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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Location isn't that great either. Very far from the beach and downtown LA, very smoggy.

It's one of those cases where "it's great because everyone thinks it's great".[/quote]

Basically the beaches are at one end of LA county and the school is at the other. DD really liked the campus - as well as Pitzer - but the drive from our hotel in Santa Monica to the Claremont campuses, then back in one hot afternoon was not lost on her. [/quote]

Yeah, it makes sense that the beaches are in part of LA county that’s … by … the … ocean.[/quote]

LA is one of the US' largest counties and is roughly 800 square miles larger than a combined Delaware and Rhode Island. Most 17 and 18 year olds don't know that.[b] They hear LA, they think of Hollywood, the beaches, so yeah, they are not imagining driving 50 miles from one end of the county to the other. [/b]

[/quote]

Why does everyone assume this is why a student wants to go to Pomona OR that students/families who consider Pomona do not know where it is located?  Perhaps your view if LA is beaches and Hollywood...but that doesn't mean everyone else's does.

Our child is interested in Pomona and the only way LA is remotely involved is that it makes it close enough to transportation so that getting there from accoss the country is not a nightmare.  They have no interest in the beach or Hollywood. They like the idea of nice weather and are far more interested in exploring internal land features of CA via trips while they are there (Joshua Tree/Yosemite/Redwoods/Desert). They like the school because of the small size of the college with access to 7000 kids over multiple schools. They like a place where kids live on campus 4 years as a community.[/quote]

Please. DC lives on the East coast and had never been to California, but is a creature of social media. So yeah, thoughts of the beach popped when they first heard that Pomona, which was suggested to them by their college counselor, is in LA. That doesn't seem so far-fetched.

DC ultimately decided they wanted a school that was not that far from home as well as easily accessible to the outdoors - right outside their dorm door. They are now at a top NESCAC. [/quote]

So you are saying that in addition to your child's initial misconceptions, that you would not have gone out to Pomona to visit and see for yourself what it really is? This is what people are constantly implying is true for everyone.  That's fine if that's the case for your child (who seems like they may have never applied? or maybe applied but it wasn't high on their list?).  But it is NOT the case for most kids that genuinely choose Pomona. Our child has been to CA enough for family to know exactly what it is - and never had beaches in mind.[/quote]

DC did visit Pomona as suggested by the college counselor. Thought that the campus was lovely. Also liked Pitzer campus. Was struck by how hot it was on the Claremont campuses and how far it was from the beaches. Try to remember - this is a 17 y.o. visiting CA for the first time, unlike your DC who "[knew] exactly what it is." Clearly a smart one based on college admission, but still 17 with a vision of CA largely shaped by social media. DC also visited Cal and Stanford a week later as suggested by the college counselor.

[b]DC returned to East coast some weeks later and came up with "the list" before the start of senior year. No West coast school on it. DC said that CA felt far and wanted more of a New England setting for college, which makes sense given their outdoor interests.[/b]

I'm not sure why you seem so triggered by a 17, now 19, y.o.'s thought processes. Given what I see in my DCs as well as their friends, this seems fairly predictable. One of my DC's didn't apply for what seemed like a great LAC for them because they hated the tour guide. I've read posts in this forum on other juniors/seniors making similar decisions. DC didn't reject Pomona per se, but the idea of being so far from home and in a setting that didn't feel as comfortable as what they were seeking in a college. We live in a huge nation with many regions. It should be no surprise that a kid from one region may be challenged at the prospect of living in one that feels very different than their home setting.

They're still kids.[/quote]

You are misunderstanding - I'm pushing back on people who say nobody knows where Claremont "really is". But this isn't the case.  Just like you, most people will go look. Your child chose not to apply based on preferences.  Others will choose to apply based on preferences.  The ones with "beach dreams" are likely to be in the former and not the latter.  There are a few people who always weigh in on this discussion as if people are cluelessly applying to Pomona with ill conceived impressions of LA, Hollywood, beaches.

Sure, no 17yr old really knows what a school is like until they visit - that's true everywhere. I have no beef with that.

But the fact that yours orginally had a different view, went to find out, and chose not to apply is just providing evidence for what I am saying.[/quote]

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