work load?

<p>I have a few questions for the current students who are on this board. Overall, how is the work load at Pomona? How many hours do you usually spend for hw/reading/assignments per week? Do the professor curve the grades? And could you please just give me a general picture of the classes at Pomona? THANKS!</p>

<p>the workload really isn't too bad, and you can realistically (if you manage your time very well) go out almost every night of the week and still pull good grades. The grades aren't curved per se, but if the entire class does poorly on an exam, the professor will compensate for you. </p>

<p>The classes are intimate, and everyone seems to participate rather frequently. I just finished 4 classes, with 9,12,13 and 15 other students in each. </p>

<p>The small size of the classes and accessibility of the professors also contributes to making the workload easier, and even if its an obscure hour, and you don't feel like waking up a prof, you get to know the people in your classes well enough that you can always go to them for help. This is reinforced by Pomona's no-ranking policy, which really creates a non-competitive environment for all the students.</p>

<p>I'll just add that as with most schools, Pomona's workload depends a LOT on the courses you are taking. Some are just less time-consuming than others. And it doesn't necessarily mean that all humanities classes take less time than all science classes-- I had an English class with exams that required you to do all the reading really thorougly, or you wouldn't do well, and there was a TON of reading. It depends on the professor, and your aptitude in the subject. </p>

<p>But, unless you somehow manage to sign up for four courses that are all INSANELY hard (this is not likely, and you'd realize it when you got the syllabi, and have time to change to other courses), the workload is manageable. Most everyone who gets accepted does just fine.</p>

<p>are all classes like a midterm and final type of thing? Comparing UCLA and Pomona workload, which one is greater and more cut-throat?</p>

<p>Some classes require final papers or projects instead of finals. D has a class where she can choose between doing three 10-page papers or one 30-page final paper. Depending on the subject matter, field trips (either with the class or independently) can be required.</p>

<p>S went to UCLA but went to the School of the Arts and Architecture. His coursework was based more on product, i.e., projects, with the exception of his GEs, so he spent a lot of time working in the design lab. Also, his APs allowed him to skip taking courses in certain subject matter, so he didn't have to take too many classes a quarter (can't get that much credit at Pomona). On the other hand, UCLA is on the quarter system, so you end up taking more classes in a year.</p>

<p>Neither kid (has) experienced any cutthroat moments.</p>

<p>Although i havent been accepted yet, do you think Pomona would be a good college to go to for premed- comparing to going to ucla, ucb? I want a good education but not a cutthroat school.</p>