any more questions, I’d be happy to answer them to the best of my abilities!