<p>I just got accepted at both and I really don't know which to choose. I've visited both and liked both equally, although I have had far better experiences with the Swarthmore admissions office. The drawbacks to Pomona are that I've lived in the area my entire life, and I always have to give a lengthy explanation about how I'm not talking about Cal Poly Pomona. The drawbacks to Swarthmore are the atmosphere (it might just be too intense) and the parental pressure to stay close to home. Both schools gave very similar amounts/types of aid, and the cost difference is negligible.</p>
<p>Can anyone help me with this difficult choice? I will visit both again in a few weeks.</p>
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Can anyone help me with this difficult choice?
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<p>Not really. They are two of the best schools with two of the largest per student endowments in the country. The are very similar by any statistical measure. The differences are largely buried in the details that may or may not be interesting to a particular student, i.e. an engineering department at Swarthmore or whatever.</p>
<p>I don't think the degree of difficulty in terms of academics would be signficantly different. There would be more variation in workloads between two Swarthmore students or between two Pomona students than there would be between the two schools. Top liberal arts colleges are demanding academically because the classes are small and interactive, so you feel a degree of responsibilty for showing up prepared for class.</p>
<p>The big differences lie with the two locations, which impacts a whole range of issues: climate, building styles, personality, vegetation, transportation, etc. So, really the decision has to start with West Coast versus East Coast. There are advantages to a school closer to home (although the easy low-priced Southwest air travel between LA and Phila helps a bit). There are advantages to experiencing a new part of the country, with easy access to Phila, Washington, and NYC.</p>
<p>It's really a personal decision. I think most people who get accepted to both visit and reach a conclusion about which they prefer. I don't think you can say that one is better than the other in any universal sense for all students.</p>
<p>I am from California. Sorry, I just can't imagine that anybody would choose Pomona over Swarthmore. Maybe it's cause a prophet is without honor in its own land, so to speak. I've had really capable friends who have gone to Pomona, but Swarthmore is probably my favorite LAC.</p>
<p>I know that's a completely subjective statement -- and certainly not as informed as ID's.</p>
<p>The difference between the schools seems to be the attitude taken toward schoolwork. 'Collarborative' can be used to define the environment among students at both schools, the difference in competitiveness is more within students.</p>
<p>At Swarthmore, students seem to put a lot more pressure on themselves, as the work is very challenging, and very demanding. It would not be out of the norm to have a lot of your friends spend at least one night of the weekend doing work. </p>
<p>At Pomona, students work very hard, and the work is challenging, but they appear to take their work a lot less seriously, and are more likely to be able to 'drop everything' and go out and do things. </p>
<p>As far as ability of students, you can't really split hairs between them, there is simply a difference in terms of attitude towards schoolwork.</p>
<p>my cousin goes to pamona and she LOOOVEEESS it! shes studied in spain, and shes made loads of friends and she's one of the smartest people I know and she's really happy there. she makes it sound like such a tight community..i don't know if that helps!</p>
<p>The nice thing (that you may already know about) is that the two schools have an exchange program. Whichever one you go to, you can always try a semester or year at the other.</p>