Colleges Pomona College

Pomona College www.pomona.edu

Pomona College is a private institution that was founded in 1887. It is located on a 140-acre campus in Claremont, California, 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles near the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. Pomona’s founders envisioned “a college of the New England type” when they created this school with small classes and strong student-faculty relationships. On-campus housing is guaranteed and more than 97% of students live in the 14 residence halls, two-thirds of which contain single rooms. Pomona offers more than 200 student organizations. A well-known secret club called “Mulfi” has left cryptic notes with social commentary around campus since the 1940s. Few institutions offer Pomona’s ability to combine intimate qualities as an average class size of 15 with such large-scale resources as a two-million-volume library. “Ski-Beach Day” takes advantage of Pomona’s unique location: Students ski at a local resort in the morning, and spend the afternoon at a beach in Orange County.

Academics

Pomona College offers 48 majors and students can also take classes at the other six colleges in what’s known as the Claremont Colleges Consortium, which includes Scripps College, Claremont McKenna College, Harvey Mudd College, Pitzer College, Claremont Graduate University, and Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences. More than half of Pomona students study abroad through the nearly 50 programs Pomona offers in approximately 30 countries. The student-faculty ratio at Pomona is 8:1, and the school has 72.7% of its classes with fewer than 20 students, and an average class size of 13. Popular majors include Social Sciences, Biological and Biomedical Sciences, and Computer Science.

Special Highlights

Claremont Colleges. The founding member of The Claremont Colleges, Pomona is one of five undergraduate colleges (known as the 5Cs) and two graduate institutions that make up this unique consortium. Located within one square mile, the seven adjoining campuses are only a short walk from one another. Pomona students may supplement the College’s already comprehensive curriculum by taking classes at any of the undergraduate Claremont Colleges. The more than 2,700 courses available include intercollegiate majors and a wide range of language offerings. Although each institution is autonomous, academic calendars and registration procedures are coordinated to make cross-registration easy.

Becoming a Leader. Pomona students are driven, motivated and passionate about using their talents to the fullest extent, and Pomona College is equally driven to provide opportunities for our students to gain the leadership skills that will help them after they graduate. Pomona offers students with a variety of opportunities to develop their leadership skills in the areas of student government, student-run groups, residence hall and sponsors, outdoor education, academic research, community service projects, peer counseling, on-campus jobs and off-campus internships. At Pomona, leadership is about being socially responsible. It’s accessible to anyone. It’s a path, not a position. Orientation Adventure trips, led by older students, are just one of many ways you can gain training and experience in leadership at Pomona.

School Mission & Unique Qualities

Pomona College is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading liberal arts colleges, offering an ideal environment for intellectually curious students to pursue their academic and life goals. Pomona holds a unique role in creating opportunity in American higher education and is committed to enrolling the best students regardless of financial circumstances. To that end, Pomona College is one of a small group of colleges committed to meeting the full demonstrated financial need of all students who enroll. From the beginning, Pomona College has been a place of boundless possibility, opportunity and intellectual exploration. Its founders came to California seeking to create “a college of the New England type” on the West Coast.

Student Reviews…

“Pomona maintains a truly unique culture among elite higher education. Students here are bright and academically top-notch, but more importantly, they are genuinely curious about the world, open-minded, and passionate about knowledge and justice. I have been challenged academically and personally, and grown more than I could have imagined as a result.”