Combatting an Erasure of My Identity: Feeling Unforeign in Oldenborg

Vids in long skirt against glittery backdrop
By Vids Hingad ‘25 A ticket from Terminal 2, Chattrapatti Shivaji Terminal in Mumbai to LAX. A 26-hour journey. Four oceans in the middle. Before boarding the flight from Mumbai to LAX, my dadi (grandma) always used to put a teeka on my forehead. This red dot symbolized that, no matter where I am, she would protect me and guide me. Guilty of wondering what strangers would...
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Four Unexpected Joys of Going to a Liberal Arts College

flag of Taiwan on a table with sign advising not to speak English
By Serena Lin ’25 If you're a high school senior trying to decide which college to attend, you've probably heard the conventional Pomona sales pitch: small class sizes, “liberal arts experience,” being in the Claremont consortium, and good weather. But what does that actually mean? Here are four unexpected benefits of going to Pomona College. 1) Exploring One...
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A Taste of France in LA!

theater marquee
By Arie Lewis-Pugh ‘26 Last week, I had the opportunity to go on a language excursion hosted by Pomona’s French language resident. We saw the play La Machine de Turing about Alan Turing, the man who solved the German enigma during the second World War and is also credited with creating the earliest version of a computer, which he called “thinking machines.” Though our exc...
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Why a Liberal Arts Education Is Like a Thali

Vids and friends arm-in-arm, smiling
By Vidusshi Hingad '25 A liberal arts education is like a thali. I promise you this analogy makes sense—just stick with me! Just like the thali is a large plate in which a plethora of dishes are served, a liberal arts education is like tasting different flavors of areas of knowledge which eventually develop your taste buds to their maximum potential. [At Pomona] you are requ...
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Return to Pomona?

Leslie giving peace sign in front of washing machine
By Leslie Paz ’24 Crossing through Pomona’s  gates as a sophomore was weird to say the least. After a whole year online, my long awaited arrival to campus (and traditional entry through Pomona’s gates) was surreal and like a dream. My first few days were filled with excitement and just a little hint of confusion. To set the scene, I started the day by walking in circles a...
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Everything Oldenborg

students dining at Oldenborg
By Chris Meng '23 The Oldenborg Center for Modern Languages and International Relations is a handful to say, so most students just refer to it as Oldenborg or Oldie for short. Built in 1966, Oldenborg is incredibly unique to Pomona, especially because we are a small college, as it is one of the only buildings that combines an international student center and language center ...
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From Cornfields to Palm Trees

pig farm
By Max Ober ‘22 No one’s story at Pomona is the same. Hailing from across the country and across the world, we’re a really diverse group of students that have in common a desire to enrich our education and broaden our horizons. I absolutely love hearing other people’s stories, their backgrounds, and what brought them here. My story fits in among some of the weirder, niche ba...
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Foreign Language Immersion at Pomona

student making crepes
By Jacinta Chen ‘21 In a previous blog post, I shared my academic adventure through the six breadth of study area requirements to highlight how easy it is to explore many disciplines for Pomona students. In order to fulfill the foreign language requirement, Pomona generally requires students to either pass the third semester or higher of a language course, earn a 4 or 5 on a...
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Junior Year Semester One Reflections: Debussy, and a Memo for My Future Self

The gentle softness. A dialogue where the two of them find phrases slipping naturally out of their inner souls, flowing, overlapping with each other at times and pausing for a restful break at others… That sheer sense of indescribable serendipity and relaxation that render you speechless: a quiet observer to this brave new world where you anticipate the unknown rises and falls....
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5 High-Stress Moments all Awkward Language Learners Know (Oldenborg Lunch)

When I came to Pomona, I was determined to learn Chinese. First semester was super rough. Whenever it was my turn to read something aloud in class, I was embarrassed and flustered. So imagine how even more embarrassed and flustered I would be in conversations. (Un)luckily for me, language learners must eat at the Oldenborg Dining Hall a certain amount of times each semester, an...
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