pomona college

Why I Defied, Rather Than Deferred

Posted on October 15, 2020October 13, 2020 by Nelia Perry

By Nelia Perry ‘24 I was excited to start college before even entering high school. I went on my first college visit when I was in seventh grade—okay, it was technically for my older brother, but bear with me. Watching my two older siblings go through the visiting and touring, essay writing, applying, deciding and eventually leaving phases of the journey to college I eage...

From 2,800 to 10

Posted on September 28, 2020September 23, 2020 by Sonam Rikha

By Sonam Rikha ‘24 When I was first asked by my program manager if I wanted to be nominated for Posse, a full-tuition leadership scholarship, I hesitated to answer. The Posse application process consists of three interviews, which includes group and individual interviews, where Posse staff and partner college administrators ultimately select a diverse group of 10 students fo...

Life as a Virtual Admissions Summer Fellow

Posted on September 15, 2020September 11, 2020 by Chris Meng

By Chris Meng ’23 Dear Christopher, It is with great pleasure that we invite you to join the Office of Admissions at Pomona College as a Virtual Summer Fellow. All the way back in May, I accepted an offer to work with admissions this summer. I feel incredibly fortunate that I was able to find a paid position that I was excited about pursuing. I literally didn’t know...

Favorite Foods: Claremont Village Edition

Posted on August 28, 2020 by Siena Swift

By Siena Swift ’22 When The Claremont Colleges announced in March that classes would be going online and I was packing up to move home, there were many things I was worried about. But one thing that didn’t cross my mind was how much I would miss eating food that I didn’t cook myself. In fact, I was excited to get to cook and bake again at home. But after three months of being ...

Picking Pomona

Posted on August 20, 2020 by Oluyemisi Bolonduro

Friends lying on grass drinking from plastic cup

By Oluyemisi Bolonduro '23 The following post includes four core reasons why I picked Pomona. After writing my last blog, Pomona, Progress, and the Pandemic, you may be wondering, "why this specific topic after you just expressed your hate for Pomona??" Well, if you read the post then you know I don't hate a lot of things, Pomona included! Though I will admit, this post is a...

Why I Like a Semester System

Posted on August 18, 2020August 24, 2020 by Danny DeBare

By Danny DeBare ‘22 When looking for a college that fits well, many prospective students choose to focus on specific fields of study. After all, we are talking about college, a place you go to study a subject matter. When deciphering what size and style of university (liberal arts, research university, vocational school, community college, etc.) fits best with a desired area...

My Father’s Dreams

Posted on August 14, 2020 by Ebenezer Mensah

By Ebenezer Mensah '23 When I read my admission letter to Pomona, the first person I thought of was my father. Born a few years before Ghana gained independence, he grew up in a society where education was seen as a tool for alienating children from their traditional values. His father refused to send him to school, but his mother enrolled him at a local school. His father a...

A Pitch for the Liberal Arts

Posted on August 10, 2020 by Chris Meng

students having dinner at a professor's house

By Chris Meng ‘23 “Why would you choose Pomona over a more well-known school?” As a tour guide and summer fellow for the admissions office, my peers and I discuss the most common questions we get during tours and other interactions with prospective students, and this is one of them. While my neighbors in Pennsylvania may not know Pomona, graduate schools and employers cer...

Coast to Coast: Journey from Uniformity to Diversity

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Sophia Augustine

Sophia and friends from Fall POP on quad

By Sophia Augustine ‘23 Realizing the uniformity of my predominantly white, suburban town in the middle of Northern New Jersey (91% white, 5.47% Hispanic or Latinx, and 1.84% Asian) was quite an infuriating and frustrating experience. Living in Mendham New Jersey for my entire life, with the exception of my family’s brief move to Southern California for a year, has provided ...

Early Decision, the Best Decision I’ve Ever Made

Posted on July 27, 2020 by Deanna Han

Deanna standing in front of Bridges Auditorium

By Deanna Han '23 October 30th, 2018 I took a deep breath and submitted my application. There was nothing else I could do; all that was left was the wait. With one click of a button, I had sealed my future — but I didn’t know that then. In 45 days, my whole world would change. December 14th, 2018 I rub the sleep out of my eyes and yawn. My heart starts pounding a...