Are undergraduate classes generally smaller at Pomona College than at Columbia University?

The key tradeoff is that Pomona offers a more consistently small-college classroom environment, while Columbia combines intimate Core seminars and upper-level courses with the larger lectures and discussion sections of a major research university. Pomona’s undergraduate enrollment is far smaller, and its faculty-centered liberal arts model means students are more likely to encounter seminar-style courses early and often. Columbia can provide excellent small classes, but they are less uniform across the curriculum, especially in popular introductory subjects.

At Pomona, introductory courses can still include lectures, particularly in economics, psychology, computer science, and the natural sciences. Even so, classes tend to be smaller overall, and office hours, advising, and repeated interaction with professors are built into the campus culture. Students can also take courses across the Claremont Colleges, which expands academic options without changing the small-campus feel.

At Columbia, the Core Curriculum is an important exception to the large-university pattern: many Core classes are deliberately taught in small discussion-based sections. Beyond the Core, however, students in high-demand majors may take sizable introductory lectures, often supplemented by smaller recitations or labs. Upper-level seminars can become quite small, but access and class format vary more by department and course enrollment.

Pomona is the more reliable choice for a consistently small, professor-led classroom experience. Columbia can deliver meaningful discussion-based classes, particularly through the Core and advanced coursework, but Pomona is more likely to make them the default from the beginning.