<p>I like a lot of things about Pomona, and plan to visit its campus next month (there is no admit day?). But I hope I get some feedback on some questions here</p>
<p>Pomona has excellent track record sending its students to grad schools. I'm really aiming at the very best like Harvard / Stanford or like to pursue a Ph.D. Do those top schools think while Pomona or similar L&S produce well-round decent graduates, but a top student at CalTech/Berkeley is more competitive in gradutate applications (yes, I know it's generalizing here...)</p>
<p>Another thing is that whoever asked about my college application, I said Pomona among others, most would react like "what?"... Honestly, it started to worry me a bit. No, it's not about vanity, but if future employers / interviewers are like that, what are my chances? A couple of parents' friends know pomona well and think Pomona is a top school, still, they're more exceptions,....</p>
<p>I come to this board for encouragement :-) Thanks.</p>
<p>I’m a student at Pomona. The “what?” you are speaking of was definitely annoying before I came. Especially if you live in California where the very-mediocre school of Cal-poly Pomona is well known. However, once you get here you basically forget that. My recommendation is that you really look at what you want to do with your life (major-wise) and then pick your best option. Some people say go to college and then figure it out, but if you’re looking at Harvard/Stanford for competitive graduate programs then you need to be top 100 or so in the WORLD in the subject. Pomona has its plusses and minuses. They are relatively well published, so I’m sure you can easily compare it to your next best option. If you have any questions feel free to send me a PM, and I’ll give you my email address.</p>
<p>We are wrestling with the same questions here. Since we are from the east coast, almost no one has heard of Pomona. So, do we spend all that money to come out of 4 years of Pomona with no name recognition or do we spend the same amount of money on Duke? It is a lot of money!!</p>
<p>I am from NYC, the first to apply from my 4000+ public high school to pomona, so I understand your concerns about name recognition. However, Pomona students land amazing jobs after graduation. A friend of mine is going to work for SoCal Con Edision and will be making more than 60k a year starting. Also among graduate schools Pomona is very well known and respected. The wall street journal published top feeder schools to the best graduate programs and Pomona was 13th, with only minimal percentage points between Amherst at 9 and Williams at 5. Pomona also beat out some Ivy’s and schools which have a much larger reputation.
Here is the link <a href=“WSJ in Higher Education | Trusted News & Real-World Insights”>WSJ in Higher Education | Trusted News & Real-World Insights;
<p>Don’t worry about the name recognition. The people who matter have heard of Pomona and respect it highly. Plus, because of its size, Pomona provides students with the opportunity to develop strong friendships with other students and faculty members. Plus, there’s the opportunity to work with faculty members on research projects beginning as soon as the sophomore year, or once faculty members get to know the students. It’s well worth the investment!</p>
<p>Any graduate school and serious employer will have heard of Pomona, and if they haven’t, its ranked extremely high. Name-recognition shouldn’t be why you choose the school. </p>
<p>To the mom debating Duke or Pomona: Pomona is a much better education- more personalized, more opportunities, and probably more fun. Once again, anyone that knows anything about colleges will know about Pomona. </p>
<p>As for graduate schools, if you really want to get in Harvard, you’re application won’t even be focused on your college or college grades, it will be focused on what you’ve done… like studying abroad, the languages you speak, your thesis, your independent research (much easier at Pomona than any University), your essay, etc. They’ll only look at your grades if they have nothing else to look at. Harvard, Stanford, Yale, etc pretty much can choose anyone they want, and you have to be completely amazing. You can be amazing and still not get in. Chances are you won’t get in. Thankfully there are other good schools to go to, do the research.</p>
<p>We’re from NYC, and the same questions are running through our head, because we get the same reactions- “Pomona-- i’ve never heard of it. where is it?” the answers here have been informative and helpful. </p>
<p>we’re wondering more specifically what kind of alumni network does pomona have in the mid-atlantic states, esp. ny-nj-ct? it’s a small school to begin with, and if most students are from the pacific coast, the alumni connections may not be great back east. my D was admitted to notre dame, also a great undergraduate-oriented school, and one that has an undisputedly great alumni network throughout the county. Opinions on this question would be really appreciated-- since my D seems to be leaning towards Pomona.</p>
