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College Prowler

Academics

There are definitely good teachers here, but you have to seek them out. I generally ask upperclassmen or people who have had the professor already before taking a class. On the whole, I have had more good profs than bad, and there are certainly some outstanding ones, but there are some less desirable ones, as well. You just have to be discerning.

Athletics

Sports are not that important here. We are Division III. Most of the teams have good years and bad years. People go to games not so much because we’re good, but because they know everyone on the team. IM sports are popular. Some of the IM options include ultimate Frisbee, flag football, and inner tube water polo.

Campus Dining

The food is actually really good. Both dining halls were recently remodeled. They try really hard to keep a variety of food in the dining halls, which some places don’t even bother doing. There’s lots of made-to-order stuff, and the food tends to be good quality. The Coop Fountain has really good food, too, if you want to take a break from dining hall food.

Campus Housing

Be sure to visit your prospective room before you draw for it. Avoid Harwood 189, as its only window opens onto a concrete stairwell. You should also try to avoid the room next to the dormitory door. When people are too drunk to operate the card scanners, they will often pound on the nearest window until somebody comes out.

Campus Strictness

The campus police are amazingly lax concerning the drinking and drugs. Essentially, anything done behind closed doors in a dorm room without creating a ridiculous level of noise will go undisturbed. Even outside of the dorm rooms, Campus Safety is quite relaxed. While I was walking around campus with a full beer in my hand, a member of Campus Safety once told me that I had ‘better chug that or pour it out.’

Computers

Definitely bring a computer of your own; you’ll use it a lot. Most classes require some Internet access, even if it’s just for e-mailing the professor, and it’s much more convenient to have your own computer. I use the computer labs for printing and scanning. They generally are not too crowded. The network itself often leaves something to be desired. It goes down fairly often, and I got a computer virus from it once.

Diversity

The campus is considerably less diverse than the surrounding community and the nation at large. There are different kinds of diversity—racial, sexual, biological, ecological, geographical—and Pomona can boast only approximately equal numbers of men and women.

Drug Scene

I heard a lot of people were into cocaine my freshman year, then I heard that it wasn’t ‘in’ anymore, and it all but disappeared. People seem to smoke a lot of marijuana so that you’d think that that was ‘the’ drug on campus. Personally, I think there are quite a few people who prefer popping pills and quite a few people who enjoy harder drugs, too.

Facilities

Everything is very nice. The school renovates all the time. Smith Campus Center is only a few years old and has lots of good facilities and resources for students, like the Career Development Office, Student Government Office, study lounges, two restaurants, a store, an ATM, the mail room, and even a small movie theater in the basement.

Greek Life

Greek life is a joke. There are two fraternities that are not even part of the Greek system. One of them has the same name as a national sorority, and the other one pretty much just gets high and drunk amongst themselves. It is perfectly possible to party at Pomona for four years without ever attending a Greek function.

Guys & Girls

The girls don’t wear much makeup and don’t generally seem to have too many eating disorders. The boys are mostly lame. It doesn’t seem that anyone was particularly hot at Pomona. Everyone is absorbed by the Pomona sludge and becomes ugly. It will happen to you.

Local Atmosphere

The town is quiet, and generally, it is an entirely separate community from the colleges. There are stores, restaurants, banks, and other services that college students use gladly and often, but they’re not specifically catered to the students. Visiting the other four Claremont Colleges adds a lot of variety to life and helps us meet new people. A lot of people take trips into LA on the Metrolink train, which has a station right in town. For about eight dollars round trip you can get to Union Station in LA, and from there take the light-rail line on your Metrolink ticket to places like Long Beach, Hollywood, and Redondo Beach. People also drive to the usual attractions like movies, the mall, and Disneyland. The ASPC office has discounted movie and theme-park tickets. We also have easy access to both skiing and beaches.

Nightlife

Parties on campus are good, with free alcohol. Off campus, well, LA is not too far away and has lots of opportunities for nighttime fun as long as you have access to a car.

Off-Campus Dining

There are a lot of places in town. There are traditional restaurants, like for Italian and American food, but there are also a couple of Greek places, some Mexican places, a Chinese take-out, and pizza joints. I don’t go into town to eat much, but when I do, I often get a boba drink from the Chinese place and a sandwich from Full of Life bakery next door.

Off-Campus Housing

Living off campus is really only practical if you have a car; though apartments and rooms for rent exist within a 20-minute walking distance from campus, there aren’t that many. Figuring out what to do with the apartment during the summer can be a preclusive pain in the butt. In addition, most Pomona students prefer to remain on campus, so finding a roommate can be tricky.

Overall Experience

I really like it, and I’m incredibly glad that I came here. We really have it good here. Although people complain about stuff sometimes, it could be a lot worse. The school really takes care of us. We have good food, nice dorms, tons of activities, an incredibly lenient alcohol policy, and a beautiful campus. I could go on and on. The one complaint I have is that Pomona doesn’t have the name recognition it should. Hopefully, guides like this one will solve that.

Parking

The parking scene is hot, though it can be a little intimidating for a newcomer. Most people park their cars in student parking lots, but some people park on the street. Sometimes people park their cars and then sit on the hood drinking and spitting.

Safety & Security

The campus feels very safe. Because Pomona is a smaller school, there is a greater sense of community in which people generally look out for each other. However, as on any college campus, the consumption of alcohol increases both the vulnerability of victims and the likelihood of predatory sexual behavior.

Transportation

The best aspects of Pomona College are small class sizes, caring professors who genuinely want to get to know you, beautiful campus, a fantastic array of courses available, and awesome weather. The worst: social life and Claremont.

Weather

I’ve taken the bus to and from the Montclair Mall. It just took about six times as long as it would have by car. At least having the transportation center just at the south end of campus (and a major bus stop at the railroad station three blocks away) makes the answer to the question, ‘Where will I catch the bus?’ obvious.