<p>i'm applying to mostly big uni's (uc schools and such) but there are some things i don't particularly like about attending a public uni (hard to get the classes you want, lack of connections with professors, etc).</p>
<p>i would like to stay in cali and go to a really good college, though, so i'm now looking at the claremont consortium. </p>
<p>what i'm wondering is: does it really give the social opportunities/experience of a medium-sized uni (like the size of the ivy league schools?) are there a lot of people to meet/things to do/etc? cuz the reason i'm not applying to other LACs is that i feel like it'd be suffocating to only have access to about 1000 people during my undergrad years. i want to meet a lot of new people at college, have plenty of dating opportunities, etc. (sorry if that sounds shallow, but...)</p>
<p>so can anyone fill me in about the claremont colleges in this regard? thanks!!!</p>
<p>I agree with everything you said here and want to know the same! Is it true that attending Claremont McKenna is like attending a a college with 5,000+ students or is it more confined to the 1,000 on the CMC campus?</p>
<p>My d is just a freshman but I would say it is and it isn’t so far. She socializes mainly with CMC and all her classes are CMC but that is gradually changing as she gets to know more people. Espcecially since she plays tennis, she meets other and through student organizations. I think she is at this point not actively seeking that experience but I think for someone seeking it, it is totally there for you. There is an amazing amount of activities and parties going on for sure.</p>
<p>Yeah, it’s fine. There are 5,000 people there at any one time - which are about 4950 more than you can really have in a social circle, though you will know/recognize hundreds of people. The thing though too is that a quarter of that number graduate every year. Each class year is 5000/4 = 1250 people. You interact with the 3 class years above you - 3750, your own class year - 1250, and the 3 below you - another 3750. That’s 8749 students you can meet and befriend. Some of my best friends from college were one or two years behind or above me. </p>
<p>It’s definitely not suffocating. I went to law school at a big public university and the undergrad experience is isolating. There’s very little sense of common identity, whereas at Claremont, because I was social at all 5 schools, i’m probably 2-3 degrees of separation removed from everyone i know. It makes being an alumni much more fun because you can feasibly network and enjoy spending time with other alum because you actually had a shared experience with them during college.</p>
<p>edit: People-wise, too, the people that were self-directed and smart enough to get into a claremont school are much more interesting and dynamic than the undergrads i’ve encountered at a big, v. v. selective UC. California has a big pipeline of kids that can do well in makework school classes and then get good standardized test scores and then they get fed into a good UC. But they are pretty bland, are used to getting along by a combination of grade grubbing, complaining to their parents/teachers/administrators if someone actually grades them according to standards, and generally the minimum amount necessary to get by. Zero intellectual curiosity. My friends that are PhD candidates, and thus TA at big public schools, have been apppalled at how many of their students are borderline-■■■■■■■■. That lack of creativity also makes parties more boring, buoth in terms of conversation and what people actually do for parties. At some point, drinking gets old and that’s when a mechanical bull or a slip n’ slide or a lemon batting cage really makes things better. I haven’t seen any of those things at a UC party.</p>