<p>also, maintaining friends after graduation-- i’ve know nyc students who went out west, had a great time, and then came back and seemed kind of lost, socially. anyone want to offer their thoughts/experiences?</p>
<p>Pomona makes a point in admissions to have state diversity and has students from every state except Wyoming (definitely a problem!). I’m sure there are Pomona alumni on the East Coast. If you’re having trouble finding a comparison, think of Pomona as basically the Amherst equivalent of the West Coast.</p>
<p>NJ Mom of 2, I too am an NJ mom of 2, both of whom are at Pomona. And I graduated Duke. There is no question in my mind that Pomona is the superior school in every way. People in the know know how highly ranked Pomona is. Also, keep in mind where your child(ren) will be happier. Pomona is a vastly different school from Duke. As someone intimately familiar with both schools, I concur with Little Mother – go with Pomona!</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for your posts. They are all really thought provoking. My D was accepted to Columbia today. This journey has been AMAZING for her, but the decision of where to go is excruciating! Pomona is still very high on the list. We will be attending the admitted students day in NYC on Saturday and then I do believe a flight to Claremont will be in the cards for her since she has never actually seen the school.</p>
<p>Once you visit Pomona it’s going to be hard turning it down. Columbia and Pomona are academically level, the only difference is which atmosphere she is looking for (Intimate vs large class sizes, tranquility of claremont vs. morningside Heights etc…)</p>
<p>Pomona and Columbia are both excellent schools. You clearly will get more name recognition from Columbia but I would expect that both would provide comparable opportunities for Grad/prof school admission. The school experiences are worlds apart. At Columbia you have NYC and all it has to offer with a good mass transit system at your door step. At Pomona you are on the consortium campus with approx 5.000 students from 5 colleges with different personalities but lots of amazing students. Mass transit from Pomona is difficult to access to say the least so regular trips to LA are not possible without a vehicle. The campus is beautiful and the environment is stimulating and there are many things to do on campus. Class sizes are small, it is a very personal environment and it feels very safe. I can’t say that one is better than the other, it just depends what you are looking for. They are very different. If you are looking for all of the experiences that a big city has to offer there is no place like NYC, if you are looking for personal community environment, with awesome weather year round Pomona will suit you. Students at both will be academically challenged and be surrounded by peers with top academic capabilities.</p>
<p>NJ Mom of 2, I faced the exact same decision last year (Pomona vs Columbia), as did many of my friends here at Pomona. I spent a lot of time on the decision and visited both during their admitted students days. It was very difficult to choose between the two schools, and it came down to location (LA vs right in Manhattan) and atmosphere (small and very close knit at Pomona vs more of a microcosm of NYC at Columbia). Although I love New York and was drawn by ivy league prestige, in the end I couldn’t resist Pomona’s campus, weather and intimate feel.</p>
<p>NJ mom of 2-- we went to the reception on Saturday. We’re getting more comfortable with Pomona-- we no longer think of it as a school for surfers and people that say ‘dude’ all day long. We’re still reserving judgement until we go out and visit on the weekend of the 18th. I’ll post our impressions when we return. If you’re going out to visit please share your thoughts. We’re deciding between Pomona, W&M, Notre Dame, and possibly Wash. U. at St. Lou.</p>
<p>ayzdad – we are going to Pomona that same weekend. It’s the last school S will be visiting, then it’s decision time! S and I visited quite a while ago – fall of 2008 I believe, but my H has not seen it, so I can’t wait for him to see how amazing it is.</p>
<p>ayzdad, LOLx2! Pomona is definitely not a Jeff Spicoli kind of campus. Daughter is a very serious student and chose Pomona over three UC’s (with Regents Scholarships, including physics at the College of Creative Studies at UCSB), Brown, Cornell and Penn. She met some amazing students during her overnight including her host, who speaks five languages fluently. But of course, it has to feel right for your daughter, that’s the most important thing. Have fun during your visit!</p>
I don’t think I’ve ever heard my D or any of her friends say, “dude.” And she definitely doesn’t surf!</p>