I'm not someone who is particularly into Thanksgiving. At the risk of sounding like a party-pooping Grinch, I have to admit I've never been too crazy about the holiday some people claim as their favorite day of the year. I like the idea of a day set aside to give thanks, I love having a break, and it's pretty great to spend an entire day eating. But the American tradition o...
Read More
Thanksgiving in the Bay: The Ease of Transportation Available to Students
This post is going to be a rather quick one because this doesn't relate overly to Pomona but is something of a testament to its brilliant location! I'm from the East Coast (which I talk about in depth here), which definitely is an issue when it comes to holidays. Fortunately, there's TONS of the stuff to do on campus for any holiday, but I happen to spend my Thanksgivings i...
Read More
Experiences of an Education Enthusiast
I sighed, pushed my chair back with the back of my knees, and stood up. I placed one hand behind my back, looking down at my sketch one last time before diving into my 15-second interpretative dance. Fifteen quizzical faces - expressing a combination of confusion, interest, and delight - looked back at me as I used one finger to draw swirls in the air.
No, this was not f...
Read More
Is This Real Life?
I am pretty much done with my traveling in Spain and I thought would share some of my experiences from this beautiful country. The first place my program went to was Zamora and Toro. They are key places for wine making in Spain. We went to this really cool bodega (wine cellar) and found out how wine is fermented. The darker wines are fermented and stored for a longer period tha...
Read More
Transitioning From High School to College
College vs. High School… What are the differences? What was the transitioning process like for me? What might it look like for you? Before we look into these questions, we need to (1) recognize that every human being is so different from each other, and (2) remember the principle ceteris paribus: holding certain aspects constant requires us to recognize some constants in this c...
Read More
For the Worried Prospective Who Wants to Stay Substance Free…
When talking to international students, one of the things many were surprised by is substance use on college campuses. In many countries, Singapore included, the legal drinking age is 18 – lower than it is in the U.S. When we start drinking, it’s not with friends in a dorm room on a Friday night. It might be with our parents at a wedding, or at a bar with friends. There is ...
Read More
At Pomona, ED Does Not Stand For Early Decision
For the ambivalent high-schooler about to make one of the most important decisions of your life, let me alleviate some of that adolescent stress with my own humble suggestion: YES. GO WITH SAM TO PROM. Oh, and while you're at it, consider making the much easier choice about committing Early Decision to Pomona.
It was a dark and stormy night in the winter of my senior year, m...
Read More
Classes in Kunming
Browsing through Pomona's newly released Spring 2015 course schedule, I couldn't help but think about just how different my classes here in Kunming are from classes at home. The most obvious difference is that all of my classes are conducted in Chinese. Adhering to the language pledge, we speak no English at all. Another major difference is size. While my classes at Pomona can ...
Read More
The Epic Economics Study Group
9:00 p.m. As the minute hand was set to rejoin the number “12” on my watch, I found myself speeding up on my way from the Quantitative Skills Center (QSC) to Carnegie Hall. I was in between my Maths appointment with a QSC tutor and my Macroeconomics Principles Study Group session, which goes from 9:00 till 10:30 on Tuesdays, on a voluntary basis.
The night sky looked bea...
Read More
An Added Richness We Cannot Afford to Overlook
I still remember the day in mid-March when we were sitting down to discuss what Study Abroad required of us and what we should expect from being away. One of the statements that will forever remain in my thoughts is the following:
"Don't expect Pomona College abroad--if you want Pomona College, then stay here."
This was stated by Rhoda, the director of the Study Abroad Of...
Read More