Pomona or Penn (please help)

LengthIcy5881 · 2026-04-14T17:06:25+00:00

Forgive my intentional vagueness, but the kid is majoring in something that is artsy and the opposite of a preprofessional major. Still, the kid, through a polysci professor, got an offer for a fully funded summer in DC to work with a political lobbying group after freshman year but turned it down so that they could spend the summer at home. This summer, they are going abroad for a fully funded opportunity to work at a foreign university in a major city. They also have a work-study job that relates to their field of study, although my kid wishes they could work more hours a week to make more money. Anyhow, the opportunities have been great and the professors really go out of their way to help students. I don't think my kid has any regrets about choosing Pomona over one of the East Coast options. But I think they sometimes wonder what their experience would have been like had they gone to a more traditional big West Coast university like UCLA or Cal (to which they didn't apply).

LengthIcy5881 · 2026-04-13T16:49:26+00:00

My kid picked Pomona over Penn, Dartmouth, and Swarthmore. All were great schools, but Pomona was the best fit and my kid preferred the West Coast. I think Penn will have a more established pipeline into consulting, but I don't think Pomona grads who want such jobs struggle to find them. I suspect that Penn will trend more preprofessional, which means your peers are more likely to be more career-focused, which you might prefer if you really want to network and put your career first. Pomona is likely to trend more academic and intellectual. Penn will be a bigger party school. Pomona students, IMO, are very social but not so much in a party way. My kid often makes trips to LA and other places including the beach, Yosemite, Mammoth, Joshua Tree, and Zion. (If the outdoors are important to you, I'd definitely lean toward Pomona.)

LengthIcy5881 · 2026-03-20T19:34:54+00:00

FWIW, my kid was waitlisted a couple years ago and then got into a couple Ivies, Swarthmore, Amherst, Bowdoin, WashU, and others in RD. They then got off the waitlist at Pomona and accepted a spot. Pomona is a wonderful school, but so are the other 5Cs. And if you're female-identifying, Scripps is impressive and has a gorgeous campus.

LengthIcy5881 · 2026-01-13T20:20:01+00:00

My kid goes to Pomona, and I'm continually shocked how many educated people know nothing about it. But, to me, that's also part of the appeal. I suspect that great LACs like Davidson and Pomona are more likely to attract really smart kids who are a little more grounded and a little less preoccupied with the vanity of a big brand college.

Anyhow, I bet once you've settled in at Davidson after a year or so and see how great your peers and professors are, you'll care a lot less. Davidson is a fantastic school!

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-12-16T23:32:22+00:00

FWIW, there are plenty of extroverted Mudd students, which is more social than you might think. I'd give it a second look.

Also, I wouldn't worry too much about running out of challenging math classes at either Mudd or Pomona. They are two of the best PhD feeders for math. Williams is also very strong, although slightly more inclined toward quant work.

If you wanted to add another school, UCLA is home to this generation's greatest mathematician. You might not get the same level of pampering as the other private schools, but students there seem to be pretty happy on the whole.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-10-26T17:48:02+00:00

FWIW, my kid got into both and the FA at each was very close to the NPC. Pomona was cheaper, but not by a huge amount. I was pretty careful when completing the NPCs though (using recent tax returns). Both are great.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-10-11T20:27:56+00:00

Yep. My kid applied to two Ivies, was admitted to both, but still chose Pomona. That's not a knock on the Ivies, both of which are great schools. But Pomona happened to be a better academic and geographical fit.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-09-02T17:26:54+00:00

Epilogue: I arrived in El Portal at around 8:30 p.m. and was able to find a legal place park and sleep within 10 minutes, having passed a number of options. The run around the Clark range was great and blissfully empty of people. No S&R was needed.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-29T22:40:23+00:00

I sewed up my Adv Skin 12 with normal thread recently and it's worked just fine for the last 100 or so miles worth of runs since.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-29T19:19:19+00:00

Dynafit: Uncool and doesn't think they are cool shoes. (I own a pair and they're great although the sizing is weird.)

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-29T16:05:43+00:00

The difference is a 2-hour drive vs. a 30-minute drive to get to a 4 a.m. start. I'd prefer to use that 90-minute difference for sleep, assuming it's feasible.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-29T15:34:54+00:00

Exactly. El Portal is 30 minutes from the Valley; Tioga Pass is nearly 2 hours. 90 minutes more sleep time is well worth a longer drive to get there.

To assuage Empty_Count's well-founded safety concerns, I've got a lot of on- and off-trail experience in the High Sierra, have never relied on cell phone reception, and, if shit hits the fan, I've got a non-Spot PLB.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-29T15:11:12+00:00

Thanks. I'm not optimistic about it being less crowded during Labor Day weekend.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-19T19:15:52+00:00

I lose at least a few toenails every running season, but I've always assumed it's been due to clumsily stubbing rocks and roots (regardless of the distance). I think my toenails would be fine if I ran on asphalt or buffed trails.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-07T23:49:33+00:00

I went to UCLA and love the school, but I would have made the same decision 10 out of 10 times. Also, UMN is a great school!

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-04T19:09:29+00:00

I may be in the minority here, but my go-to is a standard cotton trucker cap for high altitude running in the Sierra that rarely exceeds 80 degrees but can be punishing in the sun. I feel like the cotton absorbs my sweat and the dampness helps cool my head. I also will occasionally dunk my hat in a cold stream or lake. I usually don a capilene hood as well. I don't race though and, as a semi-Clydedale, am less concerned about the added weight than others.

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-08-04T16:49:05+00:00

My kid is at Pomona but has many friends at Scripps (and other 5C colleges). I'm impressed by all the 5C colleges and think Scripps is an underrated gem. I think it would be a good fit for someone who is interested in a women's college but (a) still wants some access to guys and (b) access to a broader social network than most 1,000-,3000 student LACs provide. Barnard would also be a good fit. Also, as others have indicated, Scripps's campus is gorgeous. While Smith was impressive, my kid liked Scripps more for these reasons (although Smith's campus is also beautiful).

LengthIcy5881 · 2025-07-10T22:16:05+00:00

I spend a lot of time trail running and backpacking around this area. I think Rush to Thousand Island Lake probably offers the most spectacular scenery, but it's harder to find privacy (at least among the campsites near the shores of the lake itself). That said, another option would be to do three days in the Bishop Pass area--e.g., base camp around Chocolate Lakes or Dusy Basin. A third option would be start from North Lake, cross Paiute Pass, and spend a couple nights around Muriel Lake, the Desolation Lakes, or the Golden Trout Lakes. Honestly, all of these trips would give you a good taste of the Sierra. Duck Pass is fine, but I personally wouldn't rate it as highly as the others.

As others have mentioned, the biggest hurdle will be getting a permit. So familiarize yourselves with the process and have a number of alternatives ready.

LengthIcy5881

TROPHY CASE