<p>I'm stuck between the three schools. I received Early Writes at Smith and Swarthmore and a Zollman/ STRIDE scholarship for $20,000/year and a paid research position for 2 yrs at Smith. I'm interested in Gender and Sexuality Studies, Biology, Anthropology, Literature, Middle Eastern Studies, and Dance (esp. Ballet), and am thinking about majoring in Gender and Sexuality Studies with minors in Bio and Dance. I'm a somewhat quiet person, but I would really like to branch out and be more social in college. I don't want a non-existant party scene, but I want there to be other aspects to the social life as well. I love that Smith is a women's college, but the opportunity to date and have male friends at Swarthmore and Pomona also really appeals to me. Luckily, I'll be able to visit all the schools before deciding, but I'm curious where the CC community thinks would be the best fit for me.</p>
<p>Sarah, First of all Congratulations!!! You have some very tough choices, but you will not go wrong with any of them. Not knowing you at all I very much doubt anyone on here can realistically tell you where you “Fit” best.</p>
<p>There are far too many personal and financial factors other than just an academic Fit that, my hope is that the Alum from these three schools will pitch in and help you get a better feel for each of 'their" schools.</p>
<p>Best Wishes in your final choice!!</p>
<p>As a Pomona student, I can highly recommend the experience here and know people here who study everything you listed (we don’t have a Middle Eastern Studies major, but there are many relevant courses in other departments). We have a lot of speakers in the fields of Gender/Sexuality come through and the Women’s Union and Queer Resource Center are active. The Claremont Colleges have a bigger party scene than Swarthmore, from what I’ve heard from someone who goes there. This isn’t so much caused by a difference in student attitudes, but rather the lower average work load and higher population here (~5000 between the five schools) . I only know Smith by its good reputation. If Smith ends up being significantly cheaper, you should talk to your parents about what kind of sacrifices they would be making to send you here/to Swarthmore and consider whether it’s worth it.</p>
<p>
You should have applied to Scripps!</p>
<p>I don’t think anyone on this forum (or really anyone but yourself) will be able to tell at which college you fit in best. After you visit, decide which one feels better to you.</p>
<p>All of those schools are very good and you can’t go wrong with any of them.</p>
<p>I do have one recommendation, though. When you visit Pomonayou should spend some time on the other campuses, as the 5Cs really do make each of the individual colleges so much better. I doubt that I would have applied ED to Pomona without them. I was also in love with Harvey Mudd, but in the end I was able to decide that I liked Pomona a bit better, and Harvey Mudd is a short walk away (and that I can take classes there). Plus, Scripps’ cookies are amazing.</p>
<p>lockn: I did apply to Scripps and am waiting to here back from them, but I prefer Pomona to Scripps overall. Thanks for the input :)</p>
<p>D ('09) considered Swat but preferred Pomona primarily for the Claremont Colleges consortium. Swat does have a consortium with Haverford, Bryn Mawr, and UPenn, but you have to take a bus, or take the train to Penn. There are other schools near Smith as well, but again, one has to take a bus. At Pomona, it’s almost as simple as walking across the street!</p>
<p>She took dance (mostly modern) at Pomona and especially enjoyed having the opportunity to meet CC students through classes and dance concerts. In fact, she sat in on a dance class to get a sense of teaching style. You might want to do that if it fits into your schedule.</p>
<p>Another factor is the weather. It’ll be much colder in MA and PA than it will be in SoCal!</p>
<p>You have the choice of three excellent schools. Good luck!</p>
<p>Little Mother, what is dance like at Pomona? My D has been accepted there and is a dancer but when we visited in September didn’t get a chance to see a class or talk to any teachers. Is it fairly easy to get connected to the dance department? Are the students welcoming? Are the classes challenging, fun etc? Any thoughts would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Hi, kathieh1,</p>
<p>D really enjoyed the dance department - especially modern. (She’s not a ballet dancer.) The faculty are great and the two I knew best were Laurie Cameron and John Pennington. Dance concerts are held in the spring, and they’re produced very well. If you can’t make it to the concert, you can purchase a DVD of it at a very reasonable price (I think it was about $5 at that time).</p>
<p>D developed strong friendships with other dancers from Pomona and the other Claremonts. She didn’t have any problem connecting to the department, and found the classes to be challenging and the faculty supportive. There was a lot of cameraderie in the dance department!</p>
<p>I turned down the Zollman for Pomona last year and am so glad I did. Pomona feels much happier and way more relaxed than Smith did for me. Pomona’s weather definitely helps with stress relief. </p>
<p>That being said, the faculty research part of the Zollman is really sweet. As I’m sure you know Pomona offers lots of opportunities for undergraduate research, but they’re not guaranteed first year.</p>